Z or X platform — which do I need?
Intel splits its desktop-orientated market into two performance brackets; consumer desktop and high-end desktop (HEDT).
With this segregation also brings two desktop CPU variants designated by -S for the consumer platform and -E for the HEDT platform, with this suffix placed after the microarchitecture name. For example, Kaby Lake-S and Broadwell-E are the two current microarchitectures for the Z and X platforms respectively.
Architecturally, the two platforms are quite different. The X platform is thinly veiled server and workstation technology pushed into a high-performance desktop market segment. This product solution introduces server and workstation-grade technology like high core-count CPUs, currently topped by the Core i7 6950X Extreme Edition featuring 10 cores and 20 threads and starting with the Core i7 6800K featuring six cores and 12 threads. For memory implementation the HEDT X platform features quad channel memory for increased memory bandwidth ideal for the type of heavily multi-threaded workloads destined for the X platform. Additionally, the X platform features a significantly higher quantity of PCI Express resources, with a Core i7 6800K providing 28 lanes while there are 40 lanes available from the Core i7 6850K, 6900K and 6950X processors. This increased PCI Express resource allocation makes the X platform ideal for large 3- and 4-Way GPU configurations.
By contrast, the Z platform provides a consumerorientated platform with CPU offerings bridging from the top of the line Core i7 through the Core range and eventually down to the Pentium and Celeron lines. These steps in segmentation will add or remove features; for example, hyperthreading, core count or cache memory density, depending on the target market. By comparison, Kaby Lake-S features 24 PCI Express lanes and dual channel memory — reduced resources on both fronts compared to the X platform. The Z platform typically supports 2-Way GPU configurations, with a PLX hub chip typically implemented to split physical PCI Express lanes to create a higher count of logical lanes to support the additional PCIe 16x slots for 3-Way or even 4-Way GPU configurations on a Z platform.