• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Alder Lake Gaming Efficiency Tested. The Most Efficient Gaming Architecture.

Leonidas

Member

The efficiency graphs are at the bottom of the following pages (Average CPU Watts by Frames Per Second)

720p https://www.igorslab.de/en/intel-co...ng-in-really-fast-and-really-frugal-part-1/3/
1080p https://www.igorslab.de/en/intel-co...ng-in-really-fast-and-really-frugal-part-1/5/
1440p https://www.igorslab.de/en/intel-co...ng-in-really-fast-and-really-frugal-part-1/7/


Good to see a place testing gaming power consumption.

Alder Lake has lower watts per frame than Zen3 in gaming. An Alder Lake CPU is topping these charts for gaming efficiency most of the time. The only Zen3 CPUs that come close to Alder Lake in terms of gaming efficiency are the 5600x & 5800x, while the high core count Zen3 CPUs have gaming efficiency closer to Rocket Lake...

Looks like Alder Lake is not only the fastest gaming CPU architecture, but also the most efficient CPU for gaming.

Found another source.

From CapFrameX Review (7/10 different games from igor, different memory setup too)
PlCba2p.png


Seems that efficiency increases further when you use DDR4.
 
Last edited:

Chiggs

Member
I think it was overall a decent release for Intel. Nice to see them back in action. I’m rooting for Gelsinger and company. More fabs in the USA!
 
Last edited:

Kadve

Member
Now lets hope they can keep up up supply with the chip shortage and all.

Or is that not affecting CPUs? haven't really kept track.
 

hlm666

Member
Now lets hope they can keep up up supply with the chip shortage and all.

Or is that not affecting CPUs? haven't really kept track.
It's effecting cpus but intel don't use tsmc, they have their own fabs so they may have better supply. Even if they don't it's why they can be more aggressive on price than amd though.
 

DonkeyPunchJr

World’s Biggest Weeb
This is super impressive. All we’ve heard is “OMG MORE THAN DOUBLE the power consumption of Zen 3!!!” But for gaming scenarios it actually consumes less than Zen 3 while also delivering better performance.

Love my 5800X but if I were in the market for a CPU right now, 12600K or 12700K would be a no brainer.
 

winjer

Gold Member
AMD needs to start making those IO-dies in 7nm. At 12nm, they consume more power and produce more heat.
Too bad there isn't more 7nm production for AMD to buy.
 

kruis

Exposing the sinister cartel of retailers who allow companies to pay for advertising space.
Sounds like some major spinning to me.

iQcq6zPZE7BuWKiTFYajHZ-970-80.png


24799

Not really. You're posting power usage charts of systems running stress tests: how much power does the processor use when all cores are running at maximum clock speeds at maximum utilization. In reality there are no games on the market that will run at 100% cpu utilization for the entirety of the game.
 

MikeM

Member
Not really. You're posting power usage charts of systems running stress tests: how much power does the processor use when all cores are running at maximum clock speeds at maximum utilization. In reality there are no games on the market that will run at 100% cpu utilization for the entirety of the game.
Especially as you scale that resolution higher if you got a beefy enough GPU.
 

DonkeyPunchJr

World’s Biggest Weeb
Not really. You're posting power usage charts of systems running stress tests: how much power does the processor use when all cores are running at maximum clock speeds at maximum utilization. In reality there are no games on the market that will run at 100% cpu utilization for the entirety of the game.
Exactly. For a lot of people in market for this kind of CPU, gaming may be the only processing-intensive use case they intend for it.

That’s definitely the case for me. I was expecting power consumption to be a major dealbreaker, and I’m very pleasantly surprised. I intend to get a couple more years out of my 5800X, but clearly Alder Lake is the best gaming CPU you can get right now.
 

Ozriel

M$FT
All the reviews say the core i5 12600k is an excellent performer and the best value one for gaming.

I just need to get over this mental block of only focusing on the i7 and i9 lines.
 

Leonidas

Member
I hope more places do these types of tests going forward. It's nice to finally have an accurate picture of CPU gaming efficiency.

I wonder if the non-K "65 W" SKUs will improve gaming efficiency further...
 
That's the only source for that huh

Anyway, let's say it is true, after years Intel is putting up a good fight against Ryzen.
 
Last edited:

bbeach123

Member
Well they released two cpu generation after the ryzen 5000 , they better fcking win against it.
 
Last edited:

Leonidas

Member
That's the only source for that huh
igorsLab is among the most reputable PC sites on the net...

Well they release two cpu generation after the ryzen 5000 , they better fcking win against it.
It took AMD 4 tries, 2 on 14/12nm GloFo + 2 more tries on TSMC N7 and the release of the abominable Rocket Lake to beat ancient Intel 14nm in gaming.

