Xeon has S-Spec on Lid, CPUZ Reads it as Engineering Sample?!

[Synnove]

Has anyone ever heard of this happening before?

I recently purchased two Xeon SR1XH (E2683 Haswell-E) chips off ebay, with the seller stating they are brand-new out of the tray. Sure enough, the chips have S-Spec numbers on the lids (as my attached photo shows). However, when I open CPUZ to get information, it shows them as Genuine Intel Engineering Sample.

Have I been conned or some-such thing? How is it possible for the lid to have an SSpec number while the chip reads as an ES?

 

[jpiniero]

eBay is a scammer paradise. You're lucky the chip works.

 

[Synnove]

While that may be true, that still doesnt explain how this combination is possible. I'll speak with Intel tomorrow, and question the seller. Seeing as both chips post and report the proper number of cores, I'm not keen on returning them, but I'll definitely open a dispute so that I may get some money back.

 

[dark zero]

Has anyone ever heard of this happening before?

I recently purchased two Xeon SR1XH (E2683 Haswell-E) chips off ebay, with the seller stating they are brand-new out of the tray. Sure enough, the chips have S-Spec numbers on the lids (as my attached photo shows). However, when I open CPUZ to get information, it shows them as Genuine Intel Engineering Sample.

Have I been conned or some-such thing? How is it possible for the lid to have an SSpec number while the chip reads as an ES?

You should know something... Haswell NEVER did any chip in Costa Rica.
Intel stopped Costa Rica to make chips after Ivy Bridge. They moved the production to Israel (explaining why they lost performance at the beginning)

 

[VirtualLarry]

You should know something... Haswell NEVER did any chip in Costa Rica.
Intel stopped Costa Rica to make chips after Ivy Bridge. They moved the production to Israel (explaining why they lost performance at the beginning)

Insightful, but not quite right. Intel never MADE chips, in Costa Rica, nor Malay(sia). They PACKAGED chips there, that were made elsewhere.

But it would be good to find out around when they closed their Costa Rican chip packaging plant, and when Haswell-E came out. They could be fakes, indeed. All they would need is a laser-etching machine.

Another possibility is less sinister. CPU-Z might just not have been updated.

I don't know, but don't think that the S-SPEC is directly readable by software, other than parsing the family / model numeric codes. Oh yes, the CPUID string. Does that say ES in it? If so, it's an ES. If not, it's an error by CPU-Z, I think.

Edit: This also could have something to do with the mobo, BIOS, and microcode revision levels present.

Edit: Post CPU-Z screenshot, for each CPU.

 

[LTC8K6]

Yes, is the mobo BIOS up to date?

Are you using the latest version of CPU-Z?

How does Intel XTU ID the chip?

 

[Synnove]

I updated the BIOS and the result is still the same. It seems the chip I got is the same as this chip: http://www.ebay.com/itm/121788484667

The CPUID is the same:

So it seems someone in China is counterfeiting SR1XH chips using B0 stepping engineering samples.

Time to open a dispute and get some money back! : D

 

[LTC8K6]

I would inform Intel first, if you are sure.

 

[Burpo]

How is it possible for the lid to have an SSpec number while the chip reads as an ES?

Delidded/relidded with heat spreader from a dead SR1XH?
CPU World shows the chip with 2 ES versions, 1 uses C1 steeping, same as retail..
http://www.cpu-world.com/sspec/SR/SR1XH.html

 

[VirtualLarry]

Delidded/relidded with heat spreader from a dead SR1XH?

Highly unlikely. Aren't those chips soldered? Much easier to just surface-polish the heatspreader, and re-laser-etch new codes on it. Plus, you wouldn't have to source "dead" chips then, which might limit your supply.

 

[Synnove]

Highly unlikely. Aren't those chips soldered? Much easier to just surface-polish the heatspreader, and re-laser-etch new codes on it. Plus, you wouldn't have to source "dead" chips then, which might limit your supply.

Agreed; this particular seller has sold many of them to date, so it'd strike me odd for them to have access to so many dead 2683 chips. I'm going to get in touch with Intel when they open on Monday to report this (hopefully it will lend validity to my chargeback claim).

Here is is further info on this chip from several different system info programs:

So unless this is a crazy fluke on Intel's part (extremely unlikely), I see no other possibility other than these are being re-etched with production numbers.

 

[MongGrel]

It would not surprise me at all.

Would be easy to do.

 

[LTC8K6]

http://www.cpu-world.com/sspec/QE/QEY7.html

QEY7

 

[ViRGE]

Insightful, but not quite right. Intel never MADE chips, in Costa Rica, nor Malay(sia). They PACKAGED chips there, that were made elsewhere.

But it would be good to find out around when they closed their Costa Rican chip packaging plant, and when Haswell-E came out. They could be fakes, indeed. All they would need is a laser-etching machine.

Intel announced the Costa Rica closure in April of 2014.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/04/09/us-intel-costa-rica-idUSBREA371TJ20140409

However that information doesn't include when they actually stopped shipping processors (it likely wasn't immediate) and Haswell-E(x) parts started shipping not long after that. A quick Google search shows Haswell-E 5960X owners reporting chips from Costa Rica, so it's likely that Costa Rica did package Haswell-E chips for a time.

Which doesn't take away from the fact that someone here is running an obvious rebadge operation, just that you won't be able to tell from the use of a Costa Rica marking.

In any case, now I'm curious where someone is getting so many early engineering samples from...

 

[Synnove]

Our suspicions have been confirmed. According to Intel:

"Part of the information on the processor heat spreader is not correct and our system cannot validate it. Even on naked eye it looks suspicious.
I believe someone has altered it so it does not appear an ES."

Thankfully, my card company has agreed to a charge back.

 

[EightySix Four]

Out of curiosity, does Intel take them back?