Amd phenom ii x4 940 black edition socket am2 cpu: Used — Like New: AMD Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition — Phenom II X4 Deneb Quad-Core 3.0 GHz Socket AM2+ 125W Processor — HDZ940XCGIBOX

AMD Phenom II CPU (X4 940 3.0Ghz with Dragon Platform) Review

AMD Phenom II Processor

(X4 940 3.0Ghz)

AMD have finally
released the next generation of Phenom processors, with the
Phenom II
that ups the ante of this powerful series and is now finally available for the
wider community. AMD are also targeting this CPU towards gamers and best
of all, the processors are still quite affordable when compared to
competitor Intel.

For now, AMD are releasing two
Phenom II processors
which include the AMD Phenom II X4 920 (2.8Ghz) and the AMD Phenom II X4
940 (3.0Ghz), both two powerful CPU’s and equally quite affordably
priced. The AMD Phenom II is also a quad
core processor that works in conjunction and independently that when not
used, powers down, ensuring better power utilization though the use of
Hyper Transport technology. If something requires more power, it simply
activates the relevant cores that is ideal for number crunching, photo
manipulation and of course high-end gaming.

The Dragon Platform

With two of the world’s
leading CPU (AMD) and graphic (ATI) card designers now joined, a new
platform for users is available called «Dragon» which provides a linked
solution with the AMD CPU (Phenom II), the AMD mother chipsets (790
Series) plus the ATI/AMD graphics cards (AMD ATI Radeon 4800 Series).
This unity will allow for improved performance under the one banner and
is definitely an interesting premise as it reduces the issues of
compatibility problems. Best of all, it’s quite affordably priced
compared to the competition and in turn very powerful which I’m sure
gamers will embrace.

Although the original
Phenom processors did have some issues, AMD have addressed these issues
and have created an all-round CPU that is ideal for home users,
designers and of course gamers.  

Briefly in terms of changes, AMD have
revised the core architecture of the Phenom II and uses 45nm
architecture (the original Phenom used 65nm) which allows for improved
performance, heat dissipation and higher frequencies but the largest
improvement is the jump from 2MB L3 cache to 6MB.

Also, with the 45nm
architecture incorporated into the Phenom II, it has a peak of 125 Watts
when all four cores of the processor are utilized that is a slight
improvement over the pervious Phenom processors. Needless to say, the
incorporation of 45nm architecture plus 6MB of L3 cache ensures for
higher computing performance without the risk of overheating.

Handling memory by the processor has been dramatically improved with the
Phenom II which means improved bandwidth, faster processing and better
optimization. Cool ‘N’ Quiet returns to the Phenom II with «Cool ‘n’
Quiet 3.0» that assists
in power saving which basically disables certain parts of the CPU when
not in use.

With that said, Cool ‘N’ quiet 3.0 is definitely an interesting feature as
it switches between a variety of MHz frequencies and power voltages,
ensuring some decent power savings. Gamers or those using CPU grunt can
rest assured that this is enabled for gaming or number crunching.

Phenom II Features / Specifications

• Processor Frequency: X4 940 (Black Edition) = 3.0GHz / X4 920 = 2.8GHz

• L1 Cache Sizes: 64K of L1 instruction and 64K of L1 data cache per core
  (512KB total L1 per processor)

• L2 Cache Sizes: 512KB of L2 data cache per core (2MB total L2 per
  processor)
  L3 Cache Size: 6MB (shared)

• Memory Controller Type: Integrated 128-bit wide memory controller *

• Memory Controller Speed: Up to 1. 8GHz with Dual Dynamic Power Management

• Types of Memory Supported: Support for unregistered DIMMs up to PC2 8500
  (DDR2-1066MHz)

• Memory Bandwidth: Up to 17.1GB

• HyperTransport 3.0 Link: One 16-bit/16-bit link @ up to 3.6GHz full
  duplex (1.8GHz x2)

• HyperTransport 3.0 Bandwidth: Up to 14.4GB/s

• Total Processor Bandwidth: Up to 31.5 GB/s total bandwidth

• Packaging: Socket AM2+ 940-pin organic micro pin grid array (micro-PGA)

• Fab location: Fab 36 wafer fabrication facilities in Dresden, Germany

• Process Technology: 45-nanometer DSL SOI (silicon-on-insulator)
  technology

• Approximate Transistor count: ~ 758 million (45nm)

• Approximate Die Size: 258 mm2 (45nm)

• Max Ambient Case Temp: 62 Celsius

• Nominal Voltage: 0. 875 — 1.5 Volts

• Max TDP: 125 Watts
   
  *NOTE: MC configurable for dual 64-bit channels for simultaneous
  read/writes

As you can see from the above specification from
AMD, the Phenom II is no slouch when it comes to design and offers a
variety of powerful features.
The most noticeable changes to the Phenom II processors is the move from
65nm to 45nm which has also increased the transistor count to an insane
758 million and of course the jump from 2MB to 6MB which adds to the
performance of your system.

For users of existing AM2+ motherboards or
Phenom processors, they can easily upgrade their CPU without the need
for purchasing a new and expensive motherboard which is definitely a
powerful edge when compared to Intel. Of course owners of AM2+
motherboards should check with their manufacturers whether the Phenom II
is supported or if a BIOS update will be made available. (A list is
available at the end of this review)

The only real
issues for owners of AM2+ motherboards is that they will need to upgrade
their motherboard if they are to use DD3 memory. Needless to say, AMD
continues its ideology of backward compatibility which in our eyes is a
very powerful feature that Intel do not offer.

