EVERYONE was WRONG about the 13900k & 14900k - My 4+ years of EXPERIENCE.

Summary

The TechNotice host reports using an Intel Core i9-13900K in an editing PC for about four years and an i9-14900K in a second PC for more than two years. Both systems are used heavily and are usually left on. Neither has experienced the CPU failures or persistent crashes the host expected might result from reported 13th- and 14th-generation degradation concerns.

Systems and testing

• i9-13900K system: 128 GB of RAM at 5,000 MT/s, a CPU contact frame, and Intel’s 253 W PL1/PL2 power limits. The host says RAM at 5,200 MT/s caused crashes earlier, but 5,000 MT/s has been stable for the last year or two.
• i9-14900K system: 64 GB of RAM at 6,400 MT/s, also tested with a 253 W power limit.
• Hardware-monitoring software ran in the background during testing, which the host notes may have affected benchmark results.

Results

• The i9-13900K scored 1,971 in multi-core testing, above the host’s reference score of 1,820. Its single-core score was 124, below the reference score of 131. The host attributes some of the gap to background monitoring and interaction during the test.
• The i9-14900K scored 2,017 in multi-core testing, above its reference score of 1,906. Its single-core score was 133, compared with a reference of 138; the host considers the difference within the margin of error.
• During extended use and exporting, the i9-13900K reached roughly 93–95°C, and monitoring software showed thermal-throttling indicators. It ran cooler during the benchmark and did not show the same throttling.
• The i9-14900K test also showed a thermal-throttling indicator, though its reported maximum temperature was 89°C. The host describes its performance and cooling as good.

Takeaways and advice

The host’s central conclusion is that both CPUs have continued to perform well in these two systems. This is personal experience, not evidence that degradation cannot occur in other systems.

• Keep the motherboard BIOS and related firmware updated. The host has installed BIOS and microcode updates and recommends doing so, saying newer updates may have helped stability and performance. The i9-13900K system was on BIOS version 2801, with version 3107 identified as newer. The video does not provide a controlled comparison of the two versions.
• For creator PCs using an RTX 50-series GPU, the host recommends disabling the CPU’s integrated GPU so software is less likely to select it instead of the dedicated GPU’s stronger media engines. The iGPU may still be useful with older GPU generations, such as the RTX 4080 in the second system.
• The i9-13900K editing setup uses a Thunderbolt-connected NVMe NAS for active projects, with 10-Gigabit Ethernet connecting to hard-drive-based archival NAS systems. It also uses an RTX 5090 to help with playback of demanding H.264/H.265 footage, including 4:2:2 10-bit material.

Main speaker/source: The TechNotice host, presenting personal testing and experience with his two editing PCs.