Ryzen 9950x or Core Ultra 9 285k suitable for workstation tasks
Ryzen 9950x or Core Ultra 9 285k suitable for workstation tasks
Consider the Ryzen 9950x or Intel Core Ultra 9 285k for your virtual server needs. Since you focus on performance, efficiency, and stability, the Ryzen 9950x might offer a better balance for your workload. Let me know if you'd like more details!
9950x would be the better choice, though 7950x might perform slightly worse at a significantly lower cost.
I believe the 285k figure makes more sense. I recently needed to make a similar decision for a Linux workstation. Benchmark results can be misleading; performance varies based on your specific tasks. For code compilation, the 285k performed slightly better in Phoronix tests. When you factor in AVX512 micro-benchmarks, the numbers are close overall. However, the Intel platform offers significant benefits for budget workstations: higher input/output capacity for your money. I purchased an Asus Z890-P WiFi that includes ample PCIe and NVMe ports for my GPU, a budget 10 GbE Intel NIC, and multiple NVMe drives with PCIe lanes. For an AMD setup, you'd need more costly X870E boards, which are about 60% pricier. AMD platforms typically provide a choice between PCIe and NVMe slots, or lack PCIe options altogether. (I suspect this is due to past issues.) Faster memory performance when pushing capacity is another advantage. The Intel platform supports at least 4x DIMMs, while AMD only advertises up to 3600. I bought my machine and MSI confirmed support for 6000 DIMMs on AMD, but reviewers haven't tested that. In theory, more cores can help virtual machines by isolating workloads, though I don’t have solid data to confirm. The SMT limitations are clear: 24 non-SMT threads on a 285k compare to 32 SMT threads on the 9950X. My 2c. PS. My Proxmox server runs a 5950X—both sides of the debate!