Details on Intel’s next-generation workstation CPU have emerged thanks to an engineering sample appearing on the OpenBenchmarking database. This CPU is believed to be part of the Xeon family of workstation-focussed processors, and uses the Granite Rapids-WS architecture.
Similar to AMD’s rival Threadripper chips, Xeon processors are not intended for the regular consumer market, as the very high price tag can attest. Xeon chips come in two forms, those designed for high-end workstations, and those intended for server operations. The Granite Rapids-WS chip featured here belongs to the high-end workstation tier, which is aimed at software developers and those involved in professional content creation such as 3D rendering and movie editing.
Intel has yet to release any official information on the new Xeon line up, but an early sighting of a CPU believed to be a Xeon Granite Rapids-WS has enthusiasts talking. This particular chip was designated as an ES ‘Intel 0000’ and features 86 cores and 172 threads, with a clock speeds of 2.1 GHz. These numbers are very similar to those boasted by the older Xeon 6700P line of server-grade chips, though the clock speed is low even by the standards of an early sample.
The data shows that the CPU was tested using a system with 512 GB of DDR5 RAM, an Nvidia GeForce 3090 graphics card and 1TB of storage. This system is referred to as an ‘GWR-WS’ evaluation platform, with the acronym standing for Granite Rapids Workstation. This further suggests this is a sample being appraised by Intel partners.
If these engineering sample figures reflect the intended release model, then AMD’s Threadripper 9000 series will still have an advantage in core count, since those chips can max out at 96. AMD customers can also benefit from Team Red’s habit of keeping CPUs sockets the same across generations, as the Threadripper 9000 can simply act as a drop-in replacement for a Threadripper 7000. By contrast, the Xeon users the new LGA 4710 socket, so those wishing to upgrade would need to shell out for an entirely new motherboard and RAM modules.
