Intel Core i7 4960X Extreme Edition Processor Review

Test Procedures And Test Systems

We run the below benchmarks, tests and calculations as part of our CPU reviews. All the methods settings and procedures detailed below are held constant for all CPUs included in the graphs. This means all results are comparable and the only changed testing parameters are the CPU and motherboard.

• Cinebench R11.5 Single and Multi-Threaded Benchmarks
• Super Pi V1.1 4Million Calculation
• WinRar V5 Beta 8 Benchmark – 500MB average
• AIDA 64 Extreme Edition – Memory and Cache, CPU Queen, CPU PhotoWorxx and CPU Hash tests
• 3DMark 11 – Performance And Extreme pre-set tests
• 3DMark 13 – Performance And Extreme FireStrike Pre-set tests
• PCMark7 V1.4 – PCMark Suite only
• BioShock Infinite – Benchmarking utility; settings 3 then 2 (read: Ultra) and at 1920 x 1080
• Metro Last Light – Benchmarking utility; settings (DX11/1920×1080/Very High/ AF4X/ Normal Shadows/ Normal Tessellation/ No SSAA/ Sequence D6/ Runs 1/ No PhysX)
• Power consumption – Idle power consumption is measured with 0% system usage at the Windows 7 desktop over a 5 minute period. Load power consumption is measured with AIDA 64’s Extreme Edition CPU Stress test running for 5 minutes. The power is measured at system-level at the wall via a killawatt meter. By holding the power consumption of all other components to a stable low level CPU power consumption can be derived from the system results.
• Temperatures – Are measured after 5 minutes of system idle at the Windows 7 desktop. Load temperatures are measured after 5 minutes of AIDA 64 Extreme Edition CPU stress test. These temperatures are converted into deltas when inserted into the graphs (Delta  temperature = Actual recorded temperature – ambient room temperature). The ambient temperature recorded with digital thermometer in fixed location.

We have three test systems for each of the main sockets of comparison in this review; LGA 2011, AM3+ and LGA 1150.

Intel LGA 2011 Test System

• Motherboard – Asus Rampage IV Extreme X79
• Processor – Intel Core i7 3960X (at stock with Turbo enabled and OC at 4.6GHz with 1.375 volts) and Intel Core i7 4960X (at stock with Turbo enabled and OC at 4.5GHz with 1.4 volts)
• RAM – Corsair Vengeance Pro 1866MHz 9-10-9-27-2T (4 X 8GB) (four DIMMs necessary for quad channel)
• Graphics Card – Reference AMD HD 7950 (Non-Boost variant @ stock clocks)
• CPU Cooler – Corsair H100i with Quiet Fan Profile and Noctua NT-H1 Thermal Paste
• Power Supply – Corsair HX1050W
• Main Storage Drive – Kingston HyperX 240GB SSD over SATA III interface
• Chassis – Lian Li T60 Test Bench
• Displays – Dell U2711 Ultra Sharp
• Operating System – Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit

Intel LGA 1150 Test System

• Motherboard – Asus Maximus VI Formula Z87
• Processor – Intel Core i7 4770K (Stock with Turbo enabled and OC at 4.5GHz with 1.3 volts)
• RAM – Corsair Vengeance Pro 1866MHz 9-10-9-27-2T (2 X 8GB)
• Graphics Card – Reference AMD HD 7950 (Non-Boost variant @ stock clocks)
• CPU Cooler – Corsair H100i with Quiet Fan Profile and Noctua NT-H1 Thermal Paste
• Power Supply – Corsair HX1050W
• Main Storage Drive – Kingston HyperX 240GB SSD over SATA III interface
• Chassis – Lian Li T60 Test Bench
• Displays – Dell U2711 Ultra Sharp
• Operating System – Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit

AMD AM3+ Test System

• Motherboard – Asus Crosshair V Formula 990FX
• Processor – AMD FX-8350 (Stock with Turbo enabled and OC at 4.8GHz with 1.5 volts)
• RAM – Corsair Vengeance Pro 1866MHz 9-10-9-27-2T (2 X 8GB)
• Graphics Card – Reference AMD HD 7950 (Non-Boost variant @ stock clocks)
• CPU Cooler – Corsair H100i with Quiet Fan Profile and Noctua NT-H1 Thermal Paste
• Power Supply – Corsair HX1050W
• Main Storage Drive – Kingston HyperX 240GB SSD over SATA III interface
• Chassis – Lian Li T60 Test Bench
• Displays – Dell U2711 Ultra Sharp
• Operating System – Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit

We would like to thank Asus, Intel, AMD, Corsair, Kingston, Lian Li, Dell, Noctua and all our other partners who supplied us with test equipment and hardware. Their generosity makes our testing possible and without them we wouldn’t be able to produce the reviews we do, so thank you!