Intel Core 2 Duo E6540 vs Intel Core i7-2600K

Comparative analysis of Intel Core 2 Duo E6540 and Intel Core i7-2600K processors for all known characteristics in the following categories: Essentials, Performance, Compatibility, Security & Reliability, Advanced Technologies, Virtualization, Memory, Graphics, Graphics interfaces, Peripherals. Benchmark processor performance analysis: PassMark - Single thread mark, PassMark - CPU mark, Geekbench 4 - Single Core, Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core, 3DMark Fire Strike - Physics Score, CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Video Composition (Frames/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s).

Intel Core 2 Duo E6540

Intel Core i7-2600K

Differences

Reasons to consider the Intel Core 2 Duo E6540

Around 46% lower typical power consumption: 65 Watt vs 95 Watt

Thermal Design Power (TDP)	65 Watt vs 95 Watt

Reasons to consider the Intel Core i7-2600K

Processor is unlocked, an unlocked multiplier allows for easier overclocking
2 more cores, run more applications at once: 4 vs 2
Around 1% higher maximum core temperature: 72.6°C vs 72°C
A newer manufacturing process allows for a more powerful, yet cooler running processor: 32 nm vs 65 nm
Around 80% better performance in PassMark - Single thread mark: 1744 vs 969
6.8x better performance in PassMark - CPU mark: 5484 vs 808

Specifications (specs)
Unlocked	Unlocked vs Locked
Number of cores	4 vs 2
Maximum core temperature	72.6°C vs 72°C
Manufacturing process technology	32 nm vs 65 nm
Benchmarks
PassMark - Single thread mark	1744 vs 969
PassMark - CPU mark	5484 vs 808

Compare benchmarks

CPU 1: Intel Core 2 Duo E6540
CPU 2: Intel Core i7-2600K

PassMark - Single thread mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

969

1744

PassMark - CPU mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

808

5484

Name	Intel Core 2 Duo E6540	Intel Core i7-2600K
PassMark - Single thread mark	969	1744
PassMark - CPU mark	808	5484
Geekbench 4 - Single Core		811
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core		3117
3DMark Fire Strike - Physics Score		1845
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s)		4.524
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s)		77.745
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s)		0.602
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Video Composition (Frames/s)		2.129
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s)		5.018

Compare specifications (specs)

	Intel Core 2 Duo E6540	Intel Core i7-2600K
Essentials
Architecture codename	Conroe	Sandy Bridge
Launch date	Q3'07	3 January 2011
Place in performance rating	2321	2315
Processor Number	E6540	i7-2600K
Series	Legacy Intel® Core™ Processors	Legacy Intel® Core™ Processors
Status	Discontinued	Discontinued
Vertical segment	Desktop	Desktop
Launch price (MSRP)		$317
Price now		$189.99
Value for money (0-100)		13.10
Performance
64 bit support
Base frequency	2.33 GHz	3.40 GHz
Bus Speed	1333 MHz FSB	5 GT/s DMI
Die size	143 mm2	216 mm
Manufacturing process technology	65 nm	32 nm
Maximum core temperature	72°C	72.6°C
Number of cores	2	4
Transistor count	291 million	995 Million
VID voltage range	0.8500V-1.5V
L1 cache		64 KB (per core)
L2 cache		1024 KB
L3 cache		8192 KB
Maximum frequency		3.80 GHz
Number of threads		8
Unlocked
Compatibility
Low Halogen Options Available
Package Size	37.5mm x 37.5mm	37.5mm x 37.5mm
Sockets supported	PLGA775	LGA1155
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	65 Watt	95 Watt
Max number of CPUs in a configuration		1
Security & Reliability
Execute Disable Bit (EDB)
Intel® Trusted Execution technology (TXT)
Intel® Identity Protection technology
Advanced Technologies
Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® technology
FSB parity
Idle States
Intel 64
Intel® AES New Instructions
Intel® Demand Based Switching
Intel® Hyper-Threading technology
Intel® Turbo Boost technology
Thermal Monitoring
Flexible Display interface (FDI)
Instruction set extensions		Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX
Intel® Advanced Vector Extensions (AVX)
Intel® Fast Memory Access
Intel® Flex Memory Access
Intel® vPro™ Platform Eligibility
Virtualization
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)
Intel® VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT)
Memory
Max memory channels		2
Maximum memory bandwidth		21 GB/s
Maximum memory size		32 GB
Supported memory types		DDR3 1066/1333
Graphics
Device ID		0x112
Graphics base frequency		850 MHz
Graphics max dynamic frequency		1.35 GHz
Graphics max frequency		1.35 GHz
Intel® Clear Video HD technology
Intel® Flexible Display Interface (Intel® FDI)
Intel® InTru™ 3D technology
Intel® Quick Sync Video
Processor graphics		Intel® HD Graphics 3000
Graphics interfaces
Number of displays supported		2
Wireless Display (WiDi) support
Peripherals
Max number of PCIe lanes		16
PCI Express revision		2.0