Intel 12th gen (Alder Lake) processors: price and benchmarks, and DDR5 memory performance

[LucShep]

It seems like Persian tech website sakhtafzarmag.com has posted pre-release information (almost a mini-review) with some very impressive benchmarks, pricing of the new Intel 12th gen processors (to be launched at the end of next October), as well as DDR5 performance.

 

Here are google translated links (in English) from the originals:

• Exclusive: Prices and benchmarks of Intel 12th gen Alder Lake
• Basic DDR5 memory performance with Alder Lake

 

Some relevant quotes from their article(s):

 

"The new family seems to be a bit more expensive than the 11th generation in terms of pricing, but it will still be very valuable given the increased efficiency and other points. 

The blue company plans to offer the Core i9 12900K for $ 599, while the Core i9 12900 is priced at $ 509.

Next up is the Core i7 12700K, which will be labeled $ 429 to introduce itself as a more powerful model than the Ryzen 7 5800X, with 20 threads. The Core i7 12700 is also priced at $ 359.

Probably the best-selling chips in the Alder Lake family are the Core i5 series, so their price will be very important. The Core i5 12600K will cost $ 279, followed by the Core i5 12600 for $ 249. The Core i5 12400 model is priced at $ 203.

(note: prices are supposedly without taxes)

 

After discussing pricing, we come to Alder Lake benchmarks, which are not few in number. 
According to these benchmarks, Intel's 12th generation processors are much more powerful in terms of single-core processing than the previous generation, as well as the Ryzen 5000 chips. 
At the same time, their multi-core performance has improved tremendously, and now they are on par with AMD models or even better.

 

Of course, we still have to wait until the release of benchmarks and further reviews, but in any case, it seems that the blue giant is back in the game with full hands, and in the coming generations we can see a very hot competition between the two chip companies.
The twelfth generation of the Core series uses a new hybrid architecture with small (low-power) and large (powerful) cores combined. The series will replace the Rocket Lake S but will support PCI Express 5.0, the new LGA 1700 socket, as well as DDR5 memory.
It is unknown at this time what family Intel is measuring performance improvement on, but recent rumors have suggested that the Alder Lake S series will offer up to a 20% IPC improvement over Tiger Lake."

 

"This is not the first time we have seen DDR5 performance on Intel's next-generation platform, but this time the processor used has a much better frequency than the previous disclosure.

Although the memory uses 6400 MHz, the performance shows a huge improvement where the read speed is more than 90 Gbps. Since we are probably still seeing an engineering example and, of course, basic code, there is room for improvement. The performance numbers disclosed are apparently unknown to a Dell system with a model.

 

The processor used for the test is said to be a Core i5 12600K, and its single-core rating is shared on CPU-Z (785.6).

(note: same CPU-Z test with i9 10900K is 695.0 and Ryzen 9 5950X is 648.0, which means the mid-range i5 12600K is already 15~20% stronger than even the current high-range offferings, in single-score performance)

 

The not-so-interesting part of the story is the memory latency, which is still very high at 92.5ns, but the 40-40-40-85 timing of the DDR5 modules is also involved. 

At the moment, DDR5 does not look very exciting, and of course, like any new generation of memory, it's normal because the fastest memories of the previous generation usually perform better than the first few standards of the new generation. 
When manufacturers can bring DDR5 closer to maturity, we can see unique modules on the market."

 

 

And a few images from their article(s), of benchmarks inclusively:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited September 15, 2021 by LucShep
added benchmark images

[VpR81]

Thanks a lot for the summary of the available information about Alder Lake S. 599$ (should be ~550€ i guess) for the 12900K seems to be acceptable (compared to the price of i.e. the 10900X / 10920X) imo, let's hope the prices for DDR5 RAM drop a little bit once the Mainboards and CPUs are available. Also i've read, that there will be DDR4 RAM Mainboards for Alder Lake S in the beginning. Don't know if this is true, but that would be a great option for people who don't want to spent the crazy price for DDR5 but still want to get Alder Lake. One thing to consider may be, that Alder Lake S requires Windows 11 wich is my only concern right now as i'm a bit worried about driver and (VR) game stability in the beginning. Still, the 12900K will be a instant purchase for me once it's available for order/pre-order.

