A8-5600K vs Xeon E3-1231 v3
Aggregate performance score
Xeon E3-1231 v3 outperforms A8-5600K by a whopping 148% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
Primary details
Comparing Xeon E3-1231 v3 and A8-5600K processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in performance ranking | 1241 | 1911 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Cost-effectiveness evaluation | 2.43 | 3.69 |
| Market segment | Server | Desktop processor |
| Series | Xeon (Desktop) | AMD A-Series (Desktop) |
| Architecture codename | Haswell-WS (2013) | Trinity (2012−2013) |
| Release date | 11 May 2014 (10 years ago) | 2 October 2012 (11 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $240 | no data |
| Current price | $217 (0.9x MSRP) | $59 |
Cost-effectiveness evaluation
Performance per price, higher is better.
A8-5600K has 52% better value for money than Xeon E3-1231 v3.
Detailed specifications
Xeon E3-1231 v3 and A8-5600K 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) | 4 (Quad-Core) |
| Threads | 8 | 4 |
| Base clock speed | 3.4 GHz | 3.6 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 3.8 GHz | 3.9 GHz |
| L1 cache | 64K (per core) | 128K (per core) |
| L2 cache | 256K (per core) | 1 MB (per core) |
| L3 cache | 8 MB (shared) | 0 KB |
| Chip lithography | 22 nm | 32 nm |
| Die size | 160 mm2 | 246 mm2 |
| Maximum case temperature (TCase) | no data | 74 °C |
| Number of transistors | 1,400 million | 1,178 million |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | - | - |
| Unlocked multiplier | No | Yes |
Compatibility
Information on Xeon E3-1231 v3 and A8-5600K 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 | FCLGA1150 | FM2 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 80 Watt | 100 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Xeon E3-1231 v3 and A8-5600K. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2 | no data |
| AES-NI | + | no data |
| AVX | + | no data |
| vPro | + | no data |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | no data |
| My WiFi | - | no data |
| Turbo Boost Technology | 2.0 | no data |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | + | no data |
| TSX | + | no data |
| Idle States | + | no data |
| Thermal Monitoring | + | no data |
| Flex Memory Access | + | no data |
| SIPP | + | no data |
| Fast Memory Access | + | no data |
| Status | Discontinued | no data |
Security technologies
Xeon E3-1231 v3 and A8-5600K technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | + | no data |
| EDB | + | no data |
| Secure Key | + | no data |
| Identity Protection | + | no data |
| OS Guard | + | no data |
| Anti-Theft | + | no data |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Xeon E3-1231 v3 and A8-5600K 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 Xeon E3-1231 v3 and A8-5600K. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR3 | DDR3 |
| Maximum memory size | 32 GB | no data |
| Max memory channels | 2 | no data |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | 25.6 GB/s | no data |
| ECC memory support | + | no data |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | no data | AMD Radeon HD 7560D |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Xeon E3-1231 v3 and A8-5600K.
| PCIe version | 3.0 | no data |
| PCI Express lanes | 16 | 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.
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.
Xeon E3-1231 v3 outperforms A8-5600K by 148% based on our aggregate benchmark results.
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.
Benchmark coverage: 68%
Xeon E3-1231 v3 outperforms A8-5600K by 147% in Passmark.
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.
Benchmark coverage: 42%
Xeon E3-1231 v3 outperforms A8-5600K by 170% in GeekBench 5 Single-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.
Benchmark coverage: 42%
Xeon E3-1231 v3 outperforms A8-5600K by 257% in GeekBench 5 Multi-Core.
Cinebench 10 32-bit single-core
Cinebench R10 is an ancient ray tracing benchmark for processors by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. Its single core version uses just one CPU thread to render a futuristic looking motorcycle.
Benchmark coverage: 20%
Xeon E3-1231 v3 outperforms A8-5600K by 92% in Cinebench 10 32-bit single-core.
Cinebench 10 32-bit multi-core
Cinebench Release 10 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R10 using all the processor threads. Possible number of threads is limited by 16 in this version.
Benchmark coverage: 19%
Xeon E3-1231 v3 outperforms A8-5600K by 144% in Cinebench 10 32-bit multi-core.
Cinebench 11.5 64-bit multi-core
Cinebench Release 11.5 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R11.5 which uses all the processor threads. A maximum of 64 threads is supported in this version.
Benchmark coverage: 17%
Xeon E3-1231 v3 outperforms A8-5600K by 147% in Cinebench 11.5 64-bit multi-core.
Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core
Cinebench Release 15 Multi Core is a variant of Cinebench R15 which uses all the processor threads.
Benchmark coverage: 15%
Xeon E3-1231 v3 outperforms A8-5600K by 151% in Cinebench 15 64-bit multi-core.
Cinebench 15 64-bit single-core
Cinebench R15 (standing for Release 15) is a benchmark made by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version (sometimes called Single-Thread) only uses a single processor thread to render a room full of reflective spheres and light sources.
Benchmark coverage: 15%
Xeon E3-1231 v3 outperforms A8-5600K by 75% in Cinebench 15 64-bit single-core.
Cinebench 11.5 64-bit single-core
Cinebench R11.5 is an old benchmark by Maxon, authors of Cinema 4D. It was superseded by later versions of Cinebench, which use more modern variants of Cinema 4D engine. The Single Core version loads a single thread with ray tracing to render a glossy room full of crystal spheres and light sources.
Benchmark coverage: 14%
Xeon E3-1231 v3 outperforms A8-5600K by 73% in Cinebench 11.5 64-bit single-core.
Pros & cons summary
| Performance score | 4.56 | 1.84 |
| Recency | 11 May 2014 | 2 October 2012 |
| Threads | 8 | 4 |
| Chip lithography | 22 nm | 32 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 80 Watt | 100 Watt |
The Xeon E3-1231 v3 is our recommended choice as it beats the A8-5600K in performance tests.
Be aware that Xeon E3-1231 v3 is a server/workstation processor while A8-5600K is a desktop one.
Should you still have questions on choice between Xeon E3-1231 v3 and A8-5600K, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
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