Hexus Alderlake review thread

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Core i9 12900K

https://www.club386.com/intel-core-i...r-lake-review/
https://www.anandtech.com/show/17047...rid-complexity
https://www.guru3d.com/articles-page...-review,1.html
https://www.kitguru.net/components/l...12900k-review/
https://pcper.com/2021/11/intel-alde...-talon-review/
https://www.techpowerup.com/review/i...lake-12th-gen/
https://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/99...cpu/index.html

Core i7 12700K

https://www.techpowerup.com/review/i...lake-12th-gen/

Core i5 12600K

https://www.guru3d.com/articles-page...-review,1.html
https://www.techpowerup.com/review/i...lake-12th-gen/

Group Test

https://www.computerbase.de/2021-11/...5-12600k-test/
https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/d...-12600k-review
https://www.hardwareluxx.de/index.ph...e-im-test.html
https://www.igorslab.de/en/intel-cor...frugal-part-1/
https://www.igorslab.de/en/intel-mac...ge-fuer-amd-2/
https://www.overclock3d.net/reviews/..._hero_review/1
https://www.overclockers.com/intel-i...-12600k-review
https://www.sweclockers.com/test/330...00k-alder-lake
https://www.tomshardware.com/news/in...e-gaming-crown
https://tweakers.net/reviews/9472/in...i5-12600k.html
https://wccftech.com/review/intel-co...5-6000-memory/
https://www.vortez.net/articles_page...0k_review.html
https://www.computerbase.de/2021-11/...5-12600k-test/

Puget Systems

https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/ar...-Roundup-2248/

Linux

https://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?pa...k-12900k&num=1

Video Tests

Gamersnexus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhI9tLOg-6I

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkHMh8sUSuM

Hardware Unboxed

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWsMYHHC6j4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlngwUuDYoc

LTT

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EogHCFd7w0

JayzTwoCents

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7SU58plpsE

Paul's Hardware

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-sACJDqsJ0

Hardware Canucks

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQwM-5KDRRI

eTeknix

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1if2cgffsAo

TechteamGB

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NESZDkOFH2I

Optimum Tech

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMBLCv54JPw

Techtesters

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubGuTbn14TU

[jimbouk]

Winter is coming, perfect time to pop one of these under the desk and warm your toes

Plenty of performance at the top and looks like they're trying to squeeze AMD on the prices, hopefully will reverse the current upward trend!

[Terbinator]

Not sure I agree with the C386 'value' result when there is an enormous platform cost to access the ADL CPUs w/ DDR5.

[jimbouk]

Not sure I agree with the C386 'value' result when there is an enormous platform cost to access the ADL CPUs w/ DDR5.

Fair comments as they even mention it themselves!

It’s absolutely wise to consider the total cost of platform – CPU, motherboard, memory, cooler, etc. – before drawing hard-and-fast conclusions.

[Kovoet]

Sure these guys have had these for a while. Damn a lot quicker than my AMD chip

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

OP updated. Time for AMD to reduce prices IMHO!!

[stevie lee]

and from Intel themselves, DRM in games is causing problems
https://www.intel.com/content/www/us...rocessors.html

The games listed below are known to be impacted by the Digital Rights Management (DRM) software issue with Windows 11*. The games listed in bold are expected to be patched sometime in mid-November with the upcoming Windows 11 update. We are working with developers to resolve issues with the rest of the games listed. In the meantime, the Scroll Lock workaround can be used.

This list will be updated as patches are released.

Anthem*
Bravely Default 2*
Fishing Sim World*
Football Manager 2019*
Football Manager Touch 2019*
Football Manager 2020*
Football Manager Touch 2020*
Legend of Mana*
Mortal Kombat 11*
Tony Hawks Pro Skater 1 and 2*
Warhammer I*
Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla*
Far Cry Primal*
Fernbus Simulator*
For Honor*
Lost in Random*
Madden 22*
Maneater*
Need for Speed – Hot Pursuit Remastered*
Sea of Solitude*
Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order*
Tourist Bus Simulator*
Maneater*
For Windows 10, the games above are affected, and we are working with developers to get a patch. The games below are also affected. For the list below, you can update to Windows 11 or use the Scroll Lock workaround while we work to get this resolved. This list will also be updated as patches are released.

Ace Combat 7*
Assassins Creed Odyssey*
Assassins Creed Origins*
Code Vein*
eFootball 2021*
F1 2019*
Far Cry New Dawn*
FIFA 19*
FIFA 20*
Football Manager 2021*
Football Manager Touch 2021*
Ghost Recon Breakpoint*
Ghost Recon Wildlands*
Immortals Fenyx Rising*
Just Cause 4*
Life is Strange 2*
Madden 21*
Monopoly Plus*
Need For Speed Heat*
Scott Pilgrim vs The World*
Shadow of the Tomb Raider*
Shinobi Striker*
Soulcalibur VI*
Starlink*
Team Sonic Racing*
Total War Saga - Three Kingdoms*
Train Sim World*
Train Sim World 2*
Wolfenstein Youngblood*

[Kovoet]

Only games I would've had to worry about was Ghost Recon. My PC is mainly for gaming.

[=assassin=]

The performance seems great for Intel, but at a cost... the power consumption at full load is abysmal, and the temperatures are bad too, both of which means a noisier PC. Seems like they went all out to get their crown back, but only if you don't mind a very toasty PC. Perhaps some non-k models might make more sense for the average user, as they usually have stricter power limits, but more sensible temps/wattage.

