EPYC 7742 vs i7-5960X

Primary details

Comparing Core i7-5960X and EPYC 7742 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking	941	46
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	0.83	3.55
Market segment	Desktop processor	Server
Series	Core i7 (Desktop)	AMD EPYC
Power efficiency	5.43	18.54
Architecture codename	Haswell-E (2014)	Zen 2 (2017−2020)
Release date	1 September 2014 (10 years ago)	7 August 2019 (5 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$999	$6,950

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

EPYC 7742 has 328% better value for money than i7-5960X.

Detailed specifications

Core i7-5960X and EPYC 7742 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	8 (Octa-Core)	64 (Tetrahexaconta-Core)
Threads	16	128
Base clock speed	3 GHz	2.25 GHz
Boost clock speed	3.5 GHz	3.4 GHz
Bus rate	0 GT/s	no data
Multiplier	no data	22.5
L1 cache	64K (per core)	96K (per core)
L2 cache	256K (per core)	512K (per core)
L3 cache	20 MB (shared)	256 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	22 nm	7 nm, 14 nm
Die size	356 mm2	192 mm2
Maximum core temperature	67 °C	no data
Number of transistors	2,600 million	4,800 million
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	+
Unlocked multiplier	+	+

Compatibility

Information on Core i7-5960X and EPYC 7742 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	2 (Multiprocessor)
Socket	FCLGA2011	TR4
Power consumption (TDP)	140 Watt	225 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i7-5960X and EPYC 7742. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2	no data
AES-NI	+	+
AVX	+	+
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	no data
Turbo Boost Technology	2.0	no data
Hyper-Threading Technology	+	no data
TSX	+	-
Idle States	+	no data
Thermal Monitoring	+	-
Smart Response	+	no data
Demand Based Switching	-	no data
Precision Boost 2	no data	+

Security technologies

Core i7-5960X and EPYC 7742 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	+	no data
EDB	+	no data
Identity Protection	+	-

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i7-5960X and EPYC 7742 are enumerated here.

AMD-V	-	+
VT-d	+	no data
VT-x	+	no data
EPT	+	no data

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i7-5960X and EPYC 7742. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR4	DDR4 Eight-channel
Maximum memory size	64 GB	4 TiB
Max memory channels	4	8
Maximum memory bandwidth	68 GB/s	204.763 GB/s
ECC memory support	-	+

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i7-5960X and EPYC 7742.

PCIe version	3.0	no data
PCI Express lanes	40	no data

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.

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Pros & cons summary

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Performance score	8.03	44.07
Recency	1 September 2014	7 August 2019
Physical cores	8	64
Threads	16	128
Chip lithography	22 nm	7 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	140 Watt	225 Watt

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Should you still have questions on choice between Core i7-5960X and EPYC 7742, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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