Intel to Introduce Quad-Core Xeon MP Chips Next Week – Report

by Anton Shilov
08/28/2007 | 10:52 PM

Intel Corp. plans to leave its smaller rival Advanced Micro Devices behind by days after introducing its quad-core Intel Xeon MP microprocessors next week. In addition to the new microprocessors earlier code-named Tigerton, the world’s largest chipmaker is expected to roll-out a new platform code-named Caneland, which is projected to be more efficient compared to the existing one.

A news-story at Cnet News.com web-site claims that Intel will introduce the new Intel Xeon MP microprocessors lineup next week, days before AMD officially launches its quad-core AMD Opteron processors code-named Barcelona on the 10^th of September. It is not revealed when exactly the new microprocessors designed to work inside servers with four or more physical chips, but in the last couple of years Intel updated its multi-processor (MP) server lineups on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, therefore, Intel will be less than a week ahead of AMD with its quad-core MP server product.

Earlier it was reported that the new Intel Xeon MP lineup will consist of eight microprocessors based on Intel’s latest Core 2 micro-architecture: six Tigerton QC chips and two Tigerton DC processors with four and two processing engines, respectively. The new chips will use 1066MHz quad-pumped bus and will also lower power consumption of Intel Xeon MP chips to the range between 50W and 130W. The products are set for September introduction, some sources indicated.

Five out of eight processors – models X7350 (quad-core, 2.93GHz), L7345 (quad-core, 1.86GHz), L7340 (quad-core, 2.40GHz), L7220 (dual-core, 2.13GHz) and L7210 (dual-core, 2.40GHz) – will have 8MB of cache, two – models L7320 (quad-core, 2.13GHz) and L7310 (quad-core, 1.60GHz) – will have 4MB of cache and one processor – L7330 (quad-core, 2.40GHz) – will have 6MB of cache.

The new Xeon MP processors will be priced from $856 to $2301.

But as the transition to the Core 2 micro-architecture was pretty smooth for other families of Intel’s products, in the MP server space the transition for the new micro-architecture will be complicated by co-transition to a new platform code-named Caneland, which features four independent processor system busses instead of two found on the current MP server platform from Intel. Nevertheless, after accounting for about 13% of Intel Xeon MP shipments in Q3 2007, the share code-named Tigerton processors will grow to 80% of Intel’s MP chip supplies in Q1 2008.

Intel did not comment on the news-story.