Intel i9: Can it Help Step Up Your Gaming
Intel core i9-12900k 3. 20ghz desktop processor
Intel. They’re a titan of the PC industry and for good reason. Paving a spot for themselves over the years, largely for their processors, very few companies give them genuine competition in the space aside from AMD. But now, it’s the 2020s, and Intel is coming out of the gate swinging with their Core i9 processors, and today we’re going to be taking a look at how they perform for gaming.
The most recent Intel i9 processors, the 11th generation, are a masterful lineup of computer chips. Described by Intel as having “innovative new architecture designed for intelligent AI performance, immersive display and graphics, and enhanced tuning and expandability”, the company has taken their decade-and-counting of experience to develop this monster of a processor.
At the highest end of the 11th generation, we have the Intel i9-11900K, and the specs will have you floored. An octa-core structure leads to a base speed of 3.5 GHz, with turbo up to a stunning 5.3 GHz, one of the fastest on any processor ever. And at $650 for the 11900K, it’s placed competitively in both price and performance. While the numbers might seem cool, let’s get into how it translates in the real world.
Intel claims the i9 is built for gaming, with enhanced tuning, overclocking features built-in, and fantastic in-game performance. The Intel i9-10900K scored a 30273 in 3DMark’s physics benchmark, beating out its closest competitor in price, the Ryzen 9 3900X, which got a 30236. Even though this benchmark doesn’t express performance well, it’s the first glimpse into its competitiveness.
When we do look into games, however, the i9 is relentless and overwhelming. In the turn-based CPU-heavy Civilization VI, the i9-10900K notches a win over its predecessor in FPS and response time, as well as the 16-core Ryzen 9. Even though there’s only about a 3-4 average FPS improvement, and small differences all-around, with only 8 cores in the i9, it’s wild that it competes at all with half of the Ryzen 9’s core count. We see consistently that the i9 holds its own similarly across different games, beating the i7 and Ryzen 9 in Far Cry 5, Final Fantasy XV, and several other titles that rely heavily on CPU graphics.
Intel i9: Can it Help Step Up Your Gaming
The Intel i9 also provides a handful of extra features that really elevate it over your average processor. They put their Intel Optane technology in the i9, which reduces bottlenecked performance in a fast and inexpensive way. The i9 series also features Intel’s Thermal Velocity Boost, which automatically increases clock speed for single and multi-core performance based on how much the processor is operating below its maximum temperature. It’s also dependent on workload, cooling situation, and amount of programs open, but it’s an extremely convenient automation to have.
Overall, it’s overwhelmingly clear that the Intel Core i9 series is one of the industry’s leaders when it comes to gaming processors. We say, it will ‘step up your gaming’! From the stunning performance in games spread across the endless cores, to the rapid clock speeds from both the base and boost, you couldn’t search for a better option around $500 for one processor to catapult you to the forefront of the PC experience. What is your experience? Have you tried it, yet? If not, what are you using? Let us know your thoughts! Drop a comment below or send us an email support@nerdyapegaming.com. We want to hear from you about your experiences with the processor you use.
Be sure to visit Nerdy Ape Gaming to grab an i9 for yourself, or any other processor or PC parts you might need!
