Intel's 9th Generation Coffee Lake Refresh CPU Family - The Calm Before The Storm

Intel has come a long way with its mainstream processor platform. The platform has largely seen stagnation in terms of core and thread count over many generations since the first Core series CPU that launched back in 2010 but last year brought a big change to the CPU giant. What seemed to be a generational core clock bump has now turned into a generational core count bump while keeping the clock speed improvements.

The Coffee Lake-S 8th Generation family, was the first big core count jump on the mainstream 300 series platform. It was an opportunity for Intel to show that they don't only hold the IPC or clock speed advantage on the mainstream segment but they can also offer good multi-threading CPU performance. By the end of 2018, Intel launched its 9th Generation Core family, featuring up to 8 cores and 16 threads.

The 9th Generation lineup, while good in its own perspective, has been facing two major issues since launch. One of the issue and an ongoing one is the competitive threat from AMD's Ryzen processors which aren't only tackling Intel in terms of pure core count but also in terms of IPC which has exceeded Skylake levels and also pricing in which AMD has simply made Intel's once iconic Core i5 and Core i7 lineups disappear from the game.

There's one key department however where Intel still holds the lead which is due to the process maturation of the 14nm node over the years. In terms of clock speeds, Intel has taken the battle to AMD which makes sense in a way since while their remerged rival can beat them in terms of price, cores, they can't beat them in clock speeds and Intel is flexing their muscles hard with their latest processor known as the Core i9-9900KS.

Today, I will be taking a look at the Core i9-9900KS flagship CPU on the AORUS Z390 Master board. The CPU retails for $513 US in the market and is supposed to offer high-end CPU multi-threaded performance with enthusiast-level overclocking capabilities, all at a premium price point.

Intel Z390 Express Chipset - The Top 300-Series PCH

Since the launch of Coffee Lake processors, Intel is also offering a new platform that is marked under the 300-series family. The Intel 300 series platform features several chipset SKUs but the top of the line is the Z390 PCH which replaces the Z370 PCH as the flagship mainstream SKU.

The Z390 platform is designed to support both the 8th and 9th Generation Coffee Lake CPUs. Since the new processors are part of a refresh, Intel did not restrict 9th Gen compatibility to just Z390 boards or 8th Gen compatibility to just Z370 boards. We have more details on this in the LGA 1151 socket section so here, we will be taking a look at the Z390 feature set and what it offers over the previous 200 and 100 series platforms.

Intel Z390 PCH Features:

The 9th gen desktop platform has a range of new features that mainly include:

• First performance Intel Core i9 desktop S-series processor
• Up to 8 cores
• Intel Z390 chipset compatible
• Solder Thermal Interface Material (STIM)
• Intel Wireless-AC 802.11 AC and Bluetooth 5.0
• Intel Wireless-AC Adapter
• Up To 6 x USB 3.1 Gen 2 Ports
• Up to 16 threads, 5.0 GHz, 16 MB cache, and 40 platform PCIe lanes (16 CPU + 24 PCH)
• 9th Gen CPUs Compatible with all Intel 300 series chipsets
• Intel Optane memory and Intel Optane SSD support
• Thunderbolt 3 support

