AMD EPYC 9335 vs Intel Xeon 6980P Comparison

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The benchmark data presents a fascinating split between these two server processors. The Intel Xeon 6980P dominates the multi-threaded and compute-heavy workloads, while the AMD EPYC 9335 claims a decisive victory in single-threaded performance. The head-to-head results show Intel winning 9 of 11 benchmark categories, with AMD taking the remaining 2.

The largest margin of victory for Intel comes in floating point math, where the Xeon 6980P scores 501720 against the EPYC 9335's 228123, a 119.9% advantage. This is the single biggest performance gap in the entire comparison. Extended instructions tell a similar story, with Intel leading 214794 to 105706, a 103.2% difference. Random string sorting also shows Intel more than doubling AMD's score, 240792 versus 116608, a 106.5% gap.

Data compression and encryption workloads follow the same pattern. The Xeon 6980P achieves 2364519 in data compression compared to 1203096 for the EPYC 9335, a 96.5% lead. In data encryption, Intel scores 125246 against 63159, a 98.3% advantage. These results suggest that Intel's massive core count provides substantial throughput advantages in workloads that scale with parallel execution.

Integer math performance favors Intel as well, with a score of 637476 versus 346291, an 84.1% difference. The physics benchmark shows Intel ahead by 75.9%, scoring 3350 compared to 1905. Prime number finding reveals a 63.2% advantage for Intel, 555 versus 340. Even in the multithreaded PassMark benchmark, which is the closest contest, Intel maintains a lead of 12.9%, scoring 74324 against 65811.

The AMD EPYC 9335's sole victory comes in single-threaded performance. The AMD processor scores 2732 in PassMark single-thread tests, while the Intel Xeon 6980P manages only 1681, giving AMD a 38.5% advantage. This is a substantial margin and indicates that AMD's higher clock speeds, with a boost clock of 4.40 GHz versus 3.90 GHz for Intel, translate directly into faster single-core execution.

The average benchmark scores paint a broader picture. The Intel Xeon 6980P has an average benchmark score of 251516, placing it in the 99th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals include the AMD EPYC 9684X, which trails by 5.8%, and the AMD Ryzen Threadripper 9970X, which is 10.1% behind. The AMD EPYC 9335 also sits in the 99th percentile but with a lower average score of 194228. Its closest competitors are Intel Xeon 6741P, which is 0.3% behind, and Intel Xeon 678X, which trails by 0.4%.

The Verdict

The data paints a clear picture for different deployment scenarios. The Intel Xeon 6980P is the throughput champion, winning 9 of 11 head-to-head benchmarks with margins ranging from 12.9% to 119.9%. Its 128 cores and 256 threads provide massive parallel processing capability that crushes multi-threaded workloads. Organizations running heavily parallel compute tasks, data compression pipelines, encryption workloads, or floating point intensive simulations would see substantial performance gains from the Intel part.

The AMD EPYC 9335 is the single-threaded performance leader, with a 38.5% advantage over Intel in that metric. Its higher clock speeds, 3.00 GHz base and 4.40 GHz boost, deliver superior per-core performance. For workloads that depend on single-threaded responsiveness or where software licensing is based on core count, the AMD processor may be the more practical choice despite its lower aggregate throughput.

The average benchmark scores show a 29.5% gap between the two processors, with Intel at 251516 and AMD at 194228. However, this aggregate number masks the fundamentally different performance profiles. The Intel Xeon 6980P is clearly designed for maximum parallel throughput, while the AMD EPYC 9335 prioritizes per-core speed and efficiency.

Where Each One Wins

The Intel Xeon 6980P wins decisively in any workload that can utilize its 128 cores and 256 threads. Data compression scores show a 96.5% advantage, making it the obvious choice for storage systems, backup solutions, and database operations that involve heavy data movement. Encryption workloads benefit from a 98.3% lead, which matters for secure communications, VPN gateways, and data-at-rest protection.

Floating point math is Intel's strongest category at 119.9% ahead, suggesting applications in scientific computing, financial modeling, and engineering simulation would see dramatic improvements. Extended instructions show a 103.2% advantage, which could benefit workloads using vectorized code paths. Random string sorting at 106.5% ahead indicates advantages in data processing, log analysis, and text manipulation tasks.

The AMD EPYC 9335 wins in single-threaded performance with a 38.5% margin. This translates to advantages in legacy applications that cannot scale across many cores, database queries that are latency-sensitive, and workloads where per-core licensing costs dominate. The higher boost clock of 4.40 GHz provides responsiveness that the Intel part cannot match.

The multithreaded benchmark, where Intel leads by only 12.9%, is worth noting. Despite having four times the cores and threads, Intel's advantage here is relatively modest compared to its other wins. This suggests that the AMD EPYC 9335 scales efficiently across its 32 cores, and the gap between the two is smaller than the raw core count difference would imply.

FAQ

Q: Which processor has more cores and threads?

A: The Intel Xeon 6980P has 128 cores and 256 threads, four times the core count of the AMD EPYC 9335, which has 32 cores and 64 threads.

Q: What clock speeds does each processor offer?

A: The Intel Xeon 6980P has a base clock of 2.00 GHz and a boost clock of 3.0 GHz. The AMD EPYC 9335 has a base clock of 3.00 GHz and a boost clock of 4.40 GHz.

Q: How much cache does each processor have?

A: The Intel Xeon 6980P has 112 KB of L1 cache per core, 2 MB of L2 cache per core, and 504 MB of shared L3 cache. The AMD EPYC 9335 has 80 KB of L1 cache per core, 1 MB of L2 cache per core, and 128 MB of shared L3 cache.

Q: What is the memory bandwidth for each processor?

A: The Intel Xeon 6980P has a memory bandwidth of 614.4 GB/s over a twelve-channel DDR5 bus. The AMD EPYC 9335 has a memory bandwidth of 576.0 GB/s over a twelve-channel DDR5 bus. Both support ECC memory support.

Q: Which processor has higher single-threaded performance?

A: The AMD EPYC 9335 scores 2732 in PassMark single-thread tests, 38.5% higher than the Intel Xeon 6980P score of 1681.

Q: What is the production status and market segment for these processors?

A: Both the Intel Xeon 6980P and AMD EPYC 9335 are designated for the Server/Workstation market segment, and both are listed as Active in production.

Architecture Differences

The two processors come from fundamentally different design philosophies. The Intel Xeon 6980P uses the Granite Rapids architecture built on a 5 nm process at Intel's own foundry, with a die size of 3x 598 mm². The AMD EPYC 9335 uses the Zen 5 architecture codenamed Turin on a 4 nm process from TSMC, with transistors totaling 33,260 million across 4x 076 mm² die. The Intel part has no transistor count data listed, but its L3 cache is substantially larger at 504 MB shared, compared to 128 MB shared for the AMD part.

The Intel Xeon 6980P also has a larger per-core cache configuration with 112 KB L1 per core and 2 MB L2 per core. The AMD EPYC 9335 has 80 KB L1 per core and 1 MB L2 per core. Both architectures support DDR5 memory, with Intel using a twelve-channel memory bus for 614.4 GB/s bandwidth and AMD using twelve channels for 576.0 GB/s. Both support ECC memory.

The AMD EPYC 9335 belongs to the EPYC 9005 series, part of the Zen 5 Turin generation, and its process node is 4 nm from TSMC with 33,260 million transistors spread across 4x 70.6 mm² die size. The Intel part has a socket 7529 socket, while the AMD part uses a Socket SP5. The AMD EPYC 9335 has a higher base clock of 3.00 GHz and 4.40 GHz boost compared to Intel 2.40 GHz base and 3.0 GHz boost.

Specification Differences

The two processors differ in nearly every specification field. In terms of cores, the Intel Xeon 6980P has 128 cores and 256 threads, while the AMD EPYC 9335 has 32 cores and 64 threads. The base clock differs, with Intel at 2.00 GHz and AMD at 3.00 GHz, and the boost clock differs, with Intel at 3.90 GHz and AMD at 4.40 GHz. The TDP is 500 for Intel and 210 for AMD.

The socket designs are distinct: Intel uses Socket 7529, while AMD uses Socket SP5. The architecture differs entirely: the Intel is Granite Rapids, while the AMD is Zen 5 codenamed Turin. The process node is 5 nm for Intel and 4 nm for AMD. The Intel part has no transistor count listed, while the AMD has 33,260 million transistors. The die size is 3x 598 mm² for Intel and 4x 70.6 mm² for AMD.

Cache configuration differs across all levels. Intel has 112 KB L1 per core, 2 MB L2 per core, and 504 MB L3 shared. AMD has 80 KB L1 per core, 1 MB L2 per core, and 128 MB L3 shared. Memory bandwidth is higher for Intel at 614.4 GB/s versus 576.0 GB/s for AMD. PCIe lanes differ: Intel has Gen 5, 96 lanes, while AMD has Gen 5, 128 lanes.

The release dates differ, with Intel launching on 2024-09-23 and AMD on 2024-10-09. The launch MSRP for the Intel Xeon 6980P is $12460, and for the AMD EPYC 9335 is $3178. Both have integrated graphics listed as N/A. The part numbers are SRPL2Q5SM for Intel and 100-000001149 for AMD. Neither processor has an unlocked multiplier.