Apple M1 Max vs Intel Core i9-7980XE

Processor comparisons   21-10-2022
   Perhaps you are thinking about choosing a CPU, you will be able to make a choice by looking at the Apple M1 Max vs Intel Core i9-7980XE tests and see which is better for games or simple use for rendering, video editing, programming, machine learning, streaming. Here you can find useful information from various benchmarks or real streaming and video editing tests. A step-by-step analysis of all the specifications, to make it easier to understand, is presented in the form of the table.
   From the video comparison, you can get the results of joint testing in synthetic type tests such as Dolphin Emulator, PassMark, VeraCrypt, 7zip, UserBenchmark, AIDA64, 3DMark, Handbrake, DaVinci Resolve Studio, WPrime, PCMark 10, Furmark, RealBench, GeekBench 6, 5.2, Blender, World of Tanks enCore Benchmark, MATLAB, Cinebench 23 (20, 15), SuperPi, Gears 5, Blender, Prime95.
   Gaming performance of CPUs in:

Valorant
DOOM: Eternal
Fortnite
Watch Dogs Legion
Valheim
Fallout 76
Death Stranding
Grand Theft Auto V
Call of Duty: Warzone and Modern Warfare
Assassin's Creed Valhalla
Apex Legends
Overwatch
Rainbow Six Siege
Cyberpunk 2077
World of Warcraft: Shadowlands
Last Man Standing
Halo Infinite
Borderlands 3
Red Dead Redemption 2

After reading the results of joint benchmarks and videos, you already be able to figure out which CPU is better to buy for gaming Intel Core i9-7980XE or Apple M1 Max.

Summary benchmark results

As a percentage of the maximum value based on a sample from the entire base of all processors
Processor Benchmark

M1 Max

60%

Core i9-7980XE

58%

This value shows the performance of the processors in single-threaded and multi-threaded mode. In this comparison, M1 Max is 3% better than Core i9-7980XE. The data source is several popular tests. More detailed information of the benchmarks is below.

Gaming performance
Summary result of all game benchmarks.

M1 Max

57%

Core i9-7980XE

60%

The maximum result in this parameter is 100 percent, which is the performance of the most powerful processor at the moment. And of course, this is a server processor, on which no one will run games. Because the cost of this processor reaches several tens of thousands of dollars. Therefore, if you think that the selected CPU has a small game result, just look at the FPS that it produces in real games in the summary table below.
List of other games in which processors were compared: Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Control, Battlefield V, Forza Horizon 4, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Horizon Zero Dawn, Hitman 3, NBA 2K20, Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS GO), DOTA 2A, Monster Hunter World, Ghostrunner, Microsoft Flight Simulator, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), League of Legends (LOL), Metro Exodus, Half-Life: Alyx.

Gaming benchmark

Fortnite	101.3	107.0
Valorant	115.1	121.6
Cyberpunk 2077	64.5	68.1
Apex Legends	108.2	114.3
Call of Duty Warzone	86.3	91.2
Overwatch	93.2	98.5
Red Dead Redemption 2	79.4	83.9
DOOM Eternal	57.6	60.8
Warzone	89.8	94.9
Assassin's Creed	96.7	102.2
Valheim	95.5	100.9

The numbers in this table indicate the maximum FPS that was received on the device with the corresponding processor. Depending on the configuration of the computer (RAM size and Video Card) and graphics quality settings (Ultra, Medium, Normal), the results may differ quite significantly. We recommend that you better study the results of the Cinebench, GeekBench and Passmark becnmarks.
The tested computers not only did they have different video cards and different amounts of RAM. But users also tested them at different screen resolutions: FullHD, 2K or 4K. Therefore, the game benchmark data is approximate. But all video cards met the average system requirements of games. To be sure exactly how much performance the processor will be in games, if you get acquainted with the benchmarks that are made with the same video card that is installed in your computer.

