Intel Core i9-12900K review: Intel finally has an answer for AMD Ryzen 9
Source: Daniel Rubino / Windows Central
Intel has felt the rut since 2022 after AMD launched its new Ryzen family unit of processors. Intel had enjoyed endless years of little to no competition, particularly in the PC desktop space, only all that inverse with AMD "ryzing" from the ashes. The two competitors have traded blows since. While Team Blue remained out ahead, AMD'south line-up was considered the all-time CPUs.
AMD has been able to power alee too in part to its manufacturing partner TMSC, which has been able to compress the marketed transistor size down to just 7nm with the latest Ryzen 5000 series processors. Intel has been stuck on what it used to refer to equally 14nm with the recent 11th Gen CPUs on what Intel called its refined 14nm process using a 10nm blueprint.
Only that's all changed with Intel's latest twelfth Gen processors. This latest generation of CPUs is based on the "Intel vii" process, previously referred to as Intel 10nm Enhanced SuperFin (10ESF) — you can simply think of it as on a roughly equal sitting with TMSC'south 7nm process used past AMD.
Is this new generation of Intel processors enough to entice those who may have departed the company for AMD Ryzen? We've got Intel's new flagship, the Core i9-12900K right here to find out!
Intel Cadre i9-12900K
Bottom line: Intel fabricated good use of the drawing table and returns with something truly special. The Core i9-12900K is a spring in the right direction for those seeking a powerful, yet efficient desktop processor.
The Good
- Exceptional performance
- 125W TDP at stock
- PCIe five.0 back up
- DDR5 RAM back up
- Dandy price
The Bad
- No bundled libation
- Requires new motherboard
- Tin get existent hot loaded/overclocked
Intel Core i9-12900K: Toll and availability
Source: Rich Edmonds / Windows Key
Intel announced the Core i9-12900K alongside other 12th Gen processors on October 27. These new processors are bachelor at full MSRP and you should wait to pay around $589. This is an aggressive price for a make new processor with 16 cores and 24 threads, largely in response to the success of AMD's Ryzen ix range of CPUs.
One signal to bear in listen is the price of DDR5 RAM and a Z690 motherboard if you wish to accept advantage of all the new tech offered by this CPU. If y'all're property out for this launch to construct a new PC from scratch, that shouldn't be an upshot, but an upgrade from a 10th Gen Intel CPU may crave some additional toll factored in.
12th Gen
Intel Cadre i9-12900K: Alder Lake
Source: Rich Edmonds / Windows Central
Alder Lake is Intel's codename for its 12th generation of processors. These new CPUs are special in that they're built using Intel's new Intel 7 (10nm) manufacturing process and follow the "large.Fiddling" hybrid design principle we've seen with ARM chips similar the M1 from Apple. The visitor is cyberbanking on loftier-performance Golden Cove and more than power-efficient Gracemont cores.
So what'southward all this hybrid core tech jargon? Only put, it follows the same principle pioneered by British-based Arm Ltd, the company behind ARM fries plant in countless devices, including your smartphone. The idea is to mix very ability-efficient single-threaded cores that handle low-priority tasks with more than traditional PC-class multi-thread, loftier-performance cores to handle everything else.
Source: Daniel Rubino / Windows Central
Desktop processors, in particular, take always been power-hungry but offering incredible levels of performance. This new arroyo cuts this power down slightly in favor of some cores that are designed specifically with certain tasks in mind. This should effect in improve (and more efficient) overall computing operation.
Gilt Cove cores volition handle all the master tasks like important processes, games, in-use apps, and other tasks while other, lower-priority apps and tasks get pushed off onto the Gracemont cores, freeing up resources. The end result is a core and thread count that seems out of place in 2022. The Intel Core i9-12900K, for case, has 8 Golden Cove cores (sixteen threads) with an additional eight Gracemont cores (8 threads).
Alder Lake brought a new hybrid core design for twelfth Gen.
This is all handled past Intel'due south new scheduler called Intel Thread Director. Information technology's supported by Windows 11, which is what Intel recommends with its new processors. The software will be able to work with the CPU to manage tasks in the most efficient mode possible, leading to considerable performance gains.
It'south been the case for years that more cores and threads don't necessarily lead to amend functioning and Alder Lake offers further proof through impressive results. As well equally this new array of cores and threads, Intel likewise opened up back up for DDR5 RAM and PCIe 5.0 with Alder Lake, snatching the standards atomic number 82 from AMD.
Whilst both PCIe 5.0 and DDR5 aren't mature plenty to see positive gains across the board with new hardware, it does mean a PC with a 12th Gen Intel CPU volition be ready for serious upgrades further down the line. If yous were disappointed by the Intel Cadre i9-11900K, you'll be pleased to read the successor is anything but an evolution.
