Studio XPS 435t / 9000 compatible processor list

I mothballed my 435t/9000 (in a closet somewhere) in 2014 and built 2 new systems, but am thinking about pulling the 435t out for my youngest child as a beginner rig,

upgrades:  i7 975x, 24 gb gkill ram, corsair cx 750, amd 7870 gpu, samsung 128 gb ssd, asetek 545 liquid cooler(92mm fans), 2 combo optical drives, 2 wd blacks 2tb, also tp link 4800 wireless card, the old dell was running good when I mothballed her.. 

your posts on this old thread is what got me thinking about it....thanks... I think

edward4691,

Nice setup! 

I have a new EVGA GeForce GTX 970 (04G-P4-3975-KR model) waiting to go in mine.  Chose that model partly because it runs close to reference clocks, but should still have some headroom for overclocking.  Would like to stay within limits of original PSU if possible, undervolting GPU if necessary.  Could always upgrade PSU later if I need it.

BTW, I'm currently having an issue with Turbo and SpeedStep not working after a clean install of Windows 7 SP1.  CPU speed as report by CPU-Z, HWiNfO, HWMonitor, etc. is always locked at 3.3GHz.  On Balanced Power Option it should clock down and I think on both Balanced and High Performance one or more cores should clock above 3.3GHz.  I'm not sure if this was an issue before or just started after the clean install.

If you do re-commission your i7-975X, could you let me know if Turbo and SpeedStep work on yours?  Thanks!

Did some upgrades (CPU and GPU - EVGA GeForce GTX 970 04G-P4-3975-KR - still on stock motherboard and PSU, plus upgrade to Window 10) and successfully tested several Intel Xeon CPUs with the Studio XPS 435T/9000.   These are relatively inexpensive on ebay. 

Below are good performing Xeons that should work with 435T - ones I actually tested successfully with 435T in bold (HWiNFO screenshots follow).  For reference, many 435T machines came with an i7-920 (4 cores, 2.66 GHz):

• Intel Xeon W3565 - 4 cores, 3.2 GHz (comparable to i7-960) - about $30 on ebay
• Intel Xeon W3570 - 4 cores, 3.2 GHz (comparable to i7-965) - about $35 on ebay
• Intel Xeon W3580 - 4 cores, 3.33 GHz (comparable to i7-975) - about $65 on ebay
• Intel Xeon W3670 - 6 cores, 3.2 GHz (comparable to i7-970) - about $110 on ebay
• Intel Xeon W3680 - 6 cores, 3.33 GHz (comparable to i7-980X) - about $180 on ebay
• Intel Xeon W3690 - 6 cores, 3.46 GHz (comparable to i7-990X) - about $215 on ebay

Everything seems to work fine with the Xeons and the XPS 9000.  Only caveat is that with the 6 core processors (including the i7-980 and likely i7-970, i7-980X and i7-990X) Turbo Boost does not work (CPU doesn't go beyond stock speed) and after resuming from sleep CPU doesn't go below stock speed (meaning Speed Step doesn't work).  Turbo Boost is only about 133 MHz with multiple cores, so not too big a loss.  Conversely, with the 4 core Xeons, Turbo Boost seems to work fine and there is no sleep issue.

Screen shots of Xeons that I ran with the Dell Studio XPS 435T/9000 :

Intel Xeon W3565:

Intel Xeon W3580:

Intel Xeon W3690:

Does it matter if CPU is I7-980 vs I7-980x for Dell? There is no multiplier? and motherboard is limited to 4.8GT? I just looked on Ebay and there are some good bargains for either Xeon or I7 family.

Boriszima, no a Radeon HD 7850 isn't the best in the 7000 series that 435T can handle on original PSU.  Not sure what is, but if I remember correctly a 7870 would work.  I later upgraded to a GeForce GTX 970 on original PSU, as you can see above (here). 

For a 435T an i7-980 and i7-980X would have about the same performance.  Bus bandwidth is so high that 4.8 QPI vs. 6.4 QPI doesn't matter either. 

However, the unlocked multiplier in the i7-980X may come into play, as it appears the 435T can now be overclocked and the method I know of requires a CPU with an unlocked multiplier.  Overclocking is limited to stock voltage, since there's now way to up the voltage with a 435T.  In my experience, I've been able to get 3 multipliers over the stock multiplier with stock voltage.  So, with i7-980X at 25x and 3.33 GHz, that would be an overclock to 28x and 3.73 GHz.  YMMV.

Techgee,

What thermal paste application method did you use when installing the w3690 in your xps 9000?

Did you change the stock heat sink/cooling? I wonder if the lack of SpeedStep can cause heat issues. Someone on YouTube ended up with too much heat after installing a w3690.

Also, did you ever get around to overclocking with older versions of Intel XTU?

Finally, did you end up using a SATA PCIe card to connect your SSD to the PCIe x8 slot? If so, which one?

Thanks for all your posts, my major upgrades have been based off of them!

www.cpu-upgrade.com/.../X58_Express.html

pajaro9000,

Thanks, glad you found some of my posts useful!