Intel Desktop Platform Chipset Comparison

Chipset Name	Arrow Lake-S (ARL-S) PCH / 800 Series (Z890)	Raptor Lake-S (RPL-S) PCH / 700 Series (Z790)	Alder Lake-S (ADL-S) PCH / 600 Series (Z690)	Rocket Lake-S (RKL-S) PCH / 500 Series (Z590)	Comet Lake-S (CML-S) PCH / 400 Series (Z490)	Coffee Lake S (CFL-S) PCH / 300 Series (Z390/H370, B360, Q370, H310)	Coffee Lake S (KBL-R) PCH / Z370 Platform
Process Node	7nm	14nm	14nm	14nm	14nm	14nm	22nm
Processor	24C, 20C, 14C, 12C, TBD)	24,16C,12C,10C,6C,4C	16C,12C,10C,6C,4C (Full corporate/consumer SKU stack at launch)	8C, 6C (Full corporate/consumer SKU stack at launch)	10C, 8C, 6C, 4C, 2C (Full corporate/consumer SKU stack at launch)	8C, 6C, 4C, 2C (Full corporate/consumer SKU stack at launch)	8C, 6C, 4C (6 Consumer SKUs at Launch)
Memory	Up To DDR5-6400 (Native)	Up To DDR5-5600 (Native) Up To DDR4-3200 (Native)	Up To DDR5-4800 (Native) Up To DDR4-3200 (Native)	Up To DDR4-3200 (Native)	Up To DDR4-2933 (Native)	Up To DDR4-2666 (Native)	Up To DDR4-2666 (Native)
Media, Display & Audio	eDP / 4DDI (DP, HDMI) Display Capabilities	eDP / 4DDI (DP, HDMI) Display Capabilities	eDP / 4DDI (DP, HDMI) Display Capabilities	DP 1.2 & HDMI 2.0, HBR3 HDCP 2.2 (HDMI 2.0a w/LSPCON) 12-bit AV1/HEVC & VP9 10-bit Enc/Dec, HDR, Rec.2020, DX12 Integrated Dual-Core Audio DSP With USB Audio offload SoundWire Digital Audio Interface	DP 1.2 & HDMI 1.4 HDCP 2.2 (HDMI 2.0a w/LSPCON) HEVC & VP9 10-bit Enc/Dec, HDR, Rec.2020, DX12 Integrated Dual-Core Audio DSP SoundWire Digital Audio Interface	DP 1.2 & HDMI 1.4 HDCP 2.2 (HDMI 2.0a w/LSPCON) HEVC & VP9 10-bit Enc/Dec, HDR, Rec.2020, DX12 Integrated Dual-Core Audio DSP SoundWire Digital Audio Interface	DP 1.2 & HDMI 1.4 HDCP 2.2 (HDMI 2.0a w/LSPCON) HEVC & VP9 10-bit Enc/Dec, HDR, Rec.2020, DX12 Integrated Dual-Core Audio DSP
I/O & Connectivity	Integrated USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (20G) Integrated Intel Wireless-AC (Wi-Fi6E/ 7 BT CNVio) with Gig+ Integrated SDXC 4.0 Controller Thunderbolt 4.0	Integrated USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (20G) Integrated Intel Wireless-AC (Wi-Fi6E/ 7 BT CNVio) with Gig+ Integrated SDXC 4.0 Controller Thunderbolt 4.0	Integrated USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (20G) Integrated Intel Wireless-AC (Wi-Fi6E/ 7 BT CNVio) with Gig+ Integrated SDXC 4.0 Controller Thunderbolt 4.0	Integrated USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (20G) Integrated Intel Wireless-AC (Wi-Fi6E/ BT CNVi) Integrated SDXC 3.0 Controller Thunderbolt 4.0 (Maple Ridge)	Integrated USB 3.2 Gen 2 Integrated Intel Wireless-AC (Wi-Fi / BT CNVi) Integrated SDXC 3.0 Controller Thunderbolt 3.0 (Titan Ridge) w/ DP 1.4	Integrated USB 3.1 Gen 1 (5 Gbps) Integrated Intel Wireless-AC (Wi-Fi / BT CNVi) Integrated SDXC 3.0 Controller Thunderbolt 3.0 (Titan Ridge) w/ DP 1.4	Integrated USB 3.1 Gen 1 (5 Gbps) Thunderbolt 3.0 (Alpine Ridge)
Storage	PCIe 5.0 (CPU Lanes), 8x SATA 3.0	Next-Gen Intel Optane memory PCIe 5.0 (CPU Lanes), 6x SATA 3.0	Next-Gen Intel Optane memory PCIe 5.0, 6x SATA 3.0	Next-Gen Intel Optane memory PCIe 4.0, 6x SATA 3.0	Next-Gen Intel Optane memory PCIe 3.0, 6x SATA 3.0	Next Gen Intel Optane memory PCIe 3.0, 6x SATA 3.0	Next Gen Intel Optane memory PCIe 3.0, 6x SATA 3.0
Max PCH PCIe Lanes	Up To 24 (Gen 4)	Up To 20 (Gen 4) Up To 8 (Gen 3)	Up To 12 (Gen 4) Up To 16 (Gen 3)	Up To 24 (Gen 3)	Up To 24 (Gen 3)	Up To 24 (Gen 3)	Up To 24 (Gen 3)
Max CPU PCIe Lanes	Up To 20 (Gen 5) Up To 4 (Gen 4)	Up To 16 (Gen 5) Up To 4 (Gen 4)	Up To 16 (Gen 5) Up To 4 (Gen 4)	Up To 20 (Gen 4)	Up To 16 (Gen 3)	Up To 16 (Gen 3)	Up To 16 (Gen 3)
Max USB Ports	Up To 5 (USB 3.2 Gen 2z2) Up To 10 (USB 3.2 Gen 2x1) Up To 10 (USB 3.2 Gen 1x1) Up To 14 (USB 2.0)	Up To 5 (USB 3.2 Gen 2x2) Up To 10 (USB 3.2 Gen 2x1) Up To 10 (USB 3.2 Gen 1x1) Up To 14 (USB 2.0)	Up To 4 (USB 3.2 Gen 2x2) Up To 10 (USB 3.2 Gen 2x1) Up To 10 (USB 3.2 Gen 1x1) Up To 14 (USB 2.0)	Up To 3 (USB 3.2 Gen 2x2) Up To 10 (USB 3.2 Gen 2x1) Up To 10 (USB 3.2 Gen 1x1) Up To 14 (USB 2.0)	Up To 10 (USB 3.2) Up To 14 (USB 2.0)	Up To 10 (USB 3.1) Up To 14 (USB 2.0)	Up To 10 (USB 3.0) Up To 14 (USB 2.0)
Security	Intel TET Intel Boot Guard	N/A	N/A	N/A	Intel SGX 1.0	Intel SGX 1.0	Intel SGX 1.0
Power Management	C10 & S0ix Support for Modern Standby	C10 & S0ix Support for Modern Standby	C10 & S0ix Support for Modern Standby	C10 & S0ix Support for Modern Standby	C10 & S0ix Support for Modern Standby	C10 & S0ix Support for Modern Standby	C8 Support
Launch	2024	2022	2021	2021	2019	2018	2017