Power consumption

M1 Max

332%

Core i9-7980XE

23%

To make a finishing decision on which processor is better, you should also consider the generation of its core. The newer the processor generation, the better its performance in games and benchmarks, as well as its energy efficiency. In this case the M1 Max is more energy efficient than the Core i9-7980XE since it has less power consumption: 18W vs. 165W. Power consumption is particularly important for laptops. Also, when choosing a processor cooling system, it will be useful to know its TDP. It is necessary to calculate so that the TDP data specified in the cooler specification is greater than the TDP of the compared processor.

Software benchmarks

If you want to use the processor not only for gaming, but also for video rendering or video editing, programming, machine learning, streaming, then first of all you need to pay attention to the performance in multi-threaded mode. In this mode, the processor includes all threads and cores that it has to the maximum to reach maximum efficiency. You will learn this data from the benchmark tables below. Before you take into account the data from these tests, be sure to find out whether the program that you are going to use on your computer can work in multi-threaded mode. Because there are still many programs that use only one core to run, and all the benefit of multi-core mode are unused.
Cinebench 23, 20 an 15
The results of this benchmark show Single-threaded and Multi-threaded CPU performance

	Apple M1 Max	Intel Core i9-7980XE
Cinbench 15 Single-core	313	184
Cinbench 15 Multi-core	1811	3455
Cinbench 20 Single-core	617	446
Cinbench 20 Multi-core	3106	7671
Cinbench 23 Single-core	2360	1281
Cinbench 23 Multi-core	12204	28196

Passmark
This popular benchmark displays Multi-threaded and Single-threaded processor performance

	Apple M1 Max	Intel Core i9-7980XE
Single-Core	5344	2490
Multi-Core	34572	29612

GeekBench 6, 5.2
This benchmark shows Multi-threaded and Single-threaded processor performance

	Apple M1 Max	Intel Core i9-7980XE
Single-Core	1793	1158
Multi-Core	13028	18658

Comparison of specifications

In the specification comparison table, the most useful will be the the possibility of overclocking it and release date of the processor. The newer the processor, the longer it will last you. And the easier it will be to upgrade the system in the future. The same can be said about overclocking. When the processor can be overclocked, increasing its performance, then it will still be able to produce maximum FPS in the newest games. The economy are obvious! Accordingly, there is no longer a need to buy a new CPU to enjoy the games any longer.

	Apple M1 Max	Intel Core i9-7980XE
Announcement date	October 07, 2021	April 01, 2017
Type	Laptop;Desktop	Desktop
Socket	M1	FCLGA2066
Core name	8x Firestorm and 2x Icestorm	Skylake
Architecture	hybrid (big.LITTLE)	x86
Generation	1	9
Turbo Frequency		4.2 MHz
Frequency	3.2 MHz	2.6 MHz
Cores	10	18
Threads	10	36
Bus rate		8 GT/s
Bit	64	64
Lithography	5 nm	14 nm
Transistors count	57000 millions	7800 millions
Power consumption (TDP)	18 W	165 W
Memory type	LPDDR5 - Up to 6400MHz	DDR4-2666
Max. Memory	64 Gb	128 Gb
Memory Frequency	6400
Memory bandwidth	409 GByte/s	85 GB/s
L1 cache	4MB
L2 cache	24MB
L3 cache	48MB	24.75 MB
Overclocking	No	Yes
Supports ECC	No	No
Part number	APL1105

In this comparison block, you should pay attention to the differences in clock speed and the number of cores. Here M1 Max is 18% better than Core i9-7980XE in terms of CPU frequency. Another difference is that Core i9-7980XE has 8 more core than M1 Max. Also keep in mind that high CPU frequency affects battery life through power consumption (relevant for laptops).

Result:
The number of parameters for which Apple M1 Max is better: 15
The number of parameters for which Intel Core i9-7980XE is better: 23
Although it should be understood that the summary data in the article above do not mean that taking them into account you should totally trust a simple quantitative comparison. Be sure to watch the testing video and read the opinion of real owners of Apple M1 Max and Intel Core i9-7980XE before making a decision which processor to buy for gaming and which not.

Apple M1 Max - all data

• Cinebench r15 score
• Cinebench r20 score
• Cinebench r23 score
• GeekBench 6, 5.2 score

• Apple M1 Max specs and review.

• Intel Core i9-7980XE specs and review.