The 11th generation Intel Core desktop processors (codenamed “Rocket Lake-S”) will provide increased performance and speeds. They will be launched in the first quarter of 2021. (Credit: Intel Corporation)
The latest flagship CPU benchmarks for the Intel Core i9-11900K Rocket Lake were leaked on the Geekbench. The numbers show record performance for the next chip that will feature a new core architecture on an Intel Desktop platform for the first time in more than 6 years.
Intel Core i9-11900K Rocket Lake Desktop CPU decimates all its rivals in single-thread reference performance, 13% faster than AMD Ryzen 9 5950X
The Intel Core i9-11900K with its multiple Cypress Cove core will bring the biggest CPU architecture update in over 6 years. This is because from the 6th generation Skylake CPUs, all Intel CPUs to the 10th generation Comet Lake CPUs have used the same identical chip architecture based on the 14 nm process node.
Rocket Lake Intel Core i9-11900K desktop CPU specifications:
The Intel Core i9-11900K will be the flagship of the 11th Generation Rocket Lake Desktop CPU. The chip will have 8 cores and 16 threads. This will result in 16 MB of L3 cache (2 MB per core) and 4 MB of L2 cache (512 KB per core). In terms of clocks, the CPU works at basic frequencies of 3.5 GHz, but as for the boost, the CPU will have a maximum boost clock of 5.2 GHz (1 core) while the boost frequency of the entire core will be maintained at 4.8 GHz.
The chip will also have Thermal Velocity Boost, which should provide a 100 MHz jump at the maximum clock frequency. This should lead to a single core 5.3 GHz boost clock, making it the first CPU to reach such a high frequency out of the box. However, remember that regardless of whether you use Cypress Cove cores, the Core i9-11900K will have lower cores and threads than the Intel Core i9-10900K. This is partly due to the backporting of Cypress Cove on the refined 14 nm process node. The CPU is said to have a first stage power limit of 125W, which is standard for an Intel SKU, and the second stage power limit or PL2 is rated at 250W.
11th generation Rocket Lake Desktop CPU line specifications (preliminaries):
| CPU name | Colors / Threads | Base Clock | Boost Clock (1-Core) | Boost Clock (All-Core) | Cache | Graphics | TDP (PL1) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Core i9-11900K | 8/16 | 3.50 GHz | 5.30 GHz | 4.80 GHz | 16 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 cores) | 125W |
| Core i9-11900 | 8/16 | 1.80 GHz | 4.50 GHz | 4.00 GHz | 16 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 cores) | 65W |
| Core i9-11900T | 8/16 | TBC | TBC | TBC | 16 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 cores) | 35W |
| Core i7-11700K | 8/16 | 3.60 GHz | 5.00 GHz | 4.60 GHz | 16 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 cores) | 125W |
| Core i7-11700 | 8/16 | 2.50 GHz | 4.90 GHz | TBC | 16 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 cores) | 65W |
| Core i7-11700T | 8/16 | TBC | TBC | 16 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 cores) | 35W | |
| Core i5-11600K | 6/12 | 3.90 GHz | 4.90 GHz | 4.60 GHz | 12 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 cores) | 125W |
| Core i5-11600 | 6/12 | TBC | TBC | TBC | 12 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 cores) | 65W |
| Core i5-11600T | 6/12 | TBC | TBC | TBC | 12 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 cores) | 35W |
| Core i5-11500 | 6/12 | TBC | TBC | TBC | 12 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 cores) | 65W |
| Core i5-11500T | 6/12 | TBC | TBC | TBC | 12 MB | Intel Xe 32 EU (256 cores) | 35W |
| Core i5-11400 | 6/12 | 2.60 GHz | 4,400 GHz | 4.20 GHz | 12 MB | Intel Xe 24 EU (192 colors) | 65W |
| Core i5-11400T | 6/12 | TBC | TBC | TBC | 12 MB | Intel Xe 24 EU (192 colors) | 35W |
Reaching the benchmark, the CPU was tested at least three times in the same configuration consisting of a Gigabyte Z490 AORUS Master motherboard and 32 GB of DDR4-3600 MHz memory. A maximum single-threaded score of 1905 points and a multi score -threaded of 10994 points was observed during the tests. This places the Rocket Lake Intel Core i9-11900K CPU as the fastest single-thread chip ever created. Compared to AMD’s faster Zen 3 chip, the Ryzen 9 5950X, the Intel CPU is 13% faster.
At the same time, it loses in multithreaded tests due to a maximum of 8 cores and 16 threads, while AMD’s Ryzen 5000 family scales up to 16 cores and 32 threads, which is double that of the Intel Rocket Lake flagship. The Intel Core i9-10900K scores an average of 1402 points in single-core tests and 10924 points in multi-core tests. Despite having more cores and threads, the 11900K, in fact, beats its predecessor with a slight performance advantage that is very impressive.
However, we must remember that this is a result of overclocking. Of course, the Core i9-11900K can operate at 5.3 GHz in stock, but this is only valid for a single core. The chip here can be seen running with a 5.3 GHz all-core boost, which is 500 MHz higher than its standard 4.8 GHz all-core boost. Therefore, the stock’s multiple-core score would be lower, but still, not by a huge margin. But with that said, we saw that the Rocket Lake CPU is very difficult to chip cool with the AIDA64 FPU stress test pushing it to 98C, even using a 360 mm AIO liquid cooler.
While this is a good showcase for Intel, note that Rocket Lake CPUs will not reach retail until the end of March 2021. This puts them close to AMD’s next response, which should be in the form of a Zen 3+ ‘Warhol enhanced or a next-generation Ryzen line based on Zen 4. Intel also plans to launch its 12th generation ‘Alder Lake’ Desktop CPU line by 2H 2021 or Q3 2021, meaning that Rocket Lake CPUs will be replaced in 1 or 2 quarters, giving them an even shorter life span than Kaby Lake, which was also replaced by Coffee Lake CPUs a few quarters later.
News source: Videocardz