TEST BED

TESTING METHODOLOGY

    To accurately test the performance of a CPU its clocks need to be set manually to a specific frequency/speed so to that end every model in my charts will be pushed near the maximum boost clock possible according to each manufacturer. I'll also try to use the same clocks and the same hardware configuration (motherboard, drive, memory, graphics card, cooler and power supply - even the same thermal paste will be used) when testing CPU models from the same series and as for operating system since till this day Windows 10 is still far more popular among consumers than Windows 11 I’ll be using a fresh Windows 10 Pro installation fully updated up to the day i begin my tests. Needless to say, the latest bios and drivers will be installed prior to recording my results.

    As for the tests themselves they include the latest versions of both popular synthetic benchmarks and games. For synthetic benchmarks I’ll be using UL 3DMark Professional (Time Spy & CPU Profile), Maxon Cinebench, CPUID CPU-Z, Passmark Performance Test, Sisoftware Sandra Titanium and ASUS RealBench and as for games I’ll be using Horizon Zero Dawn Complete Edition by Guerrilla Games, F1 2022 by Codemasters and Forza Horizon 5 by Xbox Game Studios (time spy and games will be run at 1080p resolution with max settings). Each test will be repeated a total of 3 times and then the average numbers will get recorded in the charts. Also, since I’m positive many consumers and professionals alike would like to know I’ll also be using AIDA64 (stability test), CPU-Z (stress test) and HWMonitor to record the minimum and maximum temperatures and power consumption both at idle and after 5 minutes of heavy stress load (needless to say the cooler used will be set at 100% speed/performance – these results are only valid for the set clocks, if boost clocks climb even higher you can expect higher power consumption and temperatures).