Impressive results
Intel Core i9-12900K: Benchmarks & performance
Source: Daniel Rubino / Windows Central
The Intel Core i9-12900K is a animal of a processor. On paper, Intel packed inside 16 physical cores (consisting of 8 efficient and 8 performance cores) with a full of 24 threads. Compared to the most capable desktop-class processor on the AM4 platform, it's more than than a match for the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X.
Too as the AMD chip, which we gave a full five-star rating for its operation and value, we'll exist comparing the i9-12900K against its predecessor to come across just how much of a leap in the correct direction Alder Lake is for Intel. The nautical chart beneath shows the three processors lined upwardly on clock speeds, cache, PCIe support, and more.
| Category | Intel Core i9-12900K | Intel Core i9-11900K | AMD Ryzen nine 5950X |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cores/Threads | 16/24 | viii/xvi | 16/32 |
| Base Frequency | P: 3.2GHz Eastward: 2.4GHz | three.5GHz | 3.4GHz |
| Boost | P: five.1GHz E: 3.9GHz | iv.8GHz | 4.9GHz |
| Turbo Heave Max iii.0 | five.2GHz | 5.2GHz (favored cores) | ❌ |
| Retention | DDR4-3200/DDR5-4800 Up to 128GB | DDR4-3200 Up to 128GB | DDR4-3200 Upwards to 128GB |
| L3 Cache | 30MB | 16MB | 32MB |
| Integrated Graphics | Intel UHD Graphics 770 | Intel UHD Graphics Xe 750 | ❌ |
| PCIe | PCIe Gen v.0 x twenty | PCIe Gen iv.0 x twenty | PCIe Gen four.0 10 20 |
| TDP | 125W | 125W | 105W |
| Manufacturing Node | 10nm | 14nm | 7nm |
| Socket | LGA1700 | LGA1200 | AM4 |
| Price | $589 | $454 | $799 |
In order to examination the Intel Core i9-12900K properly, both I and Executive Editor Daniel Rubino received the latest Z690 motherboards and DDR5 RAM. Both systems were running DDR5-4800 and PCIe 4.0 GPUs from NVIDIA. The motherboards differed with 1 test rig running an ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Hero and the other was built atop the MSI MPG Z690 Carbon WiFi.
The Cadre i9-12900K may be on 10nm, but you wouldn't notice with the performance.
The story of how Intel's Core i9-12900K compares to its predecessor, the Core i9-11900K, showcases how much of an upgrade Alder Lake is. CPU-Z showed a score increase of 99 for single-core and 4,620 for multi-cadre performance. Scores of 811 (single) and xi,154 (multi) are impressive, peculiarly when you consider the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X came in at 648 and 11,906, respectively.
Nosotros observed similar results in Cinebench R23 with the Core i9-12900K pulling back and taking the fight to AMD. Time Spy and PCMark 10 saw considerable gains for the Intel fleck, surpassing the Ryzen 5950X without issue. The most impressive feat here is that Intel is still technically using a 10nm procedure, whereas AMD was already on 7nm with the Ryzen 5000 series.
The Intel Core i9-12900K doesn't go too hot, peculiarly if you take plenty thermal capacity. An all-in-one CPU cooler with a 360mm rad could be viewed as overkill for a single component, but if y'all want to push a processor such as this into the realm of overclocking, yous'll desire the additional headroom.
At stock, the Cadre i9-12900K has a TDP of 125W, but this can hit 250W when the turbo tech kicks in. Cistron in overclocking and yous'll have even more power and estrus to bargain with. Temperatures were great beyond all of our tests, using 360 AIO coolers. A stock Core i9-12900K tin can sit down comfortably at 22C when idling and push button upward to around 60C when under load.
| Temp tests | ASUS ROG Ryujin Two 360 AIO | Corsair iCUE H150i Elite Capellix 360 AIO |
|---|---|---|
| Idle | 22C 72F | 27C 72F |
| Gaming | 43C 138F | 39C 91F |
| Stress | 81C 172F | 90C 194F |
| Idle (OC) | 22C 72F | - |
| Gaming (OC) | 51C 151F | - |
| Stress (OC) | 90C 194F | - |
These tests were performed in two dissimilar environments. Stress tests performed in Cinebench R23.
Overclocking the Core i9-12900K is an easy process and tin can even be handled by the motherboard if you don't want to mess with clock and voltage settings. To simulate what an average PC owner would experience, we opted to use ASUS' AI overclocking feature to set everything automatically. This as well increased RAM speeds from 4800MHz to 5200MHz.