 

In order to test AMD’s most powerful CPU, AMD
organized a Phenom II X4
940 Black Edition processor and 
a Gigabyte
GA-MA790GP-DS4H. To complete the Dragon platform, we used a AMD/ATI
Radeon 4870X2 to hear the dragon roar.
Our system also
has 4GB of RAM (Corsair), 500GB SATA Hard Drive and the operating system installed
was Microsoft Vista Ultimate (64-bit) with Service Pack 1. The 4870 X 2 card
also boasted the latest drivers from ATI, ensuring that our system was
up to date.

The first program we used to test the Phenom II was Sisoft SANDRA 2009
which stands for the System ANalyser, Diagnostic and Reporting
Assistant) and is a system diagnostic utility and gives the user
detailed information about their hardware, software and other devices.

It’s definitely one of the preferred benchmarking programs for reviewers
and system testers as it allows the user to test a variety of system
features such as CPU calculations and other memory tests. The best aspect
of SiSoft’s SANDRA 2009 is that it is compliant with the latest
processors and means quad core processors can finally be tested
without any limitations.

As you can see from the below results, the
Phenom II is quite powerful when all cores are in use. The Dhrystone and
Whetstone results are very impressive as this uses the mathematical
calculations of the CPU and shows how powerful it is at crunching
numbers.

Sisoft
Sandra 2009 — Dhrystone ALU (GIPS)

Core i7 920

(70.2)

Amd Phenom II

(49. 1)

Intel Q6600

(39.2)

Sisoft Sandra 2009 —
Whetstone iSSE3 (GFLOPS)

Core i7 920

(63.1)

Amd Phenom II

(50.1)

Intel Q6600

(38.8)

Considering the price between Intel’s Core
i7 920, the Phenom II performed exceptionally well, however where the
CPU did shine is through it’s graphical calculations that of course
makes up the Dragon platform.

Although not the latest version, 3DMark 2006 is still a popular choice
when it comes to benchmarking and testing your system and is designed to
test the DirectX9 performance of your graphics card. A 3DMark score is
an overall measure of your systems 3D gaming capabilities, based on
comprehensive real-time 3D graphics and processor tests. [www.futuremark.com]
Needless to say, the tests speak for themselves and shows that the CPU
functionality, although less than the i7 is still up there with the
greats.

3DMark 2006 (CPU Test)

 

Core i7 920

(4839)

Amd Phenom II

(4199)

Intel Q6600

(3729)

The last of our testing programs was 3DMark Vantage
(the latest version of 3DMark) and another program
from Futuremark that allows users to test the graphical capabilities of
their system. We also set 3DMark Vantage to the default settings and
once again, the results mirrored 3DMark06, indicating a rather powerful
CPU, considering it’s price range and features.

3DMark Vantage — CPU Test

 

Core i7 920

(17021)

Amd Phenom II

(13291)

Intel Q6600

(9012)

Gaming

Where the card did shine was in conjunction
with the «Dragon Platform» that performed almost as good as Intel latest
Core i7 920. With games, the baine of all CPU’s and graphic cards is
still Crysis which was developed by EA Games and follows the story of
aliens, viruses and of course the end of humanity.

Although
Crysis is visually one of the most impressive games on the PC, the
amount of hardware power needed is actually quite ridiculous and as of
yet, I’ve never seen a system run this game flawlessly.

Crysis also
supports the latest DirectX from Microsoft, version 10 and needless to
say, the game performed rather well on the Phenom II, although I was
hoping that the processor would finally blow this game out of the water.
We tested the game on a variety of resolution settings with the
«benchmark cpu timedemo» plus medium to high levels of detail.
The difference between the Core i7 920 was quite minimal. The Phenom II
also beat the Core i7 920 on it’s highest resolution.

Crysis (1024 x 768 resolution, medium
IQ)

 

Core i7 920

(71)

Amd Phenom II

(70)

Intel Q6600

(49)

Crysis (1680×1050, High IQ, DX10)

 

Amd Phenom II

(32)

Core i7 920

(30)

Intel Q6600

(18)

Without getting down to too many
statistics, we tested the game with Brothers in Arms, World of Warcraft,
Call of Duty, Fifa 09 and BioShock and the game had quite similar
results to Crysis, with the CPU giving Intel’s Core i7 920 a real run
for its money, proving that this CPU is definitely a contender for
gaming when hooked up with the Dragon platform.

Overclocking

When it comes to overclocking, the Phenom II
offers a variety of options
for those wishing to push the boundaries of their CPU. The Cool ‘N’
Quiet technology is ideal for overclocking, however I do suggest that
users arrange appropriate cooling for their systems.

Unlike Intel, AMD
have noted that their CPU’s can be overclocked, of course at the users
discretion. By increasing the clock speed and the CPU multiplier,
overclocking is actually quite simple, however you need to find a common
ground to ensure the stability of your system.

In relation to
overlocking, it is advisable to have the Black Edition CPU which does
have the CPU multiplier unlocked and easily allows you to tweak your
processor thanks to the AMD OverDrive Utility. With the right cooling
inside your case and for the CPU, you should be able to push your CPU to
around 3. 6Ghz and with water-cooling based units, this may be even
higher. We did successfully push the CPU to around 3.6Ghz, however this
was with standard cooling only.

Conclusion

In conclusion, AMD have created a worthy successor for the Phenom
processor that continues with backward compatibility and finally breaks
the 3Ghz barrier and offers users a truly sturdy cooling system with the
Cool ‘N’ Quiet technology.

The movie from 65 to 45nm technology is
definitely a impressive improvement over its predecessor that does allow
for more computing power that gamers will appreciate. Matched with the
Dragon platform, this is very workable platform which ensures for a
smoother computing experience that of course is targeted towards gamers.

When compared to Intel’s Core i7, Intel still does have an edge
in terms of standard applications and number crunching, however with
gaming, the Phenom II is a worthy competitor. Cost wise, I would be inclined towards AMD as Intel are notorious for
over pricing their CPU’s when they are first released. Definitely
recommended for gamers or those wishing to upgrade their CPU from
existing AM2 motherboards. Brilliant!