Intel LGA 1151 Socket Again - Now With 9th Generation Processor Support

Intel isn't moving away from the LGA 1151 socket anytime soon. We are once again looking at the same socket which has been doing the rounds in the mainstream market since 2015. There is, however, a major difference. There's no backward compatibility with Skylake and Kaby Lake processors.

That brings us to the next significant detail about the Intel 300-series platform. Intel is confirming that the 9th Gen Coffee Lake processors retain compatibility with the 300-series chipset. It's nice to see compatibility retained but it was also expected since 9th Gen is a refresh of Coffee Lake CPUs and high-end motherboards based on the Z370 chipset still allow for full overclocking support on the 8 core processors, even though the Z390 series is tailored around those CPUs with better PWM supplies.

A more detailed analysis was posted by David Schor a few days ago which confirms the change in pin configuration on Coffee Lake processors. This allows support for both 8th and 9th Gen CPUs without any major issues.

According to David, the reason we don't have Coffee Lake processors compatible with older series motherboards that feature the LGA 1151 socket is the change in pins. For instance, if the pin config changes on a processor, the sockets on the motherboard need to be configured as such. It's not a process that can be done via software as its more of a hardware level change.

When compared, the Coffee Lake processors have 391 VSS (Ground) pins which is an increase of 14 compared to Kaby Lake, 146 VCC (Electrical) pins which is an increase of 18 pins compared to Kaby Lake and about 25 pins that are reserved and a decrease of 21 pins from the 46 reserved on Kaby Lake.

