Intel Xeon E5-2650 V2

The Intel Xeon E5-2650 V2 offers 8 cores and 16 threads. Clocks span 2.6GHz base to 3.4GHz boost. It drops into the LGA2011 socket with a 95W TDP — about 11.9W per core. 16MB of L3 cache helps in cache-sensitive games and workloads.

Confirm motherboard socket compatibility before anything else, then size the cooler to the TDP. Expect to pay around $149.95, which lands it among budget options. Use the PlanMyPC system builder to verify it works alongside your other components and to keep a running tally of the cost. Intel backs the product through its standard warranty channels; check the listing for region-specific terms.