Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition CPU Review

Conclusions

The new Core i7-3960X does live up to its expectation of being the fastest desktop processor released to date. Costing the same as the previous top-of-the-line desktop CPU, the Core i7-990X, it provides a performance improvement of up to 30%, but you should get a typical 10-15% performance increase on most programs.

Like its predecessors, the Core i7-3960X is not targeted to the average user, since it is too expensive for the performance gain you will get. It is also not worthwhile for gamers, since gaming performance is limited by the video card, not the CPU, if you already have a high-end CPU. For the average user looking for a fast CPU, our recommendation is the Core i5-2500 and for the high-end user, the Core i7-2600K.

However, for the professional user who works with video edi
ting and other CPU-intensive applications, this new CPU is an excellent option, as it will have your work done faster. The fastest you can finish jobs, the more jobs you can take, meaning more money that you can make.