Kaby Lake -> Coffee Lake

• VSS (Ground): 377 -> 391 (+14)
• VCC (Power): 128 -> 146 (+18)
• RSVD: 46 ->25

Intel LGA 1151 CPU Pin Configuration (Coffee Lake vs Kaby Lake):

So one thing is clear, Intel was, in fact, telling the truth about electrical changes to the processors and socket in the 300-series platform. Furthermore, it's not just the reserved pins from Kaby Lake that have simply been populated. There are pins aside the reserved ones that were swapped with VCC pins and indicate a design tweak.

While we can put many theories to rest with this new detail, I think much of the confusion could have just been avoided if Intel clarified this themselves. Of course, if you are making the boards with a new PCH and new series of processors on the same socket that ran the previous CPU line, consumers would definitely want to know more about why the new platform that has the same socket cannot support their older chips. We previously heard about the LGA 1151 V2 naming scheme and that may have sorted some confusion but as we can tell, all motherboards still use the LGA 1151 naming scheme which may lead to people thinking that their 6th and 7th generation processors can run on the newer boards.

Cooler Compatibility With LGA 1151 Socket

Keeping the same socket has some advantages in the form of cooler compatibility. All users who are running the LGA 1151 socket or even LGA 1150 boards can use the same cooler on the Z390 boards without any hassle. The socket has the same dimensions and no changes are made aside from electrical changes that are specific to socket and processor pins. The socket assembly and mounting remain the same.

Intel does offer a separate boxed cooler but it will be a much better choice to get an AIB cooling solution since those offer better cooling performance. It is recommended for the unlocked SKUs that users run them on a high-end air cooler or liquid cooling solution. Custom loop cooling will deliver even better results.

First of all, what is Coffee Lake? In simple terms, Coffee Lake is an improved Kaby Lake that has been made possible with the latest 14nm++ process node. Intel briefed the press that their new Coffee Lake Refresh is on the same architectural level as Kaby Lake (which is similar to Skylake) with no changes at all.

Aside from that, the new 14nm process allows for improved power efficiency and higher clock speeds. There's a reason that Intel is bumping up the core count across their entire range of processors. Under the same 95W package, Intel is now offering up to 8 cores and 16 threads on their Core i9 SKUs, 8 cores and 8 threads on their Core i7 SKUs, and 6 cores and 6 threads on their Core i5 SKUs.

Actual power consumption may vary during testing real-world applications since Intel lists the TDP at the base clock which means power consumption at boost clocks would vary so it's very workload dependent. You will also note that Intel has given a fairly good bump to both CPU and integrated GPU clock speeds which is only possible with the new and improved 14nm++ process.

Intel Coffee Lake CPUs Have 16 PCIe 3.0 Lanes, PCH Supports 24 PCIe 3.0 Lanes - These Make Up The 40 PCIe Platform Lanes

Now one thing you might have noticed in other articles is that they state the Intel Coffee Lake platform will feature 40 PCIe Lanes. That's a true but not entirely accurate representation. As you see, Intel does have 40 PCIe 3.0 lanes on their upcoming family but those are a combination of CPU and PCH lanes. All Coffee Lake CPUs feature 16 PCIe Gen 3.0 lanes while the Z390 PCH features 24 PCIe 3.0 lanes. These make up the 40 PCIe 3.0 lanes that Intel claims of.

This means that people can add in two GPUs for SLI or mGPU support which will be given to the CPU while PCH can allow for additional devices such as PCIe / M.2 storage or Intel Optane support.

The Intel 9th Gen, Unlocked Core Desktop Family Full Specifications and Prices

Intel initially launched three "K" unlocked CPUs in the 9th Gen Core lineup. As of right now, the 9th Gen unlocked family consists of the Core i9-9900KS, Core i9-9900K, Core i7-9700K, and the Core i5-9600K. The processors retail for $513 US for the Core i9-9900KS, $488 US for the Core i9-9900K, $374 US for the Core i7-9700K and $262 US for the Core i5-9600K.

Following are the detailed specs for the unlocked CPUs:

Intel Core i9-9900KS, Intel's Flagship 9th Generation CPU Featuring 8 Cores With All-Core Boost of 5 GHz

the Intel Core i9-9900KS will be the latest entry to the 9th Generation desktop lineup. It’s a lot similar to the Core i9-9900K but being a special edition variant, it offers 5 GHz turbo frequencies across all 8 cores rather than 1 core on the Core i9-9900K. The CPU still has the same 8 cores, 16 threads along with 16 MB of L3 cache, a GT2 graphics chip and the same soldered IHS that we saw on the 9900K.

