Delidded Core i9-14900KS in prebuilt PCs

System integrators will be selling gaming PCs equipped with delidded Intel processors.

According to Der8auer , Intel has established a special agreement with select system integrators behind closed doors. This deal is on selling delidded Intel Core i9 processors with full warranty. Although there is no confirmation of such a deal with any partner, it is a fact that some companies have already started offering such deals.

Delidded processors allow enthusiasts to apply direct die coolers combined with premium thermal compound, which can lead to better heat dissipation, lower power consumption and overall better performance. Often, delidding is not a good idea, considering that such processors invovles voiding the warranty and may result in the processor being damaged permanently. This is even more worrying when we consider the Core i9-14900KS, which is the most expensive Intel desktop CPU at $699.

Turns out that Der8auers information is already confirmed. Maingear is already offering delidded i9-14900KS and promising “increased performance & cooling”.

System with delidded 14900KS, Source: MainGear

The upgrade from 14900K to delidded 14900KS comes at a $342 higher price ($5339 → $5681). That’s an insane price for a gaming system, which doesn’t even have RTX 4090 graphics but 4080; however, one should note that this PC has full custom water cooling, and it is designed to be the company’s best offer.

Some of these prebuilt systems will be offered with factory fine-tuning aka overclocking, which would normally mean loss of warranty. In this case, the CPU will already be delidded and may feature overclocking, while still featuring warranty.

One might only wonder if companies like Maingear already receive delidded processors from Intel, or rely on delidding process internally. This could’ve been confirmed by taking one of such systems apart.

Source: Maingear , Der8auer , Tom’s Hardware