Intel Xeon E5-4603 vs Intel Xeon E3-1270

Comparative analysis of Intel Xeon E5-4603 and Intel Xeon E3-1270 processors for all known characteristics in the following categories: Essentials, Performance, Memory, Compatibility, Peripherals, Security & Reliability, Advanced Technologies, Virtualization, Graphics, Graphics interfaces. 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 E5-4603

Intel Xeon E3-1270

Differences

Reasons to consider the Intel Xeon E5-4603

CPU is newer: launch date 1 year(s) 0 month(s) later
Around 25% more L3 cache; more data can be stored in the L3 cache for quick access later
12x more maximum memory size: 384 GB vs 32 GB
Around 24% better performance in PassMark - CPU mark: 6690 vs 5383

Specifications (specs)
Launch date	May 2012 vs April 2011
L3 cache	10240 KB (shared) vs 8192 KB (shared)
Maximum memory size	384 GB vs 32 GB
Max number of CPUs in a configuration	4 vs 1
Benchmarks
PassMark - CPU mark	6690 vs 5383

Reasons to consider the Intel Xeon E3-1270

Around 90% higher clock speed: 3.80 GHz vs 2 GHz
Around 19% lower typical power consumption: 80 Watt vs 95 Watt
Around 76% better performance in PassMark - Single thread mark: 1751 vs 995

Specifications (specs)
Maximum frequency	3.80 GHz vs 2 GHz
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	80 Watt vs 95 Watt
Benchmarks
PassMark - Single thread mark	1751 vs 995

Compare benchmarks

CPU 1: Intel Xeon E5-4603
CPU 2: Intel Xeon E3-1270

PassMark - Single thread mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

995

1751

PassMark - CPU mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

6690

5383

Name	Intel Xeon E5-4603	Intel Xeon E3-1270
PassMark - Single thread mark	995	1751
PassMark - CPU mark	6690	5383
Geekbench 4 - Single Core		738
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core		2830
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s)		12.187
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s)		79.092
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s)		0.558
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Video Composition (Frames/s)		3.622
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s)		15.794

Compare specifications (specs)

	Intel Xeon E5-4603	Intel Xeon E3-1270
Essentials
Architecture codename	Sandy Bridge EP	Sandy Bridge
Launch date	May 2012	April 2011
Launch price (MSRP)	$712	$369
Place in performance rating	2099	2103
Price now	$1,890.99	$317
Processor Number	E5-4603	E3-1270
Series	Intel® Xeon® Processor E5 Family	Intel® Xeon® Processor E3 Family
Status	Discontinued	Discontinued
Value for money (0-100)	0.78	7.66
Vertical segment	Server	Server
Performance
64 bit support
Base frequency	2.00 GHz	3.40 GHz
Bus Speed	6.4 GT/s QPI	5 GT/s DMI
Die size	294 mm	216 mm
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	64 KB (per core)
L2 cache	256 KB (per core)	256 KB (per core)
L3 cache	10240 KB (shared)	8192 KB (shared)
Manufacturing process technology	32 nm	32 nm
Maximum frequency	2 GHz	3.80 GHz
Number of cores	4	4
Number of QPI Links	2
Number of threads	8	8
Transistor count	1270 million	1160 million
VID voltage range	0.6V-1.35V
Maximum core temperature		69.1°C
Memory
ECC memory support
Max memory channels	4	2
Maximum memory bandwidth	34.1 GB/s	21 GB/s
Maximum memory size	384 GB	32 GB
Supported memory types	DDR3 800/1066	DDR3 1066/1333
Compatibility
Low Halogen Options Available
Max number of CPUs in a configuration	4	1
Package Size	52.5mm x 45.0mm	37.5mm x 37.5mm
Sockets supported	FCLGA2011	LGA1155
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	95 Watt	80 Watt
Peripherals
Max number of PCIe lanes	40	20
PCI Express revision	3.0	2.0
Scalability	4S 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® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, 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
Flexible Display interface (FDI)
Intel® Fast Memory Access
Virtualization
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)
Intel® VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT)
Graphics
Intel® Clear Video HD technology
Intel® Flexible Display Interface (Intel® FDI)
Intel® InTru™ 3D technology
Intel® Quick Sync Video
Graphics interfaces
Wireless Display (WiDi) support