Intel Skylake / Kaby Lake

[Sweepr]

JagatOC RAM timing tests with Skylake non-K (Core i3-6100)

Those without a Z170/Z270 motherboard and K series chip might not be able to overclock RAM speed, but there is performance to gain via timings tuning. ASRock advertises this as well.

http://oc.jagatreview.com/2016/10/asrock-ddr4-non-z-oc-overclock-ram-di-mobo-non-z


Not exactly Skylake/Kaby Lake related but this might interest readers. Hardware.info tested 32 CPU coolers (tower type) at different settings, including 10 older and 22 new models:

CPU cooler review: 22 new models tested

If you want to overclock your processor, you'll pretty much be forced to buy a relatively expensive cooler. The best CPU air cooler at the moment is the Noctua NH-U14S, as it cools more efficiently than any other model. The price reflects its performance though, as it is the most expensive model in our test. The Ultimate Product Award it received earlier was not for nothing: buy this Noctua cooler if you want the best air cooler for your CPU and if money isn't an issue.

A friendlier priced alternative that cools almost just as well is the Scythe Fuma. It's twenty bucks cheaper than the Noctua and in our opinion this is the CPU cooler to get at the moment. It already received an Excellent Choice Award earlier, which it still deserves today. The same award also goes to the Arctic Freezer i32, which performs really well considering its price of 35 dollars. Furthermore you can set it to cool semi-passively, since you can turn the fan off completely. The Freezer i32 is the cooler that offers the best bang for the buck.

If you have a budget of 30 dollars or less, you should choose between one of the following four coolers. First up we have the Gelid Tranquillo Rev. 2 and the Raijintek Themis, both priced at 30 dollars. They perform about the same, but unfortunately the Tranquillo does not support the LGA2011 platform out of the box. Another good choice would be the Arctic Freezer i11, which cools well considering considering its price of 25 dollars. Lastly we have the Zalman CNPS10X Optima. This cooler performs well for the 27 dollars you paid for it. Right now it unfortunately has gone out of production. Zalman is planning to refresh this cooler though, so we'd still recommend it. All of the aforementioned products receive a Great Value Award.

If you've got a Pentium, Celeron or i3 processor, a cheaper model will of course suffice. Even a non-overclocked or slightly overclocked i5 or i7 processor can be cooled silently by one of the cheaper recommendations in this test, which still perform much better than a standard boxed cooler.

https://us.hardware.info/reviews/6859/cpu-cooler-review-22-new-models-tested

 

[moonbogg]

yeah, I wouldn't go 6700k now when 7700k is just around the corner and will clock better. I loathe to recommend that people "wait for [product x]," but if you can wait ~2 months, it'll be worth it.

This Kaby lake is not the "X" version, correct? There will be a quad core X version as well, right? I never thought i'd say this, but I might buy a fast quad when its upgrade time. I'm fooling myself into thinking 6 cores has helped me very much when all I do is game. A faster quad would have helped me MUCH more. I have this mental twitch that makes me want more cores because it might benefit me somehow, but that hasn't happened really. Maybe only a few games did slightly better with the hex, but a faster quad would have still done better. If Kaby clocks to 5ghz I think I'd be wasting money on a slower hex, even though having a hardcore CPU with the HEDT platform makes me giddy.
None of these DX12 exclusive console ports are doing anything with more cores. Hell, that Forza game seems to use just ONE cpu core, so why should I buy 6 or 8? Kind of frustrating.

 

[jpiniero]

It's more like 3+ months away btw.

This Kaby lake is not the "X" version, correct? There will be a quad core X version as well, right? .

Yeah. The Kaby-X is almost certainly going to be more expensive than the 7700K though (prolly $50) AND all the IGP features are gone. Stock clocks would almost have to be higher than the 7700K but if it's any better when you factor in overclock is unknown.

 

[SpoCk0nd0pe]

It's more like 3+ months away btw.



Yeah. The Kaby-X is almost certainly going to be more expensive than the 7700K though (prolly $50) AND all the IGP features are gone. Stock clocks would almost have to be higher than the 7700K but if it's any better when you factor in overclock is unknown.

Even though it is unlikely, I'm still hoping for more cache or eDRAM.

 

[jpiniero]

Even though it is unlikely, I'm still hoping for more cache or eDRAM.

Besides the IGP, I imagine it would otherwise be the same to the regular Kabylake. It's possible Skylake-X has edram although I would think it is unlikely.

 

[ehume]

Sometimes we get rumors about future performance based on job listings and resume postings. I wonder if those are fake, placed to spread FUD? Certainly a big company would have thought of this 10+ years ago, and put NDA's in their employment agreements.

 

[arandomguy]

If Kaby Lake pushes Skylake down in price enough, then won't slightly overclocking cheaper Skylakes lead to nearly identical performance? The XPS 13 comparisons from earlier seem to show the only major thing being lower level 4k support. I'm more excited about a cheaper 6700k at this point more than anything else.

