Intel Core i7 7740K, first Kaby Lake X processor

In case you don’t remember, there have been rumors that Intel is planning to launch two architectures on X299 chipset: Kaby Lake X and Skylake X. The reason behind Kaby Lake X on HEDT platform is not exactly clear yet, especially when the chip in question is quad-core, but one could say that we are looking at budget-oriented high-end CPU.

Intel Core i7 7740K is not just an i7 7700K refresh. This processor requires a new socket (LGA2066) and as a result, new motherboard. It’s also worth adding that one of the most important changes from Kaby Lake S is a lack of integrated GPU. Apart from that, we have 100 MHz higher base clock and increased TDP (91W -> 112W).

The processor that was spotted at Sisoft database was using ASRock X299 Professional Gaming i7 motherboard, a motherboard no one has seen yet, and no one knows anything about it.

There are two results we can use for comparison, processor arithmetic, and multi-media:

It’s a close fight with Ryzen 5 1600:

Meanwhile, Ryzen 7 1800X offers better arithmetic performance, with comparable multimedia score:

Intel Kaby Lake-X is the first architecture that will launch in Intel X299 chipset. Later on, Intel will release Skylake-X with 6, 8 and 10-core configurations. Those processors will have more PCIE lanes than Kaby Lake X (up to 44, versus 16 lanes for KBL-X) and quad-channel memory support.

Intel and AMD processors Specifications Intel Core i7-7700K Intel Core i7-7740K AMD Ryzen 7 1800X Codename Kaby Lake S Kaby Lake X Zen Chipset Intel Z270/B250 Intel X299 AMD X370/B350 Package LGA 1151 LGA 2066 AM4 Cores/Threads 4C / 8T 4C / 8T 8C / 16T Base Clock（GHz） 4.2 GHz 4.3 GHz 3.6 GHz Turbo Boost（GHz） 4.5 GHz 4.5 GHz 4.0 GHz TDP 91 W 112 W 95 W GPU HD Graphics 630 — — DIMMs 4, Dual Channel 4, Dual Channel 4, Dual Channel

Many thanks to API for the tip!