Xeon Gold 6538N vs EPYC 7251

Primary details

Comparing EPYC 7251 and Xeon Gold 6538N processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking	803	162
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	3.03	21.61
Market segment	Server	Server
Series	AMD EPYC	no data
Power efficiency	7.42	13.05
Architecture codename	Naples (2017−2018)	Emerald Rapids (2023)
Release date	29 June 2017 (7 years ago)	14 December 2023 (less than a year ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$574	$3,351

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Xeon Gold 6538N has 613% better value for money than EPYC 7251.

Detailed specifications

EPYC 7251 and Xeon Gold 6538N 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)	32 (Dotriaconta-Core)
Threads	16	64
Base clock speed	2.1 GHz	2.1 GHz
Boost clock speed	2.9 GHz	4.1 GHz
Multiplier	21	no data
L1 cache	96K (per core)	80 KB (per core)
L2 cache	512K (per core)	2 MB (per core)
L3 cache	32 MB (shared)	60 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	14 nm	Intel 7 nm
Die size	192 mm2	2x 763 mm2
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	no data	85 °C
Number of transistors	4,800 million	no data
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	no data
Unlocked multiplier	+	-

Compatibility

Information on EPYC 7251 and Xeon Gold 6538N 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	2 (Multiprocessor)	2
Socket	TR4	FCLGA4677
Power consumption (TDP)	120 Watt	205 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by EPYC 7251 and Xeon Gold 6538N. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	no data	Intel® AMX, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512
AES-NI	+	+
AVX	+	+
vPro	no data	+
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	no data	+
Speed Shift	no data	+
Turbo Boost Technology	no data	2.0
Hyper-Threading Technology	no data	+
TSX	-	+
Deep Learning Boost	-	+

Security technologies

EPYC 7251 and Xeon Gold 6538N technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	no data	+
EDB	no data	+
SGX	no data	Yes with Intel® SPS
OS Guard	no data	+

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by EPYC 7251 and Xeon Gold 6538N 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 EPYC 7251 and Xeon Gold 6538N. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR4 Eight-channel	DDR5-5200
Maximum memory size	2 TiB	4 TB
Max memory channels	8	8
Maximum memory bandwidth	153.652 GB/s	no data
ECC memory support	+	+

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card

no data

N/A

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by EPYC 7251 and Xeon Gold 6538N.

PCIe version	3.0	5.0
PCI Express lanes	128	80

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	9.76	29.34
Recency	29 June 2017	14 December 2023
Physical cores	8	32
Threads	16	64
Power consumption (TDP)	120 Watt	205 Watt

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Should you still have questions on choice between EPYC 7251 and Xeon Gold 6538N, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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