Xeon 6979P vs i7-960

Primary details

Comparing Core i7-960 and Xeon 6979P processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking	1866	not rated
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	0.14	no data
Market segment	Desktop processor	Server
Series	Core i7 (Desktop)	no data
Power efficiency	1.54	no data
Architecture codename	Bloomfield (2008−2010)	Granite Rapids (2024)
Release date	20 October 2009 (15 years ago)	24 September 2024 (less than a year ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$316	no data

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Detailed specifications

Core i7-960 and Xeon 6979P 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)	120
Threads	8	240
Base clock speed	3.2 GHz	2.1 GHz
Boost clock speed	3.46 GHz	3.9 GHz
Bus rate	1333 MHz	no data
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	112 KB (per core)
L2 cache	256 KB (per core)	2 MB (per core)
L3 cache	8 MB (shared)	504 MB (shared)
Chip lithography	45 nm	5 nm
Die size	263 mm2	no data
Maximum core temperature	68 °C	no data
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	no data	80 °C
Number of transistors	731 million	no data
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	no data

Compatibility

Information on Core i7-960 and Xeon 6979P 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	FCLGA1366	7529
Power consumption (TDP)	130 Watt	500 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i7-960 and Xeon 6979P. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.2	no data
AES-NI	-	+
AVX	-	+
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)	+	+
Turbo Boost Technology	1.0	no data
Hyper-Threading Technology	+	no data
TSX	-	+
Idle States	+	no data
Demand Based Switching	-	no data
PAE	36 Bit	no data

Security technologies

Core i7-960 and Xeon 6979P technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	+	+
EDB	+	no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i7-960 and Xeon 6979P are enumerated here.

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

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i7-960 and Xeon 6979P. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR3	DDR5
Maximum memory size	24 GB	no data
Max memory channels	3	no data
Maximum memory bandwidth	25.6 GB/s	no data

Graphics specifications

General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.

Integrated graphics card

N/A

N/A

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i7-960 and Xeon 6979P.

PCIe version	2.0	5.0
PCI Express lanes	no data	96

Pros & cons summary

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Recency	20 October 2009	24 September 2024
Physical cores	4	120
Threads	8	240
Chip lithography	45 nm	5 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	130 Watt	500 Watt

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Should you still have questions on choice between Core i7-960 and Xeon 6979P, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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