Intel Xeon E5-1660 v2 vs Intel Xeon E5-2603 v2

Comparative analysis of Intel Xeon E5-1660 v2 and Intel Xeon E5-2603 v2 processors for all known characteristics in the following categories: Essentials, Performance, Memory, Compatibility, Peripherals, Security & Reliability, Advanced Technologies, Virtualization. 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).

Intel Xeon E5-1660 v2

Intel Xeon E5-2603 v2

Differences

Reasons to consider the Intel Xeon E5-1660 v2

2 more cores, run more applications at once: 6 vs 4
8 more threads: 12 vs 4
Around 122% higher clock speed: 4.00 GHz vs 1.8 GHz
Around 50% more L1 cache; more data can be stored in the L1 cache for quick access later
Around 50% more L2 cache; more data can be stored in the L2 cache for quick access later
Around 50% more L3 cache; more data can be stored in the L3 cache for quick access later
2.1x better performance in PassMark - Single thread mark: 2101 vs 991
2x better performance in PassMark - CPU mark: 10268 vs 5017

Specifications (specs)
Number of cores	6 vs 4
Number of threads	12 vs 4
Maximum frequency	4.00 GHz vs 1.8 GHz
L1 cache	64 KB (per core) vs 64 KB (per core)
L2 cache	256 KB (per core) vs 256 KB (per core)
L3 cache	15360 KB (shared) vs 10240 KB (shared)
Benchmarks
PassMark - Single thread mark	2101 vs 991
PassMark - CPU mark	10268 vs 5017

Reasons to consider the Intel Xeon E5-2603 v2

Around 1% higher maximum core temperature: 71°C vs 70°C
3x more maximum memory size: 768 GB vs 256 GB
Around 63% lower typical power consumption: 80 Watt vs 130 Watt
2.3x better performance in Geekbench 4 - Single Core: 1865 vs 816
Around 10% better performance in Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core: 5459 vs 4969

Specifications (specs)
Maximum core temperature	71°C vs 70°C
Maximum memory size	768 GB vs 256 GB
Max number of CPUs in a configuration	2 vs 1
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	80 Watt vs 130 Watt
Benchmarks
Geekbench 4 - Single Core	1865 vs 816
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core	5459 vs 4969

Compare benchmarks

CPU 1: Intel Xeon E5-1660 v2
CPU 2: Intel Xeon E5-2603 v2

PassMark - Single thread mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

2101

991

PassMark - CPU mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

10268

5017

Geekbench 4 - Single Core

CPU 1

CPU 2

816

1865

Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core

CPU 1

CPU 2

4969

5459

Name	Intel Xeon E5-1660 v2	Intel Xeon E5-2603 v2
PassMark - Single thread mark	2101	991
PassMark - CPU mark	10268	5017
Geekbench 4 - Single Core	816	1865
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core	4969	5459
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s)	12.593

Compare specifications (specs)

	Intel Xeon E5-1660 v2	Intel Xeon E5-2603 v2
Essentials
Architecture codename	Ivy Bridge EP	Ivy Bridge EP
Launch date	September 2013	September 2013
Launch price (MSRP)	$1,809	$240
Place in performance rating	1527	1519
Price now	$1,808.95	$39.09
Processor Number	E5-1660V2	E5-2603V2
Series	Intel® Xeon® Processor E5 v2 Family	Intel® Xeon® Processor E5 v2 Family
Status	Launched	Launched
Value for money (0-100)	2.23	28.38
Vertical segment	Server	Server
Performance
64 bit support
Base frequency	3.70 GHz	1.80 GHz
Bus Speed	0 GT/s QPI	6.4 GT/s QPI
Die size	160 mm	160 mm
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	64 KB (per core)
L2 cache	256 KB (per core)	256 KB (per core)
L3 cache	15360 KB (shared)	10240 KB (shared)
Manufacturing process technology	22 nm	22 nm
Maximum core temperature	70°C	71°C
Maximum frequency	4.00 GHz	1.8 GHz
Number of cores	6	4
Number of QPI Links	0	2
Number of threads	12	4
Transistor count	1400 million	1400 million
VID voltage range	0.65–1.30V	0.65–1.30V
Memory
ECC memory support
Max memory channels	4	4
Maximum memory bandwidth	59.7 GB/s	42.6 GB/s
Maximum memory size	256 GB	768 GB
Supported memory types	DDR3 800/1066/1333/1600/1866	DDR3 800/1066/1333
Compatibility
Low Halogen Options Available
Max number of CPUs in a configuration	1	2
Package Size	52.5mm x 45.0 mm	52.5mm x 45mm
Sockets supported	FCLGA2011	FCLGA2011
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	130 Watt	80 Watt
Peripherals
Max number of PCIe lanes	40	40
PCI Express revision	3.0	3.0
PCIe configurations	x4, x8, x16	x4, x8, x16
Scalability	1S Only	2S Only
Security & Reliability
Execute Disable Bit (EDB)
Intel® Identity Protection technology
Intel® OS Guard
Intel® Secure Key technology
Intel® Trusted Execution technology (TXT)
Advanced Technologies
Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® technology
Idle States
Instruction set extensions	Intel® AVX	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® TSX-NI
Intel® Turbo Boost technology
Intel® vPro™ Platform Eligibility
Physical Address Extensions (PAE)	46-bit	46-bit
Thermal Monitoring
Virtualization
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)
Intel® VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT)