The Intel Core i9-9900KS Review: The 5 GHz Consumer Special
by Dr. Ian Cutress on October 31, 2019 10:45 AM ESTTest Bed and Setup
As per our processor testing policy, we take a premium category motherboard suitable for the socket, and equip the system with a suitable amount of memory running at the manufacturer's maximum supported frequency. This is also typically run at JEDEC subtimings where possible. It is noted that some users are not keen on this policy, stating that sometimes the maximum supported frequency is quite low, or faster memory is available at a similar price, or that the JEDEC speeds can be prohibitive for performance. While these comments make sense, ultimately very few users apply memory profiles (either XMP or other) as they require interaction with the BIOS, and most users will fall back on JEDEC supported speeds - this includes home users as well as industry who might want to shave off a cent or two from the cost or stay within the margins set by the manufacturer. Where possible, we will extend out testing to include faster memory modules either at the same time as the review or a later date.
| Test Setup | |
| Intel 9th Gen | Intel Core i9-9900KS |
| Motherboard | MSI Z390 Gaming Edge AC (A.60 BIOS) |
| CPU Cooler | TRUE Copper |
| DRAM | Corsair Vengeance 2x8 GB DDR4-2666 |
| GPU | Sapphire RX 460 2GB (CPU Tests) MSI GTX 1080 Gaming 8G (Gaming Tests) |
| PSU | Corsair AX860i |
| SSD | Crucial MX200 1TB |
Many thanks to...
We must thank the following companies for kindly providing hardware for our multiple test beds. Some of this hardware is not in this test bed specifically, but is used in other testing.
| Hardware Providers | |||
| Sapphire RX 460 Nitro | MSI GTX 1080 Gaming X OC | Crucial MX200 + MX500 SSDs |
Corsair AX860i + AX1200i PSUs |
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| G.Skill RipjawsV, SniperX, FlareX |
Crucial Ballistix DDR4 |
Silverstone Coolers |
Silverstone Fans |
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1_rick - Thursday, October 31, 2019 - link
As far as pricing goes, Microcenter lists it as in stock for $599 (might be an in-store only price). Newegg lists it for $569, but they're sold out.Sahrin - Thursday, October 31, 2019 - link
lol, this is supposed to be the chip Intel launches in response to AMD's second-best to get the 'last word' - instead it's a replay of Zen2 launch day all over again with the 9900K's sporty younger brother getting humiliated.ballsystemlord - Thursday, October 31, 2019 - link
Spelling and grammar errors:"...but the system was fully table the entire time."
"stable" not "table".
"...but the system was fully stable the entire time."
"It would appear that there is something else the bottleneck in this test."
Mis-written:
"It would appear that there is some other bottleneck in this test."
ballsystemlord - Thursday, October 31, 2019 - link
"One question that does remain however, is which set of results should we keep?" Keep to Intel guidelines. That's what you do with memory speeds and other things, I'm sure.That is also the guaranteed results for all consumers.
Goloith - Thursday, October 31, 2019 - link
Normally this hardware site is my "go to" for hardware reviews. However, holy mother of Jebus was this test bed terrible. Let's buy a Porshe and throw on old outdated tires on it. This should have been paired with a 2080 to, but you pair it with a 1080?Rule# 1, don't go full retard.
Goloith - Thursday, October 31, 2019 - link
Or with a 2080 tiDeath666Angel - Saturday, November 2, 2019 - link
The thing is, that would invalidate all older results. I'm guessing they will update the GPU in 2020 and retest certain legacy CPUs. What do you think would fundamentally change about the results with a newer GPU, though? I doubt it would be much, since the trends are the same with all the different graphical settings they already test at.ablevemona - Friday, November 1, 2019 - link
"in its hexagonal box"?Nichronos - Friday, November 1, 2019 - link
Why there isn't any Voltage table as all other Anandtech review have? We want to know how much can you undervolt the KS at the stock 5GHz!!!Thunder 57 - Friday, November 1, 2019 - link
Is that Katamari all over your new toys again??