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This is a relatively rare CPU originally released for use in Mac Pro hardware in 2013. It is a multiplier-unlocked single-socket Ivy Bridge EP Xeon. Unlike all other unlocked Sandy/Ivy CPUs, it has 8 cores rather than at most 6. It has the same CPUID as the E5-2687w V2, and essentially the same BIOS support, but it is unlocked. It runs at a lower base clock speed by default, but this is largely irrelevant because it has an unlocked multiplier. It overclocks quite smoothly. I currently have mine locked to 4000MHz (40x multiplier, 100MHz BCLK) at stock voltages, using as ASRock x79 Extreme6 motherboard (not officially supported by ASRock, but works perfectly fine with the newest BIOS). Temps are pretty similar to my old 4-core Sandy Bridge CPU. This is definitely the best final CPU upgrade if you are still running a Sandy/Ivy LGA 2011 motherboard. If you overclock it a bit, it will beat modern consumer-tier CPUs at the same price point on many benchmarks-- without needing to buy a new computer.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
It is as good as you could expect a 1680 v2 to perform - excellent. I consider this proc the best x79 proc for general use. 8 cores, 16 threads, and great clock speed for the architecture. I got this one for gaming, upgrading from a 2665 v0, so it's a significant and straight upgrade. I am gaming on a Machinist motherboard from Aliexpress just because I came into possession of an old server loaded with DDR3 ECC and two 2665s in it. Amazing value for the price (especially free on some of the parts), gaming on these old Xeon chipsets suprisingly holds up very, very well. Oddly, older games, like Fallout 3 and New Vegas, play pretty bad, yet newer games run like all new hardware minus the frame times and occassional stutters on loading. F3 and NV run bad because of their usage of cores, as they can only use two and only one of them at 100%, relying on clock speed for good performance. Naturally, Xeons are not high clock speeds, so hopefully the 1680 v2 will allow me to fulfill my Fallout modding dreams, as those games are what inspired me to go to PC. These x79 chips run new games great, with only their IPC and clock speed to a lesser extent holding them back. Of course, comparing clock speeds across generations doesn't really work well, but I can say in my experience the Xeons with their lower speeds means you won't get blazing FPS and performance, but you will be getting great performance given the price and how old these chips are just in general. I have to run more modern games at max settings to not bottleneck my CPU and 5700xt any more than it is, with the exception of some settings in games that are just unoptimized/impractical to max out. Games like Fortnite or Modern Warfare 2019, for example, I run maxed out or all but maxed out with one or two settings one tick or two below max and the game runs as good if not better than scaling down to "performance" or "esports" levels because of how well these procs run the games. All in all, for gaming and general use, the 1680 v2 is the best you can get for the x79 chipset. If you have a better, more standard production motherboard to more appropriately support overclocking, this chip can rival and even beat an overclock 9900k. I am still looking for a better board, but will be going to x99 soon if I can get a server blade in that chipset similar to the last one. I recommend the Aliexpress motherboards for value. Overclocking is doable but not reliable, and the BIOS is limited. The biggest annoyance I have with mine is the lack of RGB support on the motherboard, so no cool customization of flashy lights. That and sometimes the USB ports not working right, which could be my case (Cooler Master H500), but that is basically it. After you install the board, OS, and get all your drivers and updates from Windows, you are set. I can't recommend the Aliexpress Xeon motherboards, especially the Machinist brand, enough. The 1680 v2 is my top recommendation for procs to put on those boards for the value, even if they are one of the more expensive ones comparative to other chips in the generation. Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Upgraded from a 3930K @ 4.5GHz after watching a video from Tech Yes City that had the E5-1680v2 clocked at 4.6GHz competing VERY well with a 9900K overclocked to 5GHz and beating a Ryzen 2700x overclocked to 4.3GHz by a wide margin. Since I already have 32GB of 2133MHz DDR3 memory (Corsair Dominator Platinum) and an Asus Rampage IV Extreme motherboard (NVME enabled BIOS) then I really didn't see a reason to upgrade to the X470 Platform and a Ryzen 2700x after seeing this video. I bought the CPU, installed it, overclocked it to 4.6GHz and voila... near 9900K @ 5GHz performance, better than Ryzen 2700x performance and an overall VERY solid platform. Recommend for anyone still on X79 looking for one final upgrade.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
If you’re looking for bare knuckle performance for driving a 144hz monitor then a newer CPU with a higher clock speed would be better. I can only recommend this to people that have an existing x79 motherboard and they want to go beyond the 6-core limits of the i7 series while still being able to overclock. If you’re not going to overclock then there are other E5 processors that would be better picks. The first 1680v2 I bought can hit 4.6ghz at 1.33v with 32gb of 2400mhz RAM. However the CPU I got needs more than 1.4v to reach 4.7ghz with faster 2400mhz RAM. Since I'm using a custom loop, I can't comment on the temperatures but they never went above 72c while running the worst stress test. The 2nd 1680v2 can do 4.5ghz at 1.35v but it needs damn near 1.5v to hit 4.6ghz stable. Both processors did just fine with my 32gb 2400mhz RAM. What makes me the happiest about the 1680v2 is I'm able to drag a few more years out of my x79 platform. It's hard to believe that I've already gotten 8 years out of my setup. The 2nd one I bought was for my other x79 setup. Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
I weighed pros and cons of building a brand new system. This gave me an upgrade path that was easier and cheaper than building a new system from scratch with water blocks and all. Very simple upgrade pop old chip out and pop new one in. 8 cores of overclocking fun
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
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