Intel beat Zen3 within a year in gaming.

Hopefully AMD improves gaming efficiency in the V-Cache coming next quarter...
 
Last edited:

marquimvfs

Member
Now Intel just have to beat AMD in price/ performance ratio to be a viable option. And I mean a price for the whole system. That new architecture isn't something viable, as you can assemble an Ryzen system that is as good as an Intel, but way less expensive. Motherboards are expensive as expected and the need of a beefier coller also is a new factor (also DDR5).
 
Last edited:

LOLCats

Banned
Now lets hope they can keep up up supply with the chip shortage and all.

Or is that not affecting CPUs? haven't really kept track.
For some reason i expect to be plenty of intel cpus but short supply of mobos and ddr5 ram.

which looks like is already the case now
 
Last edited:

Buggy Loop

Member
igorsLab is among the most reputable PC sites on the net...


It took AMD 4 tries, 2 on 14/12nm GloFo + 2 more tries on TSMC N7 and the release of the abominable Rocket Lake to beat ancient Intel 14nm in gaming.

Intel beat Zen3 within a year in gaming.

Hopefully AMD improves gaming efficiency in the V-Cache coming next quarter...

Yup, It took a lot of effort and generations to beat 14++++++++++++++ from Intel. I was a fist gen user with the 1600 just to send a message to Intel that it’s enough sleeping. I didn’t buy a 1600 for pure gaming performances, it was a decent bang for the buck. 5000 gen just came out, they barely had their head above water for the first time in decades, and AMD fucking raised the prices.. I bought the 5600x because I basically built the new PC from scratch, but whenever I upgrade in the future, it’s simply gonna be best bang for the buck, Intel or AMD.

They poked the dragon and it’s good for everybody that Intel is waking up. Took long enough. Now AMD or Intel doesn’t need cheerleading, but I’m mostly looking at team red on this since it’s almost a fucking cult on Reddit. They’re just a business. They raised the price the microsecond they were on top. Either of them just want your money. All these years of cheaper alternatives was just a mean to even stay somehow relevant, not for you. They would gladly take monopoly and take your money. So I say, good fucking thing that they’re now both in good shape, something I can’t recall happening in a long ass time, because the more they’ll fight, the better.

This is an odd time to come in and try to dismiss Intel’s wins. Cheer for them, even if you don’t buy it. It’s at least supposed to keep AMD on their toes knowing gamers can change side on a flip of a coin just like it happened to them.

Hurrah for some competition.
 

spyshagg

Should not be allowed to breed
The results reflect a snapshot of todays reality.


As time passes on, games will be using more cores, not fewer, and more heavily, not lighter.


As the above happens, gaming per watt performance will converge with the stress tests benchmarks that demonstrate Alder Lake consuming 2x the power.


In conclusion, the article reflects how little todays games are able to push your CPUs.


A win is not always a win.
 

small_law

Member
Nice to see that they don’t seem to have many teething problems with the big/little configuration. That alone scared me into a 5950X this time around. Once DDR5 timings get tighter, I’ll start looking again, but a 12900K at $600 MSRP right now is the way to go at the high end.
 

LiquidMetal14

hide your water-based mammals
I think the smart consumer will wait for Ryzen to launch next year.

1 - prices may stabilize a little on memory.
2 - things may be more efficient as clocks are high but so are timings. First generation adopters know what time it is.
3 - keep in mind that this thing only has 16 lanes of PCIe5 which means nothing when no storage is viably available. We haven't even saturated PCIe4. If you want more lanes and storage that can take advantage then definitely wait. I think the current parts are going to be damn good for a while. Especially if you have something on the level of an Ryzen 5900x or thereabouts.
4 - good luck finding anything. It will be possible so either luck for discounted last gen Intel or jump on Microcenters discounted 5800d for 300USD IF you can find one lol
 
Last edited:

Kenpachii

Member
Famous youtuber Jayz2cents shits on leonidas



Totally slams intel for their powerdraw.


What i get out of it is.

1) for maximum taxation u want a 12900k anyway, the more efficient 5900x isn't going to matter such as rendering stuff.
2) gaming will never see those cores at 100% usage, my 9900k at 100% taxation consumes 160-170w, i never see it go over 100w or sit around 100w. That's a huge jump down in consumption as 8 big cores and 8 small cores will never be 100% used.
3) most demanding games i face are games that don't multithread for shit, they are big on the single core solution and use a few more threads half way and that's it. 12900k is a no brainer there.

It would be nice if he actually pulled that other system out of the case, but he probably wanted to do a quick simplistic review which is understandable and game to see the actual performance versus eachother. As i do thing both amd and intel are probably comparable in idle state.

