i7-3960X vs Xeon E5-2680 v3

Primary details

Comparing Xeon E5-2680 v3 and Core i7-3960X processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking	795	1172
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	no data	0.40
Market segment	Server	Desktop processor
Series	no data	Core i7 (Desktop)
Power efficiency	7.51	3.87
Architecture codename	Haswell-EP (2014−2015)	Sandy Bridge-E (2011−2013)
Release date	8 September 2014 (10 years ago)	14 November 2011 (13 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	no data	$861

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Detailed specifications

Xeon E5-2680 v3 and Core i7-3960X 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	12 (Dodeca-Core)	6 (Hexa-Core)
Threads	24	12
Base clock speed	2.5 GHz	3.3 GHz
Boost clock speed	3.3 GHz	3.9 GHz
Bus rate	9.6 GT/s	5 GT/s
L1 cache	64K (per core)	64 KB (per core)
L2 cache	256K (per core)	256 KB (per core)
L3 cache	30 MB (shared)	15 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	22 nm	32 nm
Die size	356 mm2	435 mm2
Maximum core temperature	85 °C	no data
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	no data	67 °C
Number of transistors	5,560 million	2,270 million
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	-
Unlocked multiplier	-	+

Compatibility

Information on Xeon E5-2680 v3 and Core i7-3960X 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	1
Socket	FCLGA2011	FCLGA2011
Power consumption (TDP)	120 Watt	130 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Xeon E5-2680 v3 and Core i7-3960X. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® AVX2	Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX
AES-NI	+	+
AVX	+	+
vPro	+	no data
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	+
Turbo Boost Technology	2.0	2.0
Hyper-Threading Technology	+	+
Idle States	+	+
Thermal Monitoring	+	+
Flex Memory Access	-	no data
Smart Response	no data	+
Demand Based Switching	+	-
PAE	46 Bit	no data

Security technologies

Xeon E5-2680 v3 and Core i7-3960X technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	+	-
EDB	+	+
Secure Key	+	no data
Identity Protection	-	+
OS Guard	+	no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Xeon E5-2680 v3 and Core i7-3960X are enumerated here.

VT-d	+	+
VT-x	+	+
EPT	+	+

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Xeon E5-2680 v3 and Core i7-3960X. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR4-1600, DDR4-1866, DDR4-2133	DDR3
Maximum memory size	768 GB	64 GB
Max memory channels	4	4
Maximum memory bandwidth	68 GB/s	51.2 GB/s
ECC memory support	+	-

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Xeon E5-2680 v3 and Core i7-3960X.

PCIe version	3.0	2.0
PCI Express lanes	40	40

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	9.52	5.32
Recency	8 September 2014	14 November 2011
Physical cores	12	6
Threads	24	12
Chip lithography	22 nm	32 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	120 Watt	130 Watt

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Should you still have questions on choice between Xeon E5-2680 v3 and Core i7-3960X, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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