I've used Gelid GC-Extreme (aka GC-3) and Arctic MX-4, both electrically non-conductive, seemly durable, good heat conduction and not too expensive.  Used the 5 dot method to ensure coverage (even if heatsink comes down at an angle) without an air pocket.  'X' method resulted in too much paste (bleeds out around edges).  One dot method is ok, but heatsink needs to come down parallel to CPU to ensure coverage isn't lopsided.  When heat sink and CPU are pressed together and seated the ideal is as thin a coat as possible (meaning heat sink and CPU are as close together as possible) and coverage of the entire rectangular contact area between them.

I'm using the Intel DBX-B CPU Cooler that came with the i7-980.  It's more than adequate.  I posted about it on Dell's forums here.  You can get one cheap on ebay (it's heavy, watch out for shipping costs).  Some reviews of the DBX-B Cooler here, here, here, here and here.  Has two speed settings - I leave it set on the lower speed 'Q' or quiet setting.

I decided trying to use older versions of XTU not worth it, especially since current XTU seems to allow for "overclocking" Turbo Boost, even on OEM motherboards like Dell's. However, it seems to have enough bugs that I don't recommend it.

I'll post my experience successfully overclocking the 435T on the 435T/9000 and 435MT Overclocking Potential thread.

I never added a SATA PCIe card partly because I don't think you can boot off it and I think a x1 card would be at least partially bottlenecked even in the x8 slot, but mainly because I decided to reserve the only available PCIe 2.0 slot (the x8 one - note all x1 slots in the 435T are PCIe 1.x) for a future upgrade from a current USB 3.0 PCIe card to one that supports 10 Gbits/s and USB-C.  USB 3.1 Gen 2 at 10 Gbits/s will support full speed SATA III, 6 Gbits/s speed drive enclosures.  My reasoning for and details of maximizing utility of the only full speed PCIe 2.0 slot by choosing USB flexibility over SATA in another Dell Forum thread here.

Unconfirmed quad cores - Gainestown Xeon 55xx series

I have no confirmation that the Gainestown Xeon 55xx series works with the 435T.  However, it uses the same LGA 1366 socket and came out about the same time as Bloomfield.  There's a report of a X5570 Gainestown Engineering Sample working in a 435MT (Mini Tower - different machine from 435T/9000, but released about same time) here.  It worked fine until a BIOS update caused it to fail to boot (likely because it was an early prototype), although it still Posted (meaning BIOS still recognized it).  The X5570 at 2.93 GHz is one step down from the W5580 and W5590 below.  Dell's follow-up machine to the 435T, the Dell Studio XPS 9100, also has confirmation of someone running a Gainestown X5550 (2.66 GHz) on Geekbench 2 here. 

Gainestown, Xeon 55xx series, quad core - may or may not work with 435T, Turbo likely works, these processors are NOT unlocked:

• W5590, 3.33 GHz - $30
• W5580, 3.2 GHz - $25

Approximate prices from ebay.  Since they're about the same price, I'd go with the W35xx Bloomfield series instead, especially since they're unlocked and as a result can be overclocked.  But if unavailable the 55xx series might be worth a try.

Turbo Boost and SpeedStep not working on Gulftown and Westmere-EP CPU series

Some fine print regarding Turbo Boost and SpeedStep.  Although Dell added support for Gulftown processors (and by extension Westmere-EP Xeons) in the A15 BIOS (Note "Update BIOS to support new intel CPU (Gulftown) launch" under "Fixes & Enhancements" section), it appears they never fully tested it and/or provided a followup BIOS update to fix issues with Turbo and SpeedStep.  There is no Turbo Boost for any of the Gulftown and Westmere-EP series when running in the 435T - max processor speed is the base speed.  On average this results in a performance loss of about 0.133 GHz.  Also, there's an issue with SpeedStep (idling at a lower-power processor speed under low/no load).  It works for a fresh boot/reboot session, but not after the processor resumes from Sleep.  After Sleep speed is stuck at base speed, providing no energy savings.

Below is from a W3690 (Westmere-EP Xeon branded i7-990X, more or less) after a reboot.  Note base clock is 3.46 GHz (x26).  Some cores are idling (x12), but no cores ever Turbo, neither at x27 (3.6 GHz), nor x28 (3.73 GHz).  (Screen capture is of HWiNFO64 showing dynamic CPU core speeds.)

After resuming from Sleep, all cores are stuck at base 3.46 GHz (x26) speed, regardless of CPU load.  Again, no cores Turbo.

What this means is a 4-core Gulftown/Westmere-EP CPU at 3.46 GHz will have about the same performance as a 4-core Bloomfield CPU at 3.33 GHz, since it can Turbo to 3.46 GHz when all cores are under load.  Keep this in mind if selecting a quad core upgrade.  Since the only hex core processors available for the 435T are Gulftown/Westmere-EP it means there are no 6 core CPU options with working Turbo Boost.

