Intel Xeon Gold 6242 vs AMD EPYC 7401

Comparative analysis of Intel Xeon Gold 6242 and AMD EPYC 7401 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.

Intel Xeon Gold 6242

AMD EPYC 7401

Differences

Reasons to consider the Intel Xeon Gold 6242

CPU is newer: launch date 1 year(s) 10 month(s) later
Around 30% higher clock speed: 3.90 GHz vs 3 GHz
Around 33% more L2 cache; more data can be stored in the L2 cache for quick access later
Around 13% lower typical power consumption: 150 Watt vs 155/170 Watt
Around 18% better performance in PassMark - Single thread mark: 2184 vs 1850

Specifications (specs)
Launch date	2 April 2019 vs June 2017
Maximum frequency	3.90 GHz vs 3 GHz
L2 cache	16 MB vs 512 KB (per core)
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	150 Watt vs 155/170 Watt
Benchmarks
PassMark - Single thread mark	2184 vs 1850

Reasons to consider the AMD EPYC 7401

Processor is unlocked, an unlocked multiplier allows for easier overclocking
8 more cores, run more applications at once: 24 vs 16
16 more threads: 48 vs 32
2.3x more L1 cache, more data can be stored in the L1 cache for quick access later
2.9x more L3 cache, more data can be stored in the L3 cache for quick access later
Around 35% better performance in PassMark - CPU mark: 55280 vs 40853

Specifications (specs)
Unlocked	Unlocked vs Locked
Number of cores	24 vs 16
Number of threads	48 vs 32
L1 cache	96 KB (per core) vs 1 MB
L3 cache	64 MB vs 22 MB
Benchmarks
PassMark - CPU mark	55280 vs 40853

Compare benchmarks

CPU 1: Intel Xeon Gold 6242
CPU 2: AMD EPYC 7401

PassMark - Single thread mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

2184

1850

PassMark - CPU mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

40853

55280

Name	Intel Xeon Gold 6242	AMD EPYC 7401
PassMark - Single thread mark	2184	1850
PassMark - CPU mark	40853	55280
Geekbench 4 - Single Core		3541
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core		24681

Compare specifications (specs)

	Intel Xeon Gold 6242	AMD EPYC 7401
Essentials
Architecture codename	Cascade Lake	Zen
Family	Xeon Gold	AMD EPYC
Launch date	2 April 2019	June 2017
Launch price (MSRP)	$2529
Place in performance rating	552	124
Processor Number	6242
Series	6200	AMD EPYC 7000 Series
Vertical segment	Server	Server
Performance
64 bit support
Base frequency	2.80 GHz	2 GHz
L1 cache	1 MB	96 KB (per core)
L2 cache	16 MB	512 KB (per core)
L3 cache	22 MB	64 MB
Manufacturing process technology	14 nm	14 nm
Maximum case temperature (TCase)	85 °C
Maximum frequency	3.90 GHz	3 GHz
Number of cores	16	24
Number of QPI Links	3
Number of threads	32	48
Unlocked
Die size		192 mm
Transistor count		4800 million
Memory
ECC memory support
Max memory channels	6	8
Maximum memory bandwidth	131.13 GB/s	307/341 GB/s
Maximum memory size	1 TB
Supported memory frequency	2933 MHz	2400/2666 MHz
Supported memory types	DDR4-2933	DDR4
Compatibility
Sockets supported	FCLGA3647	TR4
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	150 Watt	155/170 Watt
Max number of CPUs in a configuration		2
Socket Count		1P/2P
Peripherals
Max number of PCIe lanes	48
PCI Express revision	3.0	x128
PCIe configurations	1x16, x8, x4
Scalability	4S
Security & Reliability
Execute Disable Bit (EDB)
Intel® Trusted Execution technology (TXT)
Mode-based Execute Control (MBE)
Advanced Technologies
Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® technology
Intel 64
Intel® Advanced Vector Extensions (AVX)
Intel® Advanced Vector Extensions 2 (AVX2)
Intel® AES New Instructions
Intel® Hyper-Threading technology
Intel® Optane™ Memory Supported
Intel® TSX-NI
Intel® Turbo Boost technology
Intel® Volume Management Device (VMD)
Intel® vPro™ Platform Eligibility
Speed Shift technology
Turbo Boost Max 3.0
Virtualization
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d)
Intel® VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT)
AMD Virtualization (AMD-V™)