A10-7700K vs i7-3960X

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Aggregate performance score

Core i7-3960X
2011
6 cores / 12 threads, 130 Watt
5.33
+165%
A10-7700K
2014
4 cores / 4 threads, 95 Watt
2.01

Core i7-3960X outperforms A10-7700K by a whopping 165% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing Core i7-3960X and A10-7700K processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking11821928
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation0.420.32
Market segmentDesktop processorDesktop processor
SeriesCore i7 (Desktop)AMD A-Series (Desktop)
Power efficiency3.882.00
Architecture codenameSandy Bridge-E (2011−2013)Godaveri (2014−2016)
Release date14 November 2011 (13 years ago)14 January 2014 (10 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$861$152

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

i7-3960X has 31% better value for money than A10-7700K.

Detailed specifications

Core i7-3960X and A10-7700K basic parameters such as number of cores, number of threads, base frequency and turbo boost clock, lithography, cache size and multiplier lock state. These parameters indirectly say of CPU speed, though for more precise assessment you have to consider their test results.

Physical cores6 (Hexa-Core)4 (Quad-Core)
Threads124
Base clock speed3.3 GHz3.5 GHz
Boost clock speed3.9 GHz3.8 GHz
Bus rate5 GT/sno data
L1 cache64 KB (per core)256 KB
L2 cache256 KB (per core)4096 KB
L3 cache15 MB (shared)0 KB
Chip lithography32 nm28 nm
Die size435 mm2246 mm2
Maximum core temperatureno data72 °C
Maximum case temperature (TCase)67 °C74 °C
Number of transistors2,270 million1,178 million
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility--
Unlocked multiplier++

Compatibility

Information on Core i7-3960X and A10-7700K compatibility with other computer components: motherboard (look for socket type), power supply unit (look for power consumption) etc. Useful when planning a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. Note that power consumption of some processors can well exceed their nominal TDP, even without overclocking. Some can even double their declared thermals given that the motherboard allows to tune the CPU power parameters.

Number of CPUs in a configuration11
SocketFCLGA2011FM2+
Power consumption (TDP)130 Watt95 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i7-3960X and A10-7700K. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensionsIntel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVXSSE1-4a, AVX, AES, FMA4, VT
AES-NI++
FMA-+
AVX++
FRTC-+
FreeSync-+
DualGraphics-+
TrueAudio-+
PowerNow-+
PowerGating-+
Out-of-band client management-+
VirusProtect-+
HSA-+
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)+no data
Turbo Boost Technology2.0no data
Hyper-Threading Technology+no data
Idle States+no data
Thermal Monitoring+-
Smart Response+no data
Demand Based Switching-no data

Security technologies

Core i7-3960X and A10-7700K technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT-no data
EDB+no data
Identity Protection+-

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i7-3960X and A10-7700K are enumerated here.

AMD-V-+
VT-d+no data
VT-x+no data
EPT+no data
IOMMU 2.0-+

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i7-3960X and A10-7700K. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR3DDR3-2133
Maximum memory size64 GBno data
Max memory channels42
Maximum memory bandwidth51.2 GB/sno data

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics cardno dataAMD Radeon R7 Graphics
iGPU core countno data6
จำนวนพาธไลน์no data384
Enduro-+
Switchable graphics-+
UVD-+
VCE-+

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i7-3960X and A10-7700K integrated GPUs.

DisplayPort-+
HDMI-+

Graphics API support

APIs supported by Core i7-3960X and A10-7700K integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.

DirectXno dataDirectX® 12
Vulkan-+

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i7-3960X and A10-7700K.

PCIe version2.03.0
PCI Express lanes40no data

Synthetic benchmark performance

Various benchmark results of the processors in comparison. Overall score is measured in points in 0-100 range, higher is better.


Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark performance rating. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.

i7-3960X 5.33
+165%
A10-7700K 2.01

Passmark

Passmark CPU Mark is a widespread benchmark, consisting of 8 different types of workload, including integer and floating point math, extended instructions, compression, encryption and physics calculation. There is also one separate single-threaded scenario measuring single-core performance.

i7-3960X 8460
+165%
A10-7700K 3193

Cinebench 10 32-bit single-core

Cinebench R10 is an ancient ray tracing benchmark for processors by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. Its single core version uses just one CPU thread to render a futuristic looking motorcycle.

i7-3960X 5014
+66.9%
A10-7700K 3004

Cinebench 10 32-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 10 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R10 using all the processor threads. Possible number of threads is limited by 16 in this version.

i7-3960X 27190
+177%
A10-7700K 9821

3DMark06 CPU

3DMark06 is a discontinued DirectX 9 benchmark suite from Futuremark. Its CPU part contains two scenarios, one dedicated to artificial intelligence pathfinding, another to game physics using PhysX package.

i7-3960X 8330
+85.1%
A10-7700K 4500

wPrime 32

wPrime 32M is a math multi-thread processor test, which calculates square roots of first 32 million integer numbers. Its result is measured in seconds, so that the less is benchmark result, the faster the processor.

i7-3960X 5.12
+168%
A10-7700K 13.7

Cinebench 11.5 64-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 11.5 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R11.5 which uses all the processor threads. A maximum of 64 threads is supported in this version.

i7-3960X 11
+205%
A10-7700K 3

Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core

Cinebench Release 15 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R15 which uses all the processor threads.

i7-3960X 1158
+306%
A10-7700K 285

Cinebench 15 64-bit single-core

Cinebench R15 (standing for Release 15) is a benchmark made by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version (sometimes called Single-Thread) only uses a single processor thread to render a room full of reflective spheres and light sources.

i7-3960X 159
+91.6%
A10-7700K 83

Cinebench 11.5 64-bit single-core

Cinebench R11.5 is an old benchmark by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version loads a single thread with ray tracing to render a glossy room full of crystal spheres and light sources.

i7-3960X 1.52
+61.7%
A10-7700K 0.94

TrueCrypt AES

TrueCrypt is a discontinued piece of software that was widely used for on-the-fly-encryption of disk partitions, now superseded by VeraCrypt. It contains several embedded performance tests, one of them being TrueCrypt AES, which measures data encryption speed using AES algorithm. Result is encryption speed in gigabytes per second.

i7-3960X 5.2
+148%
A10-7700K 2.1

WinRAR 4.0

WinRAR 4.0 is an outdated version of a popular file archiver. It contains an internal speed test, using 'Best' setting of RAR compression on large chunks of randomly generated data. Its results are measured in kilobytes per second.

i7-3960X 4205
+100%
A10-7700K 2098

x264 encoding pass 2

x264 Pass 2 is a slower variant of x264 video compression that produces a variable bit rate output file, which results in better quality since the higher bit rate is used when it is needed more. Benchmark result is still measured in frames per second.  

i7-3960X 55
+137%
A10-7700K 23

x264 encoding pass 1

x264 version 4.0 is a video encoding benchmark uses MPEG 4 x264 compression method to compress a sample HD (720p) video. Pass 1 is a faster variant that produces a constant bit rate output file. Its result is measured in frames per second, which means how many frames of the source video file were encoded per second.  

i7-3960X 173
+57.3%
A10-7700K 110

3DMark Fire Strike Physics

i7-3960X 12460
+254%
A10-7700K 3520

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 5.33 2.01
Recency 14 November 2011 14 January 2014
Physical cores 6 4
Threads 12 4
Chip lithography 32 nm 28 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 130 Watt 95 Watt

i7-3960X has a 165.2% higher aggregate performance score, and 50% more physical cores and 200% more threads.

A10-7700K, on the other hand, has an age advantage of 2 years, a 14.3% more advanced lithography process, and 36.8% lower power consumption.

The Core i7-3960X is our recommended choice as it beats the A10-7700K in performance tests.


Should you still have questions on choice between Core i7-3960X and A10-7700K, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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Intel Core i7-3960X
Core i7-3960X
AMD A10-7700K
A10-7700K

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Community ratings

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Questions & comments

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