Historically it hasn't seemed like new CPU releases put much downward pressure on existing prices. If we look at the 4790k in the US prices seem to have been lower prior to the 6700k's launch according to the PCpartpickers history until the end of year sales season with Black Friday in which it hit lows and then went up again.

So we may see a price low with the 6700k on Black Friday as well but this time it's prior the new CPUs launch.

Another thing to consider is if the 7700k will have the same demand and supply issue as the 6700k leading to the retailer markup. The 6700k in the US did not see consistent retail availability at actual MSRP until more than 6 months after launching, peaking at over $400 retailers. If we have a repeat of this we may be looking at possibly a $100 price difference between a 6700k on Black Friday versus a 7700k for the first few months after launch. Not to mention potential associated costs such as motherboard, ram, and other needed component cost differences between buying during end of year sales versus early in the year when KBL launches, typically when technology prices are the highest in retail.

 

[Ajay]

Another thing to consider is if the 7700k will have the same demand and supply issue as the 6700k leading to the retailer markup. The 6700k in the US did not see consistent retail availability at actual MSRP until more than 6 months after launching, peaking at over $400 retailers.

Why? I suspect part of the 14nm PLUS node is better yields (maybe Intel said this explicitly somewhere?).

 

[arandomguy]

Why? I suspect part of the 14nm PLUS node is better yields (maybe Intel said this explicitly somewhere?).

It isn't just a question of yields for supply. There is also the allocation issue both in terms of how Intel will want to allocate wafers and final die configurations, and as well as distribution in terms of what regions and channels. Intel may have other priorities in terms of supply than as many 7700k as possible into US retail channels. 14nm+ does require retooling and so fixed cost investment.

It's also a demand issue. In hindsight reports demand for i7 k-series was especially high for SKL. 4c/8t, higher base clocks, and long platform life spans likely made the higher end SKU much more desirable compared to previous generations. Anecdotally to me it seems like there was more interest in i7s over say i5s given the above compared to Sandy or even Haswell.

Do note the really demand/supply impacted SKU was really the 6700k. Both the 6600k and 6700 did not seem to have anywhere near this issue.

There are some positives in that it will be a Q1 launch and so a slower quarter than Q3 and especially Q4 was for Skylake, the flip side is supplies/distributors do plan for seasonal changes and are less willing to be aggressive on supply and pricing as the potential volume gains may not be there. KBL will likely be viewed as less of a jump over SKL than Haswell to SKL. Zen depending on how it turns out. HEDT platform will also be KBL/SKL and the same generation. These factors may lower demand for KBL compared to SKL.

Who knows what the actual situation will be but if it does end up similar real pricing differential and availability could be larger than on paper compared to current products (and this applies to Zen as well). Or 6700k could have been a bit of a once off scenario due to multiple factors converging at once. But it is a bit of a risk due to the timing coming off the timing of the biggest sales as well for US buyers.

Intel and motherboard OEMs may also want to increase MSRPs.

 

[Ajay]

So... you really don't know what is going to happen. OK - that works for me.

 

[Arachnotronic]

Why? I suspect part of the 14nm PLUS node is better yields (maybe Intel said this explicitly somewhere?).

No. They actually made changes to the transistor itself (fins are taller -- better drive current, improved channel strain, etc.). It's not just better-binned Skylakes.

 

[Ajay]

No. They actually made changes to the transistor itself (fins are taller -- better drive current, improved channel strain, etc.). It's not just better-binned Skylakes.

Did I say that it was just better-binned Skylakes? Let see - no Since you didn't actually answer the question I asked, I'll ask another - are Kaby Lake yields expected to be better than Skylake?

 

[jpiniero]

Did I say that it was just better-binned Skylakes? Let see - no Since you didn't actually answer the question I asked, I'll ask another - are Kaby Lake yields expected to be better than Skylake?

It might even be worse given that they did make changes to it.

 

[Arachnotronic]

It might even be worse given that they did make changes to it.

No yield impact.

 

[Sweepr]

ASRock announces Kaby Lake-S support for Z170, H170, B150 and H110 series motherboards

Be prepared for the overwhelming news! ASRock's 100 series motherboards support Next Generation socket 1151 Intel® Core™ Processors. Via a new BIOS update, ASRock Z170, H170, B150 and H110 series motherboards are resurrected. With only a few clicks, users are able to update the BIOS and enjoy the outstanding performance of next generation Intel processors.

Not only to those high-end and mainstream motherboards, ASRock also takes the latest BIOS to those entry level ones. From the Z170, H170, B150 series to the H110 series, users may expect more powerful processing speed yet enhanced capabilities by Intel's new processors.

www.asrock.com/news/events/IntelNextGen1151/index.html


Shadow Warrior 2 CPU Performance (GameGPU)

Dual-core Core i3-6100 basically matching Core i7-2600K and 220W FX-9590.

