HPE Compute XD690 vs Lenovo SR650 V4
A specification-by-specification comparison of the HPE Compute XD690 and the Lenovo ThinkSystem SR650 V4, built from HPE’s and Lenovo’s own documents. None of the headline measures favour the Compute XD690; 6 favour the SR650 V4, and 1 processors appear in both lists.
Bottom line. SR650 V4 leads on virtualisation, databases and in-memory work, storage density, AI and acceleration, network throughput. Neither vendor publishes benchmarks for these machines, so every call here is made on what their documents state.
The measures that decide it
Each row is a figure both vendors publish. Bars show the split between the two; a badge marks the larger figure, which is not always the better buy — a shallower chassis or a lower power ceiling can matter more.
Which one, and why
Drawn from the measures above and each model’s own data sheet. Neither vendor publishes benchmark results for these servers, so nothing here claims one is “faster”.
Choose the Compute XD690 if…
- Eight NVIDIA Blackwell Ultra GPUs on an HGX B300 board in a chassis designed for air-cooled infrastructure, with ARCS or a rear door heat exchanger as options.
Choose the SR650 V4 if…
- Cores, fully populated: 172 against 128 on the Compute XD690
- Memory ceiling: 8 TB against 3 TB on the Compute XD690
- Drive bays: 40 against 8 on the Compute XD690
- Up to 36 NVMe drives — 24 front, 8 mid and 4 rear — connect straight to the processors on a full x4 link each, so an all-flash build needs no retimer adapters.
Where each one pulls ahead
Calls made on documented capacity only — cores, memory, bays, accelerators and network options — with the figures behind each one shown.
Side by side, differences first
Everything both documents state, grouped. The default view hides rows where the two machines are identical.
Processors
Every processor each vendor lists for the model, from its own document.
| Specification | Compute XD690 | SR650 V4 |
|---|---|---|
| Processors listed | 2 | 27 |
| Most cores per processor | 64 | 86 |
| Single-processor option | No | Yes |
Memory
| Specification | Compute XD690 | SR650 V4 |
|---|---|---|
| Largest module listed | 96 GB | 256 GB |
| Fastest rated speed | 6,400 MT/s | 8,000 MT/s |
| Memory types | RDIMM DDR5-6400 | RDIMM DDR5-6400 · 3DS RDIMM DDR5-6400 · MRDIMM DDR5-8000 (8800 rated) · CXL 2.0 E3.S 2T memory modules |
Storage
Bay counts are the maximum each document states, including rear and mid-chassis positions.
| Specification | Compute XD690 | SR650 V4 |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum bays | 8 | 40 |
| Documented layouts | 1 | 16 |
| Bay sizes | E3.S | 3.5-inch · 2.5-inch · E3.S |
| Boot devices | HPE Compute XD 1.92 TB NVMe Read Intensive M.2 2280 SSD (S6V50A), up to 2 on a single carrier card (the document does not explicitly label it a boot device) | Internal M.2 RAID B550i-2i SATA/NVMe Enablement Kit (2 x M.2 NVMe, integrated Broadcom RAID) · Internal M.2 RAID B545i-2i SATA/NVMe Adapter (2 x M.2 SATA/NVMe, integrated Broadcom RAID) · Internal M.2 B350i-2i NVMe Enablement Kit (2 x M.2 NVMe x2, VROC RAID) + 4 more |
| Storage controllers | 0 | 24 |
Accelerators & I/O
| Specification | Compute XD690 | SR650 V4 |
|---|---|---|
| Accelerators supported | Up to 8 | Up to 10 |
| Double-wide cards listed | 0 | 2 |
| OCP slots | 0 | 2 |
| PCIe network slots | 2 | 10 |
| Network cards listed | 5 | 31 |
Power & platform
| Specification | Compute XD690 | SR650 V4 |
|---|---|---|
| Power-supply options | 1 | 14 |
| Output range | 3,200–3,200 W | 800–3,200 W |
| Input types | AC | AC · 277 VAC / HVDC · −48 V DC |
| Management | HPE Compute XD690 Baseboard Management Controller | XClarity Controller 3 |
| Chassis depthVendors measure depth differently — see each data sheet | 800 mm (31.5 in) deep | 796 mm |
Processors, memory, bays and power
The same charts each data sheet carries, drawn to the same scale so the two ranges can be read against each other.
Compute XD690: processors by cores and TDP
SR650 V4: processors by cores and TDP
Compute XD690: memory with every slot filled
SR650 V4: memory with every slot filled
Compute XD690: drive bays
Front panel
8 × EDSFF NVMe at the front — 8 bays in total.
SR650 V4: drive bays
Front panel
12 × 3.5" SAS/SATA at the front — 12 bays in total.
Compute XD690: power supplies
SR650 V4: power supplies
1 processors you can order in either
Both vendor documents list these parts, so a build can be matched across the two and the comparison comes down to the chassis: 1 more are exclusive to the Compute XD690 and 26 to the SR650 V4.
| Processor | Cores | TDP |
|---|---|---|
| Intel Xeon 6767P | 64 | 350 W |
Compute XD690 vs SR650 V4, answered
Is the Compute XD690 or the SR650 V4 the faster server?
Neither document publishes benchmark results, so this page compares what they do state. The Compute XD690 lists 2 processors up to 64 cores at 350 W; the SR650 V4 lists 27 up to 86 cores at 350 W. Fully populated that is 128 cores against 172.
Which holds more memory?
The Compute XD690 has 32 DIMM slots and a stated ceiling of 3 TB practical ceiling. The SR650 V4 has 32 and 8 TB.
Which takes more drives?
Compute XD690: 8 bays across 1 documented layouts. SR650 V4: 40 across 16. Counts include rear and mid-chassis positions where the vendor documents them.
Can either take GPUs?
Compute XD690: up to 8 accelerators, 0 double-wide cards listed. SR650 V4: up to 10, 2 double-wide listed.
Do they share any processors?
Yes — 1 processor appears in both documents, including the Intel Xeon 6767P. That makes a like-for-like build possible on either server.
Where these figures come from. Compute XD690: HPE Compute XD690 QuickSpecs (Version 6 - 06-July-2026) (HPE document). SR650 V4: Lenovo ThinkSystem SR650 V4 Server (September 8, 2026) (Lenovo document). Each claim on this page is derived from those documents, checked page by page on the two data sheets, and carries no pricing.
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