Haswell-E Debuts: Intel Core i7-5960X Processor Review

Name: Haswell-E Debuts: Intel Core i7-5960X CPU Review
Brand: Haswell-E

by Marco Chiappetta — Friday, August 29, 2014, 12:00 PM EDT

To support the new Haswell-E based Core i7 desktop processors like the Core i7-5960X, Intel is also releasing the X99 chipset. Below is a high-level block diagram of the X99 chipset, which is targeted at the high-performance and enthusiast market segments.

Intel X99 Express Chipset Block Diagram

Like most recent chipsets for Intel’s current processors, the X79 Express is essentially an I/O hub, as all of the traditional Northbridge functionality is integrated into the processor itself. As you can see, LGA 2011 v3 Haswell-E processors offer up to 40 lanes of PCI Express 3.0 connectivity and feature an integrated quad-channel DDR4 memory controller. The PCIe links can be arranged in any number of configurations to better support multiple graphics cards, including 2x16 + 1x8 or 5 x 8.

The processors are linked to the chipset via a DMI 2.0 x4 interface and the X99 Express is outfitted with 8 more PCIe 2.0 lanes, along with various other I/O options, like USB 2.0 (8 ports), USB 3.0 (6 ports), 10 SATA III ports, an integrated Gigabit MAC, HD audio, etc.

Although it’s not shown in the diagram, the X99 also has support for M.2 and/or SATA Express solid state storage. M.2 offers bandwidth of up to 1GB/s, up from the theoretical 600MB/s max of a SATA III port. M.2 SSDs are also bootable or they can be configured to work with Intel's RST caching technology.

Tags: Intel, Asus, MSI, Gigabyte, evga, CPU, processor, Haswell, LGA2011, Haswell-E, X99, 5960X

Marco Chiappetta

Marco's interest in computing and technology dates all the way back to his early childhood. Even before being exposed to the Commodore P.E.T. and later the Commodore 64 in the early ‘80s, he was interested in electricity and electronics, and he still has the modded AFX cars and shop-worn soldering irons to prove it. Once he got his hands on his own Commodore 64, however, computing became Marco's passion. Throughout his academic and professional lives, Marco has worked with virtually every major platform from the TRS-80 and Amiga, to today's high end, multi-core servers. Over the years, he has worked in many fields related to technology and computing, including system design, assembly and sales, professional quality assurance testing, and technical writing. In addition to being the Managing Editor here at HotHardware for close to 15 years, Marco is also a freelance writer whose work has been published in a number of PC and technology related print publications and he is a regular fixture on HotHardware’s own Two and a Half Geeks webcast. - Contact: marco(at)hothardware(dot)com