Intel Devil’s Canyon Processors Might Be Worth Waiting For

Intel Haswell Refresh processors are slowly coming out and they are basically speed bumps of the existing Intel LGA1150 Haswell processors that are already on the market today. For example the Intel Core i7-4770 is a 3.4GHz processor ($309.99) that has a max turbo frequency of 3.9GHz. The Intel Core i7 4770K ($339.99) is basically the same processor, but it has a 3.5GHz base clock and most importantly, is factory unlocked for better overclocking. The new Haswell refresh processors feature a modest 100 or 200MHz clock frequency increase for a small boost in performance. The new flagship LGA1150 processor for Intel is currently the Core i7-4790 and it has a 3.6GHz base clock with a 4.0GHz max turbo clock. This makes it 200MHz faster on the base clock and 100MHz higher on the turbo clock than the old Intel Core i7-4770 processor or 100MHz faster on both clocks when compared to the Core i7-4770K. This processor will be the fastest non-K series processor for the LGA1150 platform and will cost around $299.

Intel has not released any of the new Haswell Refresh K series processors just yet as those are still a bit off. The Intel Core i7-4790K and Core i5-4690K are expected and are code named Devil’s Canyon by Intel. The Core i7-4790K is supposed to have a base clock speed of 4.0GHz and a max burst frequency of 4.4GHz, whereas the Core i5-4690K is expected to ship with a base clock of 3.5GHz and a max turbo frequency of 4.0GHz. These two 88W TDP processors are designed from the ground up for overclocking and have highly culled based on their overclocking potential. Other than being cherry picked as being good overclockers they also have an improved thermal interface material on them. The early rumors of Intel going back to solder appear to have been incorrect, but any improvement will be welcomed. If you are looking for a binned processor that was designed for overclocking we highly suggest waiting for the unlocked Devil’s Canyon processors to come out this summer. Word on the street is that these processors will appear around Comuptex, which would be mid-June.

We can’t wait to see how well the Devil’s Canyon processors overclock as many are hoping to get 5GHz overclocks without much effort when using proper air or water cooling. The Intel Z97 motherboards are out now, so if you have been waiting to build a new platform and want to overclock the Intel Z97 Chipset with a Devil’s Canyon might be the combination you have been looking for.