Xeon E5-2603 vs FX-8120

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Aggregate performance score

FX-8120
2011
8 cores / 8 threads, 125 Watt
4.15
+184%
Xeon E5-2603
2012
4 cores / 4 threads, 80 Watt
1.46

FX-8120 outperforms Xeon E5-2603 by a whopping 184% based on our aggregate benchmark results.

Primary details

Comparing FX-8120 and Xeon E5-2603 processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking13952179
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluationno data0.38
Market segmentDesktop processorServer
Power efficiency3.141.73
Architecture codenameZambezi (2011−2012)Sandy Bridge-EP (2012)
Release date12 October 2011 (13 years ago)6 March 2012 (12 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)no data$207

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

no data

Detailed specifications

FX-8120 and Xeon E5-2603 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 cores8 (Octa-Core)4 (Quad-Core)
Threads84
Base clock speed3.1 GHz1.8 GHz
Boost clock speed4 GHz1.8 GHz
Bus rateno data6.4 GT/s
L1 cache384 KB64 KB (per core)
L2 cache8192 KB256 KB (per core)
L3 cache8192 KB10240 KB (shared)
Chip lithography32 nm32 nm
Die size315 mm2294 mm2
Maximum core temperature61 °C70 °C
Number of transistors1,200 million1,270 million
64 bit support++
Windows 11 compatibility--
Unlocked multiplier+-
P0 Vcore voltageMin: 1.0125 V - Max: 1.4125 Vno data

Compatibility

Information on FX-8120 and Xeon E5-2603 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 configuration12
SocketAM3+FCLGA2011
Power consumption (TDP)125 Watt80 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by FX-8120 and Xeon E5-2603. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

Instruction set extensionsno dataIntel® AVX
AES-NI++
FMA+-
AVX++
Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST)no data+
Turbo Boost Technologyno data-
Hyper-Threading Technologyno data-
Idle Statesno data+
Thermal Monitoring-+
Flex Memory Accessno data-
Demand Based Switchingno data+

Security technologies

FX-8120 and Xeon E5-2603 technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXTno data+
EDBno data+

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by FX-8120 and Xeon E5-2603 are enumerated here.

AMD-V+-
VT-dno data+
VT-xno data+
EPTno data+

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by FX-8120 and Xeon E5-2603. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory typesDDR3DDR3
Maximum memory sizeno data384 GB
Max memory channelsno data4
Maximum memory bandwidthno data34.1 GB/s
ECC memory support-+

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by FX-8120 and Xeon E5-2603.

PCIe versionn/a3.0
PCI Express lanesno data40

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.

FX-8120 4.15
+184%
Xeon E5-2603 1.46

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.

FX-8120 6594
+184%
Xeon E5-2603 2319

GeekBench 5 Single-Core

GeekBench 5 Single-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses only a single CPU core.

FX-8120 412
+13.8%
Xeon E5-2603 362

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core

GeekBench 5 Multi-Core is a cross-platform application developed in the form of CPU tests that independently recreate certain real-world tasks with which to accurately measure performance. This version uses all available CPU cores.

FX-8120 1526
+21.5%
Xeon E5-2603 1256

Gaming performance

Pros & cons summary


Performance score 4.15 1.46
Recency 12 October 2011 6 March 2012
Physical cores 8 4
Threads 8 4
Power consumption (TDP) 125 Watt 80 Watt

FX-8120 has a 184.2% higher aggregate performance score, and 100% more physical cores and 100% more threads.

Xeon E5-2603, on the other hand, has an age advantage of 4 months, and 56.3% lower power consumption.

The FX-8120 is our recommended choice as it beats the Xeon E5-2603 in performance tests.

Note that FX-8120 is a desktop processor while Xeon E5-2603 is a server/workstation one.


Should you still have questions on choice between FX-8120 and Xeon E5-2603, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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AMD FX-8120
FX-8120
Intel Xeon E5-2603
Xeon E5-2603

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Community ratings

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Questions & comments

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