Cheap X99 Combos Are Back… But Should You Buy It?

Can a cheap 14-core Xeon still handle modern gaming in 2026? In this video, I test a budget Intel Xeon E5-2680 v4 setup across several demanding games including ray tracing, competitive titles, and CPU-heavy simulations. Despite its age, this recycled server hardware delivers some surprisingly playable results! PC Specs: • CPU: Intel Xeon E5-2680 v4 • Cores/Threads: 14 cores / 28 threads • Clock Speed: 2.4 GHz base / up to 3.3 GHz boost • GPU: AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 16GB • System Memory: 16GB DDR4 Games Tested: • Cyberpunk 2077 • Forza Horizon 6 • Counter-Strike 2 • Fortnite • LEGO Batman • Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord • ARC Raiders • Mortal Kombat 1 • Arma Reforger The Xeon also scored 986 in single-core and 8,064 in multi-core performance in Geekbench. It may lack the clock speeds and upgrade path of a modern platform, but its 14 cores still make it useful for gaming, video rendering, homelab projects, and remote game servers. Would you buy this Xeon setup on a $100 budget, or choose something else? Let me know in the comments—I read every one! If you enjoy budget PC builds, benchmarks, and unusual hardware, consider subscribing. Thanks for watching! #BudgetGamingPC #IntelXeon #RX9060XT #PCGaming #BudgetPCBuild #GamingBenchmarks #Homelab