The spotlight shone on Intel’s next generation high-end desktop processors during E3 2017. At the event, Intel senior VP Gregory Bryant announced details about the processor to the attending audience and what they can expect from the now expanded HEDT line. The extended Intel X-series HEDT family includes the new Core i9 series, which now delivers up to 18-cores and 36-threads. These CPUs use the Kaby Lake-X architecture with quad-channel memory support. For the first time, Intel is also concurrently releasing more affordable Skylake-X architecture CPUs supporting dual-channel memory.
Intel Core X-series Specifications
The new HEDT processor line uses socket LGA2066 and are compatible with motherboards using the X299 chipset. Note that Intel did not disclose the clock speeds on the top-end models yet, and could adjust them to compete with AMD’s Threadripper.
| Processor Number | Base Clock Speed (GHz) | Turbo Boost 2.0 Freq (GHz) | Turbo Boost 3.0 Freq (GHz) | Cores/Threads | L3 Cache (MB) | PCIe 3.0 Lanes | Memory Channel | TDP (W) |
| Core i9-7980XE | – | – | – | 18/36 | – | – | – | – |
| Core i8-7960X | – | – | – | 16/32 | – | – | – | – |
| Core i9-7940X | – | – | – | 14/28 | – | – | – | – |
| Core i9-7920X | – | – | – | 12/24 | – | – | – | – |
| Core i9-7900X | 3.3 | 4.3 | 4.6 | 10/20 | 13.75 | 44 | quad-channel DDR4-2666 | 140 |
| Core i9-7820X | 3.6 | 4.3 | 4.5 | 8/16 | 11 | 28 | quad-channel DDR4-2666 | 140 |
| Core i9-7800X | 3.5 | 4.0 | NA | 6/12 | 8.25 | 28 | quad-channel DDR4-2400 | 140 |
| Core i7-7740X | 4.3 | 4.5 | NA | 4/8 | 8 | 16 | dual-channel DDR4-2666 | 112 |
| Core i5-7640X | 4.0 | 4.2 | NA | 4/4 | 6 | 16 | dual-channel DDR4-2666 | 112 |
Pricing and Release Date
Just like the specifications information, the release date is staggered for the Core X-series family. The 4, 6, 8 and 10 core parts are available for pre-order from June 19th. These processors starts shipping to consumers from June 26th. The 12-core part Core i9-7920X will not ship until August, while the 14, 16 and 18 core parts will ship on October 2017.
| Processor Number | Price (USD) | Shipping Date (2017) |
| Core i9-7980XE | 1,999 | October |
| Core i8-7960X | 1,699 | October |
| Core i9-7940X | 1,399 | October |
| Core i9-7920X | 1,199 | August |
| Core i9-7900X | 999 | June 26 |
| Core i9-7820X | 599 | June 26 |
| Core i9-7800X | 389 | June 26 |
| Core i7-7740X | 339 | June 26 |
| Core i5-7640X | 242 | June 26 |
