Intel Core i9-13900K and i5-13600K Review: Raptor Lake Brings More Bite
by Gavin Bonshor on October 20, 2022 9:00 AM ESTZ790 Chipset: More I/O Than Z690, But Same Performance
One of the main talking points surrounding all processor launches at present is platform affordability. When Intel launched its 12th Gen Alder Lake core series processors towards the tail end of 2021, it enabled users to utilize the higher bandwidth DDR5 memory in a desktop platform. As DDR5 memory supply was low and consumer demand was high during Alder Lake’s initial launch, this sky rocketed prices and it made it near impossible for users to buy a DDR5 kit to use with 12th Gen. Intel did offer support for both DDR5-4800 and DDR4-3200, but motherboards (600-series) could only support one or the other.
Although this hasn’t changed with Intel’s latest Z790 chipset, Intel does offer support for both DDR5 and DDR4 with its 13th Gen Raptor Lake Core processors; something AMD doesn’t do with Ryzen 7000 series, much to consumer’s angst. Even though Intel has opted for a higher DDR5 memory speed (5600 MT/s versus 4800 MT/s) compared to Alder Lake, DDR4 memory support remains at DDR4-3200.
| Intel Z690, Z590, and Z490 Chipset Comparison | ||||
| Feature | Z790 | Z690 | Z590 | Z490 |
| Socket | LGA1700 | LGA1700 | LGA1200 | LGA1200 |
| PCIe Lanes (CPU) | 16 x 5.0 4 x 4.0 |
16 x 5.0 4 x 4.0 |
20 x 4.0 | 16 x 3.0 |
| PCIe Lanes (Chipset) | 20 x 4.0 8 x 3.0 |
12 x 4.0 16 x 3.0 |
24 x 3.0 | 24 x 3.0 |
| PCIe Specification (CPU) | 5.0/4.0 | 5.0/4.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 |
| Memory Support | DDR5-5600B DDR4-3200 |
DDR5-4800B DDR4-3200 |
DDR4-3200 | DDR4-2933 |
| PCIe Config | x16 x8/x8 x8/x8/x4 |
x16 x8/x8 x8/x8/x4 |
x16 x8/x8 x8/x8/x4 |
x16 x8/x8 x8/x8+x4 |
| DMI Lanes | x8 4.0 | x8 4.0 | x8 3.0 | x4 3.0 |
| Max USB 3.2 (Gen2/Gen1) | 10/10 | 10/10 | 6/10 | 6/10 |
| USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (20 Gbps) | Y (5) | Y (4) | Y (4) | ASMedia |
| Total USB | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 |
| Max SATA Ports | 8 | 8 | 6 | 6 |
| Memory Channels (Dual) | 2/2 | 2/2 | 2/2 | 2/2 |
| Intel Optane Memory Support | N | Y | Y | Y |
| Intel Rapid Storage Tech (RST) | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Integrated Wi-Fi MAC | Wi-Fi 6E | Wi-Fi 6E | Wi-Fi 6 | Wi-Fi 6 |
| Intel Smart Sound | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Overclocking Support | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Intel vPro | N | N | N | N |
| ME Firmware | 16 | 16 | 15 | 14 |
| TDP (W) | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
Looking at the Intel chipset comparison table above, one could really question what’s actually different about Z790 when compared directly to Z690, especially given that Z690 does allow full support for 13th Gen processors; yes, there is no hidden secret sauce or performance unlocking features, Z690 and Z790 will perform the same in compute and gaming.
The key differences are that Z790 offers an additional 8 x PCIe 4.0 lanes from the chipset, but at the cost of 8 x PCIe 3.0 lanes. This means Z790 still offers a total of 28 x PCI lanes when compared to Z690, but it gives vendors further flexibility to utilize the extra PCIe 4.0 lanes for high bandwidth M.2 slots and additional Thunderbolt 4 controllers, while still offering a few PCIe 3.0 lanes for devices such as additional NICs, streaming cards, and other non-bandwidth critical devices.
Intel says Goodbye to Optane Memory (Cache), No Support on Z790
One thing to note with Z790 is that along with Intel’s decision to kill its Optane business; this chipset will NOT support Intel's Optane Memory, Intel's Optane-based drive caching solution. Using Z690 combined with 12th Gen should still yield the same level of support as before, but using Z790 will not allow Optane Memory to be used, which is understandable as Intel winds down its Optane and 3DXpoint storage division.
The main benefit for opting for Z790 over Z690 is essentially down to PCIe 4.0 I/O capabilities, with support for one more additional USB 3.2 G2x2 Type-C port compared to Z690. Having spoken to Intel directly about processor performance with either chipset, they made it clear that they do not expect compute or gaming performance to be any different regardless of whether you’re using the new Z790 or the existing Z690 chipset.
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brucethemoose - Thursday, October 20, 2022 - link
x264 is (more or less) the same thing as the handbrake test... and it kinda is legacy software at this point.Personally, I'd like to see a more modern encoding test, like av1an with x265+chunked encoding, or maybe Staxrip with some filters enabled. Reply
GeoffreyA - Thursday, October 20, 2022 - link
Yes, some libaom would be fantastic. Replyjakky567 - Monday, October 24, 2022 - link
I wouldn't say handbrake/x264 are obsolete yet. We should be looking towards the future, but h264 is here to stay as at least a fallback codec. ReplyGeoffreyA - Tuesday, October 25, 2022 - link
It is very much the MP3 of video and here to stay. Plus, its successors have not been indisputably better or have come with tradeoffs. ReplyAshantus - Thursday, October 20, 2022 - link
Comparing the performance of 7600X vs 13600k i see some overall advantage for the 13600K.But, i will defionitly go for the 7600X due one argue.
Load Consumption of 134 Watt vs 238 Watt at almost same performance is something.
Regarding the poweer costs in europe of 60 cent per Watt that is quiet some pricing argue at a 5 years lifetime.
At anandtech:
this argue should be mentioned in your closing thoughts. 100 Watt more powerconsumption at todays powerprices is a serious issue. Reply
Yojimbo - Thursday, October 20, 2022 - link
I don't remember seeing power versus performance numbers. Did I miss them? ReplyCiccioB - Thursday, October 20, 2022 - link
<blockquote>Load Consumption of 134 Watt vs 238 Watt at almost same performance is something.</blockquote>This thought is completely wrong. It is called "induction", as you were looking at something and then reported that on something else.
You see a graph of power consumption for a "unlimited test" (where performance is not measured) and then you think that that measure is valid also for other tests.
So you just think that for each bench those CPUs consume always those Watts (how can it be?) and that the performance are the same (where did you got that? In almost all benches the 13600K leaves the 7600X in the dust, but not knowing their power consumption for those test you cannot say which is the most efficient). Reply
Ashantus - Thursday, October 20, 2022 - link
Just found another test, whereas a powerconsumption at action is recorded.At gaming (average out of 12 games tested) is:
13600k = 88 W. 7600X = 60 W
13990K = 144 W 7900X = 107W Reply
Yojimbo - Thursday, October 20, 2022 - link
that looks more plausible. but it is also mostly useless except in the context of the specific workload. modern cpu performance testing is very complicated and performance versus power should be taken in the specific workload one is interested in, or at the very least an average of workloads of a similar type. ReplyGastec - Sunday, October 23, 2022 - link
Specific workload such as : 13990K produces 100 fps @ 144 W, while 7600X produces 100 fps @ 60 W? Reply