Xeon E5-2603 v3 vs PRO A12-8870

Xeon E5-2603 v3

6 Cores6 Thrd85 WWMax: 1.6 GHz2014

PRO A12-8870

4 Cores4 Thrd65 WWMax: 4.2 GHz2016

Performance Spectrum - CPU

Xeon E5-2603 v3

6 / 6

3,825

+0.5%

3,805

0.0%

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 E5-2603 v3 is positioned at rank 635 and the PRO A12-8870 is on rank 277, so the PRO A12-8870 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 E5-2603 v3

Xeon Platinum 8454H

MSRP: $6540|Avg: N/A

10864%

Xeon Gold 6240R

MSRP: $2444|Avg: N/A

2051%

#10

Xeon 6337P

MSRP: $60|Avg: $5

1822%

#15

EPYC 9174F

MSRP: $194|Avg: $30

1408%

#380

Xeon Gold 6526Y

MSRP: $2878|Avg: N/A

99%

#382

Xeon Platinum 8352Y

MSRP: $3995|Avg: N/A

98%

#383

EPYC 7551P

MSRP: $2100|Avg: $329

95%

#384

Ryzen Threadripper PRO 7985WX

MSRP: $7349|Avg: $7999

95%

#635

Xeon E5-2603 v3

MSRP: N/A|Avg: N/A

100%

#636

Xeon E5-2680 v2

MSRP: $667|Avg: $462

100%

#640

Xeon W-2104

MSRP: $294|Avg: $309

98%

#643

Xeon E5-2620 v3

MSRP: $417|Avg: $80

97%

#650

Xeon E3-1275L v3

MSRP: $350|Avg: $29

95%

Based on actual market prices and performance synthetic scores.

Performance Per Dollar PRO A12-8870

Ryzen 9 7950X

MSRP: $194|Avg: $20

4096%

Core i9-10900T

MSRP: $120|Avg: $5

3870%

Ryzen 3 PRO 4355GE

MSRP: $423|Avg: $5

2810%

Ryzen Threadripper 3960X

MSRP: $1399|Avg: $85

847%

Ryzen 9 9950X

MSRP: $649|Avg: $129

671%

Ryzen 5 8400F

MSRP: $303|Avg: $55

587%

Ryzen 7 PRO 2700

MSRP: $299|Avg: $60

336%

Ryzen 5 2600X

MSRP: $229|Avg: $55

332%

Ryzen 3 PRO 5350G

MSRP: $150|Avg: $60

302%

#10

Core Ultra 5 245KF

MSRP: $294|Avg: $189

302%

#11

Ryzen 5 5500

MSRP: $159|Avg: $85

299%

#12

Ryzen 5 3600

MSRP: $199|Avg: $80

290%

#13

Core i3-9100E

MSRP: $202|Avg: $30

286%

#14

Core Ultra 5 245K

MSRP: $319|Avg: $200

285%

#15

Core i3-8300T

MSRP: $138|Avg: $25

283%

#261

Core i9-13900

MSRP: $549|Avg: $599

99%

#262

Core i7-11700

MSRP: $323|Avg: $274

99%

#263

Core i9-13900T

MSRP: $549|Avg: $570

99%

#264

Processor 300T

MSRP: $82|Avg: $82

98%

#265

Athlon 3000G

MSRP: $49|Avg: $60

97%

#266

Athlon 220GE

MSRP: $65|Avg: $60

97%

#267

Ryzen 9 3900X

MSRP: $499|Avg: $441

97%

#268

Core i5-10500

MSRP: $200|Avg: $178

96%

#269

Celeron G6900T

MSRP: $42|Avg: $50

96%

#270

Core i9-10850K

MSRP: $453|Avg: $300

96%

#272

Core i9-9820X

MSRP: $889|Avg: $280

96%

#277

PRO A12-8870

MSRP: N/A|Avg: N/A

100%

#282

PRO A12-9800

MSRP: $110|Avg: $55

99%

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 E5-2603 v3 is engineered for massive parallel workloads (rendering, scientific simulations), offering significantly higher core counts.

Insight	Xeon E5-2603 v3	PRO A12-8870
Gaming	❌ Lower gaming performance	✅ Superior gaming performance
Workstation	✅ Better multi-core power	❌ Weaker in multi-core tasks
Price	Equivalent pricing	Equivalent pricing
Longevity	🛑 Legacy (Haswell-EP (2014−2015) / 22 nm)	🛑 Legacy (Carrizo (2015−2018) / 28 nm)

💎 Value Proposition

The PRO A12-8870 ($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 E5-2603 v3	PRO A12-8870
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 E5-2603 v3 Benchmark Check

PRO A12-8870 Benchmark Check

Technical Specifications

Side-by-side comparison of Xeon E5-2603 v3 and PRO A12-8870

Xeon E5-2603 v3

The Xeon E5-2603 v3 is manufactured by Intel. It was released in 2015-01-01. It is based on the Haswell-EP (2014−2015) architecture. It features 6 cores and 6 threads. Base frequency is 1.6 GHz, with boost up to 1.6 GHz. L3 cache: 15 MB (total). L2 cache: 256K (per core). Built on 22 nm process technology. Socket: LGA2011. Thermal design power (TDP): 85 Watt. Memory support: DDR4-1600. Passmark benchmark score: 3,825 points. Launch price was $800.

PRO A12-8870

The PRO A12-8870 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in Outubro 2016 (9 years ago). It is based on the Carrizo (2015−2018) architecture. It features 4 cores and 4 threads. Base frequency is 3.7 GHz, with boost up to 4.2 GHz. L2 cache: 2048 kB. Built on 28 nm process technology. Socket: AM4. Thermal design power (TDP): 65 Watt. Memory support: DDR4-2400. Passmark benchmark score: 3,805 points. Launch price was $69.

⚡

Processing Power

The Xeon E5-2603 v3 packs 6 cores / 6 threads, while the PRO A12-8870 offers 4 cores / 4 threads — the Xeon E5-2603 v3 has 2 more cores. Boost clocks reach 1.6 GHz on the Xeon E5-2603 v3 versus 4.2 GHz on the PRO A12-8870 — a 89.7% clock advantage for the PRO A12-8870 (base: 1.6 GHz vs 3.7 GHz). The Xeon E5-2603 v3 uses the Haswell-EP (2014−2015) architecture (22 nm), while the PRO A12-8870 uses Carrizo (2015−2018) (28 nm). In PassMark, the Xeon E5-2603 v3 scores 3,825 against the PRO A12-8870's 3,805 — a 0.5% lead for the Xeon E5-2603 v3.

Feature	Xeon E5-2603 v3	PRO A12-8870
Cores / Threads	6 / 6+50%	4 / 4
Boost Clock	1.6 GHz	4.2 GHz+163%
Base Clock	1.6 GHz	3.7 GHz+131%
L3 Cache	15 MB (total)	—
L2 Cache	256K (per core)	2048 kB+700%
Process	22 nm-21%	28 nm
Architecture	Haswell-EP (2014−2015)	Carrizo (2015−2018)
PassMark	3,825	3,805

🧠

Memory & Platform

The Xeon E5-2603 v3 uses the LGA2011 socket (PCIe 3.0), while the PRO A12-8870 uses AM4 (PCIe 3.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard.