Intel Ivy Bridge-E Core i7-4960X IPC and OCing Review @ [H]

Another product, that doesn't make sense to upgrade to.

Seems more the same, if your building a new system it makes sense to go with the new product, but doesn't make much sense to replace a 3960x with a 4960x, Well unless you have a unlimited budget.

I guess it won't be until 2015 when upgrading makes sense.
 
Feels like I've been saying this for years, but another line of CPUs that doesn't make me feel like its worth upgrading from my 920.

Guess I'll wait for the next one, haswell-e, and hope thats a bit more tempting.
 
Why didnt you test the Memory controller on this chip with some High Frequency ram? Isn't the IMC one of the improvements over sandy. G.skill will be showing off some extreme ram on IVY-E in September at IDT13. You should have stuck some 2666 or 2800 on there with the cpu overclocked and compared that with the stock/4.5clocks with 1866 memory.
 
Gonna upgrade my 3820 to 4820k. Only game on this rig so don't rally need the 6 core
 
Tgrove said:
Gonna upgrade my 3820 to 4820k. Only game on this rig so don't rally need the 6 core
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Why not just overclock the 3820? You should be able to lock the multiplier at 38 and bump up the bclk to around 130.

Mine does 4.9Ghz with the multiplier @38 and the bclk at 129.

Pretty sure I am limited by bclk with mine as it doesn't matter what I set the multiplier at, the bclk is not stable any higher.

Only pumping 1.35v through it as well.
 
LigTasm said:
Can't read the review again... guess I'll have to wait until I go home because IE7 won't even open the review side of the site.




Man, what 3930k have you been getting? Average chips will do 4.5-4.6 at 1.45V, a really good chip will do 4.8 and a golden one might do 5.0+. I'm on chip #5 and it seems to be somewhere between very good and golden but my motherboard can't handle it past 4.7ghz at 1.400V.

Interestingly all 3 3820 that I've had did 5.0+ easily. I'm curious how the 4820k will do.
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I was thinking the same thing. With my water loop I've never seen the processor over 80C but my 3930k just will not stay stable at 4.7 under 1.45V... but it has been perfectly fine at 4.6 1.38V pretty much since launch in 2011.
 
Boggins said:
My uneducated guess is that Haswell-E won't offer massive performances over the previous generation either (single digit % per core), but merely add two cores. Maybe that's just my cynicism from being disappointed over and over again.
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Yes but I would be going from Westmere to Haswell E not coming from SB-E or IVY-E

So I will gain like a 30 percent boost in IPC alone it will be a worthwhile upgrade coming from first Gen i7
 
cyclone3d said:
Why not just overclock the 3820? You should be able to lock the multiplier at 38 and bump up the bclk to around 130.

Mine does 4.9Ghz with the multiplier @38 and the bclk at 129.

Pretty sure I am limited by bclk with mine as it doesn't matter what I set the multiplier at, the bclk is not stable any higher.

Only pumping 1.35v through it as well.
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That is a really good chip. I had limited success with BCLK so I used the 1.25 strap x 40 on mine for 5.0, perfectly stable 24/7.
 
No true eight core extreme edition processor yet because AMD has not put out anything that would compete with intel. Perhaps Haswell Extreme when that is released next ear? My 4770k is just fine for the time being with my adobe and maya apps.
 
cyclone3d said:
Why not just overclock the 3820? You should be able to lock the multiplier at 38 and bump up the bclk to around 130.

Mine does 4.9Ghz with the multiplier @38 and the bclk at 129.

Pretty sure I am limited by bclk with mine as it doesn't matter what I set the multiplier at, the bclk is not stable any higher.

Only pumping 1.35v through it as well.
Click to expand...

Your doing that on a noctua dh14? I think ill give that's try
 
Excellent review, as usual.
Sheppard said:
Why didnt you test the Memory controller on this chip with some High Frequency ram? Isn't the IMC one of the improvements over sandy. G.skill will be showing off some extreme ram on IVY-E in September at IDT13. You should have stuck some 2666 or 2800 on there with the cpu overclocked and compared that with the stock/4.5clocks with 1866 memory.
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Agree.
The Cobra said:
No true eight core extreme edition processor yet because AMD has not put out anything that would compete with intel. Perhaps Haswell Extreme when that is released next ear? My 4770k is just fine for the time being with my adobe and maya apps.
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There will be an eight core haswell-e chip, next year. Or early 2015, if haswell-e gets delayed (rumors).
 
Tgrove said:
Gonna upgrade my 3820 to 4820k. Only game on this rig so don't rally need the 6 core
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For 300-350$ if your primary concern is gaming, might want to pick up another video card or a new video card. Your money would be better spent.
 
wow -- I'm still using my 2500K sandy bridge and haven't felt the need to upgrade in the slightest -- even pushing two 7970s and soon to be 2560x1440p BF4 :)
 
Intel definitely needs some new competition, because this is getting ridiculous, and don't even get me started on AMD. It's like Intel doesn't even care about new innovation anymore, with performance levels like this... man the industry needs an identity crisis or a god damn quantum computer.
 
ebduncan said:
For 300-350$ if your primary concern is gaming, might want to pick up another video card or a new video card. Your money would be better spent.
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Well if I sold the 3820 I would only spend about $100. I have a gtx 690 right now but I plan to sell it to cover the cost of a 780 and just buy another. Maybe ill just put it towards that then
 
I cannot understand "enthusiasts". If intell kills X79 after one round of processors there would be an uproar. They do the logical thing and release an incrementally better chip with lower power consumption better IPC, native pci-e 3.0 and a MUCH better memory controller, and people still freak out and complain that haswell-e isnt here yet with ddr4 and all that jazz.
Just because haswell-e is using haswell technology dont get it confused with haswell on 1150. Haswell-e brings new features that need to be integrated on die, its an altogether different processor. One with technology that is not ready for prime time.

Quit passing quick judgment, wait for some real overclockers to get ahold of this thing. Lets see what the memory controller is capable of and lets see what clocks look like on an overclock oriented board like the rampage iv extreme with some good watercooling.
"Just Take it Easy Mannnnn"
 
Tgrove said:
Your doing that on a noctua dh14? I think ill give that's try
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Yep. Fan setup is not stock though. I am using 2x 120mm fans.. one on each side, to blow the air into the middle. Works a lot better than cooling half of it with the hot air from the other half of it.

With my old case I had set it up at one point with ducking and another fan to suck the hot air out of the middle to vent it out of the case. That dropped the temps a couple more degrees as well. But it was pretty impossible to do anything inside the case so I took the ducting off.
 
Kyle,

Great review as always.

WoW could possibly be a good game for cpu benchmarks. My 920 sure lagged like hell in some big raids which is one reason I now have my 4770k. I'd be interested to see if more cores would make a difference especially since I want to get a 120Hz monitor in the near future.

Haswell does indeed seem to look a little more favorable now than at launch doesn't it? Hopefully this will let Haswell-E (aside from the updated platform) be a bigger improvement than IB-E was.


And to anyone:

Lastly do we have any AutoCAD people here? I was hoping an [H]'er would have first hand experience on performance difference between 4 and 6 core i7s.
 
Ultima99 said:
Kyle,

Great review as always.

WoW could possibly be a good game for cpu benchmarks. My 920 sure lagged like hell in some big raids which is one reason I now have my 4770k. I'd be interested to see if more cores would make a difference especially since I want to get a 120Hz monitor in the near future.

Haswell does indeed seem to look a little more favorable now than at launch doesn't it? Hopefully this will let Haswell-E (aside from the updated platform) be a bigger improvement than IB-E was.


And to anyone:

Lastly do we have any AutoCAD people here? I was hoping an [H]'er would have first hand experience on performance difference between 4 and 6 core i7s.
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I would love some AutoCad benches, more specifically solid edge st5, or st4. I work in these programs 5-8 hours a day.
 
Heh, I like that you use the word "propaganda" for the information Intel give out.
So I guess I'm just going to get a i7 Gulftown and call it a day.
 
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Thanks for the review Kyle.

It looks like we're hitting a performance wall (or we seem to be). Sandy Bridge was the last "major" improvement. The best 920s could clear maybe 4.0-4.3 GHz. The top 2600ks could do around 4.7 GHz to 5.2 GHz, which factored in with a 10% IPC wasn't too shabby. Ivy E wasn't much of an improvement and neither is this "E" edition, which assuming all of the chips are like this, may even be a bit slower than the Sandy E. Many of the Sandy E chips could go from 4.5 to 5.0 GHz, so even factoring in a 3-5% IPC increase ... it's not much. The only real benefit is a somewhat better power consumption.

