Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3955WX vs i7-960
Aggregate performance score
Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3955WX outperforms Core i7-960 by a whopping 1090% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Contents
Primary details
Comparing processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 2069 | 264 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Cost-effectiveness evaluation | 0.17 | 14.20 |
| Market segment | Desktop processor | Server |
| Series | Core i7 (Desktop) | AMD Ryzen Threadripper |
| Power efficiency | 0.62 | 3.45 |
| Designer | Intel | AMD |
| Manufacturer | Intel | TSMC |
| Architecture codename | Bloomfield (2008−2010) | Castle Peak (2020) |
| Release date | 20 October 2009 (15 years ago) | 14 July 2020 (5 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $316 | $1,149 |
Cost-effectiveness evaluation
Performance per price, higher is better.
Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3955WX has 8253% better value for money than i7-960.
Performance to price scatter graph
Detailed specifications
Core i7-960 and Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3955WX 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) | 16 (Hexadeca-Core) |
| Threads | 8 | 32 |
| Base clock speed | 3.2 GHz | 3.9 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 3.46 GHz | 4.3 GHz |
| Bus rate | 1333 MHz | no data |
| Multiplier | no data | 39 |
| L1 cache | 64 KB (per core) | 64 KB (per core) |
| L2 cache | 256 KB (per core) | 512 KB (per core) |
| L3 cache | 8 MB (shared) | 64 MB |
| Chip lithography | 45 nm | 7 nm, 12 nm |
| Die size | 263 mm2 | 2x 74 mm2 |
| Maximum core temperature | 68 °C | no data |
| Maximum case temperature (TCase) | no data | 95 °C |
| Number of transistors | 731 million | 7,600 million |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | - | + |
Compatibility
Information on Core i7-960 and Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3955WX 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 | FCLGA1366 | WRX8 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 130 Watt | 280 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i7-960 and Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3955WX. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | Intel® SSE4.2 | no data |
| AES-NI | - | + |
| AVX | - | + |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | no data |
| Turbo Boost Technology | 1.0 | no data |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | + | no data |
| Idle States | + | no data |
| Demand Based Switching | - | no data |
| PAE | 36 Bit | no data |
Security technologies
Core i7-960 and Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3955WX technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | + | no data |
| EDB | + | no data |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i7-960 and Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3955WX are enumerated here.
| AMD-V | - | + |
| VT-x | + | no data |
| EPT | + | no data |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i7-960 and Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3955WX. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR3 | DDR4-3200 |
| Maximum memory size | 24 GB | 2 TiB |
| Max memory channels | 3 | no data |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | 25.6 GB/s | 204.8 GB/s |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | N/A | N/A |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i7-960 and Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3955WX.
| PCIe version | 2.0 | 4.0 |
| PCI Express lanes | no data | 128 |
Synthetic benchmark performance
Various benchmark results of the processors in comparison. Overall score is measured in points in 0-100 range, higher is better.
Combined synthetic benchmark score
This is our combined benchmark performance rating.
Passmark
Passmark CPU Mark is a widespread benchmark, consisting of 8 different types of workload, including integer and floating point math, extended instructions, compression, encryption and physics calculation. There is also one separate single-threaded scenario measuring single-core performance. Other than that, Passmark measures multi-core performance.
GeekBench 5 Single-Core
GeekBench 5 Single-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses only a single CPU core.
GeekBench 5 Multi-Core
GeekBench 5 Multi-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses all available CPU cores.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 1.93 | 22.97 |
| Recency | 20 October 2009 | 14 July 2020 |
| Physical cores | 4 | 16 |
| Threads | 8 | 32 |
| Chip lithography | 45 nm | 7 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 130 Watt | 280 Watt |
i7-960 has 115.4% lower power consumption.
Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3955WX, on the other hand, has a 1090.2% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 10 years, 300% more physical cores and 300% more threads, and a 542.9% more advanced lithography process.
The AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3955WX is our recommended choice as it beats the Intel Core i7-960 in performance tests.
Note that Core i7-960 is a desktop processor while Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3955WX is a server/workstation one.
Other comparisons
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