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26 Reviews
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Best Sandy/Ivy socket 2011 upgrade CPU for enthusiast motherboards
This is a relatively rare CPU originally released for use in Mac Pro hardware in 2013. It is a multiplier-unlocked single-socket Ivy Bridge EP Xeon. Unlike all other unlocked Sandy/Ivy CPUs, it has 8 cores rather than at most 6.
It has the same CPUID as the E5-2687w V2, and essentially the same BIOS support, but it is unlocked. It runs at a lower base clock speed by default, but this is largely irrelevant because it has an unlocked multiplier.
It overclocks quite smoothly. I currently have mine locked to 4000MHz (40x multiplier, 100MHz BCLK) at stock voltages, using as ASRock x79 Extreme6 motherboard (not officially supported by ASRock, but works perfectly fine with the newest BIOS). Temps are pretty similar to my old 4-core Sandy Bridge CPU.
This is definitely the best final CPU upgrade if you are still running a Sandy/Ivy LGA 2011 motherboard. If you overclock it a bit, it will beat modern consumer-tier CPUs at the same price point on many benchmarks-- without needing to buy a new computer.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: pre-owned • Sold by: ipowerresale
Great processor, runs great, and is basically the best 8 core, 16 thread x79 Xeon Proc you can get.
It is as good as you could expect a 1680 v2 to perform - excellent. I consider this proc the best x79 proc for general use. 8 cores, 16 threads, and great clock speed for the architecture. I got this one for gaming, upgrading from a 2665 v0, so it's a significant and straight upgrade. I am gaming on a Machinist motherboard from Aliexpress just because I came into possession of an old server loaded with DDR3 ECC and two 2665s in it. Amazing value for the price (especially free on some of the parts), gaming on these old Xeon chipsets suprisingly holds up very, very well. Oddly, older games, like Fallout 3 and New Vegas, play pretty bad, yet newer games run like all new hardware minus the frame times and occassional stutters on loading. F3 and NV run bad because of their usage of cores, as they can only use two and only one of them at 100%, relying on clock speed for good performance. Naturally, Xeons are not high clock speeds, so hopefully the 1680 v2 will allow me to fulfill my Fallout modding dreams, as those games are what inspired me to go to PC. These x79 chips run new games great, with only their IPC and clock speed to a lesser extent holding them back. Of course, comparing clock speeds across generations doesn't really work well, but I can say in my experience the Xeons with their lower speeds means you won't get blazing FPS and performance, but you will be getting great performance given the price and how old these chips are just in general. I have to run more modern games at max settings to not bottleneck my CPU and 5700xt any more than it is, with the exception of some settings in games that are just unoptimized/impractical to max out. Games like Fortnite or Modern Warfare 2019, for example, I run maxed out or all but maxed out with one or two settings one tick or two below max and the game runs as good if not better than scaling down to "performance" or "esports" levels because of how well these procs run the games.
All in all, for gaming and general use, the 1680 v2 is the best you can get for the x79 chipset. If you have a better, more standard production motherboard to more appropriately support overclocking, this chip can rival and even beat an overclock 9900k. I am still looking for a better board, but will be going to x99 soon if I can get a server blade in that chipset similar to the last one. I recommend the Aliexpress motherboards for value. Overclocking is doable but not reliable, and the BIOS is limited. The biggest annoyance I have with mine is the lack of RGB support on the motherboard, so no cool customization of flashy lights. That and sometimes the USB ports not working right, which could be my case (Cooler Master H500), but that is basically it. After you install the board, OS, and get all your drivers and updates from Windows, you are set. I can't recommend the Aliexpress Xeon motherboards, especially the Machinist brand, enough. The 1680 v2 is my top recommendation for procs to put on those boards for the value, even if they are one of the more expensive ones comparative to other chips in the generation. Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: pre-owned • Sold by: bluecc86
The Best x79 CPU... Period.
Upgraded from a 3930K @ 4.5GHz after watching a video from Tech Yes City that had the E5-1680v2 clocked at 4.6GHz competing VERY well with a 9900K overclocked to 5GHz and beating a Ryzen 2700x overclocked to 4.3GHz by a wide margin.
Since I already have 32GB of 2133MHz DDR3 memory (Corsair Dominator Platinum) and an Asus Rampage IV Extreme motherboard (NVME enabled BIOS) then I really didn't see a reason to upgrade to the X470 Platform and a Ryzen 2700x after seeing this video.
I bought the CPU, installed it, overclocked it to 4.6GHz and voila... near 9900K @ 5GHz performance, better than Ryzen 2700x performance and an overall VERY solid platform.
Recommend for anyone still on X79 looking for one final upgrade.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: pre-owned • Sold by: ipowerresale
Not for everyone
If you’re looking for bare knuckle performance for driving a 144hz monitor then a newer CPU with a higher clock speed would be better. I can only recommend this to people that have an existing x79 motherboard and they want to go beyond the 6-core limits of the i7 series while still being able to overclock. If you’re not going to overclock then there are other E5 processors that would be better picks.
The first 1680v2 I bought can hit 4.6ghz at 1.33v with 32gb of 2400mhz RAM. However the CPU I got needs more than 1.4v to reach 4.7ghz with faster 2400mhz RAM. Since I'm using a custom loop, I can't comment on the temperatures but they never went above 72c while running the worst stress test.
The 2nd 1680v2 can do 4.5ghz at 1.35v but it needs damn near 1.5v to hit 4.6ghz stable.
Both processors did just fine with my 32gb 2400mhz RAM.
What makes me the happiest about the 1680v2 is I'm able to drag a few more years out of my x79 platform. It's hard to believe that I've already gotten 8 years out of my setup. The 2nd one I bought was for my other x79 setup. Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: pre-owned • Sold by: videocards
New breath of life into x79 platform
I weighed pros and cons of building a brand new system. This gave me an upgrade path that was easier and cheaper than building a new system from scratch with water blocks and all. Very simple upgrade pop old chip out and pop new one in. 8 cores of overclocking funRead full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: pre-owned • Sold by: ibuildmacs-inc
Great processor for the buck
This Xeon E5-1680V2 installed flawlessly. It went right in without any issues and booted on the first attempt. I have nothing negative to say about the processor, and it would make for a great x79 build if you keep your expectations to the timeframe it was released. It's a decently speedy processor and has not bottlenecked me yet with my 2060 super. 10/10 would recommend for its price.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: pre-owned • Sold by: charlie.mac.sales
The flagship of the 2011 socket
The best processor for the 2011 platform. Ahead of the 5th generation of Intel processors and is slightly inferior to 6. If you are not used to compromise - this is your choice.
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: pre-owned • Sold by: ipowerresale
4.6ghz on 8 cores. Nothing more to say.
4.6ghz on 8 cores. Nothing more to say. 16xx in cinebench who needs a 9900k.
Moved to x79 platform because 9th gen was fake. 8 cores 4.6ghz at 1.32-39v cooling with a clc with custom loop 4.8 is reasonable.
Temps at 4.6 stays well below 60°
Xeons much better than their K sku counter parts , ps. better part of the wafer , 16xx variants all multi unlocked :)
Half the of a 9900k , dollar for dollar might bet better, especially since it remains on the ddr3 platform. Decent graphics this is a beast.
Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: pre-owned • Sold by: skz2000
Final Upgrade for X79
Only first learned this CPU existed a couple months ago. Swapped into my existing X79 motherboard without a fuss and easily overclocked to 4.3GHz. Could definitely go higher, but I have no need for the higher power consumption. Scores over 1700 in Cinebench, putting it roughly on par with the latest Ryzen 8 core CPUs, without the need for overly expensive RAM.
Would highly recommend to anyone with an aging X79 system, but not quite ready to buy a new computer.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: pre-owned • Sold by: skz2000
one of the best processors for the x 79 chip set
Intel Xeon E5-1680V2 SR1MJ 3.00 Ghz 8 Core Processor
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: pre-owned • Sold by: videocards