Intel Xeon E5-2420 vs Intel Xeon X5660

Comparative analysis of Intel Xeon E5-2420 and Intel Xeon X5660 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), 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 Xeon E5-2420

Intel Xeon X5660

Differences

Reasons to consider the Intel Xeon E5-2420

CPU is newer: launch date 2 year(s) 2 month(s) later
Around 25% more L3 cache; more data can be stored in the L3 cache for quick access later
Around 33% higher maximum memory size: 384 GB vs 288 GB

Launch date	May 2012 vs March 2010
L3 cache	15360 KB (shared) vs 12288 KB (shared)
Maximum memory size	384 GB vs 288 GB

Reasons to consider the Intel Xeon X5660

Around 33% higher clock speed: 3.20 GHz vs 2.40 GHz
Around 22% better performance in PassMark - Single thread mark: 1354 vs 1108
3.4x better performance in PassMark - CPU mark: 10475 vs 3065
Around 19% better performance in Geekbench 4 - Single Core: 542 vs 454
Around 22% better performance in Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core: 3231 vs 2647

Specifications (specs)
Maximum frequency	3.20 GHz vs 2.40 GHz
Benchmarks
PassMark - Single thread mark	1354 vs 1108
PassMark - CPU mark	10475 vs 3065
Geekbench 4 - Single Core	542 vs 454
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core	3231 vs 2647

Compare benchmarks

CPU 1: Intel Xeon E5-2420
CPU 2: Intel Xeon X5660

PassMark - Single thread mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

1108

1354

PassMark - CPU mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

3065

10475

Geekbench 4 - Single Core

CPU 1

CPU 2

454

542

Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core

CPU 1

CPU 2

2647

3231

Name	Intel Xeon E5-2420	Intel Xeon X5660
PassMark - Single thread mark	1108	1354
PassMark - CPU mark	3065	10475
Geekbench 4 - Single Core	454	542
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core	2647	3231
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s)		2.733
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s)		55.088
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s)		0.722
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Video Composition (Frames/s)		1.363
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s)		12.8

Compare specifications (specs)

	Intel Xeon E5-2420	Intel Xeon X5660
Essentials
Architecture codename	Sandy Bridge EN	Westmere EP
Launch date	May 2012	March 2010
Launch price (MSRP)	$390	$33
Place in performance rating	2343	2388
Price now	$390.02	$112.91
Processor Number	E5-2420	X5660
Series	Intel® Xeon® Processor E5 Family	Legacy Intel® Xeon® Processors
Status	Discontinued	Discontinued
Value for money (0-100)	5.32	19.89
Vertical segment	Server	Server
Performance
64 bit support
Base frequency	1.90 GHz	2.80 GHz
Bus Speed	7.2 GT/s QPI	6.4 GT/s QPI
Die size	294 mm	239 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)	12288 KB (shared)
Manufacturing process technology	32 nm	32 nm
Maximum frequency	2.40 GHz	3.20 GHz
Number of cores	6	6
Number of QPI Links	1	2
Number of threads	12	12
Transistor count	1270 million	1170 million
VID voltage range	0.6V-1.35V	0.750V-1.350V
Maximum core temperature		81.3°C
Memory
ECC memory support
Max memory channels	3	3
Maximum memory bandwidth	32 GB/s	32 GB/s
Maximum memory size	384 GB	288 GB
Supported memory types	DDR3 800/1066/1333	DDR3 800/1066/1333
Compatibility
Low Halogen Options Available
Max number of CPUs in a configuration	2	2
Package Size	45mm x 42.5mm	42.5mmX45mm
Sockets supported	FCLGA1356	FCLGA1366
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	95 Watt	95 Watt
Peripherals
Max number of PCIe lanes	24
PCI Express revision	3.0
Scalability	2S Only
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® SSE4.2
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
Thermal Monitoring
Physical Address Extensions (PAE)		40-bit
Virtualization
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)
Intel® VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT)