Intel Core i7 Extreme Edition i7-3960X 3.3 GHz 15MB LGA2011 Processor BX80619I73960X
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- Core i7, Sandy Bridge-E
- Clock Speed: 3.3GHz, 3.9 GHz (Max Turbo)
- 15 MB Cache
- 6 Core
- LGA 2011
Intel Core i7 Processor Extreme Edition i7-3960X 3.3GHz 15MB LGA2011 CPU, Retail Without Fan
Intel Processor
Intel Core i7 Extreme Edition i7-3960X 3.3 GHz 15MB LGA2011 Processor BX80619I73960X
List Price: $ 1,318.92
Price:
Crazy fast, but is it worth the price?,
There is no argument that the 3960x is extremly fast. Currently it is the fastest available consumer CPU, you can search many reviews and benchmarks and they’ll all tell you the same.
The one thing you should realize though, it is only a little bit faster than the 3930k, (clock speed wise it is only a 100mhz difference, and benchmarks have shown the difference between the two are fairly narrow). Just looking at the published specifications on intel’s website, you’ll find the two identical except for the 100 mhz difference and a 3MB larger L3 cache. Basically, for an average user, they would not be able to tell the difference between the two performance wise.
What it comes down to is how much you’re willing to spend for just a little more speed. The performance jump from an i7-2600k to a i7-3630k is pretty good, but the difference between a 3630k and 3960x is very small, and it can be pretty hard to justify a ~400 dollar price difference between the 3630k and 3960x.
If you’re not worried about cost, and have to own the absolutely fastest processor available, then the 3960x is your choice now, just don’t expect it to be blazingly faster than the one step down 3930k.
One other small note I want to add is that these processors (the Sandy Bridge-E processors), do not come with a cpu heat sink/fan. If you’re building a system, don’t forget to find a fan for the socket LGA 2011 for these processors.
The price difference aside, I love my new 3960x.
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|Very fast,
This CPU is very fast. Right now I have it overclocked to 4.9Ghz with a little room to spare. I use this CPU to do scientific calculations for work, which mostly involves multithreaded calculations in Matlab and Mathematica. Thus far my new machine is the fastest workstation I have ever used.
This processor produces a lot of heat, so if you are overclocking you will need to get a good cooling system. The only other con of this processor is the price. (Which will likely include a new motherboard too). For me though, time is money and my investment will quickly pay off.
For those reviews that say software hasn’t caught up to the potential of this processor (likely meaning games), I use every tidbit of processing power I can squeeze out of this processor. Its a fantastic processor for a workstation.
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|Chip for Chips,
Sometimes you need to just go with your gut and indulge yourself. I’ve been wanting to get a little Intel black box on a build but always let the price scare me away. This time I went for it and have not looked back. Running it in the mid 4’s on an Extreme IV board with water cooling.
Made all the differance, I had been struggling getting max resolution and keeping frame rates up on with my old X58 board and 960 processor. But this did the trick while still using my dated 5870 GPU’s I went from 50 fps to 84 and increased the detail at the same time. I am convinced the extra cpu to gpu bandwidth did it.
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