Core 2 Duo T5900 vs Xeon L5420

PassMark CPU Mark evaluates processor speed through complex mathematical computations. It provides a reliable metric to compare multi-core performance, where higher scores indicate faster processing for multitasking, gaming, and heavy workloads.

Value Upgrade Path

This is the official ChipVERSUS Value Rating, comparing raw performance (PassMark) per dollar. Components placed above yours deliver better value for money. The Core 2 Duo T5900 is positioned at rank 19 and the Xeon L5420 is on rank 847, so the Core 2 Duo T5900 offers better cost-efficiency for playing games.

MSRP is the manufacturer's suggested retail price.•
Avg price is the current average price collected from markets across the web.

Performance Per Dollar Core 2 Duo T5900

#7

Atom x5-Z8300

MSRP: $20|Avg: N/A

138%

#8

Atom Z3735G

MSRP: $17|Avg: N/A

136%

#9

Core i5-480M

MSRP: $81|Avg: $77

125%

#10

Core i5-460M

MSRP: $80|Avg: $129

124%

#11

Core i5-2540M

MSRP: $266|Avg: $10

123%

#13

Core i5-450M

MSRP: $32|Avg: $31

119%

#14

Core i3-380M

MSRP: $49|Avg: $25

114%

#15

Core i5-430M

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $33

114%

#16

Core 2 Duo T6600

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $4

111%

#19

Core 2 Duo T5900

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $5

100%

#22

Core i3-3130M

MSRP: $225|Avg: N/A

90%

#23

Core 2 Duo T5550

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $5

86%

#24

Core 2 Duo T7100

MSRP: $197|Avg: $15

86%

#27

Pentium 2030M

MSRP: $134|Avg: N/A

82%

#28

Core 2 Duo T5750

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $8

82%

#29

Core 2 Duo T7200

MSRP: $286|Avg: $6

81%

#30

Core i5-3230M

MSRP: $225|Avg: $13

81%

#31

Atom D525

MSRP: $63|Avg: N/A

80%

#32

Atom x7835RE

MSRP: $127|Avg: N/A

80%

#33

Core 2 Duo P8400

MSRP: $209|Avg: $10

78%

Based on actual market prices and performance synthetic scores.

Performance Per Dollar Xeon L5420

#1

Xeon Platinum 8454H

MSRP: $6540|Avg: N/A

19386%

#6

Xeon Gold 6240R

MSRP: $2444|Avg: N/A

3660%

#10

Xeon 6337P

MSRP: $60|Avg: $5

3252%

#15

EPYC 9174F

MSRP: $194|Avg: $30

2512%

#478

EPYC 7702

MSRP: $6450|Avg: $2035

100%

#479

EPYC 7763

MSRP: $7890|Avg: $1513

100%

#480

EPYC 9734

MSRP: $9600|Avg: $6598

99%

#481

Xeon Platinum 8160M

MSRP: $5000|Avg: $350

99%

#482

Xeon 6724P

MSRP: $3622|Avg: $3622

98%

#483

EPYC 9634

MSRP: $10304|Avg: $3949

98%

#484

EPYC 7773X

MSRP: $8800|Avg: $8800

97%

#847

Xeon L5420

MSRP: N/A|Avg: N/A

100%

#852

Xeon E5-2407

MSRP: $250|Avg: $25

99%

#857

Xeon 5120

MSRP: $107|Avg: $15

97%

#859

Xeon W3530

MSRP: $294|Avg: $10

97%

#861

Xeon W3520

MSRP: $284|Avg: $15

97%

#862

Xeon E3-1271 v3

MSRP: $727|Avg: $831

96%

Based on actual market prices and performance synthetic scores.

Performance Comparison

About PassMark

🏆 Chipversus Verdict

🚀 Performance Leadership

Use Case Distinction: This is a comparison between a Professional Workstation processor ($0) and a Consumer Desktop CPU. The Xeon L5420 is engineered for massive parallel workloads (rendering, scientific simulations), offering significantly higher core counts.

