Ryzen Threadripper 3970X vs Xeon E5502
Aggregate performance score
Ryzen Threadripper 3970X outperforms Xeon E5502 by a whopping 7390% 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 | 3203 | 120 |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Cost-effectiveness evaluation | no data | 13.80 |
| Market segment | Server | Desktop processor |
| Series | no data | AMD Ryzen Threadripper |
| Power efficiency | 0.25 | 5.42 |
| Designer | Intel | AMD |
| Manufacturer | Intel | TSMC |
| Architecture codename | Gainestown (2009−2010) | Matisse (2019−2020) |
| Release date | 30 March 2009 (17 years ago) | 7 November 2019 (6 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $95 | $1,999 |
Cost-effectiveness evaluation
Performance per price, higher is better.
Xeon E5502 and Ryzen Threadripper 3970X have a nearly equal value for money.
Performance to price scatter graph
Detailed specifications
Basic parameters of Xeon E5502 and Ryzen Threadripper 3970X: 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 | 2 (Dual-core) | 32 (Dotriaconta-Core) |
| Threads | 2 | 64 |
| Base clock speed | 1.86 GHz | 3.7 GHz |
| Boost clock speed | 1.87 GHz | 4.5 GHz |
| Bus rate | no data | 8 × 16 GT/s |
| Multiplier | no data | 37 |
| L1 cache | 64 KB (per core) | 2 MB |
| L2 cache | 256 KB (per core) | 16 MB |
| L3 cache | 4 MB (shared) | 128 MB |
| Chip lithography | 45 nm | 7 nm, 12 nm |
| Die size | 263 mm2 | no data |
| Maximum core temperature | 76 °C | no data |
| Number of transistors | 731 million | 23540 Million |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | - | + |
| Unlocked multiplier | - | + |
Compatibility
Information on Xeon E5502 and Ryzen Threadripper 3970X 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 (Uniprocessor) |
| Socket | FCLGA1366,PLGA1366 | TR4 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 80 Watt | 280 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Xeon E5502 and Ryzen Threadripper 3970X. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| AES-NI | - | + |
| AVX | - | + |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | no data |
| Turbo Boost Technology | - | no data |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | - | no data |
| Idle States | + | no data |
| Demand Based Switching | + | no data |
| PAE | 40 Bit | no data |
| Precision Boost 2 | no data | + |
Security technologies
Xeon E5502 and Ryzen Threadripper 3970X technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | + | no data |
| EDB | + | no data |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Xeon E5502 and Ryzen Threadripper 3970X 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 E5502 and Ryzen Threadripper 3970X. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR3 | DDR4 Eight-channel |
| Maximum memory size | 144 GB | 256 GB |
| Max memory channels | 3 | 4 |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | 19.2 GB/s | 102.403 GB/s |
| ECC memory support | + | + |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | N/A | - |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Xeon E5502 and Ryzen Threadripper 3970X.
| PCIe version | 2.0 | 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 | 0.48 | 35.95 |
| Recency | 30 March 2009 | 7 November 2019 |
| Physical cores | 2 | 32 |
| Threads | 2 | 64 |
| Chip lithography | 45 nm | 7 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 80 Watt | 280 Watt |
Xeon E5502 has 250% lower power consumption.
Ryzen Threadripper 3970X, on the other hand, has a 7390% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 10 years, 1500% more physical cores and 3100% more threads, and a 543% more advanced lithography process.
The AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3970X is our recommended choice as it beats the Intel Xeon E5502 in performance tests.
Be aware that Xeon E5502 is a server/workstation processor while Ryzen Threadripper 3970X is a desktop one.
Other comparisons
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