The Intel Core i7-990X Extreme Edition Processor Review
We were impressed enough with Intel’s Sandy Bridge architecture that we awarded the Core i5-2500K our coveted Recommended Buy award. Just north of $200, that’s a solid value. But it’s not Intel’s flagship. That honor goes to the new Core i7-990X Extreme.
Benchmark Results: Media Encoding
A third single-threaded benchmark yields familiar and expected results. Throw the highest frequency and most efficient architecture at iTunes and get the fastest conversion times to AAC.
MainConcept 2.0 can and will take advantage of a six-core/12-thread CPU. The Core i7-990X takes first place, but the final score isn’t significantly faster than the Core i7-980X or Core i7-2600K, really. All three of those chips do put some distance on the Core i7-960 and Phenom II X6, though.
We see similar results in HandBrake as MainConcept, with the Core i7-990X narrowly claiming the top spot.
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binoyski Darn, the contest should be open to all Tom's Hardware registered users even from a different country!Reply -
Saljen My friend just built a new gaming rig with the 980x as the processor... He plays Age of Conan. I busted up laughing when he said he spent $1k on a processor that he'll only use to 1/10th of its potential. Told him he should have gotten an i5, now I'll send him this article as further proof.Reply -
HansVonOhain This is just a ripoff by intel on those who are not knowledgeable enough that more expensive does not always mean better.Reply -
adamboy64 Well, some people just want the best when they buy a PC, regardless of cost efficiency, can't blame 'em. There'll always be that market.Reply -
cangelini binoyskiDarn, the contest should be open to all Tom's Hardware registered users even from a different country!Reply
Really wish it could be binoyski. We have specific tax laws, unfortunately, that prevent it. Same reason the folks in RI can't enter :-/ -
joytech22 Wow AMD's CPU is just getting plain-ol decimated in this review.Reply
Still, it does hold it's ground even though the architecture is like 4 years old, using the same technology that was around back when the C2Q's we're the high-end (the same as the original phenoms on a die shrink).
Because of this, I can almost guarantee AMD's success with their future CPU's, just like I predicted the 2600K would be faster in most cases than the 980X.
That doesn't mean I'm saying that Bulldozer will outperform the i7's or upcoming 8-core Intel CPU's I'm just saying that there's going to be some serious decisions for upgraders this year.
I mean look at Magny corus 12 core (2.2GHz) vs i7 980x, it's almost as fast and 1GHz slower (but 12 physical cores) and cost's the same.
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iam2thecrowe joytech22Wow AMD's CPU is just getting plain-ol decimated in this review.i wouldnt say decimated, and its cheaper also. That benchmark of metro 2033 is interesting, particularly the better lowfps the AMD chip managed. But i agree they have flogged this horse as far as it will go and they need bulldozer ASAP to be competitive.Reply -
haplo602 HansVonOhainThis is just a ripoff by intel on those who are not knowledgeable enough that more expensive does not always mean better.Reply
I thought that's what Intel is doing with all of their CPUs :-)