Xeon E5-1603 v3 vs Core i7-2600

Primary details

Comparing Core i7-2600 and Xeon E5-1603 v3 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in performance ranking	1474	1598
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	1.39	1.61
Market segment	Desktop processor	Server
Architecture codename	Sandy Bridge (2011−2013)	Haswell-EP (2014)
Release date	9 January 2011 (13 years ago)	8 September 2014 (9 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$247	no data
Current price	$89 (0.4x MSRP)	$13.59

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Xeon E5-1603 v3 has 16% better value for money than i7-2600.

Detailed specifications

Core i7-2600 and Xeon E5-1603 v3 basic parameters such as number of cores, number of threads, base frequency and turbo boost clock, lithography, cache size and multiplier lock state. These parameters indirectly say of CPU speed, though for more precise assessment you have to consider their test results.

Physical cores	4 (Quad-Core)	4 (Quad-Core)
Threads	8	4
Base clock speed	3.4 GHz	2.8 GHz
Boost clock speed	3.8 GHz	2.8 GHz
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	64K (per core)
L2 cache	256 KB (per core)	256K (per core)
L3 cache	8192 KB (shared)	10 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	32 nm	22 nm
Die size	216 mm2	356 mm2
Maximum core temperature	73 °C	67 °C
Number of transistors	1,160 million	2,600 million
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	-
Unlocked multiplier	No	No
VID voltage range	no data	0.65–1.3V

Compatibility

Information on Core i7-2600 and Xeon E5-1603 v3 compatibility with other computer components: motherboard (look for socket type), power supply unit (look for power consumption) etc. Useful when planning a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. Note that power consumption of some processors can well exceed their nominal TDP, even without overclocking. Some can even double their declared thermals given that the motherboard allows to tune the CPU power parameters.

Number of CPUs in a configuration	1	1
Socket	LGA1155	FCLGA2011-3
Power consumption (TDP)	95 Watt	140 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i7-2600 and Xeon E5-1603 v3. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX	Intel® AVX2
AES-NI	+	+
AVX	+	+
vPro	no data	+
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	+
Turbo Boost Technology	2.0	-
Hyper-Threading Technology	+	-
TSX	no data	-
Idle States	+	+
Thermal Monitoring	+	+
Flex Memory Access	+	-
Demand Based Switching	no data	+
PAE	no data	46 Bit
FDI	+	no data
Fast Memory Access	+	no data
Status	Discontinued	Launched

Security technologies

Core i7-2600 and Xeon E5-1603 v3 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	+	+
EDB	+	+
Secure Key	no data	+
Identity Protection	+	+
OS Guard	no data	+

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i7-2600 and Xeon E5-1603 v3 are enumerated here.

VT-d	+	+
VT-x	+	+
EPT	+	+

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i7-2600 and Xeon E5-1603 v3. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR3	DDR4-1333, DDR4-1600, DDR4-1866
Maximum memory size	32 GB	768 GB
Max memory channels	2	4
Maximum memory bandwidth	21 GB/s	59 GB/s
ECC memory support	-	+

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card	Intel HD Graphics 2000	no data
Quick Sync Video	+	no data
Clear Video HD	+	no data
Graphics max frequency	1.35 GHz	no data
InTru 3D	+	no data

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Core i7-2600 and Xeon E5-1603 v3 integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported

2

no data

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i7-2600 and Xeon E5-1603 v3.

PCIe version	2.0	3.0
PCI Express lanes	16	40

Synthetic benchmark performance

Various benchmark results of the processors in comparison. Overall score is measured in points in 0-100 range, higher is better.

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Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark performance rating. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.

Core i7-2600 outperforms Xeon E5-1603 v3 by 21% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

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Pros & cons summary

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Performance score	3.46	2.86
Recency	9 January 2011	8 September 2014
Threads	8	4
Chip lithography	32 nm	22 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	95 Watt	140 Watt

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Should you still have questions on choice between Core i7-2600 and Xeon E5-1603 v3, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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