Core i9-9900K vs Core i9-7900X

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Aggregated performance score

Core i9-7900X
2017
10 cores / 20 threads
13.69
+15.6%

Core i9-7900X outperforms Core i9-9900K by 16% based on our aggregated benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing Core i9-7900X and Core i9-9900K processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in performance ranking488595
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation8.2513.06
Market segmentDesktop processorDesktop processor
SeriesCore i9 (Desktop)Core i9 (Desktop)
Architecture codenameSkylake-X (2018)Coffee Lake-R (2018−2019)
Release date26 June 2017 (6 years ago)19 October 2018 (5 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$999$488
Current price$540 (0.5x MSRP)$409 (0.8x MSRP)

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

i9-9900K has 58% better value for money than i9-7900X.

Detailed specifications

Core i9-7900X and Core i9-9900K 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 cores10 (Deca-Core)8 (Octa-Core)
Threads2016
Base clock speed3.3 GHz3.6 GHz
Boost clock speed4.5 GHz5 GHz
L1 cache64 KB (per core)64K (per core)
L2 cache1 MB (per core)256K (per core)
L3 cache14 MB (shared)16 MB (shared)
Chip lithography14 nm14 nm
Die sizeno data178 mm2
Maximum core temperature95 °C100 °C
Maximum case temperature (TCase)72 °C72 °C
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility++
Unlocked multiplierYesYes

Compatibility

Information on Core i9-7900X and Core i9-9900K 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
SocketSocket R4LGA-1151
Power consumption (TDP)140 Watt95 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i9-7900X and Core i9-9900K. 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® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2
AES-NI++
AVX++
vPro++
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)++
Turbo Boost Technology2.02.0
Hyper-Threading Technology++
TSX++
Idle Statesno data+
Thermal Monitoringno data+
SIPPno data+
Turbo Boost Max 3.0+no data
StatusDiscontinuedDiscontinued

Security technologies

Core i9-7900X and Core i9-9900K technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXTno data+
EDB++
Secure Keyno data+
MPXno data+
Identity Protectionno data+
SGXno dataYes with Intel® ME
OS Guardno data+

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i9-7900X and Core i9-9900K are enumerated here.

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

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i9-7900X and Core i9-9900K. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR4DDR4
Maximum memory size128 GB128 GB
Max memory channels42
Maximum memory bandwidth85 GB/s41.6 GB/s
ECC memory support--

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics cardN/AIntel UHD Graphics 630
Max video memoryno data64 GB
Quick Sync Videono data+
Clear Videono data+
Clear Video HDno data+
Graphics max frequencyno data1.2 GHz
InTru 3Dno data+

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i9-7900X and Core i9-9900K integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supportedno data3

Graphics image quality

Maximum display resolutions supported by Core i9-7900X and Core i9-9900K integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.

4K resolution supportno data+
Max resolution over HDMI 1.4no data4096 x 2304@24Hz
Max resolution over eDPno data4096 x 2304@60Hz
Max resolution over DisplayPortno data4096 x 2304@60Hz

Graphics API support

APIs supported by Core i9-7900X and Core i9-9900K integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.

DirectXno data12
OpenGLno data4.5

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i9-7900X and Core i9-9900K.

PCIe version3.03.0
PCI Express lanes4416

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.

i9-7900X 13.69
+15.6%
i9-9900K 11.84

Core i9-7900X outperforms Core i9-9900K by 16% based on our aggregated benchmark results.


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.

Benchmark coverage: 68%

i9-7900X 21175
+15.6%
i9-9900K 18317

Core i9-7900X outperforms Core i9-9900K by 16% in Passmark.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 42%

i9-7900X 1425
i9-9900K 1669
+17.1%

Core i9-9900K outperforms Core i9-7900X by 17% in GeekBench 5 Single-Core.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 42%

i9-7900X 8831
+10.9%
i9-9900K 7963

Core i9-7900X outperforms Core i9-9900K by 11% in GeekBench 5 Multi-Core.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 20%

i9-7900X 7287
i9-9900K 7933
+8.9%

Core i9-9900K outperforms Core i9-7900X by 9% in Cinebench 10 32-bit single-core.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 19%

i9-7900X 49738
+2%
i9-9900K 48779

Core i9-7900X outperforms Core i9-9900K by 2% in Cinebench 10 32-bit multi-core.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 19%

i9-7900X 12678
i9-9900K 14282
+12.6%

Core i9-9900K outperforms Core i9-7900X by 13% in 3DMark06 CPU.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 18%

i9-7900X 2.91
+23%
i9-9900K 3.58

Core i9-9900K outperforms Core i9-7900X by 23% in wPrime 32.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 17%

i9-7900X 24
+11.6%
i9-9900K 21

Core i9-7900X outperforms Core i9-9900K by 12% in Cinebench 11.5 64-bit multi-core.

Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core

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

Benchmark coverage: 15%

i9-7900X 2148
+8.5%
i9-9900K 1979

Core i9-7900X outperforms Core i9-9900K by 9% in Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 15%

i9-7900X 193
i9-9900K 212
+10%

Core i9-9900K outperforms Core i9-7900X by 10% in Cinebench 15 64-bit single-core.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 14%

i9-7900X 2.2
i9-9900K 2.38
+8.2%

Core i9-9900K outperforms Core i9-7900X by 8% in Cinebench 11.5 64-bit single-core.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 13%

i9-7900X 12.1
+9%
i9-9900K 11.1

Core i9-7900X outperforms Core i9-9900K by 9% in TrueCrypt AES.

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.

Benchmark coverage: 13%

i9-7900X 5918
i9-9900K 7633
+29%

Core i9-9900K outperforms Core i9-7900X by 29% in WinRAR 4.0.

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.  

Benchmark coverage: 13%

i9-7900X 217
i9-9900K 261
+20%

Core i9-9900K outperforms Core i9-7900X by 20% in x264 encoding pass 1.

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.  

Benchmark coverage: 13%

i9-7900X 121
+5.9%
i9-9900K 114

Core i9-7900X outperforms Core i9-9900K by 6% in x264 encoding pass 2.

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 13.69 11.84
Recency 26 June 2017 19 October 2018
Physical cores 10 8
Threads 20 16
Cost $999 $488
Power consumption (TDP) 140 Watt 95 Watt

The Core i9-7900X is our recommended choice as it beats the Core i9-9900K in performance tests.


Should you still have questions on choice between Core i9-7900X and Core i9-9900K, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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Intel Core i9-7900X
Core i9-7900X
Intel Core i9-9900K
Core i9-9900K

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