Should Intel make an unlocked Xeon?

[Nishizumi]

Yes, I know it sounds stupid. But think about it. It would be THE enthusiast chip. It would be what Linus wanted before the 5960X launched, a chip that's unlocked, no TDP limit, water-cooling recommended chip. Any thoughts? Feel free to say absolutely anything.

[Muz]

Xeon's are made for servers, no.

[thekeemo]

Xeons are cheaper because they can't be over clocked...

[Nishizumi]

Xeon's are made for servers, no.

Well, I really meant something like a 18-core Extreme Edition of sorts. Something where you NEED watercooling and where TDP is out the window.

[JebKerman]

Well, I really meant something like a 18-core Extreme Edition of sorts. Something where you NEED watercooling and where TDP is out the window.

that probably exists, but isn't consumer grade.

[Swndlr]

Well, I really meant something like a 18-core Extreme Edition of sorts. Something where you NEED watercooling and where TDP is out the window.

No, because those are only used for servers...

[Virtual01]

That defeats the purpose of the Xeon mang...

 

And nobody would ever need something like that for personal use.

[Firet2000]

Why would you want to overclock a server grade cpu?

[Enderman]

1) an unlocked xeon is called an i7

 

2) tdp does not go out the window, intel specifically engineers xeons to exact specifications because servers need to be made for that exact heat capacity, which is WHY they are locked in the first place

 

3) core speed matters more than having 18 cores, an 18 core extreme edition would be a waste of money

no games can use that many cores, and very few programs can

 

4) if you have $8000 to drop on an 18 core CPU then buy a xeon for whatever you need to render, then buy an i7 for the rest of the stuff you do since the i7 will perform better in all that

[Nishizumi]

Ok, I should really change the name to a high core i7 Extreme Edition rather than an unlocked Xeon because that what I really meant to say.

[TheMechEngineer]

Intel most likely want to keep most processors locked so that they can sell unlocked processors at a premium price.

[dylan43270]

I guess some people don't know the awesomeness that is the X5650. It does seem like it could be possible again since they are unlocking the bclk on Skylake motherboards.

[Geralt]

Aren't Xeons designed for low power? That would defeat the purpose right?

 

There's always the i7 Extreme Edition if you want more cores and overclocking.

[Peter Vaughan Truslow]

Yes, I know it sounds stupid. But think about it. It would be THE enthusiast chip. It would be what Linus wanted before the 5960X launched, a chip that's unlocked, no TDP limit, water-cooling recommended chip. Any thoughts? Feel free to say absolutely anything.

hell no. Xeon is meant to be a server or workstation chip, and making an unlocked chip for a mission critical platform would make no sense, as it would introduce instability.

if you want an unlocked xeon, you get an extreme edition, that's what they're for. the reason the unlocked chips have 8 or fewer cores and the 12+ chips have lower clock speeds, is that a high clocked 16 core chip would quickly exceed 250 watts, which would be very difficult to keep within acceptable temperature ranges on water, and not viable at all on most air coolers.

[Octavialicious]

They did, it was called Westmere

 

 

(not technically unlocked, but with an SR-2 you could OC the hell out of these things)

[Enderman]

Ok, I should really change the name to a high core i7 Extreme Edition rather than an unlocked Xeon because that what I really meant to say.

 that makes more sense

 

but this is the first year, they already increased 6 to 8 cores

people just always want more and more and more

 

and you cant even afford the 5960x, so why should intel make an even more expensive CPU that even less people are going to buy?

 

 

 

wait a few years for software to catch up and actually be able to take advantage of all that power

then maybe a few more people will buy extreme edition CPUs

 

over time the price comes down, like the 4960x was $1k, and now the 5960x is also $1k but with 2 more cores

if intel releases a 10 or 16 or 18 core i7 CPU the price will have to go up to avoid unbalancing the market

but if you wait a few years, they will eventually release that kind of 10+ core CPU at the same price the 5960x is now

 

this is normal product evolution

[MageTank]

Ok, I should really change the name to a high core i7 Extreme Edition rather than an unlocked Xeon because that what I really meant to say.

It would be pointless either way. Very rarely does a program scale with a ton of cores AND high clock speeds. They tend to pick one or the other. Most programs that do scale well with cores, are designed to scale even better using GPU acceleration, which also defeats the purpose of having a ton of those cores. Intel has their chip line-up perfectly designed. You have the H platform for the average consumer. The Z platform for the average gamer. The X platform for the enthusiast/workstation. Then you have the Xeons for the server/business market. Beyond 4 cores, games tend to not care (unless its AC:U), and 8 threads is more than enough for most gamers/streamers. The -E series is the bridge for people that want the best of both worlds. 

 

Having Xeons that powerful would kinda be pointless. Xeons are designed to be ran 24/7, have ECC support, and use as little power as they can, while being a good enough workhorse to get the job done. Making it use more power would only make server farms cost you more money, and require more space to properly dissipate the heat. Not to mention, most companies would be scared to introduce water into their absurdly expensive server configurations. It's just one more unnecessary risk to add to the equation. 

[Emanuel_M]

Yes, I know it sounds stupid. But think about it. It would be THE enthusiast chip. It would be what Linus wanted before the 5960X launched, a chip that's unlocked, no TDP limit, water-cooling recommended chip. Any thoughts? Feel free to say absolutely anything.

dood, xeon are madefor stability becuase the use for those CPUs stability is needed, that's why i7's exist, for overclocking, no1 has a server with consipumer motherboard, and consumer CPU

[sgtheadhole]

If anyone thinks 18 core is pointless for gaming, they have not yet played SPACE ENGINEERS!!!

 

going from a 4.7Ghz FX to the X5650 4.7gHZ 24 TO 60FPS,

%30 cpu usage for the FX, %30 cpu usage for the Xeon 12 Threads @ 4.7ghz

while loading a large map, 100% cpu uage with the Xeon, all 12 threads maxed!

i should mention all 12 threads ingame also are loaded fairly equally

 

Also note, we came from single cores, to average of 8 threads, even 16 threads being not over the top

 

It will continue to rise and high core count wil be the norm, and required by software!

as its the only way to increase performance beyond architecture and clockspeed

[You_are_a_cunt]

They've probably considered it and ended up with the decision to keep the locked setting on them, else they'd have done it already

[SteveGrabowski0]

Sorry man, it would make no sense. Xeons are designed to not use a ton of power for what they are capable of. When running a bunch of servers the power cost is way more important than the cost of the chip itself.

[DunePilot]

They have to keep them locked so people buy the new sockets every time they roll out. Overclockable Xeons are why many gamers and enthusiast are still on X58 LGA 1366 boards, nothing has been too spectacular to make an upgrade worthwhile other than the $1000 5960X, gotta be honest I would love to have one of those.

 

If you already had a 1366 board you could throw the money into a GPU and a $150 used Xeon that was $1800 new and have a very nice system and spend the rest of the money elsewhere. They have to keep people buying the new stuff not waiting on the current Xeons to get recommissioned out of servers and continueing the trend that started with Westmere.

[NumLock21]

Intel did it once a long time ago.

[ChrisCross]

that would be like lenovo doing a thinkpad for gaming. xeon stands for stability they shouldnt be overclockable.

[Sintezza]

Xeon E5´s should not be overclockable simply because they are not ment for that.

Stabillity and reliability 24/7 is where there server grade cpu´s are ment for.

They are work Horses not show Horses.