i7-3960X Extreme Edition vs Xeon E5-1660 v2

Primary details

Comparing Xeon E5-1660 v2 and Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.

Place in the ranking	1042	1139
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Cost-effectiveness evaluation	0.94	no data
Market segment	Server	Desktop processor
Series	no data	Intel Core i7EE
Power efficiency	4.71	4.07
Architecture codename	Ivy Bridge-E (2013)	Sandy Bridge (2011−2013)
Release date	1 September 2013 (11 years ago)	14 November 2011 (12 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	$1,809	no data

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance per price, higher is better.

Detailed specifications

Xeon E5-1660 v2 and Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition 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	6 (Hexa-Core)	6 (Hexa-Core)
Threads	12	12
Base clock speed	3.7 GHz	no data
Boost clock speed	4 GHz	3.3 GHz
Bus type	no data	DMI 2.0
Bus rate	0 GT/s	5 GT/s
Multiplier	no data	33
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	no data
L2 cache	256 KB (per core)	1,536 KB
L3 cache	15 MB (shared)	15 MB
Chip lithography	22 nm	32 nm
Die size	160 mm2	434.72 mm2
Maximum core temperature	70 °C	no data
Number of transistors	1,400 million	2270 Million
64 bit support	+	+
Windows 11 compatibility	-	-

Compatibility

Information on Xeon E5-1660 v2 and Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition 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	1 (Uniprocessor)
Socket	FCLGA2011	no data
Power consumption (TDP)	130 Watt	130 Watt

Technologies and extensions

Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Xeon E5-1660 v2 and Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.

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

Security technologies

Xeon E5-1660 v2 and Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.

TXT	+	no data
EDB	+	no data
Secure Key	+	no data
OS Guard	+	no data

Virtualization technologies

Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Xeon E5-1660 v2 and Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition are enumerated here.

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

Memory specs

Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Xeon E5-1660 v2 and Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.

Supported memory types	DDR3	no data
Maximum memory size	256 GB	64 GB
Max memory channels	4	no data
Maximum memory bandwidth	59.7 GB/s	no data
ECC memory support	+	-

Peripherals

Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Xeon E5-1660 v2 and Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition.

PCIe version	3.0	2.00
PCI Express lanes	40	40

Pros & cons summary

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Performance score	6.71	5.80
Recency	1 September 2013	14 November 2011
Chip lithography	22 nm	32 nm

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Should you still have questions on choice between Xeon E5-1660 v2 and Core i7-3960X Extreme Edition, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

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