Xeon E3-1220L vs Turion II Ultra M660

Xeon E3-1220L

2 Cores4 Thrd20 WWMax: 3.4 GHz2011

Turion II Ultra M660

2 Cores2 Thrd2 WWMax: 2.7 GHz2009

Performance Spectrum - CPU

Xeon E3-1220L

2 / 4

2,263

0.0%

2,278

+0.7%

Ryzen Threadripper PRO 7955WX

Ryzen Threadripper 3990X

About PassMark

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 Xeon E3-1220L is positioned at rank 812 and the Turion II Ultra M660 is on rank 220, so the Turion II Ultra M660 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 Xeon E3-1220L

Xeon Platinum 8454H

MSRP: $6540|Avg: N/A

17362%

Xeon Gold 6240R

MSRP: $2444|Avg: N/A

3278%

#10

Xeon 6337P

MSRP: $60|Avg: $5

2912%

#15

EPYC 9174F

MSRP: $194|Avg: $30

2250%

#464

Xeon W-3375

MSRP: $4951|Avg: $6000

100%

#466

Xeon Platinum 8358

MSRP: $4607|Avg: $3145

99%

#467

EPYC 7662

MSRP: $6150|Avg: $1266

98%

#467

EPYC 7713

MSRP: $7060|Avg: $1299

98%

#812

Xeon E3-1220L

MSRP: $189|Avg: $27

100%

#813

Xeon X3450

MSRP: $241|Avg: $39

100%

#817

Xeon W3680

MSRP: $594|Avg: $26

99%

#819

Xeon E5-2640 v3

MSRP: $939|Avg: $189

98%

#824

Xeon E5-1660 v3

MSRP: $1080|Avg: $198

97%

#827

Xeon W3565

MSRP: $294|Avg: $69

96%

Based on actual market prices and performance synthetic scores.

Performance Per Dollar Turion II Ultra M660

#57

Ryzen AI 9 365

MSRP: $400|Avg: $400

99%

#208

Atom x5-Z8300

MSRP: $20|Avg: N/A

386%

#209

Atom Z3735G

MSRP: $17|Avg: N/A

381%

#210

Core i5-480M

MSRP: $81|Avg: $77

350%

#211

Core i5-460M

MSRP: $80|Avg: $129

348%

#212

Core i5-2540M

MSRP: $266|Avg: $10

345%

#214

Core i5-450M

MSRP: $32|Avg: $31

333%

#215

Core i3-380M

MSRP: $49|Avg: $25

319%

#216

Core i5-430M

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $33

319%

#217

Core 2 Duo T6600

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $4

310%

#220

Turion II Ultra M660

MSRP: N/A|Avg: N/A

100%

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 ($27) and a Consumer Desktop CPU. The Xeon E3-1220L is engineered for massive parallel workloads (rendering, scientific simulations), offering significantly higher core counts.

Insight	Xeon E3-1220L	Turion II Ultra M660
Gaming	✅ Superior gaming performance	❌ Lower gaming performance
Workstation	❌ Weaker in multi-core tasks	✅ Better multi-core power
Price	⚠️ Higher cost ($27)	✅ More affordable ($0)
Longevity	🛑 Legacy (Sandy Bridge (2011−2013) / 32 nm)	🛑 Legacy (Caspian (2009) / 45 nm)

💎 Value Proposition

The Turion II Ultra M660 ($0), 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 ($27 less, 100% cheaper), making it the better choice for daily use and gaming.

Insight	Xeon E3-1220L	Turion II Ultra M660
Cost Efficiency	❌ Lower cost efficiency	❌ Lower cost efficiency
Upfront Cost	⚠️ Higher cost ($27)	✅ 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.

Xeon E3-1220L Benchmark Check

Turion II Ultra M660 Benchmark Check

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Xeon E3-1220L and Turion II Ultra M660

Xeon E3-1220L

The Xeon E3-1220L is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 2015-01-01. It is based on the Sandy Bridge (2011−2013) architecture. It features 2 cores and 4 threads. Base frequency is 2.2 GHz, with boost up to 3.4 GHz. L3 cache: 3 MB (total). L2 cache: 256 kB (per core). Built on 32 nm process technology. Socket: LGA1155. Thermal design power (TDP): 20 Watt. Memory support: DDR3. Passmark benchmark score: 2,263 points. Launch price was $800.

Turion II Ultra M660

The Turion II Ultra M660 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 2007-01-01. It is based on the Caspian (2009) architecture. It features 2 cores and 2 threads. Max frequency: 2.7 GHz. L2 cache: 2 MB. Built on 45 nm process technology. Socket: S1g3. Thermal design power (TDP): 2 MB. Memory support: DDR2. Passmark benchmark score: 2,278 points. Launch price was $69.

⚡

Processing Power

The Xeon E3-1220L packs 2 cores / 4 threads, matching the Turion II Ultra M660's 2 cores. Boost clocks reach 3.4 GHz on the Xeon E3-1220L versus 2.7 GHz on the Turion II Ultra M660 — a 23% clock advantage for the Xeon E3-1220L. The Xeon E3-1220L uses the Sandy Bridge (2011−2013) architecture (32 nm), while the Turion II Ultra M660 uses Caspian (2009) (45 nm). In PassMark, the Xeon E3-1220L scores 2,263 against the Turion II Ultra M660's 2,278 — a 0.7% lead for the Turion II Ultra M660.

Feature	Xeon E3-1220L	Turion II Ultra M660
Cores / Threads	2 / 4	2 / 2
Boost Clock	3.4 GHz+26%	2.7 GHz
Base Clock	2.2 GHz	—
L3 Cache	3 MB (total)	—
L2 Cache	256 kB (per core)	2 MB+700%
Process	32 nm-29%	45 nm
Architecture	Sandy Bridge (2011−2013)	Caspian (2009)
PassMark	2,263	2,278

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Xeon E3-1220L uses the LGA1155 socket (PCIe 2.0), while the Turion II Ultra M660 uses S1g3 (PCIe 2.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard.