AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3990X CPU Outperforms Xeon Platinum CPUs

Brand new benchmarks for the AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3990X CPU have appeared which showcase the HEDT chip performance and it looks more impressive than we initially expected. 

According to the benchmarks, the HEDT chip is capable of outperforming Intel’s top of the range Xeon Scalable Cascade Lake processors. The benchmarks are from the SiSoftware database.

A Reminder Of What The Ryzen 3990X Will Look Like

AMD’s Ryzen Threadripper 3990X is the flagship HEDT processor for this year and offers a huge 64 Zen 2 cores and 128 threads. While competition at this range is sparse, it does provide an answer to Intel’s Xeon Scalable parts which are aimed at the datacentre and HPC market. 

AMD confirms that the processor will feature 288 MB of total cache, a TDP of 280W and lots of PCIe Generation 4 lanes. These specifications mean that the Ryzen Threadripper 3990X has a base clock of 2.90 GHz and a single-core boost clock of 4.3 GHz. 

Testing Against The Xeon Platinum 8280

The latest benchmarks show the chip scoring an impressive 1786.22 GOPS which surpasses the dual Xeon Platinum 8280 which typically only reaches 17.8% on average. 

Other figures previously showcased by AMD put the Ryzen Threadripper 3990X’s performance as surpassing the dual Xeon setup by up to 30%. 

While the Xeon Platinum 8280 only has 28 cores and 56 threads layout, making the total 56 cores and 112 threads, the chips are worth $10,000 each. This is a huge price compared to the Ryzen Threadripper 3990X which is expected to retail at $4,000. 

Intel’s Response To The Threadrippper 3990X

Given that the Ryzen Threadripper 3990X appears to be offering better performance AND price, it’s hard to see how Intel will continue to hold onto that section of the market. 

Rumors also suggest that Intel has delayed the Cooper Lake and Ice Lake Xeon processors by a few months, possibly looking to revisit the pricing of Intel CPUs in the second half of 2020. 

For now, we can simply marvel at AMD’s Ryzen 3990X while we wait to see how Intel will respond. It’ll be an interesting battle between the two brands this year by the looks of it.