Intel Core i7-8086K
A celebratory CPU that proves speed is still king.
“The itch to go further was still there. Our final overclock was achieved at 5.4GHz across all six cores, at 1.48V.”
Where do we even begin with this? For those who are already on Intel’s 8th-gen platform, the 8086K processor simply doesn’t make any sense. In short, it’s a pre-binned Intel Core i7-8700K, released to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the x86 architecture. There’s a limited run of them — around 50,000 in total — and that’s all there really is to it. There’s nothing new here. Apart from the guaranteed 5GHz turbo out of the box, of course.
However, this CPU is nothing short of aweinspiring. It’s a phenomenal piece of history, and it tells a story. It takes the very best of what Intel can muster today, skimmed from the top of those 8700K silicon wafers, and honours its predecessors from the last 40 years of processor development, across both AMD and Intel. From 29,000 transistors on a 3,000nm process in an area 33mm² to around 5.6 billion transistors (rough guess — Intel doesn’t make it public anymore) using a 14nm process, with a die that’s 151mm², the last four decades of CPU evolution have been incredible. To give you some perspective, if that were represented on an APC bar chart, it would be an improvement of 19,310,245%.
At stock, the 8086K scored 212 points in Cinebench R15 single, versus the Core i7-8700K’s 203; 1,630 in multi versus 1,549; and it completed Fry Render in 128 seconds, compared to the 8700K’s 133. Power draw under load was 2W higher than its lower-clocked sibling, and that’s about it. So, at stock, it’s undeniably a better processor, but for $100 more? Hmm, not sure.
What’s so impressive about it, then? It’s that untapped potential inside. At stock, the Core i7-8700K and the 8086K have very similar turbos — both max out at 4.3GHz across all six cores, with the 8086K taking the lead on the single core running at 5GHz instead of 4.7GHz. By just adjusting the multiplier, you can easily get 5GHz across all the cores.
At stock, under load, it easily hits around 82°C with a 360mm AIO. Try to aim for something like 5.3GHz, and you’ll run straight into that 100°C TJMax. That said, 5.2GHz across all six cores is still a 900MHz increase, and pumps out some impressive numbers, too, even if you’re skirting around that 90°C mark, with 1,682 points in Cinebench R15 multi, and 218 single-core.
But we knew our 8086K had more to give. So we took the chip, grabbed our trusty Der8auer Delid Die Mate, took the heat spreader off, and replaced the thermal paste with some Thermal Grizzly Conductonaut Liquid Metal, before gluing it all back together. The result? Temperatures at 5.2GHz dropped from 90°C down to 71°C. We then pushed for 5.3GHz again, this time upping the voltage to 1.44V, and benchmarked it, with temps reaching 80°C on the hottest core. The chip was stable, and achieved 1,713 points in Cinebench R15, and 229 on the single core. We knew from the industry that only the top 14% of 8086Ks could achieve that frequency, but the itch to go further was still there. Our final overclock was achieved at 5.4GHz across all six cores, at 1.48V. It scored an incredible 1,753 points in Cinebench, and 233 points single-core, with a max package temp of 86°C. To be honest with you, it probably has more to give, but we just don’t have the cojones to push it any harder.
Is it for you? Well, it’s not a smart choice, for sure, but it’s certainly a satisfying one.