Why chose Xeon® E5-2643 over i7-2600K
Why would someone chose a Xeon e5-2643 @ $885 over a i7-2600K @ $300 when the i7 has a higher passmark rating?
Because the Xeon is designed for a server vs the i7 which is designed for desktops and their voltage. The voltage as well as the load of the Xeon will hold up longer in the end. There are also heat issues to consider when you think of Xeons.
ASKER
They are both 95W TDP products? Xeon's run hotter? I still can't see why I'd pay 3x the price for about 2/3rds the passmark performance? I must be really missing something here.. They are both sandybridge processors... I can't see paying $600 for the word XEON..
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"... They are both 95W TDP products? " ==> No, the E5-2643 is a 130w TDP CPU. Interestingly, it's 8-core "big brothers" are lower power units -- the E5-2650 & 2660 are 95W, and the 2670 is 115W.
Also, the PassMark is a lot more than "2/3rds the performance ==> 8271/9073 ~ 92%
You're not just paying for the word "Xeon" :-) I agree that for a desktop system with no more than 16GB of RAM a good 1155 board and a 2600K is a great choice. But for the reasons I noted above, there ARE times when you want to be a more robust system that can handle a lot more memory -- THAT is what you're paying for when you use Xeon-based hardware.
Also, the PassMark is a lot more than "2/3rds the performance ==> 8271/9073 ~ 92%
You're not just paying for the word "Xeon" :-) I agree that for a desktop system with no more than 16GB of RAM a good 1155 board and a 2600K is a great choice. But for the reasons I noted above, there ARE times when you want to be a more robust system that can handle a lot more memory -- THAT is what you're paying for when you use Xeon-based hardware.
ASKER
This all started me thinking when I was looking at a question about an hp workstation in the 2-3K range and when I looked at the build out and started comparing specs I was totally lost at the apparently extremely high price of these workstations, a desktop with much better hardware could be built for $1,500.. Thanks for the enlightenment.