[BitMaster]

Latency...92.5ns   oh man

 

I wanna see how that translates to DCS, VR and gaming in general.

 

We know how severe it struck first Ryzens.

 

 

[LucShep]

6 hours ago, BitMaster said:

Latency...92.5ns   oh man

 

I wanna see how that translates to DCS, VR and gaming in general.

 

We know how severe it struck first Ryzens.

 

 

 

Yeah.... indeed, it's one bit of info that left a sour note there specifically on DDR5.

 

I had to read it twice...  at first I thought "wow, 9.25ns latency so early is amazing!" only to find out I had misread.

Second time I thought it was a typo, as my calculations for 6400 CL40 are 12.5ns (the formula is CL/Frequency*2000) but, alas...  

92.5ns value is the real value in that AIDA64 benchmark, surprisingly huge latency. And I mean HUGE latency for RAM. 

 

IIRC, RAM latency has been under 15 nanoseconds for at least the last 15 years, with what's considered good "mainstream" RAM memory being around 10 nanoseconds (on average) for this decade and half time period.

Some examples: 

• DDR2 800 CL4 = 10.0ns
• DDR3 1600 CL8 = 10.0ns
• DDR4 3200 CL16 = 10.0ns

I'm not sure how this DDR5 latency issue will go in practice, but I have faith that mem manufacturers know what they're doing. 

I'm also confident that DDR5 6400 CL32 (etc) should be out sooner rather than later.

And there are a lot more settings for RAM, maybe that's where the magic happens with DDR5. Afterall, there's the big upside of read speeds at over 90 GB/s!

But at same time, yeah......  again, it feels really, really odd seeing over 9x higher(!) latency values of what has been considered "good" on RAM for such a long time. 

Edited September 16, 2021 by LucShep

[BitMaster]

You are mixing up two latencies.  The 92.5ns latency is between CPU<-->RAM if I got this right and the other value is RAM speed internally, how fast it can switch etc..

 

I am not super sure if that is totally correct, I can only say that i.e. my RAM at 3000-14-14-14-34 as of now has roughly 50ns latency on my Z370/8700k.

The same RAM kit on Z270 did the XMP 3600-16-16-16-36 and had round about 40ns latency.

The 1st gen Ryzens irc had values between 60ish-ns to 90ish-ns and were accused to be too slow for gaming.

 

It will be interesting to see how the first real world benchmarks of DDR5-AlderLake will perform. I expect a rather meh experience with the tip to "Wait for the 2nd gen if you can..." kinda statement.

[LucShep]

10 hours ago, BitMaster said:

You are mixing up two latencies.  The 92.5ns latency is between CPU<-->RAM if I got this right and the other value is RAM speed internally, how fast it can switch etc..

 

I am not super sure if that is totally correct, I can only say that i.e. my RAM at 3000-14-14-14-34 as of now has roughly 50ns latency on my Z370/8700k.

The same RAM kit on Z270 did the XMP 3600-16-16-16-36 and had round about 40ns latency.

The 1st gen Ryzens irc had values between 60ish-ns to 90ish-ns and were accused to be too slow for gaming.

 

Aaah ok, I got ya.

It is pure ignorance on my part as I never used AIDA64 (always used MaxMem instead) and interpreting it completely wrong as just basic latency calculation from RAM timings. 

Yes, common DDR4 kits (such as 3200 CL16) go around 55ns, and now that mention of 92.5ns value of such DDR5 mem makes more sense (and still not good!).

 

 

Edited September 18, 2021 by LucShep

[LucShep]

More performance/benchmark leaks of Intel 12th gen "Alder Lake" posted on twitter, this time about the i7 12700K...

