Intel Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition Sandy Bridge-E CPU

Monday, November 14, 2011 - by Marco Chiappetta

  We’ve been in this business here at HotHardware for a long time now. For most of that time, we’ve heard from countless so-called "industry experts" that the PC is dead, or at the very least dying. Quite frankly, we’re sick of hearing it. The PC is far from dead. One has to look no further than Intel's most recent finanical results, or even the contents of this website. In fact, we’d argue that the PC is more pervasive than ever. The PC isn’t dead, it just so happens to be one of the most flexible and versatile pieces of technology in existence, and it has simply gone through a number of transformations in its illustrious lifetime. What was once a non-descript, beige box good for little more than word processing and spreadsheets is now the sleek, aesthetically pleasing, hub of our digital world, that can take many different shapes. And despite its impending doom, today the PC is about to become more powerful than ever.

   November 14th, 2011 marks the release of Intel’s Sandy Bridge-E microarchitecture and its companion X79 Express chipset. Sandy Bridge-E is the ‘tock’ in Intel’s tick-tock release schedule cadence, that bridges the gap between current Sandy Bridge processors and next year’s, totally new Ivy Bridge microarchitecture. The first processor to arrive in the SBE line-up is the Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition, a six-core chip poised to knock Intel’s aging Gulftown-based processors from their position atop the PC food chain, one that they've held for almost two years.

We’ve got a Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition in house, along with a handful of X79 Express-based motherboards, and have pitted them against an assortment of high-end processors in an array of benchmark scenarios. Our results are laid out for you on the pages ahead, but before we get to the juicy performance details, let’s get some of the particulars out of the way first; specifications coming right up...


Intel Core i7-3690X Extreme Edition Processor
Specifications & Features



Core Frequency:
3.3GHz (Up To 3.9GHz w/ Turbo)
QPI Speed:
6.4GT/s
TDP (Thermal Design Power):
130W
Number of CPU Cores:
6 (12 Threads w/ HT)
Intel SmartCache:
15MB
L2 Cache:
1.5MB (256K x 6)
Processor input voltage (VID):
.95v
.032-micron manufacturing process
Shared Smart Cache Technology
Enhanced Intel SpeedStep Technology (EIST)
Extended HALT State (C1E) Enabled
Execute Disable Bit (XD) Enabled
Intel 64 Technology
AES-NI: Processor instructions
Intel Virtualization Technology (VT)
Packaging - Flip Chip LGA2011
Total Die Size: Approximately 434.7mm2
Approximately 2.27B Transistors
Price - $950

Six Core Processing: Runs 6 independent processor cores in one physical package

Base Processor Frequency: 3.30 GHz

Massive PCI Express Bandwidth: 40 lanes of PCIe supported through the processor

Intel Turbo Boost Technology: Dynamically increases the processor frequency up to 3.90GHz when applications demand more performance. Speed when you need it, energy efficiency when you don’t.

Intel Hyper-Threading Technology: 12 threads provide unprecedented processing capability for better multi-tasking and threaded applications. Do more with less wait time.

Intel Smart Cache: Up to 15MB of shared cached allows faster access to your data by enabling dynamic and efficient allocation of the cache to match the needs of each core significantly reducing latency to frequently used data and improving performance.

Overclocking Enabled: Core (Turbo) and DDR3 ratios are unlocked for ease of overclocking

Integrated Memory Controller: Supports 4 channels of DDR3-1600 memory with 1 DIMM per channel. Support for XMP memory.

Hot Hardware full review of the "Intel Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition Sandy Bridge-E CPU"

ASUS P8Z68-V Pro Motherboard

 A reasonably plan box is used by ASUS for their P8Z68-V Pro board with a number of logos telling us about the key features. Inside we find a decent bundle which includes software, drive cables documentation, Q-Connectors, Q-Shield (two key items which assist with a PC build) and an additional USB 3.0 bracket with two ports available.
ASUS use a black ATX PCB for this board with plenty of blue hardware and as expected this is a Z68 board, though Lucid Virtu technology is also present. Two large aluminium heatsinks cool some of the power circuitry around the socket 1155 CPU location and these are joined by a passive chipset cooler at the bottom right of the board.

 Also dotted around the PCB are ASUS's own power design circuitry components, including an Energy Processing unit which monitors power consumption and along with this ASUS use a new VRM design (DIGI+) to maximise efficiency, reduce heat and improve reliability and stability. TPU, which stands for TurboV Processing Unit, is another on-board processor which allows us to overclock/enhance the board with minimal effort.
Finally, as this is a Z68 board it features support for all socket 1155 CPUs, including the high end i7-2600K with the ability to select multipliers in the BIOS.

 Down at the bottom left of the board we find the add-in card slots and these run from PCIe 1x through PCIe x16, PCIe x1, PCI, PCIe x8, PCI and PCIe 4x. These sit above our onboard power and reset buttons and as with the Gigabyte board on the last page quad GPU setup's are supported.

ASUS supply eight SATA ports which are split into four SATA 3GB/s (light blue) and four SATA 6GB/s (grey/dark blue). Two of the higher speed SATA ports run through the Marvell 912x controller and to ensure all of our connectivity runs at optimum speed the Intel based ports support RAID 0, 1, 5 and 10. Then beside the dark blue ports we find a connector for front panel USB 3.0 devices which runs on an ASMedia controller.

 Further up the board we find four dual channel memory slots which are capable of holding 32GB of memory with official support hitting 2000MHz+. These slots sit alongside a standard 24-pin power connector and the board also features an 8-pin socket. Then over at the edge of the board is the MemOK button which assists us in maximising compatibility with problematic memory sticks.

 Round on the back panel we find there is no PS/2 socket, instead the connectivity starts with 4x USB 2.0 which sit alongside two further USB 2.0, Jmicron eSATA, Bluetooth, optical audio, HDMI, DVI, VGA and Intel 82579 GB LAN. 3.5mm audio in/out which uses the 8 channel Realtek ALC892 chipset are also present as are two further USB 3.0 ports which use a second ASMedia controller.

Of course the presence of video out means we can take advantage of our on-board Intel GPU if we wish.

Software/BIOS

One of the key benefits of moving to an ASUS Z68 based system is the option of choosing a board with the new and improved UEFI BIOS with GUI support.
The BIOS GUI is best shown in video form (above) and as demonstrated it has full mouse/keyboard functionality and an improved look and feel over previous BIOS versions. This makes changing settings much easier, even for novice users.

The new BIOS is split into two sections, Basic and Advanced. Enthusiasts will want to head over to the advanced section to access options such as AI Tweaker for overclocking, essentially offering the same functionality as an old style BIOS. Additionally EZ Flash is included which allows us to flash our BIOS from a USB drive quickly and easily.

ASUS also supply a very thorough software suite which gives us a massive level of control over the board and its monitoring features and can also check for BIOS updates. Added to this we have the ability to control our board via smartphone (Bluetooth) and there are also bundled extras such as Norton and Disk Unlocker which maximises support of 3TB drives.

Hardware Heaven full review for ASUS P8Z68-V Pro Motherboard