AMD EPYC 7251 vs Intel Xeon E5-2690

Comparative analysis of AMD EPYC 7251 and Intel Xeon E5-2690 processors for all known characteristics in the following categories: Essentials, Performance, Memory, Compatibility, Peripherals, Virtualization, Security & Reliability, Advanced Technologies. Benchmark processor performance analysis: PassMark - Single thread mark, PassMark - CPU mark, Geekbench 4 - Single Core, Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core, CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s), 3DMark Fire Strike - Physics Score.

AMD EPYC 7251

Intel Xeon E5-2690

Differences

Reasons to consider the AMD EPYC 7251

CPU is newer: launch date 5 year(s) 3 month(s) later
Processor is unlocked, an unlocked multiplier allows for easier overclocking
A newer manufacturing process allows for a more powerful, yet cooler running processor: 14 nm vs 32 nm
Around 50% more L1 cache; more data can be stored in the L1 cache for quick access later
2x more L2 cache, more data can be stored in the L2 cache for quick access later
Around 60% more L3 cache; more data can be stored in the L3 cache for quick access later
Around 13% lower typical power consumption: 120 Watt vs 135 Watt

Launch date	June 2017 vs March 2012
Unlocked	Unlocked vs Locked
Manufacturing process technology	14 nm vs 32 nm
L1 cache	96 KB (per core) vs 64 KB (per core)
L2 cache	512 KB (per core) vs 256 KB (per core)
L3 cache	32 MB vs 20480 KB (shared)
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	120 Watt vs 135 Watt

Reasons to consider the Intel Xeon E5-2690

Around 31% higher clock speed: 3.80 GHz vs 2.9 GHz
Around 12% better performance in PassMark - CPU mark: 16687 vs 14935

Specifications (specs)
Maximum frequency	3.80 GHz vs 2.9 GHz
Benchmarks
PassMark - Single thread mark	1678 vs 1671
PassMark - CPU mark	16687 vs 14935

Compare benchmarks

CPU 1: AMD EPYC 7251
CPU 2: Intel Xeon E5-2690

PassMark - Single thread mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

1671

1678

PassMark - CPU mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

14935

16687

Name	AMD EPYC 7251	Intel Xeon E5-2690
PassMark - Single thread mark	1671	1678
PassMark - CPU mark	14935	16687
Geekbench 4 - Single Core		670
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core		5108
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s)		45.148
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s)		253.088
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s)		42.625
3DMark Fire Strike - Physics Score		0

Compare specifications (specs)

	AMD EPYC 7251	Intel Xeon E5-2690
Essentials
Architecture codename	Zen	Sandy Bridge EP
Family	AMD EPYC
Launch date	June 2017	March 2012
Place in performance rating	1315	1316
Series	AMD EPYC 7000 Series	Intel® Xeon® Processor E5 Family
Vertical segment	Server	Server
Launch price (MSRP)		$397
Price now		$159
Processor Number		E5-2690
Status		Discontinued
Value for money (0-100)		25.42
Performance
64 bit support
Base frequency	2.1 GHz	2.90 GHz
Die size	192 mm	435 mm
L1 cache	96 KB (per core)	64 KB (per core)
L2 cache	512 KB (per core)	256 KB (per core)
L3 cache	32 MB	20480 KB (shared)
Manufacturing process technology	14 nm	32 nm
Maximum frequency	2.9 GHz	3.80 GHz
Number of cores	8	8
Number of threads	16	16
Transistor count	4800 million	2270 million
Unlocked
Bus Speed		8 GT/s QPI
Maximum core temperature		72.0 °C
Number of QPI Links		2
VID voltage range		0.60V-1.35V
Memory
Max memory channels	8	4
Maximum memory bandwidth	307 GB/s	51.2 GB/s
Supported memory frequency	2400 MHz
Supported memory types	DDR4	DDR3 800/1066/1333/1600
ECC memory support
Maximum memory size		384 GB
Compatibility
Max number of CPUs in a configuration	2	2
Socket Count	1P/2P
Sockets supported	TR4	FCLGA2011
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	120 Watt	135 Watt
Low Halogen Options Available
Package Size		52.5mm x 45.0 mm
Peripherals
PCI Express revision	x128	3.0
Max number of PCIe lanes		40
Scalability		2S Only
Virtualization
AMD Virtualization (AMD-V™)
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)
Intel® VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT)
Security & Reliability
Execute Disable Bit (EDB)
Intel® Identity Protection technology
Intel® Trusted Execution technology (TXT)
Advanced Technologies
Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® technology
Idle States
Instruction set extensions		Intel® AVX
Intel 64
Intel® Advanced Vector Extensions (AVX)
Intel® AES New Instructions
Intel® Demand Based Switching
Intel® Flex Memory Access
Intel® Hyper-Threading technology
Intel® Turbo Boost technology
Intel® vPro™ Platform Eligibility
Thermal Monitoring