i7-3960X vs i9-10980XE

VS

Aggregate performance score

Core i9-10980XE
2019
18 cores / 36 threads, 165 Watt
20.57
+286%
Core i7-3960X
2011
6 cores / 12 threads, 130 Watt
5.33

Core i9-10980XE outperforms Core i7-3960X by a whopping 286% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing Core i9-10980XE and Core i7-3960X processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking2721182
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation11.730.42
Market segmentDesktop processorDesktop processor
Seriesno dataCore i7 (Desktop)
Power efficiency11.803.88
Architecture codenameCascade Lake-X (2019)Sandy Bridge-E (2011−2013)
Release date19 October 2019 (5 years ago)14 November 2011 (13 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$979$861

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

i9-10980XE has 2693% better value for money than i7-3960X.

Detailed specifications

Core i9-10980XE and Core i7-3960X 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 cores18 (Octadeca-Core)6 (Hexa-Core)
Threads3612
Base clock speed3 GHz3.3 GHz
Boost clock speed4.8 GHz3.9 GHz
Bus rate8 GT/s DMI3 MHz5 GT/s
L1 cache64K (per core)64 KB (per core)
L2 cache1 MB (per core)256 KB (per core)
L3 cache24.75 MB (shared)15 MB (shared)
Chip lithography14 nm32 nm
Die sizeno data435 mm2
Maximum core temperature86 °Cno data
Maximum case temperature (TCase)no data67 °C
Number of transistorsno data2,270 million
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility+-
Unlocked multiplier++

Compatibility

Information on Core i9-10980XE and Core i7-3960X 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
SocketFCLGA2066FCLGA2011
Power consumption (TDP)165 Watt130 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i9-10980XE and Core i7-3960X. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensionsIntel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX
AES-NI++
AVX++
vPro+no data
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)++
Turbo Boost Technology2.02.0
Hyper-Threading Technology++
TSX+-
Idle Statesno data+
Thermal Monitoring-+
Smart Responseno data+
Demand Based Switchingno data-
Turbo Boost Max 3.0+no data
Deep Learning Boost+-

Security technologies

Core i9-10980XE and Core i7-3960X technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT+-
EDB++
Identity Protection-+

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i9-10980XE and Core i7-3960X are enumerated here.

AMD-V+-
VT-d++
VT-x++
EPTno data+

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i9-10980XE and Core i7-3960X. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR4DDR3
Maximum memory size256 GB64 GB
Max memory channels44
Maximum memory bandwidth94 GB/s51.2 GB/s

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i9-10980XE and Core i7-3960X.

PCIe version3.02.0
PCI Express lanes4840

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.

i9-10980XE 20.57
+286%
i7-3960X 5.33

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.

i9-10980XE 32670
+286%
i7-3960X 8460

GeekBench 5 Single-Core

GeekBench 5 Single-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses only a single CPU core.

i9-10980XE 1600
+142%
i7-3960X 661

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses all available CPU cores.

i9-10980XE 12191
+280%
i7-3960X 3210

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.

i9-10980XE 7847
+56.5%
i7-3960X 5014

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.

i9-10980XE 59479
+119%
i7-3960X 27190

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.

i9-10980XE 14129
+69.6%
i7-3960X 8330

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.

i9-10980XE 2.81
+82.2%
i7-3960X 5.12

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.

i9-10980XE 38
+265%
i7-3960X 11

Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core

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

i9-10980XE 3744
+223%
i7-3960X 1158

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.

i9-10980XE 208
+30.8%
i7-3960X 159

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.

i9-10980XE 2.36
+55.3%
i7-3960X 1.52

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.

i9-10980XE 18.2
+250%
i7-3960X 5.2

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.

i9-10980XE 7172
+70.6%
i7-3960X 4205

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.  

i9-10980XE 158
+187%
i7-3960X 55

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.  

i9-10980XE 215
+24.3%
i7-3960X 173

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 20.57 5.33
Recency 19 October 2019 14 November 2011
Physical cores 18 6
Threads 36 12
Chip lithography 14 nm 32 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 165 Watt 130 Watt

i9-10980XE has a 285.9% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 7 years, 200% more physical cores and 200% more threads, and a 128.6% more advanced lithography process.

i7-3960X, on the other hand, has 26.9% lower power consumption.

The Core i9-10980XE is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i7-3960X in performance tests.


Should you still have questions on choice between Core i9-10980XE and Core i7-3960X, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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Intel Core i9-10980XE
Core i9-10980XE
Intel Core i7-3960X
Core i7-3960X

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