Intel Core i9-7960X 2.8 GHz (Skylake-X) Socket 2066 - boxed

With up to 44 PCIe lanes for multi-GPU systems, the processors for the 2066 socket are among the true enthusiast CPUs and the corresponding X299 motherboards offer up to three PCIe-connected M.2 slots for the extremely fast NVMe- SSDs as well as many other high-end features. In addition, the Skylake X processors have a free multiplier and can be overclocked for even more gaming power!

Intel X-Series CPU
The features of the Intel Core i9-7960X

16 physical cores, 32 logical cores thanks to SMT!
2.8 GHz base clock at 165 watts TDP
4.2 GHz Boost Clock & 4.4 GHz Boost Max
Free multiplier for manual overclocking
Very high single and multi-thread performance
22 MB L3 cache & 16 MB L2 cache (16x 1 MB)
Gigantic Connectivity: 44 PCIe 3.0 Lanes
DDR4-2.666 MHz RAM (Quad-Channel)
Attention: Boxed version without processor cooler!
The Intel Core i9-7960X with 16 cores in detail

The Intel Core i9-7960X provides incredible 44 PCIe lanes for connecting graphics cards and NVMe SSDs directly to the CPU and clocks at 2.8 GHz base clock. If necessary, the CPU clocks all cores via Turbo-Boost 2.0 up to 4.2 GHz Boost-Clock up and by Boost Max 3.0 can reach a maximum of 4.4 GHz. Thanks to the free multiplier, the Intel Core i9-7960X can easily be overclocked. Important for the overclocking is a good cooling – the TDP of the CPU is indicated without OC with 165 watts.

Intels Advanced Vector Extensions (AVX) are an extension of the instruction set for SIMD (Single Instruction Multiple Data) data computation. SIMD allows a CPU to perform multiple calculations simultaneously, and the AVX / AVX2 instruction set extension doubles the 128-bit SIMD registers to 256 bits. With AVX-512, the register width size is increased to 512-bit, which significantly increases the computing power of the individual CPU cores.

The Intel Core i9 CPUs from the Skylake X generation also have an additional AVX-512 FMA (Fused Multiply-Add) controller on the die, which contains the two 256-bit CPUs available on all Skylake X CPUs, FMA controllers. Thereby, the register width size for 512-bit registers is doubled compared to Skylake.

In addition to the free Multi, the Intel Extreme CPU offers additional OC features. For example, PC enthusiasts and overclockers can use PEG / DMI to increase the PCIe clock independently of the CPU base clock to increase PCIe bandwidth. Extreme overclockers can more easily overclock the RAM by IMC-Feintuning under LN2 (liquid nitrogen) using PLL Trim Voltage.

The 16 cores of the Intel Core i9-7960X are also virtually doubled by hyper-threading, so that up to 32 threads can be managed simultaneously by the extreme CPU. This makes the Intel Core i9-7960X not only in terms of gaming to a real monster, because the 32 threads render even high-resolution 4K video and VR content in turn. The maximum of four supported DDR4 memory modules with a quad-channel interface and 2.666 MHz clock without overclocking, which can be easily realized on almost all motherboards.
Skylake-X: Maximum Performance for Gamers & Content Creators

Responsible for the extreme computing power of the Skylake X-CPUs are many optimizations compared to Broadwell-E. For example, Skylake-X has only 1.735 MB L3 cache per core compared to 2.5 MB / core at Broadwell-E. For this, however, the much faster L2 cache was quadrupled compared to the 256 KB / core core bandwidth used by Broadwell-E to 1 MB.

In addition, the CPU cache benefits from an optimized mesh-like networking of the memory, where each CPU core can now communicate directly with other cores. This generally requires less L3 cache. In addition to the L3 cache shared by the cores, each kernel has a larger amount of L2 cache available, which also requires less L3 cache.

In addition to support for the well-known Turbo Boost 2.0, the Skylake-X CPUs support Intel Turbo Boost 3.0. Turbo-Boost 3.0 optimizes one or two CPU cores for single- and dual-thread performance in poorly parallelized applications, and can significantly increase the clock rates in single / dual-core mode. This can benefit from games and applications that are designed for a high clock rate in single / dual core operation.

In addition, Skylake X and Kaby Lake X CPUs support Intels Optane technology as well as third-generation Thunderbolt compatibility. Thunderbolt 3 delivers eight times faster data transfer than USB 3.0, thanks to a bandwidth of 40 GB / s. Up to six devices can be controlled via so-called daisy chaining with a single Thunderbolt 3 port, including two 4K / UHD displays.

Technical details:
Type: Intel Core i9-7960X (Skylake-X)
Production: 14 nm
Cores: 16/32 (physical / virtual)
Clock: 2.8 GHz
Turbo clock: 4.2 GHz
Turbo clock (max.): 4.4 GHz
Level 3 cache: 22 MB
Level 2 Cache: 16 MB (16x 1 MB)
PCIe Lanes: 44x (PCIe 3.0)
Memory controller: internal
Memory Channels: 4 (Quad-Channel)
Memory Standard: DDR4-2666
TDP: 165 watts
Socket Compatibility: LGA 2066
Other special features:
free multiplier (optimal for OC)
16 cores + SMT (Hyper-Threading: virtual core doubling)
AVX2 Extended Vector Extensions (Advanced Vector Extensions)
AES Encryption (Advanced Encryption Standards)