 

.....beating Intel previous best CPUs, the i9 11900K and i9 10900K, as well as the AMD Ryzen 9 5900X, in both single and multi threaded scores:

 

credit @APISAK

CPU-Z reference:

• Intel i7 12700K  - 800 single / 9423 multi
• Intel i9 11900K  - 695 single / 6522 multi
• Intel i9 10900K - 582 single / 7361 multi
• AMD R9 5900X - 650 single / 9391 multi

 

credit @APISAK

 

 

And some confusing price leaks, also posted on twitter....

credit @momomo_us

UK  

 

credit @momomo_us

FR   

 

 

Edited October 7, 2021 by LucShep

[Csgo GE oh yeah]

Good luck buying one. 

 

 

[Csgo GE oh yeah]

Well i think i managed to purchase one (12900K), if they deliver. 

Now begins the motherboard research, and there's a LOT of them. And they're expensive to. 
Anyone else doing motherboard research and have an idea what to look for ? 

 

Edited November 1, 2021 by Csgo GE oh yeah

[VpR81]

10 minutes ago, Csgo GE oh yeah said:

Well i think i managed to purchase one (12900K), if they deliver. 

Same here, same CPU. I've been told it WILL be delivered at the day of release. Fingers crossed, also for you. As for a mainboard, i will definately go with MSI (as always) and i think it will be with the (DDR5) MSI MPG Z690 CARBON WIFI. Sadly not available yet, at least over here. Another concern is a CPU-cooler, as there isn't much variety yet. I don't want liquid cooling and will propably have to wait until Noctua comes up with a decent one.

[Csgo GE oh yeah]

From what i understand many manufacturers will produce mounting-kits for their existing coolers. 
So that way you won't have to buy a new cooler unit. 

 

Edited November 1, 2021 by Csgo GE oh yeah

[VpR81]

That's what i've read too, some manufactors are even said to offer them for free if your cooler is less than a year old. But i haven't found any information about any manufactor already offering adaptor kits for their existing coolers. But once the CPU arrives at my door, i'll be happy in the first place and not in a hurry anymore tbh. My old system ran 5 years, it will last another few weeks until decent coolers (adaptors) and some more RAM kits are available. My main concern was, that prices and availability of Alder Lake CPUs diverge similar to GPUs and therefore getting horribly expensive and/or hardly available...

[Csgo GE oh yeah]

That motherboard you mentioned , going to be around 450 dollars. That's getting expensive for motherboards is what i mean. 
And yes i had the same thought, "get cpu first" . Altough i secretely hoped to build this weekend but that's not going to happen 

Edited November 1, 2021 by Csgo GE oh yeah

[VpR81]

Sadly yes. And it's even more expensive over here (450€, wich is roughly 480$), but it was the only one fitting my needs (MSI, numerous USB ports) and not beeing above 500€. I still hope that they come up with one between 300€ - 400€ in the next few weeks, as i would scratch that one then. The ASUS ROG STRIX Z690-G Gaming WIFI is propably also a good option, as it's coming with a lot of USB ports and is around 360€ over here (obviously assuming you wanna go with DDR5). At least a bit cheaper, if one wants to use the word "cheap" here. I also saw some DDR5 MBs at around 200€ - 300€, but those have not too much USB ports or made by GIGABYTE. Not saying GIGABYTE is bad, but all of my RL friends use ASUS or MSI and therefore i have zero experience with them. Tbh i didn't plan to build up the system soon after purchasing the CPU, as i expected to wait until December/January for a decent MB and better RAM kits. I'm not so much afraid about the prices and availability of these, i expected the CPUs to be more critical in this regard...

[Supmua]

I nabbed an Asus Strix z690 F mobo on Amazon.  Still debating 12700K vs 12900K cost/performance, DDR5 RAM speed and brand, CPU cooler, etc.  These components are getting more and more expensive every year, on top of the worldwide shortages.  The problem is they might all be OOS soon for the next couple of months. 

[Apar]

I hope Vulcan and added multi core update for DCS wont need us for an upgrade...

[VpR81]

On 11/2/2021 at 3:00 AM, Supmua said:

 Still debating 12700K vs 12900K cost/performance, DDR5 RAM speed and brand, CPU cooler, etc.

