XPS 8950, 13th Gen CPU support?

That would be very disappointing as the socket isnt changing for this and our motherboards chipset is expressly supported per intel. My precision t3800 for instance came with a c2d e6600 but was able to be upgraded to a c2q 9650 which is a full generation ahead.

This forum FAQ does not specify any support for the 13th gen as of yet. Possibly there may be a BIOS update but generally Dell does not support a CPU gen update and will release a new system with a 13th gen CPU. But possibly a moderator can add information to your question.

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@JOcean wrote:

 but generally Dell does not support a CPU gen update and will release a new system with a 13th gen CPU. But possibly a moderator can add information to your question.

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Agreed.

Or put another way ...

On each specific Dell model (model-number or Release), due to the CPU microcode needing to be included and validation testing ... usually ... a machine only officially works with the processors that it originally sold/shipped with. There are some rare exceptions, but usually those are just other processors from that same time frame, that are in the same "Generation" or family.

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@pcxt21 wrote:

My precision t3800 for instance came with a c2d e6600 but was able to be upgraded to a c2q 9650 which is a full generation ahead.

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I don't deny it happened, but that sounds like a fairly -isolated case for a OEM motherboard in a pre-built..

Based on what you posted, I would have expected that machine to be able to use Core2-Duo and Core2-Quads like e6600, e6700, q6600, and q6700. There were some others after that (that would fit) and some even worked. However, there was something special about those new ones (bus-speed, ram-speed or something like that) and only certain motherboard provided that additional support.

But yeah, different times now. 

Just to give you isome data @pcxt21 then I tried last night to install 13900k into my existing XPS 8950 with 12700k but the system didn't boot. At the time I switched CPU''s I had firmware v1.7.0 installed.

Afterwards I noticed version v1.8.0 was out in November and installed it. But have not done another test run on the 13900k CPU but I am sure I will over the next couple of days

Tried to get details on that firmware v1.8.0 from Dell support but that was just like speaking to a robot , minus the AI.

I just re-checked the internal XPS 8950 parts list. There are no 13th Gen CPU.

"our motherboards chipset is expressly supported per intel"
The Intel specs do not apply to OEM hardware, BIOS, etc.

I tried with a 13700K CPU with the v1.8.0 bios, no support for the 13th gen CPU for the 8950 yet.

Thx @dstewart51 , I will try on next BIOS as soon as it comes out

BIOS 1.9.0 came out today. Do you have any update on its support for 13th gen?

It will be the weekend before I can test on my system.  If someone beats me to it, please report if the new 1.9 BIOS supports the 13th gen chips yet.

Dell did not update the supported CPU in the tech specs so not holding out for much hope yet.

https://www.dell.com/support/manuals/en-us/xps-8950-desktop/xps-8950-setup-and-specifications/processor?guid=guid-49516fc0-3056-4233-8628-701c32cb08c2&lang=en-us

Hi again guys and happy holidays. Finally I had time this morning to try out bios version 1.9.0 with Intel 13th gen 13900K in the Dell XPS 8950. And the results were... disappointing, same as last time with version 1.8.0.

It turns on automatically but turns off after 1-2 seconds again and the power on button does not work.

I reverted then back to 12700K and we'll just wait for next bios update

Pictures for fun, over and out from the north.

I suspect we wont see support for the 13th gen on the 8950's until Dell releases the 13th gen XPS's for sale, at the very least.   Its too bad since they already have a few Z690's that support 13th gen on the Alienware side (Aurora R15).

I have very specific needs where the steel case of the 8950XPS is a better box for me rather than the Alienware box (difficult RF environment).  The Dell steel chassis does a great job with RFI rejection, both ingress and egress.  Otherwise I would just build my own or go another route.

The MB Chipset is the Z690 so its 12th & 13th gen compatible from Intel side of things but it needs a simple MICROCODE (bios) update to inc the power info on the newer 13th gen chips. Something DELL could easily do for the community of XPS 8950 owners. Im pretty sure the ALIENWARE line isnt as abandoned as the XPS owners are feeling and if DELL dont support the 13th gen on the XPS 8950 then I wont buy another dell pre-built or will invest in the Alienware line for the ongoing support. If Im wrong about Alienware support then tell me and ill abandon them altogether for one of the others as its lousy DELL and nothing difficult or expensive for them too do. Just a liitle willpower

Dell pushed new BIOS for the 8950 today, 1.10.  The 8950 spec and supported CPU in the docs have not been updated as of yet.