Core i5-4670K Breaks 12-Year-Old Cinebench Record

Core i5-4670K Breaks 12-Year-Old Cinebench Record

More than a decade after its debut, Intel’s Core i5-4670K has returned to the spotlight in the extreme-overclocking community. Overclocker Luumi has taken the 2013 Haswell processor to 6,301 MHz using liquid nitrogen cooling, achieving a score of 10.8 cb in Cinebench R11.5 and claiming first place in the HWBot ranking for this specific CPU.

The result surpassed the previous category leader, Strat, who scored 10.76 cb at 6,249 MHz. With Moose83 close behind at 10.74 cb, the competition remains remarkably tight.

This is a processor-specific ranking record, not an overall Cinebench R11.5 world record. Nevertheless, the achievement shows how experienced overclockers can continue extracting performance from older silicon when paired with specialized cooling, careful tuning, and an overclocking-oriented platform.

The official HWBot submission confirms Luumi’s score, operating frequency, cooling method, and hardware configuration.

🏆 1. A New Record for the Core i5-4670K

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Luumi submitted the result to HWBot on October 8, 2026, recording 10.8 cb in the multicore Cinebench R11.5 benchmark at a reported CPU frequency of 6,301 MHz.

The top three entries in the Core i5-4670K category are separated by just 0.06 cb, illustrating how small differences in frequency, tuning, and benchmark execution can matter at the top of an extreme-overclocking leaderboard.

Current category rankings

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The performance margin is small, but the frequency record is also notable: Luumi pushed the CPU beyond 6.3 GHz, a substantial achievement for a four-core processor based on an architecture introduced in 2013.

The result is categorized under the Core i5-4670K in HWBot’s four-core benchmark rankings. It should not be confused with the global Cinebench R11.5 ranking, which includes processors with substantially more cores and threads.

⚙️ 2. Core i5-4670K Specifications and Overclocking Hardware

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The Core i5-4670K belongs to Intel’s fourth-generation Core desktop processor family, based on the 22 nm Haswell architecture. At stock settings, it was designed for mainstream desktop systems rather than extreme-frequency benchmarking.

Core i5-4670K specifications

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At 6.301 GHz, the processor ran at approximately 66% above its stock maximum Turbo frequency. That comparison highlights the scale of the overclock, but the result was achieved under specialized benchmarking conditions and is not representative of everyday operation.

Luumi’s test system

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The HWBot submission lists the following hardware:

The HWBot hardware record confirms the memory frequency and timings, motherboard, cooling method, and power-supply series.

The ASRock Z97 OC Formula was designed with extreme tuning in mind. Its 12-phase CPU power design, dedicated memory power circuitry, and overclocking-focused features made it a popular platform for pushing Haswell processors beyond normal operating limits. See ASRock’s official Z97 OC Formula specifications.

🧊 3. Why Liquid Nitrogen Makes a Difference

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Reaching 6.3 GHz requires much more than changing a multiplier in the BIOS. At extreme frequencies, processor stability becomes strongly dependent on voltage, temperature, silicon characteristics, and the motherboard’s ability to deliver power consistently.

Liquid nitrogen (LN2) cooling allows the processor to operate at temperatures far below those achievable with conventional air or liquid-cooling systems. The lower temperature can create additional frequency headroom, although the precise limit varies from one CPU sample to another.

Extreme overclockers also adjust voltage, memory settings, firmware options, and other parameters to find a configuration capable of completing the benchmark.

This type of operation is fundamentally different from a daily-use overclock. LN2 evaporates rapidly, temperatures require continuous monitoring, and the platform must be prepared for the challenges associated with subzero operation. Moisture condensation and thermal stress can damage hardware if the system is not handled carefully.

Why the ASRock Z97 OC Formula matters

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The motherboard is an important part of this achievement. Designed for the LGA 1150 generation, the Z97 OC Formula supports unlocked K-series processors and includes power-delivery and memory-tuning features intended for enthusiasts.

The board also supports extensive DDR3 memory overclocking. In Luumi’s test, the 4 GB memory configuration ran at 2,708 MHz with tight CL8-12-7-28 timings.

Memory frequency and timings can affect benchmark behavior, but the CPU’s frequency, stability, and execution efficiency remain central to this Cinebench result.

For additional background on CPU tuning and the relationship between processors, motherboards, and cooling, see KAD8’s overview of Intel CPU overclocking.

📊 4. How the Result Compares with Modern CPUs

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The Core i5-4670K remains a capable example of Haswell-era hardware under suitable conditions, but its four-core, four-thread design is far behind many modern processors in overall multithreaded performance.

As a rough comparison, Tom’s Hardware reported that a modern laptop processor with 12 cores and 24 threads scored around four times higher in Cinebench R11.5, even while operating in a quiet performance mode.

That comparison was illustrative rather than a controlled platform-to-platform test. Differences in core count, architecture, memory, cooling, power settings, and system configuration all affect the result.

The key point is that extreme overclocking records and everyday processor performance measure different things. A CPU can dominate its own HWBot category without outperforming newer processors in general workloads.

Cinebench R11.5 is also an older benchmark. Its continued use in the overclocking community makes historical comparisons possible, but the score should not be treated as a comprehensive assessment of performance in modern applications.

🧪 5. A Category Record, Not a Global World Record

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Although Luumi’s achievement has been described as a world record in coverage of the event, the distinction between a CPU-specific category and an overall benchmark record is important.

The submission ranks first among Core i5-4670K results in the relevant Cinebench R11.5 category. It does not rank first among all processors in the benchmark, where modern high-core-count CPUs post much higher scores.

The exact historical duration of the previous record can also vary depending on the category and submission history being considered. The achievement is commonly described as breaking a record that had stood for roughly 12 years, while comments on the submission refer to a longer interval. The verified facts are that Luumi’s October 2026 result displaced Strat’s previous 10.76 cb score at 6,249 MHz.

The operating-system detail deserves similar care. Tom’s Hardware reports that Luumi used Windows 7 64-bit Professional. HWBot has specific operating-system and verification rules that differ by benchmark and processor generation, so this should not be interpreted as a universal requirement for every Cinebench R11.5 submission.

✅ 6. Legacy Hardware Still Has Room for New Achievements

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Luumi’s 6,301 MHz Core i5-4670K run is a reminder that overclocking is not limited to the newest processors. Older platforms can remain competitive in specialized categories when experienced enthusiasts combine favorable silicon, suitable motherboards, aggressive cooling, and careful tuning.

The result does not make the Haswell processor a modern performance leader, nor does it indicate that a 6.3 GHz operating frequency is practical for normal desktop use. Its significance lies in the narrow but demanding challenge of pushing one CPU model beyond a long-standing benchmark result.

More than a decade after the Core i5-4670K’s launch, the processor has gained another milestone in the extreme-overclocking community. The record also highlights the lasting role of benchmark databases such as HWBot, where achievements can be measured against other systems built around the same hardware.

For enthusiasts, the lesson is straightforward: newer silicon expands what is possible, but technical skill and platform optimization can still produce remarkable results from classic hardware.