The faster clock speeds would definitely result in slightly higher power consumption numbers and now we know what the TDP is supposed to be like. Listed over in the CPU support page for ASUS's ROG Maximus XI APEX motherboard, the Core i9-9900KS is revealed to have a TDP of 127W. This is the highest TDP of any mainstream (LGA 1151 socketed) chip that Intel has released recently and it shows that the chip is all but an extremely-binned Core i9-9900K built to assert Intel's leadership in CPU clock speeds.

Intel Core i9-9900K, Intel’s First 8 Core and 16 Thread Mainstream CPU With 4.7 GHz All 8 Core Boost Frequency For $488 US

The Intel Core i9-9900K was the flagship SKU of the 9th Generation Core family until the KS model replaced it. This will be the first mainstream desktop Core i9 part and also the first Intel chip to boast 8 cores and 16 threads. In terms of cache, the chip will feature 16 MB of L3 and will come with an Intel UHD 620 graphics chip.

The clock speeds are something to check out here, we are going to get a 3.6 GHz base clock out of the box and a 5.0 GHz boost clock in single and dual-core operations. 4 core boost is rated at 4.8 GHz while 6/8 core boost is rated at 4.7 GHz. This is the highest frequency we have seen on an 8 core part across all cores. All of this is done under a 95W package so we can expect some hefty cooling solutions to go along with this chip.

Intel Core i7-9700K, Intel’s First 8 Core, Core i7 Mainstream Desktop CPU With Up To 4.6 GHz Clocks Across All Cores at $374 US

Coming to the top Core i7 part, we get 8 cores and 8 threads. This the complete opposite of what we have been hearing as previous rumors identified the chip as a 6 core and 12 thread part. The chip will have 12 MB of L3 cache and as you might tell, it has fewer threads than the Core i7-8700K but comes with a higher core count. So, maybe, we will get the same or even better performance from the chip.

In terms of clock speeds, the chip has a base clock of 3.6 GHz and boosts up to 4.9 GHz in single, 4.8 GHz in dual-core, 4.7 GHz in four core and 4.6 GHz in 6/8 core operations. The TDP for this part is maintained at the same 95W.

Intel Core i5-9600K, 6 Cores, and 6 Threads With Higher Clocks Than 8th Generation i5 ‘K” SKU, $262 US Official Price

The Intel Core i5-9600K is a 6 core and 6 thread part with 9 MB of L3 cache. This makes it very similar to the Core i5-8600K. The difference is that it features higher clock speeds of 3.7 GHz base, 4.6 GHz boost (1 core), 4.5 GHz (2 core), 4.4 GHz (4 core) and 4.3 GHz (6 core). All of this is done at the same TDP of 95W. Rest of the lineup along with their specifications can be seen below:

Intel 9th Generation Core Family CPU Official Specifications:

Processor Name	Process	Cores / Threads	Base Clock	Boost Clock	Cache	TDP	Price
Core i9-9900KS	14nm++	8 / 16	3.6 GHz	5.0 GHz (8 Cores)	16 MB	127W	$513 US
Core i9-9900K	14nm++	8 / 16	3.6 GHz	5.0 GHz	16 MB	95W	$488 US
Core i9-9900KF	14nm++	8 / 16	3.6 GHz	5.0 GHz	16 MB	95W	$488 US
Core i7-9700K	14nm++	8 / 8	3.6 GHz	4.9 GHz	12 MB	95W	$374 US
Core i7-9700KF	14nm++	8 / 8	3.6 GHz	4.9 GHz	12 MB	95W	$374 US
Core i5-9600K	14nm++	6 / 6	3.7 GHz	4.6 GHz	9 MB	95W	$262 US
Core i5-9600KF	14nm++	6 / 6	3.7 GHz	4.6 GHz	9 MB	95W	$262 US
Core i5-9600	14nm++	6 / 6	3.1 GHz	4.5 GHz	9 MB	65W	TBD
Core i5-9500	14nm++	6 / 6	3.0 GHz	4.3 GHz	9 MB	65W	TBD
Core i5-9400	14nm++	6 / 6	2.9 GHz	4.1 GHz	9 MB	65W	$182
Core i5-9400T	14nm++	6 / 6	1.8 GHz	3.4 GHz	9 MB	35W	TBD
Core i3-9350KF	14nm++	4/4	4.0 GHz	4.6 GHz	8 MB	91W	TBD
Core i3-9100	14nm++	4 / 4	TBD	4.2 GHz	6 MB	65W	TBD
Core i3-9000	14nm++	4 / 4	3.7 GHz	N/A	6 MB	65W	TBD
Core i3-9000T	14nm++	4 / 4	3.2 GHz	N/A	6 MB	35W	TBD

