Intel Core i9 9900K Review - should YOU buy IT?

Today Intel officially launch some new Intel 9 Generation processors - and Leo has had his hands on the new Intel Core i9 9900k and finds out if the expensive new processor is worth the substantial investment or not.

Test systems used:
CPU: Intel Core i9-9900K
Motherboard: Gigabyte Z390 Aorus Master
RAM: 16GB G.Skill SniperX DDR4-3400MHz

CPU: Core i7-8700K
Motherboard: ASRock Z370 Extreme4
RAM: 16GB G.Skill SniperX DDR4-3400MHz

CPU: Intel Core i7-7820X
Motherboard: Asus ROG Rampage VI Extreme
RAM: Corsair Dominator Platinum SE DDR4-3466MHz at 3400MHz

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 2700X
Motherboard: Gigabyte X470 Aorus Gaming 7 WiFi
RAM: 16GB G.Skill SniperX DDR4-3400MHz

CPU Cooler: Fractal Design Celsius S24
Graphics: Nvidia RTX 2080 Founders Edition 8GB GDDR6
SSD: 1TB WD Black M.2 NVMe and 512GB Samsung 960 Pro
Power Supply: Seasonic Prime Platinum 1300W

KitGuru uses a variety of equipment to produce content:
As of 27th April 2018:
Panasonic GH5 Cameras
Panasonic GH4 Cameras
Panasonic G7 Cameras
Various PC builds

Final output – colour grading/titling etc:
iMac Pro 18 Core/Vega 64/128GB
Adobe Premiere Pro CC (PC)
Davinci Resolve Studio 14/15 (Mac)
Final Cut Pro (Mac)

[MrRmeadows]

200 watts. Can hardly wait for Apple to put this CPU in a thin notebook and see the internet explode. With commentary about how it is throttling.

[darrenking]

Been in the PC game a long time. Seeing Intel and AMD beat it out. Hats off to AMD they've really shown Intel up!

[JJLTACTICALSOUTIONS]

I just purchased a brand new desk top with the i9-9900k and am very happy. I added 6 fans and a all in one water cooler as well.

[timmaes]

Was planning on upgrading to 9900k but with these results I'll wait for zen 2 because even though I can afford it it's just not worth that amount of money for such a slight improvement of performance.

[webb-]

Loved the digs at principal technology

[Kazya]

95w? Isint it 220w cpu when it used at normal clock?

[Ken-vlwk]

Video editing suggestion: please display the charts a bit longer.
14:26 for example. What is that?A display flickering?

[backupplan]

Leo, KitGuru - “you don’t have the option of deliding and putting better coolant....”
Steve, GN - “hold my GN branded beer glass”
Der8auer - “don’t worry, us Germans can drink and delid at the same time”

[albiss]

Excellent review! :) (as usual)
One remark though, the camera is focused on the background instead of the components on the table. :/

[leightaylor]

It really needed the 10nm lithography to reduce the heat generated and to allow a higher clock rate.

I kind of feel the same about Nvidia - now I'm waiting to see what the 21? 30? series GPU's will do with smaller lithography.

The 200W power draw kind of gives the lie to the 95W TDP figure. That's approaching Threadripper 2 at 250W TDP although whether it sticks to that figure I doubt. First gen Threadripper was 180W I think.

So it seems the best deals are not the new gen Nvidia and not the new gen Intel (just looking at Nvidia and Intel).

Funny old world.

... and then there's the pricing on Optane ....

[karan]

Do I need to install additional cooling mechanisms to make this work? I will be doing 4k video editing at most using premiere pro and gtx 2080 graphics card.

[christopherjames]

I9 9900K $530 plus another $100 for a good cooler = $630. Or a 2700X bundled with a cooler, plus a very nice X470 motherboard AND a decent 16 Gigabyte ram kit can be had in the USA for $630. To me it is a no brainer.

[karlos]

- No.
Just saved you 24 mins of your life.

[troglodyte]

Have you got another much shorter video where you just tell us the answer?

[frankdaeran]

@ 12:58 I understand your reasoning in here about "why not just start on the HEDT platform?" for those who may be looking at this 9900K for more editing \ productivity tasks and gaming is nil or secondary. I'd say true for pros. But the price of adoption of the whole HEDT Intel platform is considerably more expensive and with threadripper you sacrifice in the gaming end if you still want it occasionally - and it could end up being just as expensive depending on which SKU you go with. There will always be that segment of the population (myself included) who are not pros but still do a lot of editing, who look at this as an all rounder - for whom editing is first, gaming is second. In that regard it is attractive if you're coming from say 4th or 5th gen. (Haswell for me, AMD FX before that) The big drawback is only 16 lanes on the CPU and a 64GB RAM limit, but I'm a hobbyist editor who considers 64Gb the sweetspot for my 4K NLE project's. And even though gaming is secondary, it is still a consideration. I've been building for decades now (in my 50's) and I've switched companies and platforms more times than I could count. As a work-play tool this is just the most logical choice. I've gotten 4 years out of my Haswell (4790), I'd hope this would last me the same amount of time. I really appreciate all the time you put into these vids and I always like your input and considerations. Cheers

[JsGarage]

7820x at 4.4Ghz OC? What kind of broken OC is that?

[jozefbania]

You have luck with that 5.2 for most of them 5.0 is max and temps are 'nice and hot'. And that 250W+ power consumption is nice too.

[OldSchoolgamer]

What would you say for my situation? Currently my gaming pc is 4 years old. It has an old msi 970 gaming mobo and an even older amd 4350 processor I have acquired most of my parts to build a new gaming pc. I'm just missing the CPU. I have the gigabyte auros z390 pro mobo but my debate is do I go with a intel core i7 or i9? I'm leaning on i9 just for the long haul of it. But that price is making me hold up on it which is also put my new build on hold as well obviously. Both the i7 and i9 will blow out what I currently have but I plan on this new pc to be good for at least the next 3-4 years. So would it be wise for me to invest in the i9?

[axineus]

Have you built a system with that ASRock X399M Taichi board?

[Edooo]

In regards to the thermals, check out Debauer video about the i9-9900k. Essentially the conclusion is that the die is too thick, which worsen conductivity and increase heat. Just watch the video, he explains very clearly, -