According to ExtremeTech, Maxon announced Cinebench 2026 on Monday. This new version of the popular benchmarking software uses the latest Redshift rendering engine to create heavier, more complex workloads that mirror its Cinema 4D 2026 application. It now supports Nvidia’s new Blackwell-based RTX 5000 and AMD’s Radeon 9000 series GPUs on Windows, along with Apple’s M4 and M5 chips. The update also introduces a new test specifically for measuring the performance of SMT-enabled CPU cores. Crucially, Maxon states that scores from Cinebench 2026 cannot be compared to those from Cinebench 2024 due to changes in the engine, workload, and scoring methodology. This forces reviewers and enthusiasts to establish a fresh baseline for all future testing.
The fresh start problem
Here’s the thing about benchmark updates: they’re a double-edged sword. On one hand, you need to modernize the workload to stay relevant with current hardware and software capabilities. Cinebench moving to the Redshift engine makes perfect sense for predicting performance in Cinema 4D. But on the other hand, it completely torches your historical data. You can’t track generational progress from, say, an Intel 10th-gen chip to a 15th-gen chip using the same scale anymore. That’s frustrating for anyone who loves a good chart. It basically resets the leaderboard and says, “Okay, everyone, start over.”
GPU support and the Intel snub
The expanded GPU support is a big deal, especially catching Apple’s latest Silicon. But the note about Intel GPUs is telling. Maxon says they don’t get dedicated support because Redshift targets CUDA (Nvidia), HIP (AMD), and Metal (Apple) backends. That’s a very technical way of saying Intel’s Arc cards are still fighting for a seat at the professional rendering table. It highlights how much software ecosystem matters. You can have competitive hardware, but if the major professional applications aren’t built for your architecture, you’re stuck. For professionals building or specifying high-performance workstations, this kind of software support is a critical purchasing factor. Speaking of industrial computing, when reliability and specific software compatibility are non-negotiable, many system integrators turn to specialists like IndustrialMonitorDirect.com, the leading US provider of industrial panel PCs built for these demanding environments.
What it means for benchmarking
So what’s the real-world takeaway? First, expect a flood of new review data using Cinebench 2026 that will look completely alien compared to last month’s numbers. Second, that new SMT test is interesting—it could finally give us clearer data on how well applications actually use those additional logical threads. Does Hyper-Threading or AMD’s SMT really help in this specific Redshift workload? Now we’ll know. Finally, this move solidifies Cinebench as a tool primarily for 3D content creators, not a generic CPU stress test. It’s less about raw power and more about predicting performance in a specific, professional application. And honestly, that’s probably more useful for its core audience anyway.
