Intel debuts 6th generation Skylake Core Processors, Z170 Express chipset
Intel announced its first 6th generation Core processors, codenamed “Skylake.” Built on the 14 nanometer silicon fab process, and in the new LGA1151 package, these processors bring DDR4 memory to the mainstream, and offer IPC improvements over the previous-generation Core “Haswell” and “Broadwell” processors.
Making its debut at Gamescom, Intel is starting its lineup off with two chips that are predominantly targeted at the DIY gaming PC crowd, the Core i7-6700K and the Core i5-6600K quad-core processors. More models in the series will be launched towards the end of this month. The company also announced the Z170 Express chipset.
The Core i7-6700K features a nominal clock speed of 4.00 GHz, with a Turbo Boost frequency of 4.20 GHz. It features 8 MB of L3 cache, and HyperThreading. Its integrated Intel HD 530 graphics ticks at 350 MHz, with 1200 MHz Boost. The Core i5-6600K, on the other hand, features clock speeds of 3.50 GHz, with 3.90 GHz Turbo Boost. It features 6 MB of L3 cache, and lacks HyperThreading. It features the same integrated graphics solution as its bigger sibling.
The TDP of both chips are rated at 91W. Both chips feature integrated memory controllers with support for DDR3L-1600 and DDR4-2133. The Core i7-6700K is priced around $350, and the i5-6600K around $243, in 1000-unit tray quantities. The retail packages of both chips will lack a stock cooling solution. The LGA1151 cooler mount will be identical to that of the outgoing LGA1150, so you shouldn’t have any problems using your older cooler.
Intel Z170 Express chipset
The first wave of motherboards driving the two processors will be based on Intel Z170 Express chipset, targeted at overclockers and gamers. Both chips feature unlocked base-clock multipliers, and this chipset lets you take advantage of that. With the 100-series chipset, Intel increased the DMI chipset bus bandwidth to 64 Gbps (32 Gbps per direction), which should help with the new generation of high-bandwidth storage devices, such as M.2/PCIe SSDs. The chipset features native support for the NVMe protocol.
Intel is keeping info on what it changed with the “Skylake” microarchitecture over “Broadwell,” under the wraps until the 18th of August, 2015. It will put out these tech details at IDF-2015. The company wants to take advantage of Gamescom to reach out to the DIY crowd with two three products targeted specifically at them.
