F5F Stay Refreshed Hardware Desktop Yes, the Xeon Sapphire Rapids-WS is overclockable and suitable for gaming performance testing.

Yes, the Xeon Sapphire Rapids-WS is overclockable and suitable for gaming performance testing.

Yes, the Xeon Sapphire Rapids-WS is overclockable and suitable for gaming performance testing.

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ImSwitchy
Junior Member
10
10-21-2021, 01:51 PM
#1
Are there any Sapphire Rapids WS CPUs available for overclocking? Have you come across any gaming benchmark reports? I’m not sure if it’s realistic, but I’d love to know how these units perform in games. The monolithic designs use DDR5 quad channels with less cache, while the multi-chip modules support DDR5 8 channel RAM and more cache. I’m particularly interested in which one might outperform consumer chips in gaming, even if it’s not currently feasible. It would be cool to see someone achieve stable DDR5 performance at both 4 and 8 channels and high speeds—though that’s still a distant prospect. Maybe in about five years it could become more viable, similar to how X99 Xeon were once.
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ImSwitchy
10-21-2021, 01:51 PM #1

Are there any Sapphire Rapids WS CPUs available for overclocking? Have you come across any gaming benchmark reports? I’m not sure if it’s realistic, but I’d love to know how these units perform in games. The monolithic designs use DDR5 quad channels with less cache, while the multi-chip modules support DDR5 8 channel RAM and more cache. I’m particularly interested in which one might outperform consumer chips in gaming, even if it’s not currently feasible. It would be cool to see someone achieve stable DDR5 performance at both 4 and 8 channels and high speeds—though that’s still a distant prospect. Maybe in about five years it could become more viable, similar to how X99 Xeon were once.

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SkyCane
Junior Member
29
10-30-2021, 01:57 PM
#2
I also thought about this and would love to hear from anyone who tried it. I wasn't paying attention when it was released, so I can't say for sure if others are out there. In theory, the cores are quite similar to the P cores found in Alder/Raptor Lake. It seems more aligned with Alder Lake, which might mean it won't reach as high a clock speed or power output. The additional memory channels probably won't really boost performance for gaming. I wouldn't expect it to compete at the top end of gaming CPUs even when overclocked, but it would still be a reliable all-rounder if you need it for heavy tasks and gaming. One thing keeping me from choosing X299 is that no consumer-grade CPU feels better yet.
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SkyCane
10-30-2021, 01:57 PM #2

I also thought about this and would love to hear from anyone who tried it. I wasn't paying attention when it was released, so I can't say for sure if others are out there. In theory, the cores are quite similar to the P cores found in Alder/Raptor Lake. It seems more aligned with Alder Lake, which might mean it won't reach as high a clock speed or power output. The additional memory channels probably won't really boost performance for gaming. I wouldn't expect it to compete at the top end of gaming CPUs even when overclocked, but it would still be a reliable all-rounder if you need it for heavy tasks and gaming. One thing keeping me from choosing X299 is that no consumer-grade CPU feels better yet.

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gurfin321
Junior Member
44
10-30-2021, 08:50 PM
#3
Yup... I'm heading toward x299 instead of z790, moving from a Broadwell-E i7 6850K to a Cascade Lake-X i9 10920x. Parts are still on the way. The build will be done in about a month. The x99 chipset is still solid for an older setup—just it's a bit outdated.
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gurfin321
10-30-2021, 08:50 PM #3

Yup... I'm heading toward x299 instead of z790, moving from a Broadwell-E i7 6850K to a Cascade Lake-X i9 10920x. Parts are still on the way. The build will be done in about a month. The x99 chipset is still solid for an older setup—just it's a bit outdated.

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soekonamie
Junior Member
19
11-04-2021, 01:11 PM
#4
Suggestions are brief: The i7 6850k is a bit too expensive on the used side. You might find it for $40 on eBay. The Xeon 1660v3 is an unlocked overclocking model with 8 cores, similar to the 5960x, but less popular and priced lower—around $23 shipping on eBay. If you plan to upgrade later or repurpose it, selling your 6850k could be beneficial. The Haswell architecture gives a slight drop in IPC, though it's minimal. With the 1660v3, performance typically reaches about 4.4–4.6ghz after proper cooling and tuning.
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soekonamie
11-04-2021, 01:11 PM #4

Suggestions are brief: The i7 6850k is a bit too expensive on the used side. You might find it for $40 on eBay. The Xeon 1660v3 is an unlocked overclocking model with 8 cores, similar to the 5960x, but less popular and priced lower—around $23 shipping on eBay. If you plan to upgrade later or repurpose it, selling your 6850k could be beneficial. The Haswell architecture gives a slight drop in IPC, though it's minimal. With the 1660v3, performance typically reaches about 4.4–4.6ghz after proper cooling and tuning.

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Loaded
Junior Member
6
11-04-2021, 05:30 PM
#5
I haven’t any intention of following your advice. My workstation is currently running an Intel Core i7 6850k. When switching to the x299 setup, I plan to upgrade the media PC in the living room to the x99 platform... it’s still using an i5 ivy bridge/ASUS z77 Sabertooth TUF board. I’m content with my Broadwell-E for the next three weeks until the Cascade Lake-X CPU arrives. My RAM (listed in Sig) is QVL compatible with the ASUS ROG Strix x299-E Gaming II motherboard that’s in order. The motherboard will arrive at the end of the month, and the CPU (Intel Core i9 10920x) a week later. I don’t feel the urge to try older Xeons right now... the 6850k should suffice. BlackDragon
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Loaded
11-04-2021, 05:30 PM #5

I haven’t any intention of following your advice. My workstation is currently running an Intel Core i7 6850k. When switching to the x299 setup, I plan to upgrade the media PC in the living room to the x99 platform... it’s still using an i5 ivy bridge/ASUS z77 Sabertooth TUF board. I’m content with my Broadwell-E for the next three weeks until the Cascade Lake-X CPU arrives. My RAM (listed in Sig) is QVL compatible with the ASUS ROG Strix x299-E Gaming II motherboard that’s in order. The motherboard will arrive at the end of the month, and the CPU (Intel Core i9 10920x) a week later. I don’t feel the urge to try older Xeons right now... the 6850k should suffice. BlackDragon

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Pickmaster12
Senior Member
710
11-04-2021, 09:05 PM
#6
The next step after installing the new motherboard and CPU is adding a RAM upgrade.
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Pickmaster12
11-04-2021, 09:05 PM #6

The next step after installing the new motherboard and CPU is adding a RAM upgrade.

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W0mbat_Wamb0_
Junior Member
43
11-06-2021, 12:56 PM
#7
The i7 6850k is running at a relaxed 4.4GHz speed with temperatures around 35°C CPU and 29°C coolant in the Corsair Hydro H150 during idle. I achieved a Cinebench R23 score of 7625 without major adjustments. The build I created for my brother using an i7 8700k performs similarly. I understand he probably doesn’t want to push this setup beyond stock settings. Not impressive for such older hardware, but decent considering the specs.
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W0mbat_Wamb0_
11-06-2021, 12:56 PM #7

The i7 6850k is running at a relaxed 4.4GHz speed with temperatures around 35°C CPU and 29°C coolant in the Corsair Hydro H150 during idle. I achieved a Cinebench R23 score of 7625 without major adjustments. The build I created for my brother using an i7 8700k performs similarly. I understand he probably doesn’t want to push this setup beyond stock settings. Not impressive for such older hardware, but decent considering the specs.