Xeon E5-2678 v3 vs Ryzen 9 3950X

Aggregate performance score

Ryzen 9 3950X
2019
16 cores / 32 threads, 105 Watt
24.39
+163%
Xeon E5-2678 v3
2015
12 cores / 24 threads, 120 Watt
9.28

Ryzen 9 3950X outperforms Xeon E5-2678 v3 by a whopping 163% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing Ryzen 9 3950X and Xeon E5-2678 v3 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking206821
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation18.04no data
Market segmentDesktop processorServer
SeriesAMD Ryzen 9Xeon
Power efficiency21.987.32
Architecture codenameMatisse (Zen 2) (2019−2020)Haswell (2013−2015)
Release date11 June 2019 (5 years ago)2015 (9 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)$799no data

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

no data

Detailed specifications

Ryzen 9 3950X and Xeon E5-2678 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 cores16 (Hexadeca-Core)12 (Dodeca-Core)
Threads3224
Base clock speed3.5 GHz2.5 GHz
Boost clock speed4.7 GHz3.3 GHz
L1 cache1 MB384 KB
L2 cache8 MB3072 KB
L3 cache64 MB30 MB
Chip lithography7 nm, 12 nm22 nm
Die size2 x 72 mm + 125 mm (IO-Die) mm2356 mm2
Maximum case temperature (TCase)no data84 °C
Number of transistors19,200 million5,560 million
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility+-
Unlocked multiplier+-

Compatibility

Information on Ryzen 9 3950X and Xeon E5-2678 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 configuration1 (Uniprocessor)2
SocketAM4LGA2011-3
Power consumption (TDP)105 Watt120 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Ryzen 9 3950X and Xeon E5-2678 v3. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions86x MMX(+), SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSSE3, SSE4.1, SSE4.2, SSE4A,-64, AMD-V, AES, AVX, AVX2, FMA3, SHA, Precision Boost 2no data
AES-NI++
AVX++
vProno data+
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)no data+
TSX-+
Precision Boost 2+no data

Security technologies

Ryzen 9 3950X and Xeon E5-2678 v3 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXTno data+

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Ryzen 9 3950X and Xeon E5-2678 v3 are enumerated here.

AMD-V+-
VT-dno data+
VT-xno data+

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Ryzen 9 3950X and Xeon E5-2678 v3. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR4 Dual-channelDDR3, DDR4
Maximum memory size128 GBno data
Maximum memory bandwidth51.196 GB/sno data
ECC memory support+-

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Ryzen 9 3950X and Xeon E5-2678 v3.

PCIe versionno data3.0
PCI Express lanesno data40

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. 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.

Ryzen 9 3950X 24.39
+163%
Xeon E5-2678 v3 9.28

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.

Ryzen 9 3950X 38735
+163%
Xeon E5-2678 v3 14735

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.

Ryzen 9 3950X 1732
+70.6%
Xeon E5-2678 v3 1015

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.

Ryzen 9 3950X 10799
+59.5%
Xeon E5-2678 v3 6769

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 24.39 9.28
Physical cores 16 12
Threads 32 24
Chip lithography 7 nm 22 nm
Power consumption (TDP) 105 Watt 120 Watt

Ryzen 9 3950X has a 162.8% higher aggregate performance score, 33.3% more physical cores and 33.3% more threads, a 214.3% more advanced lithography process, and 14.3% lower power consumption.

The Ryzen 9 3950X is our recommended choice as it beats the Xeon E5-2678 v3 in performance tests.

Note that Ryzen 9 3950X is a desktop processor while Xeon E5-2678 v3 is a server/workstation one.


Should you still have questions on choice between Ryzen 9 3950X and Xeon E5-2678 v3, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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AMD Ryzen 9 3950X
Ryzen 9 3950X
Intel Xeon E5-2678 v3
Xeon E5-2678 v3

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Community ratings

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