Best Of

I'm thinking about getting a 1600X or 1500. The 1600X is a 95W part, and the 1500 is 65W.
If I don't OC the 1600X, would it actually use much more power than the 1500? Would it likely get close to the 95W rating?

My main interest is switching to a compact and quiet mATX system, so I'd want to keep cooler size and noise down.

Leaked benchmarks have the single threaded performance of the 1600X to be 31% better than my 2500K, and 143% better multithreaded performance. Finally, a significant upgrade from Sandy Bridge for less than the retail price of Sandy Bridge when it was new!

TDP ratings are strictly thermal ratings. Power doesn't factor into the actual equation. The 65W TDP units can consume about peak 87W electrical, the 95W TDP units about 125W peak electrical. But lower TDP ratings do permit a smaller and quieter heatsink/fan speed.

I'd still get the 1600X.

Ended up going with the Swiftech H240X2 Prestige kit. I am so excite about water cooling

The nice thing is I can easily add a block to my GPU and extend the system.

Does anyone make a decent horizontal mini-ITX case? As in, for a DIY console with a right-angle PCI riser for a full-sized GPU? I've got a Fractal Design Node 304—see my old review on this very site!—but kind of want something I can slide under the couch. (Yes, I have odd & possibly inadvisable requirements)

@primesuspect said:
I do like the look (and the idea of silence) of the Swiftech H240X2. Hope they come out with an AM4 mounting kit soon. I might head in that direction.

Looks like you're in luck: http://www.ocdrift.com/swiftech-releases-socket-am4-mounting-kit/