Does anybody else get this sinking feeling that Haswell E will be underwhelming too? I mean, we know that Intel plans to go 8 core, but at the same time, the VR is going to be integrated onto the chip itself (which in turn may limit the OC potential).
 
Do you have to return the cpu to intel? why not just try and push some extreme voltage/push the limits of the cooling? anyway, the SB-E was supposed to be able to handle like what, up to like 1.45-1.5v before degradation, and at any rate it will be okay as long as it doesn't overheat and doesn't sit like that for a long time.

the reason i ask is that i am currently amassing high-end watercooling gear (currently have 2x480 rads, may add a 240 and a modded reserator), and i have yet to purchase any actual computer components and i was seriously considering buying a 4930k and just not upgrading for several years


EDIT: didnt see kyle said it wouldnt post at 4900 @ 1.53. that is just horrifying and sad. Perhaps these new chips can handle much higher voltage than the SB-E's due to the 22nm process and lower heat??
 
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A little question would there be Asus X79 Pro board in that nice Gold and black colors? Kyle have you heard any rumors?

Yes I know I'm in minority, I also like Indian Lila T-shirt. But I want to avoid situation when I'd grab normal board and find there is a new one few days later. Also NO on board WiFi is a BIG advantage.
 
Anyone know if the slight change in bclk overclocking will carry through to any of the 8-10 core xeon parts or are they still limited due to the chipset/2nd QPI? I'd trade in a 4.8 3930K for a 4.5 octocore (or 2 quad 2p parts) anyday.
 
Kyle, when I read "the Core i7-4960X, this time with Ivy Bridge architecture and a couple of extra cores thrown in for good measure" I almost peed my pants. I thought you meant 2 extra from previous generation for a total of 8cores.

All I can say is "fuckfuckFUUUUUUUCK".

I think I will buy the 4930k to replace my engineering sample and be happy with the lower power profile and ability to use the latest bios for my mobo.

Great job on the review. And the lack of bullshit is why this site is still King.

PS in case some of you might be thinking, no I don't need 8 cores, pure e-peen [H]ardon joy, and shits and giggles.
 
Okay guys i need your input, I want to upgrade because ive been wanting to for a long time but i dont think i will see any noticeable difference in gameplay.
2600K at 4800Mhz, 16 gigs of ram running at 2133, 3 Evga 780s 1150/7000 in TRI-SLI, Moniter is a LG 29in UltraWide 2560X1080P
So i really want the native PCI express 3.0 and 6 cores, Im strictly gaming so my Brain is telling me to hold off 1 more Cycle for Haswell-E and just do a full upgrade then, What you think?
 
Marcdaddy said:
Okay guys i need your input, I want to upgrade because ive been wanting to for a long time but i dont think i will see any noticeable difference in gameplay.
2600K at 4800Mhz, 16 gigs of ram running at 2133, 3 Evga 780s 1150/7000 in TRI-SLI, Moniter is a LG 29in UltraWide 2560X1080P
So i really want the native PCI express 3.0 and 6 cores, Im strictly gaming so my Brain is telling me to hold off 1 more Cycle for Haswell-E and just do a full upgrade then, What you think?
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hold for Haswell-E. listen to your brain.. your chip at 4800 its rock solid, you will not notice improvement over gameplay due to CPU. the only really improvement will comes with the 40 PCI-E lanes and PCI-E 3.0.. and its not so much what are you loosing specially with that resolution, talking about 7680x1600, well thats another history for the 780s.
 
Marcdaddy said:
Okay guys i need your input, I want to upgrade because ive been wanting to for a long time but i dont think i will see any noticeable difference in gameplay.
2600K at 4800Mhz, 16 gigs of ram running at 2133, 3 Evga 780s 1150/7000 in TRI-SLI, Moniter is a LG 29in UltraWide 2560X1080P
So i really want the native PCI express 3.0 and 6 cores, Im strictly gaming so my Brain is telling me to hold off 1 more Cycle for Haswell-E and just do a full upgrade then, What you think?
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You already have a 2600k.

Hold out for Haswell-E. It'll be a LONG while but worth it.
 
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