Did you decide about any of those components yet? Regarding cost/performance, the 12700K is propably the better choice i guess. G.Skill announced DRR5-7000 with already acceptable timings beeing released within this month. One may have to sell a kidney for it, but i assume we're getting more variety in terms of brand, speed and latency soon. Progress with DDR5 seems to be a lot faster than back when DDR4 was released in 2014. I remember it took like a year for DDR4 to have higher speeds than DDR3.

[Supmua]

The leaked benchmarks aren’t super impressive.  Intel basically caught up to AMD, slight advantage in gaming performance at the expense of significantly more power usage.  Waiting to see DCS benchmarks.  Those DDR5 RAM will sure cost $$$ if you want low latency
 

I decided to wait a bit, probably going to end up with the 12700K as I don’t really need the i9 for flightsims or gaming plus it will be easier to cool.  That Asus mobo also is incompatible with Noctua cooler, so I’m gonna return it. 

Edited November 4, 2021 by Supmua

[Harlikwin]

Snagged a 12900k at microcenter everything online is loong gone, and some joker on amazon has a few for 1400....

The not so encouraging thing I read was that the 12th gen really benefits from the win11 thread scheduler. Guess we will all find out. 

now the wait for 6400 speed DDR wait begins. 

Edited November 4, 2021 by Harlikwin

[AngleOff66]

GN report

Power 243 watts. skip to 24:13 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhI9tLOg-6I

 

Temperature 102 C OC. 93 Regular.  https://www.techpowerup.com/review/intel-core-i9-12900k-alder-lake-12th-gen/21.html

Since I am waiting for reasonable GPU prices to return(HA!) I will see what more testing shows and what AMD has up it's sleeve  

 

Edited November 4, 2021 by NoCoolName66

[Bwaze]

In Europe 12900K are still in stock in many shops even now, so they weren't grabbed as every hardware release in the last couple of years.

I think the price (680 EUR), price of motherboards and RAM and especially price of graphic cards really limit the size of high end gaming market. And not many people buy such expensive CPUs for productivity, at least not impulsively on the first day of release.

[FeistyLemur]

I'm very eager to hear some DCS VR results from someone jumping on Alder lake because I'm in a bad situation.

My old 7700k which was pretty much a cherry with a top 5% OC I've been running at 5ghz for years (can do 5.1 but backed it off a notch) is giving up.  Started getting boot failure, had to reset the bios and back it off all the way to a stock clock and it's still boot failing now and again.  It's on its last legs.

I'm kind of torn because I'm not liking that power consumption at all, but with supply shortages I don't want to get stuck even worse by waiting to see what happens with Zen 4.

[Lange_666]

49 minutes ago, Bwaze said:

I think the price (680 EUR), price of motherboards and RAM and especially price of graphic cards really limit the size of high end gaming market.

12900K = 649€ pre-order in local shop here. With mediocre MB's going at least +400€ (the ASUS ROG MAXIMUS Z690 Extreme Glacial goes for 1999€) it ain't for my wallet. How do they call that... cutting off the branch you sit on?

[QuiGon]

The new Alder Lake CPUs and associated mainboards are readily available here, but unfortunately DDR5 is not. I was hoping to upgrade my system now, but it seems I might have to wait till the end of November, which are the earliest shippment dates for DDR5 that I can find here.

[ShaunX]

I must admit, as an AMD jockey, that the benchmarks posted in Jays 2 cents and LTT yesterday are pretty damn impressive (though both are with DDR5)

I was a little surprised that Jay compared the 12900K against the 5900X rather than the 5950X, claiming it was the "closest cost competitor", when he'd obvioulsy spent a fortune on mainboard and DDR5 (and maybe cooler ?) to go with it.

Regardless, it appears to stomp on the 5950X anyway!

I shall wait to see what AMD's 3D cache Ryzen 5000 series variants bench later this year to decide if they're still competative (and hopefully a shoe-in on current x570 boards)