Intel Core i9-12900KS Review
Introduction and Technical Specifications
Published: 13th April 2022 | Source: Intel | Price: £749.99 |
Introduction
It seems like April is the month where manufacturers release slightly updated versions of already very capable products.
We have only just recovered from seeing the Nvidia RTX 3090 Ti when the Intel Core i9-12900KS arrived on our desk. It was the tail end of last year when we looked at the regular Core i9-12900K, and found it to be an extremely fast processor at a reasonable price, if something that ran far too hot for any cooling we had on hand.
The Core i9-12900KS promises to be quicker still, but the million dollar question is as to whether they have tamed those high temperatures, and whether the increase in clock speed on both the Performance Cores and Efficiency Cores is enough to justify the not-inconsiderable extra cost of this new flagship LGA1700 model.
Being something that is basically identical to something we've seen before, albeit refined, there is nothing new to tell you at the start, so let's get busy giving you a quick look at the specifications and very flashy packaging, before we find out how it compares to the regular Core i9-12900K.
Technical Specifications
The Core i9-12900KS is to the 12900K what the RTX 3090 Ti was to the RTX 3090. It's a refined, slightly tweaked model that is just a little bit more than the model it supersedes. It's not a revolution, but an evolution. Is that enough to keep us champing at the bit to own one?
Most Recent Comments
The main difference and tbh it's smart by intel is they are profiting from the chips rather than external sources.
If you look at it as a comparison to the normal version then it's obviously not really worth it to you as your missing the point that to some out there it's worth alot too.
Myself i never had golden chips or ever looked for them but for those that do this is a good option on something that died off over the years as the gap got smaller and so not as promising enough to be viable for the sites to run.Quote
My very good friend saved money for months and he bought himself a new system. 9900K Strix Z390-E board and Kraken X62 cooler with a plan that he doesn't need 9900KS, and he will just OC 9900K close to those speeds. But...
I think that he got the worst 9900K on the continent. No matter what we did it wouldn't go past 4.9GHz all core. And he really wanted to reach 5. He then went and bought a custom WC loop so we could ramp voltages a bit more without the CPU soldering itself to the motherboard, again, it wouldn't budge. He always wanted a custom loop, this was an excuse to go and do it. Then he ordered a de-lid kit from Rokit. After days of waiting we de-lided the chip and lapped it. But no matter what we did it wouldn't go past 4.9GHz all core.
The sadness and disappointment on his face when he settled on 4.9GHz... OMG Just buy KS. Those $150 more are nothing.
Don't get me wrong, he would have probably water-cooled and de-lided 9900KS but those $150 extra guarantees you that you won't get a dud. And trust me, after being with him through all the pain and suffering I would gladly pay extra for KS at any time if I was building a balls to the wall system.
It is that enthusiast thing that we all have in us, and we pay more for the privilege.Quote
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as most reviewers pointed out, the performance is bad for the price.Quote