Intel Details Overclocking and Gaming Performance Figures - Our Advice, Wait For Reviews

Intel also detailed some performance numbers for their Coffee Lake processors. First of all, we have overclocking details. Intel claims that Coffee Lake processors are the best chips designed for overclocking. There is a range of new features supported by the chips which include:

• Per Core Overclocking
• Max Memory Ratio Up To 8400 MT/s
• Real-time Memory Latency Control
• Extended PLL Trim Controls
• Enhanced Package Power Delivery

For testing, we used the latest Intel Core i9-9900KS which was sent to us by Intel. The Intel 9th Gen Coffee Lake Refresh family comes with a higher core count on the mainstream platform but prices are close to the predecessors in the same segment. The Core i9 SKU wasn't available last time but the Core i7 price matches around the same as what you paid for the Core i7-8700K. Both the Core i9-9900K and i9-9900KS were tested on the Z390 AORUS Master motherboard.

Intel Core i9-9900KS Test Setup:

Processor	Intel Core i9-9900KS
Motherboard	Z390 AORUS Master
Power Supply	ASUS ROG THOR 1200W
Solid State Drive	Samsung SSD 960 EVO M.2 (512 GB)
Memory	G.SKILL Trident Z RGB Series 32 GB (4 x 8GB) CL16 3600 MHz
Video Cards	MSI GeForce RTX 2080 Ti Lightning Z
Cooling Solutions	ASUS ROG Ryujin 240
OS	Windows 10 64-bit

Our test rig includes the Samsung 960 EVO 512 GB SSD that boots up our main OS while a 2 TB Seagate HDD is used for demonstration purposes for the Intel Optane memory. In addition to these, we are running an MSI GeForce GTX 2080 Ti Lightning Z graphics card, an ASUS ROG Thor 1200W power supply and 16 GB of G.Skill provided Trident Z Royal series memory which runs with a clock speed of DDR4-4000 MHz. For cooling, we used the ASUS Ryujin 240.

We won't be focusing on Intel's Core i9-9900KS architecture in this review since it is entirely the same chip as Skylake along with minor improvements. The Skylake / Kaby Lake architecture analysis can be seen in detail here. For overclocking, I made the following tweaks to the CPUs:

• Intel Core i9-9900KS @ 5.3 GHz With 1.350V (100 x 53)

3DMark Time Spy CPU Performance

3DMark Firestrike is the widely popular video card benchmark test for Windows that is designed to measure your PC’s gaming performance. While the overall benchmark is great, the utility also provides a good indication of the CPU performance.

3DMark Firestrike CPU Performance

3DMark Firestrike is the widely popular video card benchmark test for Windows that is designed to measure your PC’s gaming performance. While the overall benchmark is great, the utility also provides a good indication of the CPU performance.

Blender

Blender is the free and open source 3D creation suite. It supports the entirety of the 3D pipeline—modeling, rigging, animation, simulation, rendering, compositing and motion tracking, even video editing and game creation.

Cinebench R20

Cinebench is a real-world cross-platform test suite that evaluates your computer’s hardware capabilities. Improvements to Cinebench Release 20 reflect the overall advancements to CPU and rendering technology in recent years, providing a more accurate measurement of Cinema 4D’s ability to take advantage of multiple CPU cores and modern processor features available to the average user.

