Xeon E3-1280 v6 vs Pentium Gold 8505

Xeon E3-1280 v6

4 Cores8 Thrd72 WWMax: 4.2 GHz2017

Pentium Gold 8505

5 Cores6 Thrd55 WWMax: 4.4 GHz2022

Performance Spectrum - CPU

Xeon E3-1280 v6

4 / 8

9,093

0.0%

9,167

+0.8%

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 E3-1280 v6 is positioned at rank 477 and the Pentium Gold 8505 is on rank 471, so the Pentium Gold 8505 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 E3-1280 v6

Xeon Platinum 8454H

MSRP: $6540|Avg: N/A

6857%

Xeon Gold 6240R

MSRP: $2444|Avg: N/A

1295%

#10

Xeon 6337P

MSRP: $60|Avg: $5

1150%

#15

EPYC 9174F

MSRP: $194|Avg: $30

889%

#301

EPYC 8324P

MSRP: $1895|Avg: $3598

99%

#302

Xeon Gold 6414U

MSRP: $2296|Avg: $283

99%

#303

Ryzen Threadripper PRO 5975WX

MSRP: $2495|Avg: $2495

99%

#304

EPYC 7352

MSRP: $1350|Avg: $725

99%

#305

Xeon w7-2475X

MSRP: $1789|Avg: $2544

98%

#307

Xeon W-3323

MSRP: $949|Avg: $500

97%

#477

Xeon E3-1280 v6

MSRP: N/A|Avg: N/A

100%

#492

Xeon W-2223

MSRP: $294|Avg: $330

96%

Based on actual market prices and performance synthetic scores.

Performance Per Dollar Pentium Gold 8505

#459

Atom x5-Z8300

MSRP: $20|Avg: N/A

618%

#460

Atom Z3735G

MSRP: $17|Avg: N/A

609%

#461

Core i5-480M

MSRP: $81|Avg: $77

559%

#462

Core i5-460M

MSRP: $80|Avg: $129

556%

#463

Core i5-2540M

MSRP: $266|Avg: $10

551%

#465

Core i5-450M

MSRP: $32|Avg: $31

532%

#466

Core i3-380M

MSRP: $49|Avg: $25

510%

#467

Core i5-430M

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $33

509%

#468

Core 2 Duo T6600

MSRP: N/A|Avg: $4

496%

#471

Pentium Gold 8505

MSRP: N/A|Avg: N/A

100%

#472

Ryzen Embedded R1505G

MSRP: $80|Avg: $80

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 ($0) and a Consumer Desktop CPU. The Xeon E3-1280 v6 is engineered for massive parallel workloads (rendering, scientific simulations), offering significantly higher core counts.

Insight	Xeon E3-1280 v6	Pentium Gold 8505
Gaming	❌ Lower gaming performance	✅ Superior gaming performance
Workstation	❌ Weaker in multi-core tasks	✅ Better multi-core power
Price	Equivalent pricing	Equivalent pricing
Longevity	✨ Modern (Kaby Lake (2016−2019) / 14 nm)	✨ Modern (Legacy / Intel 7 nm)

💎 Value Proposition

The Pentium Gold 8505 ($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 ($0 less, NaN% cheaper), making it the better choice for daily use and gaming.

Insight	Xeon E3-1280 v6	Pentium Gold 8505
Cost Efficiency	❌ Lower cost efficiency	❌ Lower cost efficiency
Upfront Cost	Equivalent pricing	Equivalent pricing

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 E3-1280 v6 Benchmark Check

Pentium Gold 8505 Benchmark Check

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Xeon E3-1280 v6 and Pentium Gold 8505

Xeon E3-1280 v6

The Xeon E3-1280 v6 is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 28 March 2017 (8 years ago). It is based on the Kaby Lake (2016−2019) architecture. It features 4 cores and 8 threads. Base frequency is 3.9 GHz, with boost up to 4.2 GHz. L3 cache: 8 MB. L2 cache: 1 MB. Built on 14 nm process technology. Socket: LGA1151. Thermal design power (TDP): 72 Watt. Memory support: DDR4-2400, DDR3L-1866. Passmark benchmark score: 9,093 points. Launch price was $612.

Pentium Gold 8505

The Pentium Gold 8505 is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 2007-01-01. It features 5 cores and 6 threads. Max frequency: 4.4 GHz. L3 cache: 8 MB Intel® Smart Cache. Built on Intel 7 nm process technology. Socket: FCBGA1744. Thermal design power (TDP): 55 Watt. Memory support: DDR5-4800, DDR4-3200, LPDDR5-5200, LPDDR4x-4267. Passmark benchmark score: 9,167 points. Launch price was $69.

⚡

Processing Power

The Xeon E3-1280 v6 packs 4 cores / 8 threads, while the Pentium Gold 8505 offers 5 cores / 6 threads — the Pentium Gold 8505 has 1 more core. Boost clocks reach 4.2 GHz on the Xeon E3-1280 v6 versus 4.4 GHz on the Pentium Gold 8505 — a 4.7% clock advantage for the Pentium Gold 8505. The Xeon E3-1280 v6 is built on the Kaby Lake (2016−2019) architecture. In PassMark, the Xeon E3-1280 v6 scores 9,093 against the Pentium Gold 8505's 9,167 — a 0.8% lead for the Pentium Gold 8505. L3 cache: 8 MB on the Xeon E3-1280 v6 vs 8 MB Intel® Smart Cache on the Pentium Gold 8505.

Feature	Xeon E3-1280 v6	Pentium Gold 8505
Cores / Threads	4 / 8	5 / 6+25%
Boost Clock	4.2 GHz	4.4 GHz+5%
Base Clock	3.9 GHz	—
L3 Cache	8 MB	8 MB Intel® Smart Cache
L2 Cache	1 MB	—
Process	14 nm	Intel 7 nm-50%
Architecture	Kaby Lake (2016−2019)	—
PassMark	9,093	9,167
Geekbench 6 Single	—	1,550
Geekbench 6 Multi	—	4,055

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Xeon E3-1280 v6 uses the LGA1151 socket (PCIe 3.0), while the Pentium Gold 8505 uses FCBGA1744 (PCIe 4.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard.

Feature	Xeon E3-1280 v6	Pentium Gold 8505
Socket	LGA1151	FCBGA1744
PCIe Generation	PCIe 3.0	PCIe 4.0+33%
Max RAM Speed	—	DDR5-4800
Max RAM Capacity	—	64 GB
RAM Channels	—	2
ECC Support	—	❌
PCIe Lanes	—	20

🔧

Advanced Features

Virtualization: not specified (Xeon E3-1280 v6) / Yes (Pentium Gold 8505). The Pentium Gold 8505 includes integrated graphics (UHD Graphics), while the Xeon E3-1280 v6 requires a dedicated GPU.