Motherboard compatibility — Source AMD

Below is a short list of motherboards that I recommend you consider
first when testing the Phenom II. These new 45nm CPUs *do* require a
BIOS update to run properly in AM2+ motherboards. So while the
motherboard manufacturers are working on BIOS updates for their
motherboards, I want to ensure you have a short list of known-good
boards. Please note that the Asus motherboard requires that you do NOT
use the in-BIOS flash utility, but rather you must use the provided,
separate AFUDOS flash utility. Failure to do so could result in an
unstable board. Please check AMDs recommended motherboards list after
launch for additional board suggestions (http://products. amd.com/en-us/RecommendedMBFilter.aspx).
Just a reminder that board vendors are continuously updating their
BIOSes, so this list is always in flux and gets updated frequently.

Current motherboard recommendations for Phenom II:

Gigabyte MA790GP DS4H

MSI DKA790GX Platinum

Asus M3A78-T

 

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition for AM3

The Phenom II processor was a step in the right direction for AMD. It generated more performance per clock and allowed for higher frequency chips. Priced aggressively, the Phenom II X4 920 and 940 Black Edition were price-competitive alternatives for Intel’s Core 2 line. AMD had, in essence, caught up. The X4 920 and 940 however are AM2+ processors, and AMD is currently transitioning to the AM3 socket with DDR3 memory support. Today AMD unveils the newest AM3 members of the Phenom II family: The X4 945 matches the X4 920’s 3.0 GHz frequency while the X4 955 Black Edition becomes AMD’s new flagship CPU, clocked at 3. 2 GHz.

Apr. 23, 2009 by Lawrence Lee

Product	AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition AM3 Processor
Manufacturer	AMD
Volume Price	US$245

The release of the Phenom II series of processors was a step in the right direction
for AMD. The new design generated more performance per clock and allowed for
higher frequency chips. Priced aggressively, the Phenom II X4 920 and 940 Black
Edition were economically viable alternatives for Intel’s Core 2 line. It wasn’t
a knockout blow, but AMD had in essence, caught up. The X4 920 and 940 however
are AM2+ processors, and AMD is currently in the middle of a transitioning to
the new AM3 socket with DDR3 memory support. Up to this point their AM3 processors
have lagged behind the X4 940’s 3.0 GHz clock speed.

Today AMD unveils the newest AM3 members of the Phenom II family. The X4 945
matches the X4 920’s 3.0 GHz frequency while the X4 955 Black Edition (with
unlocked multiplier) becomes AMD’s new flagship CPU, clocked at 3.2 GHz.

Our X4 955 Black Edition sample.

The new Phenoms have the same amount of cache and power rating as their AM2+
counterparts, though they are clocked much higher than AMD’s current AM3 lineup.
The X4 955 BE and 945 supplant the X4 940’s top position, and in anticipation
of this release, AMD has dropped the 940’s price making it an extremely attractive
option. The aggressive pricing makes it clear as day that AMD wants to battle
Intel on value.

Model	Freq.	Total L2 Cache	L3 Cache	Socket	TDP	Best Retail	Mfg. Price
Intel Q9650	3.00 GHz	12MB	N/A	LGA775	95W	$322	$316
Intel Q9550	2.83 GHz	12MB	N/A	LGA775	95W	$269	$266
X4 955 BE	3. 20 GHz	2MB	6MB	AM3	125W	TBD	$245
X4 945	3.00 GHz	2MB	6MB	AM3	125W	TBD	$225
Intel Q9400	2. 66 GHz	6MB	N/A	LGA775	95W	$220	$213
X4 940 BE	3.00 GHz	2MB	6MB	AM2+	125W	$169	$195
X4 920	2.80 GHz	2MB	6MB	AM2+	125W	$169	$195
X4 810	2. 60 GHz	2MB	4MB	AM3	95W	$168	$175
X3 720 BE	2.80 GHz	1.5MB	6MB	AM3	95W	$134	$145
X3 710	2.60 GHz	1.5MB	6MB	AM3	95W	$119	$125

The new Phenom II may not be more power efficient, as they retain
the original Phenom II’s thermal design power rating of 125W. This higher power
draw will translate into higher electricity bills, possibly enough to offset
any savings gained by taking advantage of AMD’s tempting prices depending on
the amount of usage. The X4 955 BE’s direct competitor is the 95W Intel Core
2 Quad Q9550, a 2.83 GHz chip priced about $20 higher.

TEST METHODOLOGY

Common Test Platform:

• Zerotherm Zen FZ120
  CPU cooler with Nexus 120mm fan
• Corsair
  XMS3 DHX memory – 2x2GB, DDR3-1600 @ 1333MHz, 9-9-9-24
• Asus EN9400GT Silent Edition
  graphics card – 512MB
• Western Digital VelociRaptor
  hard drive – 300 GB, 10,000 RPM, 16MB cache, SATA
• Seasonic
  SS-400ET ATX power supply
• Microsoft
  Windows Vista SP1 operating system – Home Premium, 32-bit
• nVidia
  Forceware 182.50 graphics driver

Intel CPU/Motherboard:

• Intel
  Core 2 Extreme Q9650 processor – 3. 0 GHz, 45nm, 125W
• Asus
  P5Q3 motherboard – P45 chipset

AMD CPU/Motherboard:

• AMD
  Phenom II X3 720 Black Edition processor – 2.8 GHz, 45nm, 95W
• AMD
  Phenom II X4 810 processor – 2.6 GHz, 45nm, 95W
• AMD
  Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition processor – 3.2 GHz, 45nm, 125W
• Asus
  M4A78T-E motherboard – 790GX chipset

CPU-Z screenshot: Phenom II X4 955 BE during load.

 

CPU-Z screenshot: Phenom II X4 955 BE idling with C&Q enabled.

Measurement and Analysis Tools

• CPU-Z
  to monitor CPU frequency and voltage.
• CPUBurn
  K7
  processor stress software.
• Prime95
  processor stress software.
• FurMark
  stability test to stress the integrated GPU.
• Cyberlink
  PowerDVD to play H.264/VC-1/Blu-ray video.
• SpeedFan
  to monitor temperature and fan speeds.
• Eset NOD32 as
  an anti-virus benchmark.
• WinRAR as an
  archiving benchmark.
• iTunes
  an audio encoding benchmark.
• TMPGEnc
  Xpress as a video encoding benchmark.
• PCMark05
  as a general system benchmark.
• 3DMark06
  as a 3D benchmark.
• Seasonic
  Power Angel AC power meter, used to measure the power consumption
  of the system.
• Custom-built, four-channel variable DC power supply, used to regulate
  the CPU fan speed.

Benchmark Test Details

• Eset NOD32: In-depth virus scan of a folder containing 32 files of
  varying size with many of them being file RAR and ZIP archives.
• WinRAR: Archive creation with a folder containing 68 files of varying
  size (less than 50MB).
• iTunes: Conversion of an MP3 file to AAC.
• TMPGEnc Xpress: Encoding a 1-minute long XVID AVI file to VC-1 (1280×720,
  30fps, 20mbps).

Our testing procedure is designed to determine the overall system power consumption
at various states (measured using a Seasonic Power Angel). To stress Intel CPUs
we use Prime95 (large FFTs setting) to maximize heat and power consumption.
For AMD CPUs we use CPUBurn K7 as it seems to tax AMD processors more. To stress
the IGP, we use FurMark, an OpenGL benchmarking and stability testing utility.
We also performed a short series of benchmarks featuring real-world timed tests
and synthetics.

Cool’n’Quiet and/or Intel SpeedStep were enabled (unless otherwise noted).
The following features/services were disabled during testing to prevent spikes
in CPU/HDD usage that are typical of fresh Vista installations:

• Windows Sidebar
• Indexing
• Superfetch

TEST RESULTS

The Intel setup we have for comparison is comprised of a modestly priced P45
motherboard with DDR3 support, the Asus P5Q3, and an Intel Q9650 processor.
While the Q9550 would have been the ideal candidate to do battle with the X4
955 BE, we unfortunately did not have one at our disposal. The Q9650 has a
higher clock speed and thermal design power (125W vs. 95W). To make a little
more fair, we also tested it underclocked to Q9550 speeds (2.83 GHz). For our
AMD platform, we used 790GX motherboard, the Asus M4A78T-E, which happens to
have a similar price and feature-set compared to the P5Q3 (except for onboard
graphics). Both testbeds utilize 2x2GB of Corsair DDR3 memory, a GeForce 9400GT
graphics card, a WD VelociRaptor and an OEM Seasonic power supply.

Test Results: General Power Consumption
Test State	Q9650		X4 955 BE		X4 810 2. 60 GHz	X3 720 2.80 GHz
	3.00 GHz	2.83 GHz	3.20 GHz	3.20 GHz UV*
Idle	68W	68W	73W	73W	79W	76W
VC-1 Playback	86W	86W	99W	99W	99W	97W
CPU Load (half cores)	122W	121W	157W	138W	127W	N/A
CPU Load (all cores)	142W	141W	201W	172W	159W	153W
CPU + GPU Load	156W	154W	217W	187W	173W	168W
*CPU undervolted from 1. 350V to 1.225V. C&Q left enabled.

Off the bat we see that the Q9650, despite its high TDP used much less power
than the newest Phenom II’s, and to a lesser extent, the 2.6 GHz X4 810 and
even the tri-core X3 720 BE. Underclocking it to the same speed as a Q9550 resulted
in negligible power savings. If we assume Intel’s TDP ratings are accurate (compared
to the rest of their own processors), we can safely guess that a real Q9550
would use even less power.

The X4 955 BE used 5W more when idle and as load increased, so did the gap,
topping out at a difference of about 60W when heavy CPU stress was applied.
When we tested the X4 955 BE at the minimum voltage at which it was stable (1.225V),
power consumption improved significantly, cutting the difference in half. Still
a sizable amount, and we haven’t even taken into account performance yet.

CPU-Z screenshot: Phenom X4 955 BE: minimum undervolt at stock speed.

Performance

Benchmark Comparison: Q9650 vs. X4 955 BE
Test	Q9650				X4 955 BE
	@ 3.00 GHz		@ 2.83 GHz		Time	Power (AC)
	Time	Power (AC)	Time	Power (AC)		Stock	UV*
NOD32	2:23	88W	2:54	88W	2:27	128W	118W
WinRAR	2:51	98W	2:54	98W	3:05	128W	116W
iTunes	3:20	92W	3:32	91W	4:34	137W	123W
TMPGEnc	3:07	118W	3:16	116W	2:52	167W	149W
3DMark2006	3329		3322		3315
PCMark2005	9061		8667		9004
*CPU undervolted from 1. 350V to 1.225V. C&Q left enabled.

Our real-world benchmarks reveal that the general performance of the X4 955
BE is more or less equivalent to that of the Q9650 underclocked to Q9550
speeds. The X4 955 BE was noticeably faster during the NOD32 anti-virus test
and when encoding VC-1 video with TMPGEnc. The Q9650 at 2.83 GHz had a slim
margin of victory when archiving files with WinRAR and and thrashed the X4 955
BE when encoding AAC with iTunes. 3DMark was close while PCMark favored the
X4 955 BE by only 4%.

Power consumption was higher than the Intel. While the X4 955 BE
performs at a level similar to its Intel rival, it does so with higher
power draw, between 30W and 51W more during our timed tests. Undervolting cut
this difference by a fair amount, but the Intel setup still had a sizable advantage.

Benchmark Comparison: X4 955 BE vs. Other Phenom II’s
Test	X4 955 BE (3.2 GHz)			X4 810 (2.6 GHz)		X3 720 (2.8 GHz)
	Time	Power		Time	Power	Time	Power
		Stock	UV*
NOD32	2:27	128W	118W	3:05	109W	2:47	112W
WinRAR	3:05	128W	116W	3:32	104W	3:16	111W
iTunes	4:34	137W	123W	5:38	112W	5:13	118W
TMPGEnc	2:52	167W	149W	3:29	137W	5:08	130W
3DMark2006	3315			3288		3273
PCMark2005	9004			7756		7738
*CPU undervolted from 1. 350V to 1.225V. C&Q left enabled.

Compared to the AM3 processors in AMD’s lineup, the X4 955 BE is not surprisingly
the fastest. The X4 810 loses out in most of our timed tests to the X3 720 BE,
a result of the higher clock speed and the fact the majority of our timed tests
are not multithreaded. Our test suite is representative of “general”
use; most applications still don’t take advantage of the extra
cores.

Benchmark Power Consumption (Watt-hours)
Test	Q9650		X4 955 BE 3.2 GHz		X4 810 2.6 GHz	X3 720 2.8 GHz
	3. 0 GHz	2.83 GHz	Stock	UV*
NOD32	3.50	4.25	5.23	4.82	5.60	5.20
WinRAR	4.66	4.74	6.58	5.96	6.12	6.04
iTunes	5.11	5.36	10.43	9. 36	10.52	10.26
TMPGEnc	6.13	6.32	7.98	7.12	7.95	11.12
*CPU undervolted from 1.350V to 1.225V. C&Q left enabled.

Multiplying the average system power draw by the amount of time it took to
finish our timed tests gives us a rough approximation of how much energy was
actually used. The X4 955 BE system used more power than the 2.83 GHz Q9650
system, even during the tests it won, and even when the X4 955 BE was undervolted.
For a system that is in moderate to heavy use for lengthy amounts of time, the
number of extra watt-hours will certainly add up. With the increased
power consumption also comes heat — the Zerotherm heatsink we utilized for
both platforms felt much hotter when cooling the X4 955 BE.

AMD Overdrive: Smart Profiles

AMD
Overdrive is a useful utility that allows for CPU, voltage, and memory tweaks
to be performed directly from the Windows desktop, without having to enter the
BIOS at all. The newest 3.0 beta version introduces a new feature that may help
improve performance without increasing power draw: Smart Profiles.

AMD Overdrive: Smart Profile screen.

Smart Profiles allows individual CPU core frequencies as well as affinity to
be adjusted when a designated program is launched. As an example, we set up
a profile for WinRAR. As a single-threaded program, it makes little sense for
all four cores to increase to its nominal speed. So we set WinRAR to use only
Core 0 with the maximum CPU multiplier. The other core multipliers we set to
minimum, so they will stay at 800 MHz. That’s right — independent core
frequencies! You can also use this to overclock each core, as long as you have
an unlocked processor.

Smart Profile at work.

Once AMD Overdrive detected WinRAR.exe as being active, the first core ramped
up to 3.2 GHz, while the other three stayed at 800 MHz. Running our WinRAR benchmark
with this Smart Profile active resulted in an average power savings of 2W during
the operation. Using a new profile, we set it to overclock the first core to
3.4 GHz — this which wiped out the power difference, but resulted in our benchmark
finishing 5 seconds faster.

While this may seem like an easy, free way of getting a bit more performance
without using any extra power, it still needs work. Firstly, and most importantly,
the moment we loaded AMD Overdrive, Cool’n’Quiet disabled, resulting in higher
idle power draw. After we exited the utility, we had to restore the power plan
we were using in Vista to its default settings to re-enable Cool’n’Quiet. If
saving power is the goal, this absolutely kills it.

The way profiles operate needs serious improvement as well. Once a profiled
program was loaded, the clock frequencies changed accordingly but Overdrive
didn’t distinguish between an idle application, and one that was actually in
use. For example, you could set it to overclock all four cores heavily when
a video encoding application is running, but even after the encoding is finished,
the clock speeds will remain overclocked because the program is still open.
Also, it does not handle multiple profiles well. If Program A is launched first,
the Smart Profile for that program activates, even if a second profiled program,
Program B, is loaded. When Program A is shut down, the settings revert to default,
rather than switching to Program B’s profile. For it to work properly, you can
only use one profiled program at a time.

FINAL THOUGHTS

From a pure price/performance standpoint, AMD is certainly competing hard.
The X4 955 BE closely matches Intel’s Q9550, but with a smaller price-tag.
One must also consider the motherboards available especially if gaming is not
an issue. Full-sized AM3 ATX motherboards with decent ATI IGPs are widely available
and modestly priced; for example the Asus M4A78T-E we used for testing is priced $137~160. The same cannot be said of Intel socket 775; there are few full ATX boards with good IGPs.

DDR3 memory, which is still more expensive than DDR2, has
come down to the point where its not such a painful upgrade. Perhaps the best
thing to come out of the release of these new processors is the accompanying
price cut to the X4 940. We found the Phenom II X4 940 online for as low as $169 already, making it an
truly excellent value, especially for those unwilling to switch to DDR3.

Phenom II, even on the new AM3 platform with DDR3, is still significantly power
inefficient compared to Intel’s offerings, at least for the range of tests we performed. Idle power was only 5W higher, but
once we started running real tests, the difference grew large.
The Q9650 which we underclocked to simulate a Q9550, is rated 30W higher than
an actual Q9550, and it still well undercut AMD’s latest in power consumption.

Undervolting the X4 955 BE to its lowest stable voltage did make up half the difference, to about 20-30W depending
on the type of load used. That’s not too bad, and depending on how much electricity
costs in your area and your usage, it may still make a prudent economical choice.
For example, at SCPR’s location, an extra 25W running 12 hours a day for a year
would cost about $8.60 CDN, which is peanuts for anyone considering a US$250 processor. Still, if the desire for lower power consumption
in a high performance PC is environmentally-driven, then Intel remains the obvious choice.

Our thanks to AMD,
ASUSTeK, and Corsair
for the various product samples used in this review.

* * *

Articles of Related Interest
Asus M4A78T-E AM3 motherboard
MSI KA760GM: 780G Minus the HD
790GX Showdown: Gigabyte vs. MSI
Phenom II: AMD pulls closer
Zotac GeForce 8200-ITX WiFi: A Compact
AM2 Solution
Asus P5N7A-VM: Geforce 9300
IGP

* * *

Discuss this article in the SPCR forums.

AMD Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition Boxed processor

Dit product is niet (meer) verkrijgbaar bij de bij Hardware Info aangesloten shops.

Vergelijken

Meer specificaties

Bekijk onze review

Prijsverloop

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Specificaties

CPU-socket	Socket AM2+
Klokfrequentie	3 GHz
Aantal cores totaal	4 cores
Thermal design power	125 W
Geïntegreerde GPU

CPU-core	Deneb
CPU-revisie	C2
CPU-socket	Socket AM2+
Klokfrequentie	3 GHz
Aantal cores totaal	4 cores
HyperThreading / SMT
Bustype	HyperTransport 3. 0
Bussnelheid / bClk	2.000 MHz
Geïntegreerde geheugencontroller	DDR2-1066
Thermal design power	125 W
Productie-procedé	45 nm
Uitvoering	Boxed

Geïntegreerde geheugencontroller
Geheugentype	DDR2
Geheugensnelheid	1.066 MHz
Geheugenkanalen	1

Geïntegreerde GPU

L2-cache	2. 048 kB
L3-cache	6 MB

MMX
SSE
SSE2
SSE3
SSE4A
SSE4.1
SSE4.2
x86-64
XD-bit

SKU	HDZ940XCGIBOX, ADUHDZ940XCGIBOX, AMD-HDZ940XCGIBOX, HDZ940XCGIBO, HEGA63, PN307115
EAN	730143267014
Toegevoegd aan Hardware Info	donderdag 8 januari 2009

Testresultaten

Dit product is door Hardware Info getest op maandag 5 januari 2009.

3DMark Vantage — CPU Score	10.295		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
Unreal Tournament 3 — Serenity — 1280×1024	143 fps		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
World in Conflict — 1280×1024 — Medium	71 fps		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
Crysis Warhead — Airfield — 1024×768 Low	46 fps		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
DivX 6. 8 (SSE4) / Procoder encoding — 60 sec. 1080p	91 sec.		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
H.264 / Procoder encoding — 60 sec. 1080p	183 sec.		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
Windows Media 9 encoding — 60 sec. 1080p	398 sec.		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
60 min. WAVE naar MP3 (4x LAME 3.97)	50 sec.		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
Cinebench 10	12. 220		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
PovRay 3.7b29 — Chess2 1024×768	55,8 sec.		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
7Zip — 350 MB TIFF’s	94 sec.		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
Adobe Photoshop CS3 — Retouch Artists benchmark	29 sec.		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
Microsoft Excel 2007 — Big Number Crunch	9,8 sec.		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
Microsoft Excel 2007 — Black Scholes	29,3 sec.		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
SiSoft Sandra 2009 — Memory Bandwidth Int Buffered	11,7 GB/s		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
Stroomverbruik — Idle	147 W		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
Stroomverbruik — Cinebench 10	214 W		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB
Stroomverbruik — H. 264 encoding	205 W		Testconfiguratie Chipset: Intel X58 / Intel X48 / AMD 790FX, Geheugen: 3x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 1366) / 2x 1GB DDR3 1066 (Skt 775) / 2x 1GB DDR2 1066 (Skt AM2+), Videokaart: ATI Radeon HD 4870, Harddisk: WD Raptor 74GB

Reviews

Processors

AMD Phenom II X4 940 / 920 test

AMD’s Phenom quad-core processor was tot nu toe niet bepaald een succesverhaal. Brengt de nieuwe op 45 nm geproduceerde Phenom II daar verandering in?

8 januari 2009 06:00
79 reacties

Uitgelicht

Overig

Toshiba X300 / ASUS Eee Box B204 / AMD Phenom 2

Gamen op een notebook kan tegenwoordig zonder al te veel problemen, maar wil je écht het neusje van de zalm dan is een speciale gaming notebook wellicht een optie. Toshiba’s nieuwe X300 valt zeker in die categorie en kan met recht een snelheidsmonster genoemd worden.

ASUS komt binnenkort met een tweede versie van de Eee Box op de markt, welke als modelnummer B204 heeft meegekregen. Wat zijn de verschillen met de huidige versie?

Als laatste bespreken we deze week de introductie van AMD’s nieuwe Phenom 2 processors. Wij testten de nieuwe processors zeer uitgebreid en vertellen wat onze bevindingen zijn.

9 januari 2009 04:00
14 reacties

Gebruikerservaringen

Processors

AMD Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition Boxed productervaring door vvermeer

19 november 2010 16:22
0 reacties

Processors

AMD Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition Boxed productervaring door Quercus

22 februari 2009 15:23
6 reacties

Processors

AMD Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition Boxed productervaring door HDi1979

15 februari 2009 13:15
16 reacties

Productervaring toevoegen

Phenom 2 X4 940 BE, X4 810 & X3 720 BE

Bjorn3D. com Reviewer


February 9, 2009
Hardware, Reviews & Articles

Leave a comment

Phenom 2 Variants are making their way to market, these initial offerings are AM3 backwards compatible with AM2+ Boards. We have one AM2+ and two AM3 CPU’s to look at today.

