Core i7-6950X

Name: Intel Core i7-6950X
Brand: Intel
Rating: 4 (21 reviews)

10 cores · 20 threads · up to 4.0 GHz on FCLGA2011.

4 · 21 votes

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Cores

Threads

Boost

4.0 GHz

L3 cache

25 MB

TDP

140W

Socket

FCLGA2011

Performance breakdown

Gaming11

Productivity10

Single-core11

Multi-core42

Power efficiency9

Lab scores

Performance score11

Cores10

Threads20

Boost clock (GHz)4.0 GHz

Estimated gaming FPS

Paired with a high-end GPU. CPU impact is largest at 1080p.

1080p24 fps

1440p19 fps

4K13 fps

Full specifications

Processor & cores

Architecture: Broadwell-E
Process node: 14 nm
Socket: FCLGA2011
Release year: 2016
Total cores: 10
Threads: 20
Integrated graphics: None

Clocks & cache

Base clock: 3.0 GHz
Boost clock: 4.0 GHz
L1 cache: 320 KB
L2 cache: 2.5 MB
L3 cache: 25 MB

Memory & platform

Memory support: DDR4
Max capacity: 128 GB
Channels: 4
Base power (TDP): 140W
Max temperature: 72°C
PCIe: PCIe 3.0
Launch price: $1723

Technologies

Extensions: AES-NI, AVX, VT-x, VT-d, Turbo Boost Max 3.0, TXT

Community Feedback

What Owners Say

Owners love the raw multi-core muscle for heavy workstation tasks. The common complaint is the blistering heat output demanding serious liquid cooling.

Pros

Crushes multi-threaded workloads with ease
Runs hot but handles heavy tasks
Still viable for older high-end builds
Overclocks decently for its age

Cons

Gets hot under heavy loads
Requires expensive X99 motherboards
Poor value for gaming only

Verdict

Our verdict on the Core i7-6950X

A ten-core desktop chip from 2016 that was Intel's first mainstream HEDT part with that many threads, but it aged fast.

Get it if you need absolute maximum multi-threaded performance for heavy video rendering or scientific computing on an older HEDT platform. Skip it if you're building a new system, as modern mid-range CPUs are faster and far cheaper.