Insight	Core 2 Duo T5900	Xeon L5420
Gaming	❌ Lower gaming performance	✅ Superior gaming performance
Workstation	❌ Weaker in multi-core tasks	✅ Better multi-core power
Price	⚠️ Higher cost ($5)	✅ More affordable ($0)
Longevity	🛑 Legacy (Merom (2006−2008) / 65 nm)	🛑 Legacy (Harpertown (2007−2008) / 45 nm)

💎 Value Proposition

The Core 2 Duo T5900 ($5), however, is optimized for mixed workloads and gaming. For most users, it offers superior single-thread performance and responsiveness at a fraction of the cost ($5 less, Infinity% cheaper), making it the better choice for daily use and gaming.

Insight	Core 2 Duo T5900	Xeon L5420
Cost Efficiency	❌ Lower cost efficiency	❌ Lower cost efficiency
Upfront Cost	⚠️ Higher cost ($5)	✅ More affordable ($0)

Performance Check

Paired with RTX 4090

To accurately isolate CPU performance, all benchmarks below use an NVIDIA RTX 4090 as the reference GPU. This eliminates GPU-side bottlenecks and highlights pure processing throughput differences between the CPUs.

Note: Real-world results may vary based on your actual GPU. CPU performance impact is more visible in processing-intensive titles and high-refresh-rate gaming scenarios.

Core 2 Duo T5900 Benchmark Check

Xeon L5420 Benchmark Check

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Core 2 Duo T5900 and Xeon L5420

Core 2 Duo T5900

The Core 2 Duo T5900 is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 2008-01-01. It is based on the Merom (2006−2008) architecture. It features 2 cores and 2 threads. Max frequency: 2.2 GHz. L2 cache: 2 MB. Built on 65 nm process technology. Socket: P. Thermal design power (TDP): 2 MB. Passmark benchmark score: 2,123 points. Launch price was $249.

Xeon L5420

The Xeon L5420 is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 25 March 2008 (17 years ago). It is based on the Harpertown (2007−2008) architecture. It features 4 cores and 4 threads. Base frequency is 2.5 GHz, with boost up to 2.5 GHz. L3 cache: 12 MB L2 Cache. L2 cache: 6 MB (total). Built on 45 nm process technology. Socket: LGA771. Thermal design power (TDP): 50 Watt. Memory support: DDR2, DDR3 Depends on motherboard. Passmark benchmark score: 2,143 points. Launch price was $380.

⚡

Processing Power

The Core 2 Duo T5900 packs 2 cores / 2 threads, while the Xeon L5420 offers 4 cores / 4 threads — the Xeon L5420 has 2 more cores. Boost clocks reach 2.2 GHz on the Core 2 Duo T5900 versus 2.5 GHz on the Xeon L5420 — a 12.8% clock advantage for the Xeon L5420. The Core 2 Duo T5900 uses the Merom (2006−2008) architecture (65 nm), while the Xeon L5420 uses Harpertown (2007−2008) (45 nm). In PassMark, the Core 2 Duo T5900 scores 2,123 against the Xeon L5420's 2,143 — a 0.9% lead for the Xeon L5420.

Feature	Core 2 Duo T5900	Xeon L5420
Cores / Threads	2 / 2	4 / 4+100%
Boost Clock	2.2 GHz	2.5 GHz+14%
Base Clock	—	2.5 GHz
L3 Cache	—	12 MB L2 Cache
L2 Cache	2 MB	6 MB (total)+200%
Process	65 nm	45 nm-31%
Architecture	Merom (2006−2008)	Harpertown (2007−2008)
PassMark	2,123	2,143

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Core 2 Duo T5900 uses the P socket (PCIe 1.1), while the Xeon L5420 uses LGA771 (PCIe 2.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard.