Intel has announced the upcoming release of two new desktop workstation processors. The Intel Xeon W-3400 and Intel Xeon W-2400 desktop workstation processors have been code-named Sapphire Rapids.
Performance enhancements
Intel says that the new Xeon W-3400 and Xeon W-2400 processors are designed for professional creators and will “provide massive performance for media and entertainment.” The new processors also have a breakthrough new compute architecture, faster cores and new embedded multi-die interconnect bridge (EMIB) packaging. This enables unprecedented scalability for increased performance.
DDR5 memory
The W-3400 and W-2400 processors have support for up to eight channels of DDR5 RDIMM memory. This means you could have up to four terabytes of memory capacity as well as increased memory bandwidth for large data sets and memory-intensive workloads. In addition, the processors support ECC memory and RAS (reliability, availability and serviceability) technologies to give you improved integrity of critical data and system reliability.
PCIe Gen 5.0
With the Xeon W-3400 processors, you can get up to 112 CPU PCIe Gen 5.0 lanes. You also get up to 64 CPU PCIe Gen 5.0 lanes on Xeon W-2400 processors. This gives you the flexibility to configure multiple GPUs, SSDs and network cards to build the system you need. In addition, the new platform features integrated Intel Wi-Fi 6E for the latest network connectivity.
Xeon w9-3495X
The top-of-the-range processor is the Xeon w9-3495X. It comes with up to 56 cores in a single socket, a redesigned memory controller and a larger L3 cache. All of this means that it delivers up to 28 percent single-thread and up to 120 percent multithread performance improvements over the previous generation of Xeon processors. In addition, operational frequencies up to 4.8 gigahertz with Intel Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 should give you incredible computing performance in your daily workloads.
What we think
The new W-3400 and W-2400 processors are ideal to power a high-performance PC workstation. You can also be confident that your new platform will be stable and ready for future workloads. In addition, the new platform features comprehensive overclocking support for unlocked processors. This includes the first-in-industry DDR5 XMP 3.0 RDIMM memory overclocking features. If you are looking to build a powerful professional workstation then you should consider the new Intel Xeon processors.
Pricing and availability
The Xeon W-3400 and W-2400 workstation processors are available for pre-order now and should start to ship in March. Pricing for the Intel Xeon W Processor family starts at $359 (Xeon w3-2423) and scales up to $5,889 (Xeon w9-3495X).
