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Intel Core i9-7980XE Extreme Edition

Intel Core i9-7980XE Extreme Edition: A Guide to the Legendary 18-Core Monster (2025)

Last Updated: April 2025

Key Specs: Architecture, Process Technology, and Unique Features

The Intel Core i9-7980XE, released in 2017, remains a cult favorite for enthusiasts. Despite its age, its 18 cores and 36 threads are still relevant for specific tasks.

Architecture and Process Technology

- Codename: Skylake-X.

- Process Technology: 14 nm (optimized version of Intel 14nm++).

- Base Clock: 2.6 GHz, with Turbo Boost up to 4.4 GHz (Turbo Boost Max 3.0).

- Cache: 24.75 MB L3, 1 MB L2 per core.

Key Features

- Unlocked Multiplier for manual overclocking.

- Support for Intel Optane Memory and AVX-512 for workloads.

- 44 PCIe 3.0 lanes — capability to connect multiple GPUs and NVMe drives.

Performance

In Cinebench R23 tests, the 7980XE demonstrates around 3400 points in single-threaded mode and up to 32000 in multi-threaded. In comparison, the modern Core i9-14900K (24 cores) scores approximately 28000 in multi-threading but excels in single-threaded tasks due to frequencies up to 6 GHz.

Compatible Motherboards: Socket, Chipsets, and Selection Nuances

Socket: LGA 2066 — a specialized platform for HEDT (High-End Desktop).

Chipsets

- Intel X299: The only option. Supports overclocking, multi-GPU configurations (NVLink/SLI), and up to 128 GB DDR4.

Recommended Models

- ASUS ROG Rampage VI Extreme — a choice of overclockers (price in 2025: ~$450 for new, if you can find one).

- MSI X299 Gaming Pro Carbon AC — a balance of price and features (~$300).

Selection Features

- VRM Module: At least an 8-phase for stable overclocking.

- VRM Cooling: Heatsinks with heat pipes are essential — the chipset heats up under load.

- Ports: Look for motherboards with USB 3.2 Gen2, Thunderbolt 3 (via additional controller), and 2-3 M.2 slots.

Supported Memory: DDR4 and Limitations

- Type: Only DDR4 (DDR5 is not supported).

- Frequencies: Officially up to 2666 MHz, but with overclocking — up to 3600 MHz (depends on the motherboard and memory chips).

- Configurations: 4- or 8-channel mode (most X299 boards — 4-channel).

Practical Example

A build based on G.Skill Trident Z RGB (4x16 GB, 3200 MHz) shows a rendering performance increase of up to 12% compared to 2666 MHz.

Power Supply Units: Power Calculation and Recommendations

CPU TDP: 165 W, but during overclocking (up to 4.6 GHz on all cores), consumption can reach 300 W.

Recommendations

- Minimum: 850 W (for a PC with a single GPU such as the RTX 4080).

- Optimal: 1000–1200 W (for 2x GPUs, RAID arrays, and peripherals).

- Certifications: 80+ Gold or Platinum (Corsair HX1200, Seasonic PRIME TX-1000).

Important! Cheap PSUs with high ripple can cause instability under multi-threaded loads.

Pros and Cons of i9-7980XE

Pros

1. Multi-Threaded Power: 36 threads are relevant for rendering, code compilation, and virtualization.

2. Scalability: Support for 4-channel memory and 44 PCIe 3.0 lanes.

3. Overclocking Potential: Enthusiasts have been able to push it to 4.8 GHz using liquid nitrogen.

Cons

1. Power Consumption: Under overclocking, the system can draw up to 500 W.

2. Outdated Platform: No PCIe 4.0/5.0, DDR5, or USB4 support.

3. Price: New units in 2025 cost between $1500 and $2000 (if available).

Usage Scenarios: Where the i9-7980XE Still Shines

1. Workstations

- 3D Rendering (Blender, V-Ray): 18 cores reduce rendering time for complex scenes.

- 8K Video Editing: In Premiere Pro and DaVinci Resolve, the CPU handles proxy encoding in the background.

2. Virtualization

Running 5–7 virtual machines simultaneously without lag (for example, software development in isolated environments).

3. Gaming

- Streaming: CPU encoding in OBS has little impact on FPS.

- Games leaning on multi-threading (Civilization VI, Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024) maintain stable 60+ FPS in 4K.

However! In CS2 or Cyberpunk 2077 with an RTX 4090, it falls short compared to modern Core i9-14900K by 15–20% due to lower IPC (instructions per clock).

Competitors: Who to Compare in 2025?

1. AMD Ryzen Threadripper 1950X (2017): 16 cores, ~$1000. Falls behind in multi-threading (~25000 in Cinebench R23), but is cheaper.

2. AMD Threadripper 3970X (2019): 32 cores, starting at $2000. For those needing maximum performance.

3. Intel Core i9-13900KS (2023): 24 cores (8P+16E), higher IPC, but limited to the LGA 1700 socket.

Conclusion: The 7980XE is a choice for those who already have an X299 board and want an upgrade without changing the platform.

Build Recommendations

1. Cooling

- Liquid Cooling: Arctic Liquid Freezer II 420 (420mm radiator).

- Air Cooling: Noctua NH-D15 (with mounting bracket replacement for LGA 2066).

2. Case

- Minimum: Lian Li PC-O11 Dynamic (good ventilation).

- Ideal: Thermaltake Core WP100 (supports E-ATX and liquid cooling).

3. Add-Ons

- Thermal paste Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut.

- Additional fans for VRM cooling.

Final Conclusion: Who is the i9-7980XE Suitable for in 2025?

This processor should be considered if:

- You already have an X299 board and need an upgrade without changing motherboards.

- You work with multi-threaded applications and are not ready to switch to DDR5/PCIe 5.0.

