Core 2 Quad Q9500 vs Xeon E5-2420

Primary details

Comparing Xeon E5-2420 and Core 2 Quad Q9500 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in performance ranking	1509	2096
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	0.52	4.75
Market segment	Server	Desktop processor
Architecture codename	Sandy Bridge-EN (2012)	no data
Release date	14 May 2012 (12 years ago)	no data
Launch price (MSRP)	$390	no data
Current price	$39 (0.1x MSRP)	$46

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Core 2 Quad Q9500 has 813% better value for money than Xeon E5-2420.

Detailed specifications

Xeon E5-2420 and Core 2 Quad Q9500 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	6 (Hexa-Core)	4 (Quad-Core)
Threads	12	4
Base clock speed	1.9 GHz	2.83 GHz
Boost clock speed	2.4 GHz	no data
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	no data
L2 cache	256 KB (per core)	no data
L3 cache	15360 KB (shared)	6 MB L2 Cache
Chip lithography	32 nm	45 nm
Die size	294 mm2	no data
Maximum core temperature	no data	71 °C
Number of transistors	1,270 million	no data
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	-
Unlocked multiplier	No	No
VID voltage range	no data	0.85V-1.3625V

Compatibility

Information on Xeon E5-2420 and Core 2 Quad Q9500 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	no data
Socket	FCLGA1356	LGA775
Power consumption (TDP)	95 Watt	95 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Xeon E5-2420 and Core 2 Quad Q9500. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® AVX	no data
AES-NI	+	no data
AVX	+	no data
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	+
Turbo Boost Technology	1.0	-
Hyper-Threading Technology	+	-
Idle States	+	+
Thermal Monitoring	+	+
Flex Memory Access	-	no data
Demand Based Switching	+	-
Status	Discontinued	Discontinued

Security technologies

Xeon E5-2420 and Core 2 Quad Q9500 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	+	-
EDB	+	+
Identity Protection	-	no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Xeon E5-2420 and Core 2 Quad Q9500 are enumerated here.

VT-d	+	no data
VT-x	+	+
EPT	+	no data

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Xeon E5-2420 and Core 2 Quad Q9500. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR3	no data
Maximum memory size	384 GB	no data
Max memory channels	3	no data
Maximum memory bandwidth	32 GB/s	no data
ECC memory support	+	no data

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Xeon E5-2420 and Core 2 Quad Q9500.

PCIe version	3.0	no data
PCI Express lanes	24	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.

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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.

Xeon E5-2420 outperforms Core 2 Quad Q9500 by 126% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

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Pros & cons summary

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Performance score	3.25	1.44
Physical cores	6	4
Threads	12	4
Chip lithography	32 nm	45 nm

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Should you still have questions on choice between Xeon E5-2420 and Core 2 Quad Q9500, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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