Cinebench R15

CINEBENCH is a real-world cross-platform test suite that evaluates your computer’s performance capabilities. CINEBENCH is based on MAXON’s award-winning animation software CINEMA 4D, which is used extensively by studios and production houses worldwide for 3D content creation. MAXON software has been used in blockbuster movies such as Iron Man 3, Oblivion, Life of Pi or Prometheus and many more.

HandBrake

HandBrake is a tool for converting video from nearly any format to a selection of modern, widely supported codecs.

PCMark 10

PCMark 10 is a complete PC benchmarking solution for Windows 10. It includes several tests that combine individual workloads covering storage, computation, image and video manipulation, web browsing and gaming. Specifically designed for the full range of PC hardware from netbooks and tablets to notebooks and desktops, PCMark 10 offers complete Windows PC performance testing for home and business use.

POV-Ray

The POV-Ray package includes detailed instructions on using the ray-tracer and creating scenes. Many stunning scenes are included with POV-Ray so you can start creating images immediately when you get the package.

SuperPI

Super PI is used by many overclockers to test the performance and stability of their computers. In the overclocking community, the standard program provides a benchmark for enthusiasts to compare “world record” pi calculation times and demonstrate their overclocking abilities. The program can also be used to test the stability of a certain overclock speed.

WinRAR

WinRAR is a powerful archive manager. It can backup your data and reduce the size of email attachments, decompresses RAR, ZIP and other files downloaded from the Internet and create new archives in RAR and ZIP file format.

X264 HD Encode Benchmark

This benchmark measures the encoding performance of the processor. It offers a standardized benchmark for the clip as well as the encoder used is uniform.

Ashes of The Singularity

Stardock's Ashes of the Singularity RTS title is a new take on the historical genre. The game incorporates several things that many pc gamers have been curious about and anxious to try for themselves such as Explicit Multi-Adapter Support and full Asynchronous Compute under DirectX 12 API. We tested the game at 1440P with 4x MSAA on Crazy Settings under DirectX 12.

Battlefield V

Battlefield V brings back the action of the World War 2 shooter genre. Using the latest Frostbite tech, the game does a good job of looking gorgeous in all ways possible. From the open world environments to the intense and gun-blazing action, this multiplayer and single player FPS title is one of the best looking Battlefields to date. The game was tested at max settings at 1440p.

DOOM

In 2016, Id finally released Doom. My testing wouldn’t be complete without including this title. It's a hell fest featuring fast-paced FPS action and tons of demons to kill. The latest title is based on both Vulkan and OpenGL APIs that take advantage of the latest multi-core and multi-GPU upgrades.

GTA V

GTA V is one handsomely optimized title for the PC audience. It's scalable across various PC configurations and delivers an impressive frame rate. Rockstar did an amazing job with the PC build of GTA V and it comes with a large array of settings that can be configured by PC gamers. We tested the title at 1440P with everything set to Ultra and 4x MSAA.

Mass Effect Andromeda

Being a huge fan of the Mass Effect series, I was highly anticipating the arrival of Andromeda to store shelves. Now that it’s here, I put the fastest gaming card to the test. Using Frostbite, the latest Mass Effect title looks incredibly gorgeous and the open world settings on the different planets immerses you a lot.

Metro Exodus

Metro Exodus continues the journey of Artyom through the nuclear wasteland of Russia and its surroundings. This time, you are set over the Metro, going through various regions and different environments. The game is one of the premier titles to feature NVIDIA’s RTX technology and does well in showcasing the ray-tracing effects in all corners. The game was tested at Ultra setting with RTX settings turned off at 1440p.

Shadow of The Tomb Raider

Sequel to The Rise of the Tomb Raider, Shadow of The Tomb Raider is visually enhanced with an updated Foundation Engine that delivers realistic facial animations and the most gorgeous environments ever seen in a Tomb Raider Game. The game is a technical marvel and really shows the power of its graphics engine in the latest title.

