Intel Core i9-7980XE Extreme Edition Processor Review

Peter Donnell / 7 years ago

Final Thoughts

Pricing

All prices are correct as of 24/09/2017

We’re writing this review just before the chip hits retail, and we’re told to expect prices of $1999 and that’ll no doubt mean £1999 here in the UK too. That’s more than twice what Threadripper costs, but this isn’t about price per core, or initial value for money at all. This is about spending money to make money. In time-critical rendering tasks, the XE is faster than anything else, and if that’s what you’re after, you’re likely not concerned about the initial cost, but the benefits the CPU can bring in the long term.

Overview

When the AMD Ryzen Threadripper 1950X 16-Core and 32-Thread CPU landed on my desk, I was blown away by what it had to offer. In fact, I still am. At less than half the price of the 7980XE, it represents insanely good value for money. However, there’s a big part of the computing world where the cost isn’t a big deal. Performance is king, and it’s the Intel offering that is calling the shots here. For content creators like myself, where rending a video in 4K is time-consuming, I want it done yesterday, not in a few hours. Sure, most consumers are likely running away to hide their wallet, and I don’t blame them at $1999, but there are businesses out there that have deep pockets and a thirst for extreme performance.

Extreme… Everything!

The latest i9 is really setting a new standard for high-end desktop computers. This may be an extreme chip, but it still fits in a consumer grade motherboard. Sure, X299 boards are still pretty high-end, but they’re the same motherboards you can use the 7740X in, and that’s great for consumers who want a wide choice when picking their CPU.

Those building a 4K (or beyond) gaming system, with multiple graphics cards, multiple NMVe M.2 drives including a few PCIe drives, and much more, will love the increased PCIe lane count. Threadripper has more lanes, sure, but we could tit for tat on pros and cons of each all day. What works best for your build is pretty subjective. What’s great is that there are now more options on the market from both AMD and Intel.

That’s a lot of cores

I’m still staggered at the core and thread count of this CPU. After all my years in this job, I found the almost sledgehammer-like brutality of this CPU to be something to behold in person. The stock performance seemed like it would be a little lacklustre with the lower clock speeds, but it obviously wasn’t.

Hitting 4.6 GHz on air using the Noctua D15S is amazing too. Yes, it hit 105c at extreme load, but for the most part, it was well below that. I’d still like to get this under some water cooling though, although I feel a robust custom loop with a 360mm radiator is where you would want to be, not some off the shelf 240mm AIO, as the D15S is more capable than most of those already. I’m confident this CPU will blast past 4.6 GHz with ease, you just need to shift that heat faster than it can make it; obviously.

Should I buy one?

If you have to ask, then likely not. This is not a cheap processor and for those planning a gaming system, it’s complete overkill. If you’re building a workstation, rendering rig, or plan to do game streaming with extreme resolutions and graphics, then it’ll certainly fit the bill. However, for most streamers, the 1800X from AMD will do a great job at a fraction of the cost. Heck, the 7900X and Threadripper are exceptional value at half the price of the XE and they’re not half the performance.

If you need to speed up your workflow, and $1999 on the CPU alone isn’t going to bankrupt you, then it’s a no-brainer. There’s nothing faster, nothing else even comes close. I can’t wait to see what crazy CPUs Intel and AMD are cooking up next because this CPU war is becoming increasingly crazy and we’re loving every minute of it.

Pros

The fastest CPU we’ve ever tested, by a significant margin
Extremely easy to overclock
Huge core and thread count
A must-have for content creators
Great for work and gaming

Cons

Requires seriously powerful CPU coolers
Extremely high power requirements

Neutral

Hot and power hungry it may be, but it does turn out some big performance figures
Expensive, but you do get a lot for your money

“While the cost, the power requirements and the thermals are significant factors for anyone to consider, the pros far outweigh the cons with the new CPU king. The performance is quite simply on a whole new level.”