I think both cpu's will rpobably sit around the same solution there as u saw in a fraction on his video with the timespy test.
 
Last edited:

DonkeyPunchJr

World’s Biggest Weeb
The results reflect a snapshot of todays reality.


As time passes on, games will be using more cores, not fewer, and more heavily, not lighter.


As the above happens, gaming per watt performance will converge with the stress tests benchmarks that demonstrate Alder Lake consuming 2x the power.


In conclusion, the article reflects how little todays games are able to push your CPUs.


A win is not always a win.
LOL dude I’ve been hearing this from AMD fanboys for literally over a decade. Probably since Phenom launched in 2007. “Intel may be better for gaming right now, but just you wait, once games are optimized for using all those cores, it’ll be a different story!!!”

You guys are like a broken record.

Wake me up when Zen 3 magically takes back the gaming perf/watt crown due to more multi threading in games. That’ll be several years from now, if it ever happens. You’re an idiot if you base your purchasing decision on that faith.
 

spyshagg

Should not be allowed to breed
LOL dude I’ve been hearing this from AMD fanboys for literally over a decade. Probably since Phenom launched in 2007. “Intel may be better for gaming right now, but just you wait, once games are optimized for using all those cores, it’ll be a different story!!!”

You guys are like a broken record.

Wake me up when Zen 3 magically takes back the gaming perf/watt crown due to more multi threading in games. That’ll be several years from now, if it ever happens. You’re an idiot if you base your purchasing decision on that faith.

Who? what?

Check the cpu core usage in games from 2012 until today. It keeps going up. You are making a joke of a factual statistic. Who is the joke in this scenario? yeah.
 

DonkeyPunchJr

World’s Biggest Weeb
Who? what?

Check the cpu core usage in games from 2012 until today. It keeps going up. You are making a joke of a factual statistic. Who is the joke in this scenario? yeah.
Show me a single case where the performance ranking flipped, where the CPU that started out as the all-around worse gaming performer ended up as the better one a couple years later because games got more multithreaded.

I am not aware of any. Nobody was saying “man I wish had bought Bulldozer, this 3570K seemed better at the time, but now I wish I had all those cores!”
 
Found another source.

From CapFrameX Review (7/10 different games from igor, different memory setup too)
PlCba2p.png

Damn, 12600K is an efficient gaming beast!

After 4 years of 8700K its time for me to build a new rig...
Who games in 720p? If the 12th gen is DDR5 why in the world would you pair it with DDR4 3200?

But I agree the 12600K is the CPU. Intel scored greatly with it.

Edit: that's quite an in-depth review, thanks for the link!
 
Last edited:

spyshagg

Should not be allowed to breed
Show me a single case where the performance ranking flipped, where the CPU that started out as the all-around worse gaming performer ended up as the better one a couple years later because games got more multithreaded.

I am not aware of any. Nobody was saying “man I wish had bought Bulldozer, this 3570K seemed better at the time, but now I wish I had all those cores!”
we are discussing performance per watt on gaming. You are discussing fairyland tales that you imagined you saw here.
 

DonkeyPunchJr

World’s Biggest Weeb
we are discussing performance per watt on gaming. You are discussing fairyland tales that you imagined you saw here.
Lol ok buddy. Well, wake me up when a current Zen 3 CPU retakes the gaming performance/watt crown from Alder Lake. I will close my account if that happens within the next 3 years.
 

Allandor

Member
I guess we can forget the current energy-consumption in games. Most games don't really use the CPU so heavily. At least not really stressing more than one core. Yes you can have 100% load but that is not really 100% stress.
The newer the games get and are using more cores more "efficient" the worse the power consumption of the intel CPU should get if it is opened up to 241W.
 

spyshagg

Should not be allowed to breed
Lol ok buddy. Well, wake me up when a current Zen 3 CPU retakes the gaming performance/watt crown from Alder Lake. I will close my account if that happens within the next 3 years.

It will. That is what the multicore stress tests predict will happen. Its just how it is.
 

DonkeyPunchJr

World’s Biggest Weeb
It will. That is what the multicore stress tests predict will happen. Its just how it is.
Okay. What timeframe are you talking about? In the far off future? Or within a timeframe that a gamer buying a high-end CPU gives a crap about?

“the other CPU/GPU might be better right now, but my team’s CPU/GPU will come out ahead over time” has always been the last line of defense for fanboys and is almost always fantasy bullshit.

I’m willing to bet on it. For the next 3 years, we will not reach a point where average Zen 3 gaming perf/watt for games released that year is better than Alder Lake at 1440p. (Or heck, just compare total system power consumption if that makes easier).

I’ll change my avatar to a doughy pink haired feminist and insist everyone call me “they/them” if I’m wrong.
 
Top Bottom