Intel NUC 13 Extreme Raptor Canyon mini PC with Core i9-13900K and GeForce RTX 3080 Ti in review

Following Beast Canyon and Dragon Canyon, Intel's latest Raptor Canyon NUC Extreme Kit significantly deviates from the design of its predecessors. However, Intel still aims for a very compact PC that leaves barely anything to be desired. Furthermore, a full-size graphics card can be installed. For the CPU, models from Intel's current Raptor Lake lineup are available. Users can of course also choose their own CPU, since the processor is not soldered. In this review, our NUC 13 Extreme Raptor Canyon uses an Intel Core i9-13900K. Additionally, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti provides sufficient 3D performance even for demanding gamers.
It should be noted that the Intel NUC 13 Extreme Kit is a barebone system that comes without an SSD, RAM, or a graphics card. The price depends on the included CPU. The base model with the Intel Core i5-13600K costs 1179 USD, while the highest-end configuration is available for 1549 USD.
Dedicated graphics solutions with a maximum length of 31 cm (~12 in) are supported. Thanks to the included 750-watt SFX power supply, even current high-end GPU models can be used. Theoretically, it is possible to fit even an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 FE. The problem is the 12VHPWR cable, which can only supply up to 300 watts. Since the power supply only comes with three 6+2 cables for the GPU, the power budget is limited to 450 watts anyway.
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Intel NUC 13 Extreme Compute Element in Detail
With the Intel Core i9-13900K, our configuration of the Intel NUC 13 Extreme comes with the fastest gaming CPU available right now. It has a total of 24 cores and 32 threads. It has become common knowledge that the Raptor Lake generation CPUs use a hybrid design featuring E and P cores. Like on the Intel NUC 12 Extreme, its predecessor also includes a standard desktop processor. Additionally, the Compute Element comes with all the necessary ports. There are three NVMe SSD slots on the bottom of the PCB and all external interfaces on the side.
Wi-Fi Performance
The Intel NUC 13 Extreme Raptor Canyon integrates the Killer Wi-Fi 6E AX1690i Wi-Fi module. In conjunction with our Asus ROG Rapture GT-AXE11000 reference router, we measure good upload and download speeds. The Wi-Fi unit is a module on the Compute Element and thus user replaceable. For wired communication, both a 10Gb/s and a 2.5Gb/s interface is available.
Note:
We were unable to get a stable Wi-Fi 6G connection with our test device. Updating the components with the latest drivers and firmware updates for the Intel NUC 13 Extreme Raptor Canyon as well as our test router did not improve things. We will revise this part of the review if the situation changes within the next couple of days before we have to return the device.
Networking | |
iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
Intel NUC Pro Chassis_i7_1185G7 | |
Average Killer Wi-Fi 6E AX1690i 160MHz (917 - 1727, n=7) | |
Intel NUC13 Raptor Canyon | |
Corsair Voyager a1600 | |
Average of class Desktop (322 - 1318, n=10, last 2 years) | |
iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
Corsair Voyager a1600 | |
Intel NUC13 Raptor Canyon | |
Average Killer Wi-Fi 6E AX1690i 160MHz (1145 - 1650, n=6) | |
Intel NUC Pro Chassis_i7_1185G7 | |
Average of class Desktop (188.4 - 1861, n=10, last 2 years) |
Processor Benchmarks
With the Intel Core i9-13900K, the Intel NUC 13 Extreme Raptor Canyon uses Intel's fastest gaming CPU. As such, the good benchmark results match our expectations. Despite the relatively small cooling solution, we measure a performance deficit of only 7 % compared to a different desktop system with a powerful liquid cooler.
In terms of the power limits there are some small limitations and the 150-watt limit explains the small difference. Most applications will not make use of the full 250 watts. When combining the Intel NUC 13 Extreme Raptor Canyon with the less powerful Intel Core i5-13600K, the performance level should match the results in our comparison table. The lower PL2 (181 watts) will likely compensate part of the deficit under full load.
More processor benchmarks can be found here.
