Jim Roseberry

It's absolutely analogous to high-performance auto racing Under super heavy loads, you'll see clock-speeds drop (from max Turbo). Cinebench is an easy way to watch/experience. As you'd expect, the Performance cores do the heavy lifting... and Efficient cores handle lesser tasks. What's somewhat amusing is that (though the architecture isn't the same), the experience of working with both the 7950x and 13900k is similar. I'll have more to say about the 13900k's ultra low latency audio performance (hopefully later this afternoon).

Not if you're chasing high-performance ?

As expected, the 13900k does slightly outperform the 7950x in Cinebench R23 (both single-core and multi-core). SC=2210 MC=38701 Testing with a 360mm AIO. Picking up a 420mm AIO today. If you're thinking air cooling (a la NH-D15), I'd quickly forget that notion. If you're wanting to hit a score of 40k with Cinebench R23, you're not going to do that with a 360mm AIO water-cooler. I'd consider a top-tier 360mm water-cooler as bare minimum. Ideally, you want a top-tier 420mm water-cooler (or better). That means a larger case. Haven't run low latency audio tests (will do that today). Like the 7950x (due to heat), configuring the 13900k is a lot more complex than a 12700k. It's a delicate balance finding the sweetest spot for performance... while keeping noise to a minimum.

8 Performance Cores 16 Efficient Cores 32 Processing Threads 5.8GHz Max Turbo This is going to be interesting (to me) vs. the 7950x. The 7950x is the first CPU to be able to run things like IK's ToneX at 96k using a 16-sample ASIO buffer size. That's ~0.5ms total round-trip latency. 12900k/s and 5950x can get down to a 32-sample ASIO buffer size. I expect the 13900k to (slightly) best the 7950x in Cinebench R23 (both single-core and multi-core). Most curious to see if the 13900k can run ToneX (glitch-free) at 96k using a 16-sample ASIO buffer size. Have to say that once completely dialed-in, the 7950x has been rock-solid and super quiet. Thunderbolt performance has been exceptionally robust. Can't wait to compare ultra low latency audio performance. AMD and Intel are slugging it out... and we benefit.

The Big Sky pedal sounds beautiful on guitar. I'll grab this specifically to use with IK's new ToneX.

When we're playing a gig and a guy does the "splits" (as part of his dance routine)... I have the same reaction. ?

Hardware pedal sounds exceptional on guitar. I'm thinking this will pair extremely well with IK's new ToneX.

I've got half a dozen M.2 drives in my main DAW. You can get heatsinks for individual M.2 drives (if the motherboard doesn't already provide). Heat will be greater with PCIe 4.0 M.2 drives that sustain ~7000MB/Sec. If you're talking PCIe 3.0 M.2 drives, I wouldn't be overly concerned.

On top of the cost, it's a terrible low-latency performer!

I'd definitely recommend a Z690 motherboard with a K CPU. When choosing a CPU to work at ultra low latency, clock-speed is the single most important factor.

That is a great deal!

FWIW, I think most users (even tech-savvy) are going to avoid delidding a $700 CPU (voiding the warranty). AMD certainly got their performance together with the 7xxx series... but it would be nice to see improvement with thermals. Based on AMD's attitude about 7xxx series temps, I doubt their going to make significant changes. I'm thinking bigger cases and larger coolers are going to be the norm (AMD and Intel) for the next few years.

Hi Brian, The "AI Training" is greatly aided by a Nvidia video card GTX or RTX series. Advanced training should take about 20-30 minutes with said video card. Normal training should be 4-5 minutes (with said video card).

You are exactly right. You select the desired ASIO driver... then assign the following ports (you can use one or two mics): Monitor L/R outputs Send to Rig (feed going to the Amp input) Mic input 1 Mic input 2 Instrument input (guitar) As you mentioned, it's very similar to setting up a Capture using Quad Cortex. Note that if your audio interface doesn't have proper re-amp functions (many don't), you'll need a re-amp DI box.

If you completely disable PBO, it won't hit 95 degrees C under substantial load. ? FWIW, That's kind of neutering the CPU. Might as well go with the 12700k. I've currently got a nice under-volt... with 5.2GHz all-core. Super quiet... and not roasting the CPU Can run ToneX at 96k using a 16-sample ASIO buffer size (~0.5ms total round-trip latency). Cinebench R23 multi-core performance is 38,954... (higher than when PBO is set to allow throttling up to 5.75GHz). Like the 5950x, the 7950x is somewhat of a "tweaker's build". Finding the sweet-spot performance/noise wise takes a little time.

When the 7950x is running at 95 degrees Celsius, fan RPMs are maximum (meaning loud). Even with the best 420mm water-cooler, if you don't under-volt, the 7950x will hit 95 degrees C under substantial load. There's no way an air-cooler (even a D15 with two 140mm fans) is going to be able to dissipate enough heat (when the 7950x is under substantial load). When it comes to a DAW, we have the delicate balance of performance AND noise. It makes no sense to get a high-end "workstation" CPU... and cripple it with inadequate cooling.

FWIW, The 12700k runs fine with quality air-cooling. Cool and quiet...

If you're going 12th or 13th generation i9... or the 7950x, forget air-cooling and rackmount cases. No way it can dissipate enough heat (especially under heavy load). Big case and 420mm water-cooler is absolutely necessary. I've been tweaking this 7950x prototype build for a couple days (fine-tuning performance vs noise). I've got it super quiet... but even with the best 420mm water-cooler that exists, idle temps are ~50 degrees C. Cinebench multi-core tests at 38,909. Pretty cool to be able to run amp-sim plugins at sub 1ms total round-trip latency. Probably won't need my portable heater in the studio this winter. ?

The new 7950x has slightly higher TDP than the 12900ks. It's a tweaker's machine. Performance is outstanding... but getting noise reined-in is complex.

Doing some test Captures with IKMM's Tonex... using 7950x based machine with RTX-3070 video card: Using Default training, Capture process takes ~3 minutes. Using Advanced training, Capture process takes ~20 minutes.

The UMC Interfaces are excellent low-latency performers. During lock-down, lots of folks using them for virtual jams/rehearsals...

The Orion Studio Synergy Core was connected via Thunderbolt. FWIW, No audio interface can achieve round-trip latency that low via USB-2/3. USB-2/3 can achieve ~4ms (under ideal circumstances)

7950x early low-latency audio performance: In short, impressive. Studio One Pro v5.5.2 with Antelope Orion Studio Synergy Core Able to run Helix Native (substantial patch) at less than 1ms total round-trip latency (96k using a 24-sample ASIO buffer size) Able to run Tonex at ~0.5ms total round-trip latency (96k using a 16-sample ASIO buffer size) Completely glitch-free... (tested playing for hours)

TDP for the 7950x is 170w

One thing that's currently a bit of a drag is that you can only have a single Tonex "capture" loaded (standalone or in Amplitube 5.5). IOW, You can't have a capture of a tube-screamer... going into a capture of a JCM-800. The current workaround is to use multiple instances of Tonex or Amplitude. I certainly hope IK addresses this. I haven't yet tried the capture process. I'm a bit surprised to hear folks talking about 40-60 minutes for the training process to finish. I've done a fair bit of capturing via the Quad Cortex. It's training process takes a couple of minutes. Even that can be a bit tedious... especially if you're capturing multiple mics/positions. With an hour between "takes", you'll want to plan ahead (test recordings) to make sure you've got it right.