[FRISH]

I miss the hexus reviews

[DanceswithUnix]

From the reviews, it looks like turning the E cores off isn't a big deal for gaming.

Still, Intel having compatibility problems isn't a good look for them.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

The performance seems great for Intel, but at a cost... the power consumption at full load is abysmal, and the temperatures are bad too, both of which means a noisier PC. Seems like they went all out to get their crown back, but only if you don't mind a very toasty PC. Perhaps some non-k models might make more sense for the average user, as they usually have stricter power limits, but more sensible temps/wattage.

It appears capping the CPUs to 125W does not massively decrease performance.

[Saracen999]

I'm still working through various reviews/tests, trying to establish (in my own mind) what :-

A) performance will be, and
B) what part of it is due to DDR5, and
C) what part requires W11 (abd it's scheduler) to achieve, and
D) what is the platform cost (inc mobo, DDR5 vs. DDR4, and heroic cooling solutions)
E) the best rumour mill info on 2Q22 AMD releases
F) The real-world impact to what I will use it for

.... and finally, :-

- do I care enough to bother.

My tentative conclusions are :-

1) Processors very good value, but
2) Expensive mobos, and expensive/price-volative RAM erode/negate that, at least for DDR5
3) Requires W11 for full benefit, and I'm not willing to do that yet (and may never be, dunno yet)
4) Currently while processors may be aggressively priced to compete, both mobo's and DDR5 seem to be following the standard 'early-adopter price premium' model of pricing, and I'm so over doing that. And
5) If I'm going to wait for early adopter premiums to stabilise, I might as well wait to see what AMD have in the wings for next year.
6)If I do 5), there'll probably be more early-adopter premiums, and I'll want to wait them out. So it'll end up being 4Q22 and I'm still thinking about it, 12 months later.
7) So I should probably just say "Yeah, nice" but WTF should I care, and get on with X570/R9-5900X like I was going to,
8) When it comes down to it, what benefit does Alderlake make to point F) above, i.e. real-world impact on MY usage.

Benchmarks are all very well, but unless it gains ME significantly, in MY typical usage, it is irrelevant to me what it does, how it does it, or what it costs.

That is to say, a PC is a tool to do several things. That includes gaming, but that isn't my priority. It includes web-browsing, email, Msg chats with friends/family, etc and I doubt any theoretical performance benefit over 5900X itself will make a jot of difference to how all that feels. And finally, where it might make a real difference, photo-editing, video-editing, video-rendering etc .... well, at this point they're all just hobbies. There are no clients, no deadlines (except self-imposed, and I can forgive myself if I miss them).

Sooooo .... I'm thinking of setting up a Youtube channel. BUT .... as the old phrase goes, for the LOLz. It will not be monetised. and I don't just mean that isn't the objective. I mean I will be taking care to NOT receive income from it. I won't be looking for sponsors, won't be seeking to get ad-revenue and will refuse, to the maximum I can, to put ad's in at all. I am not interested in Patreon, etc. It's a hobby. Moreover, the moment I start getting revenue, I'm into keeping track of it, and expenses, doing tax returns, all the hassle and admin that goes with that. and after several decades of doing all that, I'm now free of it. My most valuable commodity right now is my time, and I'll be absolutely beggared (or a similar word) if I'm going to waste a single minute of it pandering to HMRCs needs. Not one minute.

It's going to cost me, to do it how I want, but myhobbies always do. It does, happily, run in parallel with my other interests anyway, so a fancy new DSLR is great for that, but fits my plans anyway. Lighting, mic's, audio interfaces etc aren't cheap (for good stuff) so .... I'd rather spend what budget I do have on that, than on a premium over X570/5900X to get Alderlake.

And yes, I know I could B550/5600X, or something, but I've already kinda settled on 5900, etc.


TL : DR version - Alderlake processors look good (or very good, in fact), but platform costs are high, I don't like the preference for W11 one bit, and the existing mature AMD solutions will, frankly, suit me and do all I need.

I'm settling from almost-decided, but need to see a few more tests to be sure but, for me, I'm not feeling it with Alderlake. I'm not knocking it. Especially as we're already seeing some Ryzen chips falling in price, and if my circumstances were different I might well be much more interested, but a PC is just a tool to me and I don't see me losing out by going X570/5900X. That is still a pretty damn quick system, and there is perpetually something new or just over the horizon.

[=assassin=]

It appears capping the CPUs to 125W does not massively decrease performance.

It seems like a sensible route for those that buy to do so then. Unless of course someone needs every last drop of performance. For gaming, those figures look good, but I guess that's likely because current games won't push the CPU that hard.

D) what is the platform cost (inc mobo, DDR5 vs. DDR4, and heroic cooling solutions)

I was looking up buillds on Scan, and the DDR5 options are quite pricey, but to make the most out of the platform, I guess it would make sense to use DDR5 over DDR4 in the long term.

Intel have definitely made good progress, and there are good CPU options for anyone upgrading from older systems right now, but I'm not sure what I'd pick if I were choosing right now, although the Intel design is more future proof (no doubt they'll work with MS to make the performance/eco core mix the way to go), and it could benefit from much better DDR5 speeds down the road, so maybe that would be best. As I've recently upgraded anyway, I fortunately don't have to make those hard decisions!

[Iota]

It appears capping the CPUs to 125W does not massively decrease performance.

Well I guess they're more efficient than the 11xxx. I'm slightly more interested to see what AMD have coming through though, especially with DDR5.