Xeon Gold 6538N vs W-1290

Primary details

Comparing Xeon W-1290 and Xeon Gold 6538N processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking	604	164
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	no data	21.90
Market segment	Server	Server
Power efficiency	14.95	13.05
Architecture codename	Comet Lake (2020)	Emerald Rapids (2023)
Release date	13 May 2020 (4 years ago)	14 December 2023 (less than a year ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	no data	$3,351

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Detailed specifications

Xeon W-1290 and Xeon Gold 6538N 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	10 (Deca-Core)	32 (Dotriaconta-Core)
Threads	20	64
Base clock speed	3.2 GHz	2.1 GHz
Boost clock speed	5.1 GHz	4.1 GHz
Bus rate	8 GT/s	no data
L1 cache	64K (per core)	80 KB (per core)
L2 cache	256K (per core)	2 MB (per core)
L3 cache	20 MB (shared)	60 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	14 nm	Intel 7 nm
Die size	206 mm2	2x 763 mm2
Maximum core temperature	100 °C	no data
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	70 °C	85 °C
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	+	no data

Compatibility

Information on Xeon W-1290 and Xeon Gold 6538N 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	2
Socket	FCLGA1200	FCLGA4677
Power consumption (TDP)	80 Watt	205 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Xeon W-1290 and Xeon Gold 6538N. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX2	Intel® AMX, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX, Intel® AVX2, Intel® AVX-512
AES-NI	+	+
AVX	+	+
vPro	+	+
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	+
Speed Shift	no data	+
Turbo Boost Technology	2.0	2.0
Hyper-Threading Technology	+	+
TSX	-	+
Idle States	+	no data
Thermal Monitoring	+	-
Turbo Boost Max 3.0	+	no data
Deep Learning Boost	-	+

Security technologies

Xeon W-1290 and Xeon Gold 6538N technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	+	+
EDB	+	+
Secure Key	+	no data
Identity Protection	+	-
SGX	Yes with Intel® ME	Yes with Intel® SPS
OS Guard	+	+

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Xeon W-1290 and Xeon Gold 6538N are enumerated here.

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

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Xeon W-1290 and Xeon Gold 6538N. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR4-2933	DDR5-5200
Maximum memory size	128 GB	4 TB
Max memory channels	2	8
Maximum memory bandwidth	45.8 GB/s	no data
ECC memory support	+	+

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card	Intel UHD Graphics P630	N/A
Max video memory	64 GB	no data
Quick Sync Video	+	-
Clear Video	+	no data
Clear Video HD	+	no data
Graphics max frequency	1.2 GHz	no data
InTru 3D	+	no data

Graphics interfaces

Available interfaces and connections of Xeon W-1290 and Xeon Gold 6538N integrated GPUs.

Number of displays supported

3

no data

Graphics image quality

Maximum display resolutions supported by Xeon W-1290 and Xeon Gold 6538N integrated GPUs, including resolutions over different interfaces.

4K resolution support	+	no data
Max resolution over HDMI 1.4	4096x2160@30Hz	no data
Max resolution over eDP	4096x2304@60Hz	no data
Max resolution over DisplayPort	4096x2304@60Hz	no data

Graphics API support

APIs supported by Xeon W-1290 and Xeon Gold 6538N integrated GPUs, sometimes API versions are included.

DirectX	12	no data
OpenGL	4.5	no data

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Xeon W-1290 and Xeon Gold 6538N.

PCIe version	3.0	5.0
PCI Express lanes	16	80

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.

---

Pros & cons summary

---

Performance score	12.64	28.26
Recency	13 May 2020	14 December 2023
Physical cores	10	32
Threads	20	64
Power consumption (TDP)	80 Watt	205 Watt

---

Should you still have questions on choice between Xeon W-1290 and Xeon Gold 6538N, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

Vote for your favorite

Do you think we are right or mistaken in our choice? Vote by clicking "Like" button near your favorite CPU.

---