Intel Core i7-5960X Haswell-E Processor De-Lidded

The Intel Core i7-5960X Haswell-E processor looks like it is getting close to launching. We just ran across a site that expects the Haswell-E processor series to be released in September 2014 with the flagship model being the Intel Core i7-5960X. The Intel Core i7-5960X is said to have 8 cores, 16 threads along with 20MB of L3 cache, a 3.0GHz base clock and the ability to hit 3.3Ghz with Turbo. It appears that said site has also removed the Integrated Heat Spreader to take a look under the lid. After the de-lidding they claim that the “Intel soldered the chips die to the IHS with a strong epoxy”. Using the word soldered is a bit of a stretch, but it does appear that Intel has done some tweaking with the Thermal Interface Material (TIM) that they are using. If you look closely at the actual 22nm Haswell-E processor do you see anything odd?

We count 12 physical cores arranged in a 3×4 configuration on the Intel Core i7-5960X processor! That means that Intel is using a 12-core processor with four of the cores disabled for this generation. The Intel Xeon E5-2697 V2 processor that is currently on the market is based on the Ivy Bridge architecture and has 12 physical cores, so it would only make sense that Intel has 12 core versions for the upcoming Xeon E7 series that will feature processors based on the Haswell-EX CPU architecture. The Intel Core i7-5960X is rumored to be a 140W TDP processor with a purported price tag of around $999.