INTRODUCTION

AMD fielded the new Phenom 2 CPU’s right after CES 2009. Extreme cooling reports on the new line of Phenoms have them reaching insane speeds with LN2 and Liquid Helium. Most of us don’t have the luxury of Extreme cooling which can require as much as 3000 liters of liquefied gasses for a 90 minute glory run. Most of can field Liquid cooling if we want. It’s not as exotic, but it’s a lot more sustainable. So when we got the chance to test the new Phenom 2 line we chose to do it in a couple of stages. If you’d like to take a look at our first review of the Phenom 2 X4 940 BE you can take a gander at it over Here.

We released the AMD Dragon platform article on January 8th 2009 with the intention of coming back to it for a followup.

Then AMD surprised us and fielded two more Phenom 2 CPU’s before we got to the followup. So now we’re looking at the daunting task of covering the Phenom 2 X4 940 BE, Phenom 2 X4 810, and Phenom 2 X3 720 BE. That’s a lot of Phenom 2 goodness in one spot so you might want to grab your favorite beverage, kick your feet up and catch the low down on the new Phenom Dragon lineup.

About AMD

Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE: AMD) is an innovative technology company dedicated to collaborating with customers and partners to ignite the next generation of computing and graphics solutions at work, home, and play.

Vision

A world where the amazing power of AMD technology improves the quality of people’s lives.

AMD set a goal to enable affordable, accessible Internet connectivity and computing capabilities for 50 percent of the world’s population by the year 2015. Learn more about AMD’s 50×15 Initiative.

Mission

Lead through innovative, customer-centric solutions that empower businesses, enhance the digital lifestyle, and accelerate global digital inclusion.

Values & Beliefs

AMD’s culture is characterized by an indomitable will to succeed and prosper in one of the world’s most challenging industries. At the heart of our unique and strong culture is the belief that people are the ultimate source of our competitive advantage. By living these core values, each one of us helps to deliver on our promises to customers, maximize shareholder value and ensure our enduring success.

Respect for People

We respect people, honor diversity and treat each other fairly. These are the cornerstones of our culture and key to our ability to work successfully as a global team. Learn about what it’s like to work at AMD.

Integrity

We operate with the highest standards of honesty and responsibility—as individuals and as a corporation—to be a role model worldwide through our business practices, community involvement and environmental stewardship. View our corporate responsibility mission and achievements.

Our Customers’ Success

We ensure our customers’ ongoing success by forging deep relationships founded on our commitment to meet their diverse technology needs and a shared passion for excellence. Read about how AMD drives customer success.

Customer-Centric Innovation

We lead through innovation—championing creative ideas and solutions that enable our customers to truly differentiate their solutions in the marketplace.

Initiative and Accountability

We deliver on our promises to our customers, stakeholders and to each other by taking risks, seeking proactive solutions and assuming ownership of the results.

At AMD, we take a measured approach to evaluate and continually improve global environmental efficiency, from how we run corporate facilities to how we develop products that deliver superior performance-per-watt. Learn more about AMD’s Green initiative at: www.amd.com/climate.

Fair and Open Competition

We believe that fair and open competition places the freedom of choice in the hands of customers, allowing the widest population to have access to the best possible technology.

CPU Name	Cores	Clock	L2/L3 Cache	HT Bus	Socket	TDP	Price
AMD Phenom II X4 965 BE	4	3.4GHz	2+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	140W	$179
AMD Phenom II X4 955 BE	4	3.2GHz	2+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	125W	$165
AMD Phenom II X4 945	4	3.0GHz	2+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	125W	$159
AMD Phenom II X4 925	4	2.8GHz	2+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$139
AMD Phenom II X4 910e	4	2.6GHz	2+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	65W	$169
AMD Phenom II X4 905e	4	2. 5GHz	2+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	65W	$175
AMD Phenom II X4 810	4	2.6GHz	2+4MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$139
AMD Phenom II X3 720BE	3	2.8GHz	1.5+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$104
AMD Phenom II X3 710	3	2.6GHz	1.5+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$99
AMD Phenom II X3 705e	3	2.5GHz	1.5+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	65W	$119
AMD Phenom II X2 555	2	3.2GHz	1+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	80W	$99
AMD Phenom II X2 550	2	3.1GHz	1+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	80W	$91
AMD Athlon II X4 635	4	2. 9GHz	2MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$120
AMD Athlon II X4 630	4	2.8GHz	2MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$102
AMD Athlon II X4 620	4	2.6GHz	2MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$99
AMD Athlon II X3 440	3	3.0GHz	1.5MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$84
AMD Athlon II X3 435	3	2.9GHz	1.5MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$75
AMD Athlon II X3 425	3	2.7GHz	1.5MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$72
AMD Athlon II X2 255	2	3.1GHz	2MB	4000MHz	AM3	65W	$75
AMD Athlon II X2 250	2	3.0GHz	2MB	4000MHz	AM3	65W	$65
AMD Athlon II X2 245	2	2. 9GHz	2MB	4000MHz	AM3	65W	$61
AMD Athlon II X2 240	2	2.8GHz	2MB	4000MHz	AM3	65W	$53

FEATURES

Major feature enhancements for 45nm AMD Phenom II:

• Enhanced Total Cache: 8MB or 6MB (L2 + L3)
• Cool’n’Quiet 3.0 Technology: Additional power states, significantly (~40%) lower idle power and lower power consumption under moderate loads
• Increased frequencies
• Massive headroom using extreme and experimental cooling techniques

