Xeon W3690 vs 654
Aggregate performance score
Xeon 654 outperforms Xeon W3690 by a whopping 736% 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 | 144 | 1673 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Cost-effectiveness evaluation | 20.10 | 0.36 |
| Market segment | Server | Server |
| Power efficiency | 7.42 | 1.37 |
| Designer | Intel | Intel |
| Manufacturer | Intel | Intel |
| Architecture codename | Granite Rapids (2024−2026) | Gulftown (2010−2011) |
| Release date | 2 February 2026 (less than a year ago) | 14 February 2011 (15 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $1,199 | $450 |
Cost-effectiveness evaluation
Performance per price, higher is better.
Xeon 654 has 5483% better value for money than Xeon W3690.
Performance to price scatter graph
Currently popular graphics cards are shown for comparison.
Detailed specifications
Basic parameters of Xeon 654 and Xeon W3690: 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 | 18 (Octadeca-Core) | 6 (Hexa-Core) |
| Performance-cores | 18 | no data |
| Threads | 36 | 12 |
| Base clock speed | 3.1 GHz | 3.46 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 4.8 GHz | 3.73 GHz |
| Bus rate | 0 GT/s | no data |
| L1 cache | 112 KB (per core) | 64 KB (per core) |
| L2 cache | 2 MB (per core) | 256 KB (per core) |
| L3 cache | 72 MB (shared) | 12 MB (shared) |
| Chip lithography | Intel 3 nm | 32 nm |
| Die size | 2x 598 mm2 | 239 mm2 |
| Maximum core temperature | no data | 68 °C |
| Maximum case temperature (TCase) | 72 °C | no data |
| Number of transistors | no data | 1,170 million |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | no data | - |
| Unlocked multiplier | + | + |
Compatibility
Information on Xeon 654 and Xeon W3690 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 | FCLGA4710 | FCLGA1366,LGA1366 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 200 Watt | 130 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Xeon 654 and Xeon W3690. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® AMX, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512 | Intel® SSE4.2 |
| AES-NI | + | + |
| AVX | + | - |
| vPro | + | no data |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | + |
| Speed Shift | + | no data |
| Turbo Boost Technology | 2.0 | 1.0 |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | + | + |
| TSX | + | - |
| Idle States | no data | + |
| Demand Based Switching | no data | + |
| PAE | no data | 40 Bit |
| Turbo Boost Max 3.0 | + | no data |
| Deep Learning Boost | + | - |
Security technologies
Xeon 654 and Xeon W3690 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | + | + |
| EDB | + | + |
| SGX | - | no data |
| OS Guard | + | no data |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Xeon 654 and Xeon W3690 are enumerated here.
| VT-d | + | no data |
| VT-x | + | + |
| EPT | + | + |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Xeon 654 and Xeon W3690. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR5(6400MT/s) | DDR3 |
| Maximum memory size | 4 TB | 24 GB |
| Max memory channels | 8 | 3 |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | no data | 32 GB/s |
| ECC memory support | + | + |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | N/A | no data |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Xeon 654 and Xeon W3690.
| PCIe version | 5.0 | 2.0 |
| PCI Express lanes | 128 | no data |
Synthetic benchmarks
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.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 35.95 | 4.30 |
| Recency | 2 February 2026 | 14 February 2011 |
| Physical cores | 18 | 6 |
| Threads | 36 | 12 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 200 Watt | 130 Watt |
Xeon 654 has a 736% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 14 years, and 200% more physical cores and 200% more threads.
Xeon W3690, on the other hand, has 54% lower power consumption.
The Intel Xeon 654 is our recommended choice as it beats the Intel Xeon W3690 in performance tests.
Other comparisons
We've compiled a selection of CPU comparisons, ranging from closely matched processors to other comparisons that may be of interest.