- You want a rare “old-school” HEDT PC for experimentation.

For gamers and casual users, the choice is not optimal: modern Core i7/i9 13th-14th generation and Ryzen 7000/8000 offer better energy efficiency and single-threaded speed.

If you find a new i9-7980XE in 2025 — it's a rarity. However, for niche tasks, it can still surprise with its power, recalling an era when Intel dominated the HEDT segment.

Basic

Label Name

Intel

Platform

Desktop

Launch Date

July 2017

Model Name

The Intel processor number is just one of several factors - along with processor brand, system configurations, and system-level benchmarks - to be considered when choosing the right processor for your computing needs.

i9-7980XE

Code Name

SkyLake

CPU Specifications

Total Cores

Cores is a hardware term that describes the number of independent central processing units in a single computing component (die or chip).

Total Threads

Where applicable, Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology is only available on Performance-cores.

Basic Frequency

2.60 GHz

Max Turbo Frequency

Max Turbo Frequency is the maximum single-core frequency at which the processor is capable of operating using Intel® Turbo Boost Technology and, if present, Intel® Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 and Intel® Thermal Velocity Boost. Frequency is typically measured in gigahertz (GHz), or billion cycles per second.

4.20 GHz

Intel Turbo Boost Technology

Intel® Turbo Boost Technology dynamically increases the processor's frequency as needed by taking advantage of thermal and power headroom to give you a burst of speed when you need it, and increased energy efficiency when you don’t.

2.0

Intel Hyper-Threading Technology

Intel® Hyper-Threading Technology (Intel® HT Technology) delivers two processing threads per physical core. Highly threaded applications can get more work done in parallel, completing tasks sooner.

Yes

Intel Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 Frequency

Intel® Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 identifies the best performing core(s) on a processor and provides increased performance on those cores through increasing frequency as needed by taking advantage of power and thermal headroom. Intel® Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 frequency is the clock frequency of the CPU when running in this mode.

4.40 GHz

Intel Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0

Yes

CPU Socket

The socket is the component that provides the mechanical and electrical connections between the processor and motherboard.

FCLGA2066

TDP

165 W

Max. Operating Temperature

Junction Temperature is the maximum temperature allowed at the processor die.

94°C

PCI Express Version

PCI Express Revision is the supported version of the PCI Express standard. Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (or PCIe) is a high-speed serial computer expansion bus standard for attaching hardware devices to a computer. The different PCI Express versions support different data rates.

3.0

Number of PCI Express Lanes

A PCI Express (PCIe) lane consists of two differential signaling pairs, one for receiving data, one for transmitting data, and is the basic unit of the PCIe bus. Max # of PCI Express Lanes is the total number of supported lanes.

Intel 64

Intel® 64 architecture delivers 64-bit computing on server, workstation, desktop and mobile platforms when combined with supporting software.¹ Intel 64 architecture improves performance by allowing systems to address more than 4 GB of both virtual and physical memory.

Yes

Memory Specifications

Memory Type

Intel® processors come in four different types: Single Channel, Dual Channel, Triple Channel, and Flex Mode. Maximum supported memory speed may be lower when populating multiple DIMMs per channel on products that support multiple memory channels.

DDR4-2666

Max Memory Size

Max memory size refers to the maximum memory capacity supported by the processor.

128 GB

Memory Channels

The number of memory channels refers to the bandwidth operation for real world application.

Bus Speed

8 GT/s

Max Memory Bandwidth

Max Memory bandwidth is the maximum rate at which data can be read from or stored into a semiconductor memory by the processor (in GB/s).

85 GB/s

ECC Memory Supported

ECC Memory Supported indicates processor support for Error-Correcting Code memory. ECC memory is a type of system memory that can detect and correct common kinds of internal data corruption. Note that ECC memory support requires both processor and chipset support.

Miscellaneous

Intel Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)

Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d) continues from the existing support for IA-32 (VT-x) and Itanium® processor (VT-i) virtualization adding new support for I/O-device virtualization. Intel VT-d can help end users improve security and reliability of the systems and also improve performance of I/O devices in virtualized environments.

Yes

Intel Virtualization Technology (VT-x)

Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x) allows one hardware platform to function as multiple “virtual” platforms. It offers improved manageability by limiting downtime and maintaining productivity by isolating computing activities into separate partitions.

Yes

Intel Standard Manageability (ISM)

Intel® Standard Manageability is the manageability solution for Intel vPro® Essentials platforms and is a subset of Intel® AMT with out-of-band management over Ethernet and Wi-Fi, but no KVM or new life cycle management features.

Intel® SSE4.1 | Intel® SSE4.2 | Intel® AVX2 | Intel® AVX-512

Number of AVX-512 FMA Units

Enhanced Intel SpeedStep Technology

Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® Technology is an advanced means of enabling high performance while meeting the power-conservation needs of mobile systems. Conventional Intel SpeedStep® Technology switches both voltage and frequency in tandem between high and low levels in response to processor load. Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® Technology builds upon that architecture using design strategies such as Separation between Voltage and Frequency Changes, and Clock Partitioning and Recovery.

Yes

Execute Disable Bit

Execute Disable Bit is a hardware-based security feature that can reduce exposure to viruses and malicious-code attacks and prevent harmful software from executing and propagating on the server or network.

Yes

Cache

CPU Cache is an area of fast memory located on the processor. Intel® Smart Cache refers to the architecture that allows all cores to dynamically share access to the last level cache.

24.75 MB

Intel AES New Instructions

Intel® AES New Instructions (Intel® AES-NI) are a set of instructions that enable fast and secure data encryption and decryption. AES-NI are valuable for a wide range of cryptographic applications, for example: applications that perform bulk encryption/decryption, authentication, random number generation, and authenticated encryption.

Yes