Intel Core i9-7960X vs AMD A10-7890K

Comparative analysis of Intel Core i9-7960X and AMD A10-7890K processors for all known characteristics in the following categories: Essentials, Performance, Memory, Compatibility, Peripherals, Security & Reliability, Advanced Technologies, Virtualization, Graphics, Graphics interfaces, Graphics API support. Benchmark processor performance analysis: PassMark - Single thread mark, PassMark - CPU mark, Geekbench 4 - Single Core, Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core, 3DMark Fire Strike - Physics Score, CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Video Composition (Frames/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s), GFXBench 4.0 - Car Chase Offscreen (Frames), GFXBench 4.0 - Manhattan (Frames), GFXBench 4.0 - T-Rex (Frames), GFXBench 4.0 - Car Chase Offscreen (Fps), GFXBench 4.0 - Manhattan (Fps), GFXBench 4.0 - T-Rex (Fps).

Intel Core i9-7960X

AMD A10-7890K

Differences

Reasons to consider the Intel Core i9-7960X

CPU is newer: launch date 1 year(s) 8 month(s) later
12 more cores, run more applications at once: 16 vs 4
Around 35% higher maximum core temperature: 98°C vs 72.40°C
A newer manufacturing process allows for a more powerful, yet cooler running processor: 14 nm vs 28 nm
4x more L1 cache, more data can be stored in the L1 cache for quick access later
4x more L2 cache, more data can be stored in the L2 cache for quick access later
Around 59% better performance in PassMark - Single thread mark: 2498 vs 1576
8.2x better performance in PassMark - CPU mark: 28923 vs 3533
Around 5% better performance in CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s): 21.307 vs 20.344

Specifications (specs)
Launch date	September 2017 vs January 2016
Number of cores	16 vs 4
Maximum core temperature	98°C vs 72.40°C
Manufacturing process technology	14 nm vs 28 nm
L1 cache	64 KB (per core) vs 256 KB
L2 cache	1024 KB (per core) vs 4 MB
Benchmarks
PassMark - Single thread mark	2498 vs 1576
PassMark - CPU mark	28923 vs 3533
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s)	21.307 vs 20.344

Reasons to consider the AMD A10-7890K

Around 2% higher clock speed: 4.3 GHz vs 4.20 GHz
Around 74% lower typical power consumption: 95 Watt vs 165 Watt
Around 91% better performance in CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s): 335.352 vs 175.691
Around 25% better performance in CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s): 1.794 vs 1.437
2.5x better performance in CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Video Composition (Frames/s): 31.466 vs 12.347
3.3x better performance in CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s): 106.183 vs 31.909

Specifications (specs)
Maximum frequency	4.3 GHz vs 4.20 GHz
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	95 Watt vs 165 Watt
Benchmarks
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s)	335.352 vs 175.691
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s)	1.794 vs 1.437
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Video Composition (Frames/s)	31.466 vs 12.347
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s)	106.183 vs 31.909

Compare benchmarks

CPU 1: Intel Core i9-7960X
CPU 2: AMD A10-7890K

PassMark - Single thread mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

2498

1576

PassMark - CPU mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

28923

3533

CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s)

CPU 1

CPU 2

21.307

20.344

CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s)

CPU 1

CPU 2

175.691

335.352

CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s)

CPU 1

CPU 2

1.437

1.794

CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Video Composition (Frames/s)

CPU 1

CPU 2

12.347

31.466

CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s)

CPU 1

CPU 2

31.909

106.183

Name	Intel Core i9-7960X	AMD A10-7890K
PassMark - Single thread mark	2498	1576
PassMark - CPU mark	28923	3533
Geekbench 4 - Single Core	1111
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core	13236
3DMark Fire Strike - Physics Score	11415
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s)	21.307	20.344
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s)	175.691	335.352
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s)	1.437	1.794
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Video Composition (Frames/s)	12.347	31.466
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s)	31.909	106.183
GFXBench 4.0 - Car Chase Offscreen (Frames)		1319
GFXBench 4.0 - Manhattan (Frames)		1878
GFXBench 4.0 - T-Rex (Frames)		3188
GFXBench 4.0 - Car Chase Offscreen (Fps)		1319
GFXBench 4.0 - Manhattan (Fps)		1878
GFXBench 4.0 - T-Rex (Fps)		3188

Compare specifications (specs)

	Intel Core i9-7960X	AMD A10-7890K
Essentials
Architecture codename	Skylake	Kaveri
Launch date	September 2017	January 2016
Launch price (MSRP)	$1,810	$150
Place in performance rating	940	909
Price now	$1,899	$199.99
Processor Number	i9-7960X
Series	Intel® Core™ X-series Processors	AMD A10-Series APU for Desktops
Status	Launched
Value for money (0-100)	3.99	8.46
Vertical segment	Desktop	Desktop
Family		AMD A-Series Processors
OPN PIB		AD789KXDJCHBX
Performance
64 bit support
Base frequency	2.80 GHz	4.1 GHz
Bus Speed	8 GT/s DMI3
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	256 KB
L2 cache	1024 KB (per core)	4 MB
L3 cache	22528 KB (shared)
Manufacturing process technology	14 nm	28 nm
Maximum core temperature	98°C	72.40°C
Maximum frequency	4.20 GHz	4.3 GHz
Number of cores	16	4
Number of QPI Links	0
Number of threads	32
Unlocked
Compute Cores		12
Die size		246 mm
Maximum case temperature (TCase)		74 °C
Number of GPU cores		8
Transistor count		1178 million
Memory
Max memory channels	4	2
Maximum memory size	128 GB
Supported memory types	DDR4-2666	DDR3
Supported memory frequency		2133 MHz
Compatibility
Low Halogen Options Available
Max number of CPUs in a configuration	1	1
Sockets supported	FCLGA2066	FM2+
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	165 Watt	95 Watt
Thermal Solution	PCG 2017X	Wraith cooler
Peripherals
Max number of PCIe lanes	44
PCI Express revision	3.0	3.0
Scalability	1S Only
Security & Reliability
Execute Disable Bit (EDB)
Intel® Trusted Execution technology (TXT)
Advanced Technologies
Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® technology
Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512
Intel 64
Intel® Advanced Vector Extensions (AVX)
Intel® AES New Instructions
Intel® Hyper-Threading technology
Intel® Optane™ Memory Supported
Intel® Turbo Boost technology
Number of AVX-512 FMA Units	2
AMD App Acceleration
AMD Elite Experiences
AMD HD3D technology
AMD Mantle API
DualGraphics
Enhanced Virus Protection (EVP)
Frame Rate Target Control (FRTC)
FreeSync
Fused Multiply-Add (FMA)
Fused Multiply-Add 4 (FMA4)
Heterogeneous System Architecture (HSA)
Out-of-band client management
PowerGating
PowerNow
PowerTune
System Image Stability
TrueAudio
VirusProtect
Virtualization
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)
AMD Virtualization (AMD-V™)
IOMMU 2.0
Graphics
Enduro
Graphics max frequency		866 MHz
iGPU core count		512
Number of pipelines		512
Processor graphics		AMD Radeon R7 Graphics
Switchable graphics
Unified Video Decoder (UVD)
Video Codec Engine (VCE)
Graphics interfaces
DisplayPort
HDMI
Graphics API support
DirectX		12
Vulkan