IntelBX80619I73960X
IntelBX80671I76850K

6 Cores, 12 Threads @3.3GHz, Sandy Bridge-E.
Release date: Q3 2011.

6 Cores, 12 Threads @3.6GHz, Broadwell-E.
Release date: Q2 2016.

Real World Speed
Performance profile from 31,444 user samples
2,165 User Benchmarks
Best Bench: 89% Base clock 3.3 GHz
Worst Bench: 66% Base clock 3.3 GHz, turbo 0.85 GHz (avg)
Poor: 66% Great: 89%
SPEED RANK: 278th / 1456
Gaming
Gaming 78%
Battleship
Desktop
Desktop 79%
Battleship
Workstation
Workstation 67%
Battle cruiser
29,279 User Benchmarks
Best Bench: 93% Base clock 3.6 GHz, turbo 4.15 GHz (avg)
Worst Bench: 74% Base clock 3.6 GHz, turbo 3.65 GHz (avg)
Poor: 74% Great: 93%
SPEED RANK: 204th / 1456
Gaming
Gaming 84%
Aircraft carrier
Desktop
Desktop 85%
Aircraft carrier
Workstation
Workstation 75%
Battleship
Effective Speed
Effective CPU Speed
77.7 % 83.6 % Slightly faster effective speed.
+8%
Memory
Avg. Memory Latency
87.1 Pts +1% 86.5 Pts
1-Core
Avg. Single Core Speed
96.7 Pts 114 Pts Faster single-core speed.
+18%
2-Core
Avg. Dual Core Speed
192 Pts 227 Pts Faster dual-core speed.
+18%
4-Core
Avg. Quad Core Speed
369 Pts 435 Pts Faster quad-core speed.
+18%
8-Core
Avg. Octa Core Speed
585 Pts 713 Pts Faster octa-core speed.
+22%
Memory
OC Memory Latency
95.3 Pts 95.5 Pts +0%
1-Core
OC Single Core Speed
118 Pts 131 Pts Faster OC single-core speed.
+11%
2-Core
OC Dual Core Speed
233 Pts 259 Pts Faster OC dual-core speed.
+11%
4-Core
OC Quad Core Speed
457 Pts 500 Pts Slightly faster OC quad-core speed.
+9%
8-Core
OC Octa Core Speed
715 Pts 812 Pts Faster OC octa-core speed.
+14%
Market Share
Based on 68,124,229 CPUs tested
Market Share
Market Share (trailing 30 days)
0 % 0.05 % Insanely higher market share.
+∞%
Value
Value For Money
78.7 % 107 % Much better value.
+35%
User Rating
UBM User Rating
53 % 59 % More popular.
+11%
Price
Price (score)
$265 $115 Much cheaper.
+57%
Age
Newest
153 Months 96 Months Much more recent.
+37%
TDP
Thermal Design Power (TDP)
130 Watts Slightly more energy efficient.
+7%
140 Watts
Cores
CPU Processing Cores
6 cores 6 cores
Threads
CPU Processing Threads
12 threads 12 threads
Lithography
Manufacturing process
32 nm 14 nm Much newer manufacturing.
+56%
Base Clock
Base Clock Speed
3.3 GHz 3.6 GHz Slightly faster base frequency.
+9%
Turbo Clock
Turbo Clock Speed
3.9 GHz 4 GHz +3%
64-Core
OC Multi Core Speed
888 Pts 1012 Pts Faster OC 64-core speed.
+14%
64-Core
Avg. Multi Core Speed
728 Pts 903 Pts Faster 64-core speed.
+24%
Series
CPU Architecture
Sandy Bridge-E Broadwell-E
Socket
Motherboard Socket
FCLGA2011 LGA2011-V3
Graphics
Integrated Graphics
None None
Launch Date
Launch Date
Q4'11 Q2'16
Cache
Cache
15 MB SmartCache 15 MB
Lithography
Lithography
32 nm 14 nm
Max Turbo Frequency
Max Turbo Frequency
3.9 GHz 4 GHz
Max Memory Size
Max Memory Size (dependent on memory type)
64 GB 128 GB
Memory Types
Memory Types
DDR3 1066/1333/1600 DDR4 2400/2133
PCI Express Revision
PCI Express Revision
2.0 3.0

More specs » More specs »
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The fact that the near three year old Intel i7-3960X still tops the speed charts reflects just how little competition there is in the CPU market. Intel have dominated for so long that there is simply no economic incentive to push the speed boundaries at anywhere nearly the pace of improvement we saw in previous years. The i7-3960X has 6 cores and 12 threads which is two cores more than the vast majority of Intel's other top end processors. The extra two cores explain why the 3960X still performs so well compared to the majority of the 3960X's newer siblings. This processor will offer little more than a far cheaper i3 to regular desktop users but for server orientated workloads it is still one of the best processors available. [Mar '14 CPUPro]

MORE DETAILS

The Core i7-6850K is one of four new Broadwell-E prosumer CPUs. This model has six cores with base and turbo frequencies of 3.6 and 4.0 GHz respectively. The 6850K is based on the 14 nm Broadwell-E architecture. It has a TDP of 140 watts, 40 PCIe 3.0 lanes and no integrated graphics. Because of its relatively high MSRP of around $700, this CPU only makes sense for niche use cases which could include top end graphics design or video production workstations. Comparing the 6850K and 6700K shows that for typical desktop use the 6850K only offers a gain of around 10% for a whopping two fold price increase. This is because desktop computing largely depends on single core performance and the Skylake i7-6700K is both clocked higher and has higher IPC due to its one generation lead over the 6850K. [Jun '16 CPUPro]

MORE DETAILS

Processor Rankings (Price vs Performance) June 2024 CPU Rankings

We calculate effective speed which measures real world performance for typical users. Effective speed is adjusted by current prices to yield a value for money rating. Our calculated values are checked against thousands of individual user ratings. The customizable table below combines these factors to bring you the definitive list of top CPUs. [CPUPro]

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  • Best value for money - Value for money is based on real world performance.
  • Fastest real world speed - Real World Speed measures performance for typical consumers.
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