Performance Rating - Percent | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i5-12600K |
Cinebench R15 | |
CPU Single 64Bit | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
CPU Multi 64Bit | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X |
Cinebench R20 | |
CPU (Single Core) | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
CPU (Multi Core) | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X |
Cinebench R23 | |
Single Core | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
Multi Core | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X |
Cinebench R11.5 | |
CPU Single 64Bit | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
CPU Multi 64Bit | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X |
Cinebench R10 | |
Rendering Single CPUs 64Bit | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
Rendering Multiple CPUs 64Bit | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i5-12600K |
Blender - v2.79 BMW27 CPU | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K |
X264 HD Benchmark 4.0 | |
Pass 1 | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
Pass 2 | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X |
WinRAR - Result | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K |
TrueCrypt | |
AES Mean 100MB | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
Twofish Mean 100MB | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Serpent Mean 100MB | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X |
Geekbench 5.4 | |
Multi-Core | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Single-Core | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K |
Geekbench 5.0 | |
5.0 Multi-Core | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
5.0 Single-Core | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K |
Geekbench 4.1 - 4.4 | |
64 Bit Single-Core Score | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
64 Bit Multi-Core Score | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i5-12600K |
3DMark 11 - 1280x720 Performance Physics | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i5-12600K |
HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2 - 4k Preset | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X |
R Benchmark 2.5 - Overall mean | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K |
LibreOffice - 20 Documents To PDF | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X |
WebXPRT 3 - --- | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K |
Mozilla Kraken 1.1 - Total Score | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X |
3DMark | |
3840x2160 Fire Strike Ultra Physics | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
1920x1080 Fire Strike Physics | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
2560x1440 Time Spy CPU | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X |
* ... smaller is better
AIDA64: FP32 Ray-Trace | FPU Julia | CPU SHA3 | CPU Queen | FPU SinJulia | FPU Mandel | CPU AES | CPU ZLib | FP64 Ray-Trace | CPU PhotoWorxx
AIDA64 / FP32 Ray-Trace | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i7-11800H | |
Average of class Desktop (252 - 62786, n=43, last 2 years) | |
Intel Core i5-12600K |
AIDA64 / FPU Julia | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i7-11800H | |
Average of class Desktop (1483 - 264044, n=43, last 2 years) | |
Intel Core i5-12600K |
AIDA64 / CPU SHA3 | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i7-11800H | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
Average of class Desktop (102 - 10362, n=43, last 2 years) |
AIDA64 / CPU Queen | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX | |
Intel Core i7-11800H | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
Average of class Desktop (4400 - 205588, n=43, last 2 years) |
AIDA64 / FPU SinJulia | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i7-11800H | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
Average of class Desktop (199 - 32855, n=43, last 2 years) |
AIDA64 / FPU Mandel | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i7-11800H | |
Average of class Desktop (788 - 138291, n=43, last 2 years) | |
Intel Core i5-12600K |
AIDA64 / CPU AES | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i7-11800H | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Average of class Desktop (3792 - 379659, n=43, last 2 years) | |
Intel Core i5-12600K |
AIDA64 / CPU ZLib | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX | |
Intel Core i7-11800H | |
Average of class Desktop (38.3 - 2441, n=43, last 2 years) |
AIDA64 / FP64 Ray-Trace | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX | |
Intel Core i7-11800H | |
Average of class Desktop (129 - 33821, n=43, last 2 years) | |
Intel Core i5-12600K |
AIDA64 / CPU PhotoWorxx | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
Intel Core i5-12600K | |
Intel Core i5-13600K | |
Intel Core i9-12900K | |
Intel Core i9-13900K | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X | |
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X | |
AMD Ryzen 5 7600X | |
Intel Core i7-11800H | |
Average of class Desktop (2501 - 52312, n=43, last 2 years) | |
AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX |
Intel NUC 13 Extreme Kit: Cinebench R15 Multi Loop
Our Cinebench R15 Multi loop shows a significant performance decline after the first loop. Due to the compact cooling solution and the power limits, we observe a lower performance level compared to an Intel Core i9-13900K in an alternate system with the Intel Core i9-13900K under continuous CPU stress. That being said, the result of 4779 points is still substantially higher than that of the Intel Dragon Canyon NUC.
System Performance
When it comes to synthetic benchmarks, the Intel NUC 13 Extreme Raptor Canyon shines with a very fast system performance. Here, the Intel Core i9-13900K with better cooling still has a small lead. Competitors from Minisforum and direct predecessors from the NUC series do not stand a chance, however. Subjectively, our test system is very quick and responsive and there are no noticeable delays.
Storage Solution
Our test sample uses a very fast Kingston NVMe SSD as the system drive. The model performs very well, achieving blazing-fast transfer speeds in both AS SSD and DiskSpd. Since the Intel NUC 13 Extreme Raptor Canyon is a barebone system, users can choose which SSD drive they want to install. The Compute Element supports up to three M.2 SSDs in total. Installing the SSDs is a bit of a hassle, since the Compute Element first needs to be completely removed from the NUC 13.
More comparisons and benchmarks can be found in our comparison table.
* ... smaller is better