Sid Meir's Civilization VI

Civilization VI is the pinnacle of the series. It's featured huge, sweeping changes, and nothing was left out. Everything has found a purpose, they all work together in tandem but also have a reason to stand alone. It uses a more fleshed out engine that now supports DirectX 12 capabilities. We tested the game with every setting maxed out (4x MSAA, 4096x4096 shadow textures) at 1440P in DirectX 12.

Watch Dogs 2

Watch Dogs 2 once again takes us on a hacking tour, but this time in the city of San Francisco. Using a very evolved version of the OPUS engine the developers should have a better grasp of things this go around than they did with Watch Dogs. The new engine incorporates several NVIDIA Gameworks technologies and is seen as one of the most graphics intensive titles to launch this year. We tested the game on a mix of Ultra and high settings at 1440P (Temporal Filtering Disabled).

Coffee Lake architecture is meant to improve overall system power consumption and add to overall efficiency. In the case of the 9th Gen CPUs, we are looking at a refined 14nm process which allows Intel to gain improved clock speeds and increase the number of cores within the same power envelope.

The impressive thing to note here is that the Core i9-9900KS is consuming less power than the Core i9-9900K not only at stock speeds but also when both chips are overclocked to the same frequency. It goes off to show that Intel has selected super-binned dies for the Core i9-9900KS, shaving off a good amount of watts.

The Intel Coffee Lake processors feature higher clock speeds and more cores, this means that the temperatures can directly be affected by the updated design. In terms of packaging, the processor's ship with STIM or Soldered Thermal Interface Material.

In short, Intel has gone back to the soldered design with higher quality thermal interface material between the die and IHS so that should technically lead to better temperatures under overclocking and stress situations. The results were carried out with the ASUS Ryujin 240 AIO liquid cooler:

The Core i9-9900KS is a thing, it's the 8086K of the 9th Generation family but the question is, does it make any sense in a market when the Core i9-9900K exists? You'd say there was no point getting a Core i7-8086K because of the 8700K which pretty much offered the same performance & overclock capabilities but that wasn't the point. Intel wanted to make a statement that they were the king of the hill when it comes to raw performance and frequency numbers. It's similar to where AMD can say that have the most cores but in particular workloads, that won't matter since the mainstream performance is usually measured around general applications such as gaming.

In terms of gaming performance, there's no doubt that the Core i9-9900KS is the fastest chip on the planet but so is the Core i9-9900K and it costs a bit less. But the price difference isn't that huge, to begin with. We are looking at a few dollars bump of $513 US. The Core i9-9900K can be had for USD 488. That's not much for a super binned chips that can guarantee some great clocks out of the box while delivering better efficiency and temperatures. Also, being the fastest gaming chip doesn't mean you can be faster overall. AMD's Ryzen 9 3900X retails for $499 US too and features 12 cores and 24 threads. That processor offers better multi-tasking performance for the same price of the Core i9-9900KS while delivering not the same but good gaming numbers too.

Pure stock performance is great but when it comes to overclocking, even Coffee Lake has its limits and 5.3 GHz seems to be about the max which I can achieve on my 9th Gen 8 core processors. It is the absolute best you can do with an 8 core and I don't think Intel can surpass their own clocks any time soon in the coming generation or two.

But yeah, once again, should I buy the Core i9-9900KS when the Core i9-9900K exists? I believe that would be the best choice you can make if you can find the chip in retail stores. TIMhat's the thing for the Core i9-9900KS. It's going to be available for a limited time, unlike the Core i9-9900K which will be here a long time. It's also for users who want the best gaming performance now but for those who can wait, I'll vote to wait and for good reasons because given the recent leaks, the 10th Gen Core lineup next year might just bring in 8 cores and cheaper prices but that remains to be seen.

The Intel Core i9-9900KS is the fastest gaming chip out there and that's all there's it to say about it honestly. It's a really fast 8 core processor which doesn't have a massive premium attached to it over the Core i9-9900K, it overclocks great, surprisingly features lower power consumption and better temperatures than the Core i9-9900K and shows AMD who's the boss when it comes to clock speeds.

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