E5-46xx v4 processors work in the Z440, Z640 and Z840 workstations!

[phreich]

Hi,

Just wanted to let y'all know that the e5-46xx v4 processors do work in the z440, z640 and z840 workstations!

HP's documentation only lists the e5-16xx and e5-26xx v3/v4 processors as working in these systems, but I purchased an e5-4655 v4 xeon 8 core (16 with hyperthreading) processor for $49 on Ebay and tried it in my z460, and it works fine.

I discovered these e5-46xx v4 processors exist, and that they fit in the same 2011-3 socket that the e5-16xx v3/v4 and e5-26xx v3/v4 processors do, and found some other threads where folks were wondering whether or not the intel C612 chipset that is used in these systems would support them.

These three "families" of xeon v3 and v4 processors are all related:
. the e5-16xx processors can only work in single processor systems

. the e5-26xx processors can work in single or dual processor systems (like the z460 and z480)

. the e5-46xx processors can work in systems with up to 4 processors.

While the v4 versions of the e5-16xx and e5-26xx processors are still commanding fairly high prices, the e5-46xx v4 processors are selling for significantly lower prices.  I purchased mine for $49.99 on Ebay in late November, 2021.

The reason I wanted to upgrade from the v3 processor I am currently running to a v4 processor was so I could take advantage of the increased ddr4 memory speed the v4 processors can access (up to ddr4 2400), as well as the other improvements made in the v4 processors.

The v3 processors can only access ddr4 memory with up to ddr4 2100 speed.  When I purchased memory for the used barebones z640 I got on Ebay from an e-recycler, I made sure to buy the faster 2400 speed knowing it would work at the slower 2100 speed with the v3 processor, but would also work at it's fastest rated speed once I upgraded to a v4 processor....  (There is no real price difference between the ddr4 memory modules of these speeds in the used server memory market, so it makes sense to get the faster ram.)

I hope this is helpful to folks looking to upgrade one of these workstations.

[DGroves]

one other user previously reported success with the e5-46xx v4 processors

if your apps take advantage of cpu cores then this might be worthwhile, just keep in mind that the frequency of the e5-46xx v4 processors will be quite a bit lower than the v3/v4 e5-2600/1600 cpu's

i also suspect the e5-46xx v3 processors will also work in the z420/620/820 workstations which are only 2.90mhz but are 14/18 core cpu's

one last thing................AVOID ES/QS preproduction cpu's!!!! they may not work correctly in your workstation

[SDH]

Good tips, and I may be posting back in a few weeks on this issue.  That E5-4655 v4 processor is 135W max TDP, with 2 QPI links.  Socket for it is FCLGA2011-3, also used in the ZX40 family of workstations.  The socket for the ZX20 workstations is different, the FCLGA2011.

When I did my research on using the "double-large" heatsink/fan of a Z440 in Z420 and single-processor Z620 builds I found the external socket dimensions for the ZX20 and ZX40 families of workstations were identical.  That bigger 749554-001 heatsink/fan with almost double the cooling capacity fits perfectly for such use and has worked well in all the upgrades I have done with it in ZX20 builds here.  However, I also found that the pinout pattern for the V1/V2 processors used in the ZX20 family is different internally from that for the V3/V4 processors used in the ZX40 family of workstations.

This would imply that any V3/V4 processor could not work in a V1/V2 socket.

Here's some fun numbers including some PassMark scores ... there is no entry available for the E5-4655 v4 but is present for the v3.  You can see what the higher clock speed that the E5-1650 v3 and v4 processors does for the overall "CPU Mark" and "Single Thread" scores... there might be a similar mild degree of improvement extrapolating from the E5-4655 v3 to the v4.  Hard to say:

E5-4655 v3 (2.9GHz) CPU Mark 9377 / Single Thread 1817      135W max TDP

E5-4655 v4 (2.5GHz, not yet in the PassMark listings)                135W max TDP

E5-1650 v3 (3.5GHz) CPU Mark 10381 / Single Thread 2117    140W max TDP

E5-1650 v4 (3.6GHz) CPU Mark 11419 / Single Thread 2392    140W max TDP

The main benefit I see with this discovery is affordability and the number of cores available for multithreaded programs.  It is also a nice example of supply/demand forces on eBay pricing.  I wonder what about the processor allows it to also work in the ZX40 workstations?

[phreich]

A few comments on @DGroves response.

While I agree that the ES (Engineering Sample) processors can be problematic (and they also often have reduced clock speeds), the QS (Qualification Sample) processors are usually identical to the production versions and can be a stable and economical option for those trying to save some money....

Also, these V4 processors (and the V3 too) will NOT work in the z420, z620, and z820 systems as they use a different socket and so are incompatible.  That is also true of the e5-16xx v3 & v4, the e5-26xx v3 & v4 processors. 

The v3 and v4 processors use the Socket 2011-3, where the older v2 processors use the Socket 2011, and they are NOT the same and are incompatible with each other.

Here's an article that discusses the differences:

https://www.anandtech.com/show/7773/intels-three-versions-of-socket-2011-not-compatible

One last comment:

All three families of the v3/v4 processors have higher and lower clock speeds available.  This is true of these e5-46xx processors as well, although the e5-46xx v4 family does max out at 2.6(normal)/3.2(turbo)ghz.  What is typical is that the higher the number of processors on the chip, the lower the clock speed for the same power specification (TDP). 

As the number of processors increase, then either the power/TDP (Thermal Design Power) has to increase to keep the same speed, or the speed has to decrease to keep the same TDP.  Note also that the amount of heat generated also increases as the power consumption increases.