Does a high-end gaming PC necessarily have a high-end
processor? The answers to this question is no, the important thing is to create
a balanced configuration , which is able to meet the need of the individual
player and the needs of the video card used. Processors like the Ryzen 9 5950X
that we reviewed some time ago offer exceptional multi-core performance, too
bad that in gaming these are only marginally exploited, which is why products
like the Intel i5-11600K are perfect even in the presence of a video card like
the RTX 3080. techwadia
Compared to the higher models, a little bit is lost in terms
of frame rate, this is true, but it is equally trues that going up with the
resolution the gap between this model, which costs 250 euros online, and an
i9-11900K for almost 650 euros does not justify the extra expense.
A balanced processor
The 11th generation of Intel processors builds on the Sunny
Cove architecture, initially designed to be built with a 10nm manufacturing
process. The production problems, however, prompted Intel to adopt the now
consolidated 14 nm node, partially revising the architecture to create Cypress
Cove processors like this i5-11600K. This choice has led to sacrifices, because
10 nm allows you to install a greater amount of transistors inside the chip,
already occupied largely by the integrated GPU. The problem was more evident in
the top of the range i9-11900K, which in fact adopts two cores less than the
previous i9-10900K, in the case of this i5 instead there were no particular
sacrifices, because the configuration adopted with 6 Cores and 12 Threads is
perfectly in line with the needs in this price range, as well as with the
competitor Ryzen 5 5600X, which uses the same number.
The i5-11600K manages to hit 4.9 GHz, all with a TDP of 125
W from spec. On the consumption front, once the CPU has been unlocked to reach
maximum performance, we measured just over 200W peak, but these are only
reached in particular contexts.
To understand the consumption of the i5-11600K it is
necessary to refer to the parameters PL1 (Power Limit at 125 W), PL2 (Power
Limit at 250W) and Tau. Using the processor in a perennial PL2 state is not
possible, which is why there is the Tau, a value that defines the maximum time
of use of the CPU at full power, in this case of 56 seconds. These values
directly affect clock management technologies such as Turbo Boost Technology 2
and Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0, which push the frequency by determining it
based on the aforementioned parameters PL1, PL2 and Tau, the motherboard used
and the system. of dissipation. Speaking of temperatures, with our NZXT Kraken
X63 we hit a peak of around 85 degrees.
Performance
We have analyzed the architecture and key features of the
11th generation of Intel CPUs in the i9-11900K review , in this article we will
focus only on the performance of the i5-11600K. Performance that shows exactly
Intel's target for this generation of CPU, which is the increase in
IPC(Instruction Per Cycle). Objective that we can say fully achieved, given the
benchmark data in single core, which show the i5-11600K very close to the Ryzen
5 5600X with both Cinebench R20 and CPUz. Comparing the performance of two CPUs
in an absolute sense is impossible, we can draw indications from the
benchmarks, but in the end the software optimization towards one or the other
platform makes the difference. Moving on to multi-core, despite the presence of
the same number of computing units, it is the 5600X that wins, Intel instead
makes up for it with Indigo Benchmark, where it remains ahead in both tests.
In the synthetic tests the 5600X is therefore slightly ahead
but not in all the tests, moreover the gap between the two is not so marked.
On the gaming front, on the other hand, the i5-11600K and
the Ryzen 5 5600X are very close , depending on the game, one or the other
excels, and both are perfectly capable of handling high-end GPUs like the RTX
3080 used in this one. test, without particular losses compared to the more
powerful processors, which offer a slightly higher frame rate but at a much
higher price. Precisely the price could be the great advantage of the Intel
solution, given that it is currently located at around 250 euros on Amazon,
against the 290 euros of the Ryzen 5600X
