To buy or not to buy? i9-7900X

[Bleubird]

I’m looking to build a new computer for the upcoming couple of years, and I want to go all in on this one. The i9-7900X looks to be the best way to go, but I was wondering, is there any chance of there being a 8900X anytime soon? I usually wind up getting giped when I build my computers, it seems, because the next generation of processors always releases a couple months after I build mine and then I feel left out.

 

[k1114]

The latest roadmap shows cascade lake x q4 2018. That's still quite a long time.

 

[cryoburner]

Intel has consumer-oriented Z390 motherboards coming out this year, and rumor has it that there may be 8-core CPUs to go with them. Much like the I7-8700K, it seems likely that they will offer higher per-core performance than an i9-7900X, albeit with 2 fewer cores. Unless you need those extra cores for some particular task that can make use of them though, a 6-core 8700K or that rumored 8-core processor will likely get slightly better performance in most tasks, and at a significantly lower price.

 

[rhysiam]

I'm not fully across the rumours, but from what I've seen the true successor to Skylake-X, "Cascade Lake", is not coming any time soon. There are rumours of a Skylake-X refresh later this year, but it'll just be a small clock speed bump and (rumoured) proper soldered CPU. That last bit is actually a big deal if you're interested in overclocking and don't want to delid a ~$900 CPU.
https://www.hardocp.com/article/2018/04/09/intel_rumors_kaby_lakex_skylakex_cascade_lake/1
But it's all rumours and still a few months off.

On another note, are you sure you want to go with Skylake-X? Intel have moved to a new "mesh" architecture and cache structure for their server and core to core communication. It works well for server loads and many core (like 22 core +) CPUs, but it not nearly as well suited for desktop loads, particularly gaming. All the Skylake-X CPUs are measurably slower in most games than the 8700K and similar (I'm generalising, of course, there are occasional exceptions). If you look at the latest Ryzen 2700X review here on Toms, you'll see the Skylake-X 7820X struggling to match the Ryzen 2700X in games and well behind the 8700K.

There are clear advantages to the X299 platform (PCIe lanes, memory channels), but you have to have particular use-cases for them to be worthwhile, and put them against the draw-backs inherent to the new CPU architecture (for desktop and gaming workloads).

There are rumours of an Intel 8 Core desktop CPU coming on a Z390 chipset. It's two fewer cores than the 7900X you're considering, but you can bet it'll be designed with gaming and desktop workloads in mind. That's rumoured in Summer.

Of course, AMD have some pretty compelling price/performance options in Ryzen and Threadripper (if productivity is your focus over gaming). But it doesn't sound like budget is a major consideration for you?