I've personally noticed Turbo not working with an i7-980 and W3690, but you can check this yourself by scanning user benchmarks for 435T on UserBenchmark.  If you drill down to the CPU for a 435T using a Gulftown/Westmere-EP processor (here's an i7-970) you'll see the average Turbo is always the same as the base CPU clock (3.2 GHz for both for the i7-970).  This isn't the case for Bloomfield processors, nor for example with Dell's follow-up machine, the Studio XPS 9100, where Gulftown/Westmere-EP CPUs can be seen if you drill down here to have an average Turbo higher than base clock, as they should.

CPU Series with the Turbo Boost and SpeedStep issues:

• i7-9xx Gulftown series - all hex cores
• W36xx Gulftown Xeon series - all hex cores
• X56xx Westmere-EP Xeon series - quad and hex cores

There is a workaround which resolves the SpeedStep Sleep issue and a partial workaround that, without overclocking, allows one multiplier all-core Turboing (for example, with the W3690 above, from x26 to x27 or 3.60 GHz).  I'll post details later.

Workaround for all-core Turbo not working and SpeedStep not working after Sleep

This only applies when using the 435T with the following processors:

All hex core processors (Gulftown and Westmere-EP), including:

• • i7-990X, i7-980X, i7-980, i7-970
  • W36xx series
  • X56xx series

The Xeon Westmere-EP 56xx series quad cores - X56xx and likely E56xx

This workaround doesn't apply to Bloomfield processors, as they have no Turbo or SpeedStep after Sleep issues with the 435T.

Although written for laptops ThrottleStop, unlike the Intel eXtreme Tuning Utility (XTU), actually works with the 435T.  Although all ThrottleStop features aren't available with the 435T, the limited features that are allow the all-core Turbo to work and SpeedStep to be re-enabled after Sleep.  Turbo settings for when less than all the cores (like 1 or 2 cores) are active are still ignored, so this is a partial workaround.  As an example, with an i7-990X or W3690 with stock x26 multiplier and 3.46 GHz speed, Turboing to x27 or 3.59 GHz can be enabled on up to all 6 cores with ThrottleStop.  But, turboing to x28 multiplier or 3.72 GHz only when up to 2 cores are active per spec still does not work. 

Obligatory disclaimer:  Using ThrottleStop to overclock, disable a PC's throttling scheme or over volt your CPU may damage your computer and cause loss of data and is at your own risk.  ThrottleStop is a powerful tool that can make serious changes to your PC - don't change settings you don't understand.  Changing ThrottleStop settings you don't understand to see what they do is ill advised and can cause damage to your PC and possible loss of data.

See The ThrottleStop Guide for more information on ThrottleStop.

Below shows how ThrottleStop 8.5 can be used on Windows 10 to enable one multiplier all-core Turbo and re-enable SpeedStep when resuming from Sleep when using a Gulftown/Westmere-EP CPU on the 435T.  Settings below stay within the stock specs for a CPU and motherboard - no overclocking involved.

Example below is for an i7-990X or W3690 with stock 3.46 GHz speed, x26 multiplier with Windows Power Options set to Balanced.

Prior to applying workaround, HWiNFO64 shows that the 435T with a W3690 never Turbos (goes above x26 or 3.46 GHz).  It looks like this:

After bringing up ThrottleStop, initial settings look as follows:

1. Check "Set Multiplier".
2. Increase Multiplier from stock 26 to "27 T" with the right arrow next to the Multiplier.  In general, for any CPU the stock Multiplier would be increased by one and a "T" would show up beside it.  The "T" means Turbo will be enabled.  For a i7-980X or W3680 with stock 3.33 GHz, x25 speed - increase Multiplier from 25 to "26 T".  For a X5687 with stock 3.60 GHz, x27 speed - increase Multiplier from 27 to "28 T".
3. Click "Turn On" to activate the changes.
4. Click "Stop Monitoring" (no need to use CPU cycles running monitoring all the time).
5. Click "Save".

After making the above changes, it will look like this (changes from initial default settings highlighted in red):

If left running ThrottleStop settings will be restored after resuming from Sleep (including restoring SpeedStep).  It can be Minimized and sent to the Taskbar like any Windows application so it's out of the way while running.  Additionally, if "Task Bar" is unchecked, ThrottleStop will go to the System Tray when Minimized.

Saved settings will be remembered/restored the next time ThrottleStop is started.  Most settings will stay in effect even if ThrottleStop is exited, until PC is rebooted or shut down.  After a boot or reboot ThrottleStop must be run again to enable saved settings.

After changing settings for a W3690, HWiNFO64 will show Turboing to x27 or 3.59 GHz for up to all cores, as shown below.

Unchecking "C1E" will keep the processor from going into it's lower frequency mode (x12, 1.596 GHz for the W3690).  Keeping the CPU from Turboing (to save power or other reasons) can be done by checking "Disable Turbo".

When running ThrottleStop, the following settings roughly correspond to Windows Power Options settings.  Balanced is a good all-around setting - keeps CPU cores cool when nothing to do and quickly Turbos cores when active.

Power saver

• • Disable Turbo - checked
  • C1E - checked

Balanced

• • Disable Turbo - unchecked
  • C1E - checked

High performance

• • Disable Turbo - unchecked
  • C1E - unchecked