The results were impressive, the 5400MHz boost bumped upwards our criterion results, merely the added heat did cause the 360mm AIO to ramp up to go along temperatures down. The Core i9 was hit 90C in Cinebench R23 synthetic tests, which wouldn't be the case in games (Ashes of a Singularity, GTA V, Mount & Blade 2, etc.) and more than realistic tasks, settling at around 66C across the board.
Equally i example for gaming, when paired with an NVIDIA RTX 3080, the Cadre i9 had no problems playing Doom Eternal at 3840x1600 resolution with graphics set up to Ultra Nightmare (the highest) with DLSS (Quality), ray tracing enabled, and adaptive refresh — basically maxed out. Specifically, nosotros consistently hit 144 frames-per-2d (FPS) without a hitch. However, these results were achievable with the new Core i5-12600, which is just as impressive. As always, it'due south more about your GPU than CPU yet for many acme-tier games.
Finally, a Ryzen alternative
Intel Core i9-12900K: Competition
Source: Rich Edmonds / Windows Cardinal
The primary competition to the Intel Core i9-12900K would be the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X, though you lot could also include the Ryzen 9 5900X with its still-impressive 12 core and 24 thread configuration. Every bit one can see from the higher up benchmarks, AMD remained alee of Intel's older Core i9-11900K processor, but that's all changed with Alder Lake.
Intel finally has an answer to AMD and it's neat for consumers.
For most people looking for a new processor to build or upgrade a gaming PC, we'd recommend the Core i9-12900K for value and performance. Sure, you lot lose a few threads to AMD that results in a few losses with multi-cadre tasks, but Intel makes up for this with unmatched single-core capabilities. As an all-rounder, you tin can't falter the Cadre i9-12900K.
Where Intel may lose out to AMD is with pricing. Black Friday is merely around the corner and y'all can bet AMD volition be pushing for aggressive pricing across its processor range as more stock becomes available. This will make it a tough conclusion to not only buy a new Intel CPU simply too a new motherboard and potentially RAM too.
Intel Cadre i9-12900K: Should you buy it?
Source: Daniel Rubino / Windows Central
You should buy this if ...
You want the latest Intel CPU
The Intel Core i9-12900K is part of the 12th Gen family of processors. If you're after the very latest and best the company has to offer in 2022, this is the processor to buy.
Yous desire the all-time single-core performance
AMD may however be male monarch of multi-core tasks with the Ryzen ix 5950X, only that doesn't hateful the Core i9-12900K is a slouch. Far from it as this CPU boasts impressive single-core scores, likewise equally decent enough numbers for multi-core tasks that would brand AMD sweat slightly.
Yous should not buy this if ...
You need all the cores
While this is technically a 16-core processor, the Intel Cadre i9-12900K doesn't pack as many threads as AMD's Ryzen counterparts. If your workload demands as many cores and threads equally possible, you'll demand to go with AMD Ryzen or Threadripper.
You don't demand elevation-level operation
If all y'all practice on your PC is bank check some mail service, visit various websites, scout some videos and play the odd game hither and there, the Core i9 may be an overkill option. Nosotros'd recommend the Core i7-12700K instead.
Since 2022, we've recommended AMD processors for nearly consumers, which offered great levels of performance at undercut prices compared to Intel's ain range of CPUs. In the latter one-half of 2022, this is no longer the case. Intel is at present once again back in front of AMD, and not only on single-core operation.
If you're afterwards the latest Intel CPU and take the budget to spare, the Intel Core i9-12900K is an impressive feat of engineering. This processor has the best single-core operation compared to AMD'due south flagship offering, but it too costs less (comparison MSRP) and fifty-fifty beats AMD in some multi-job tests.
Whether you lot need a CPU for gaming or for video editing, the Intel Cadre i9-12900K is an amazing processor. The new hybrid engineering Intel is using just works. The CPU uses very little power when the system is doing side by side to nothing but is capable of ramping up to impressive clock speeds when you lot need the performance.
Your turn, AMD.
Intel Core i9-12900K
Bottom line: Intel is now back in the game with the launch of Alder Lake processors. The Core i9-12900K is the flagship chip with plenty of cores and threads, too every bit ample functioning for intensive tasks and gaming.
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UH OH
An cyberspace connectedness volition soon be required when setting up Windows 11 Pro
Microsoft has announced that later this year, users will be required to connect to the internet and sign-in with a Microsoft Account during the out of box setup experience on Windows 11 Pro. Microsoft has already been enforcing this requirement on Windows xi Home since launch last October, and Windows 11 Pro is now expected to follow arrange shortly.
Source: https://www.windowscentral.com/intel-core-i9-12900k-review
Posted by: wrighthathery.blogspot.com
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