 

[frozentundra123456]

ASRock announces Kaby Lake-S support for Z170, H170, B150 and H110 series motherboards



www.asrock.com/news/events/IntelNextGen1151/index.html


Shadow Warrior 2 CPU Performance (GameGPU)

Dual-core Core i3-6100 basically matching Core i7-2600K and 220W FX-9590.

Must be very poorly threaded, although almost any modern cpu will get 60 fps min.

 

[coercitiv]

Must be very poorly threaded, although almost any modern cpu will get 60 fps min.

You can also see that from i5 beating i7 across all CPU generations, HT is probably hurting performance.

 

[Sweepr]

Battlefield 1 CPU Performance - GameGPU

My observations:

- Looks like anything above a Haswell Core i7 can max out framerates with a GTX 1080 at 1080p
- Fairly impressive gains with HT, especially in DX12
- Skylake distancing itself from Haswell in CPU intensive titles: Core i3-6100 anywhere from 21-29% faster than Core i3-4330!
- FX (Vishera) does gain some ground in DX12, but 220W FX-9590 still barely edges a 95W i7-2600K (2011)


Core i7-7700K pops up at Geekbench 4 again (Windows 64-bit)

Impressive single-core score. Does anyone know what clocks Skylake/Kaby Lake needs to reach for a 6K result?

Single-Core Score
6002
Multi-Core Score
19804

https://browser.primatelabs.com/v4/cpu/726300

 

[VirtualLarry]

Yay, new ASRock BIOS for KBL, but will the new BIOS allow for BCLK OC of KBL locked CPUs? Anyone know, or want to be the guinea pig?

 

[frozentundra123456]

Off topic, but just want to mention, my work just upgraded from a mid 2ghz core 2 duo to a new Dell with a Skylake i5 6500. Amazing difference in even normal desktops apps like opening office documents and analysis software. Very nice cpu.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Speaking of i5-6500, and i3-6100, I'm trying to choose between them for my ASRock DeskMini STX rigs. I've got one built, with a G4400 Pentium. Which is alright, but I'm wondering if I want to get into development again. If I do, I'm debating 32GB of RAM and a 512GB (or 1TB, if available) Intel 600p PCI-E M.2 SSD.

 

[Arachnotronic]

Speaking of i5-6500, and i3-6100, I'm trying to choose between them for my ASRock DeskMini STX rigs. I've got one built, with a G4400 Pentium. Which is alright, but I'm wondering if I want to get into development again. If I do, I'm debating 32GB of RAM and a 512GB (or 1TB, if available) Intel 600p PCI-E M.2 SSD.

Four physical cores is the better choice.

 

[coercitiv]

Speaking of i5-6500, and i3-6100, I'm trying to choose between them for my ASRock DeskMini STX rigs. I've got one built, with a G4400 Pentium. Which is alright, but I'm wondering if I want to get into development again. If I do, I'm debating 32GB of RAM and a 512GB (or 1TB, if available) Intel 600p PCI-E M.2 SSD.

How about you start developing first, on one of the various systems you already own, then come back to us.

 

[witeken]

Alright guys, so here's my score from my Kaby Lake Dell XPS 9360 with an i5-7200U. I ordered it a bit before the end of September and it arrived Tuesday, though I was away so I only have opened the package now.

In Cinebench R15, it scores 316 pts, which is a 10% increase from Notebookcheck's Skylake XPS 13 (287 pts). From what I can see, this is about as good as a Skylake Core i7. So given that a Core i7 upgrade costs 100 euros, I call this a decent improvement. Notebookcheck's review sample (which had a 3K screen while mine is 1920x1080), had performance issues and only scores 300 pts, so I'm glad that mine isn't as bad. Still not as good as the Acer Aspire E5-575G-549D which is with 331 pts 5% better still. So mine is in between those.

http://www.notebookcheck.net/Dell-XPS-13-9360-QHD-i5-7200U-Notebook-Review.178844.0.html

I will edit this post when I've run the single core test, but so far I'm really quite impressed with this thing. I didn't have experience with an Ultrabook before, the laptop I had before I bought a desktop was a thick 4cm, heavy, low battery life, poor performing HDD Intel Core 2 Duo at 2.2GHz, so this things just blows away every experience I've ever had with a laptop, needless to say .

I will also see what GPU test I can do, since Notebookcheck's first Kaby Lake laptop did like 30% higher, so the difference will be more pronounced.

Edit: Single core performance is 115 pts, in line with NBC's Skylake and Kaby Lake XPS 13, but their KBL Acer Aspire E5 is a solid 10% faster.

 

[jpiniero]

Edit: Single core performance is 115 pts, in line with NBC's Skylake and Kaby Lake XPS 13, but their KBL Acer Aspire E5 is a solid 10% faster.

Yeah but the Acer is cTDP'd up to 25 W. Even with that it shouldn't be any slower than the Acer in ST.