Major silicon enhancements for 45nm AMD Phenom II:

• 45nm immersion lithography manufacturing technology enables higher frequencies, tighter tolerances and lower current leakage
• 6MB L3 cache (up from 65nm Phenom’s 2MB)
• 2-cycles faster than 65nm Phenom L3
• Increased DRAM bandwidth
• Cache flush on halt: Core’s L1 and L2 flush into shared L3 after a core enters a halt state allowing the core to drop to a lower speed and save power
• Path-based indirect branch prediction
• 2x increase in core probe bandwidth
• Larger load/store buffering / larger floating point buffering / reduced MAB (missed buffer) lifetime
• Improved LOCK pipelineing: (LOCK is an instruction prefix) this improves performance when multiple LOCKS are in process simultaneously
• FP MOV compute optimization: Floating point register-to-register move instruction improvements

Phenom 2 Dragon Platform Aspect

As you probably already know AMD is the only CPU manufacturer that can field it’s own world class GPU’s and CPU’s which gave birth to the Dragon Platform concept. A fusion of GPU and CPU manufactured and designed to compliment each other. While this is a CPU performance review we will be covering the Graphics end of the Dragon Platform in yet another review of this new platform. In the mean time we wanted to touch on some of the Dragon Platform aspects.

Video Processing on a Radeon GPU:

Continuing on the topic of platform-level performance analysis… ATI has just released new Catalyst 8.12 drivers (for Windows and Linux) and a new version of AVIVO which provides a powerful tool for video processing. ATI Stream uses the massive parallel processing power of AMD graphics processors to deliver new capabilities to users that go beyond the traditional usage scenarios of graphics rendering and video processing.

Benefits:

• ATI Stream harnesses the processing power of the GPU for high-performance, data-intensive computations over a wide range of applications
• ATI Stream enables the hundreds of parallel cores inside AMD GPUs to accelerate general purpose applications
• These capabilities will allow ATI Stream-enabled programs to operate with optimized performance (or with new functionality) for a variety of different tasks and from a growing number of software vendors
• The CAL (Compute Abstraction Layer) is now included in the Catalyst driver package. CAL is the enabling component for ATI Stream
• Every owner of an ATI Radeon HD 4000-series card automatically gains the ability to run ATI Stream enabled applications
• Growing number of developers set to deliver ATI Stream enabled applications

ATI Stream application: ATI Avivo Video Converter

• Free download
• Low complexity, high value application
• Dramatically accelerates conversion of video files
• Optimized for file sizes common to HD video

Using ATI Stream technology, owners of ATI Radeon HD 4000-series graphics cards can take advantage of this video conversion tool (find it in Catalyst Control Center’s “Basic View”) to achieve incredible performance levels in video transcoding. We strongly urge you to test ATI Stream during your platform evaluation. You might consider it for an addition to your standard test suite. It should prove useful to test and quantify our raw performance, video processing prowess and demonstrating the platform benefits of Dragon platform technology.

Upcoming AM3 Phenom II processors:

The AMD Phenom II X4 940 and 920 processors launching in January are socket AM2+ compatible and support DDR2 memory. However, in early 2009 AMD will release its first AM3 Phenom II processors in both X4 and X3 flavors. These new AM3 processors will be compatible with both the current socket AM2+ and the upcoming socket AM3, supporting both DDR2 and DDR3. This approach allows users, businesses, system builders and OEMs to migrate across memory technologies at their own pace, when the time is right. AMD’s approach continues to be one of flexibility and compatibility to maximize platform longevity. In the current economic climate, we believe this approach makes more sense than ever.

Some Overclocking Tips (Black Edition)

Finding the maximum potential of your CPU is fairly straight forward with a “Black Edition” processor and the latest version of AMD OverDrive on a platform like the AMD 790GX-based motherboard which you’ll want to use with your processor. Here is some basic guidance to help get you on your way to voiding your warranty. Just remember, as always, “your mileage may vary.” Some chips will overclock better than others, but regardless… you roll the dice when you try.  You can find the latest version of AMD Overdrive: http://game.amd.com/us-en/drivers_overdrive.aspx?p=1

Basic Overclocking Steps

 

• Increase CPU multiplier
• Use the HT reference clock slider in steps of 1-to-3 MHz for fine tuning (for less than 50MHz steps in CPU core clock)
• Increase CPU Voltage (VID)

 

Voltage Adjustment

By default the CPU voltage slider (CPU VID) in AMD OverDrive maxes at 1.45V. You can extend it to the max VID value of 1.550V by editing the “Preference.xml” file (with notepad.exe) in the AOD installation folder. Just find “MaxVcoreEnabled” and change it from “0” to “1”

Depending on the CPU and the cooling solution the optimal voltage can be anything between 1. 40V (an air-cooled part that prefers low volts) and 1.95V (liquid nitrogen at -196C… assuming your processor demonstrates good voltage scaling)

For air-cooling our experts recommend testing from 1.40V up to 1.55V in 0.05V steps in order to find the optimal voltage

NOTE: its quite possible that you start seeing negative scaling after certain voltage point. Remember every CPU can be a little different

The only things you might want to adjust in the BIOS while overclocking are:

• Disable Cool’n’Quiet
• Disable C1E
• Disable Spread Spectrum

USING EXTREME COOLING (Liquid Nitrogen / Liquid Helium / etc.):

Here’s a tip if you’ve already hit ~5GHz and are looking for even more overclocking headroom with EXTREME cooling. For temperatures below the -70 to -100oC mark we suggest switching the CPU to HT 1.0 mode. Just adjust the “HT Link multiplier” item in the BIOS menu to “1GHz (x5)” mode. The CPU NB clock can still run at default (or overclocked) value – just the HT Link interface requires this adjustment for optimal temperature margin. As per the experience of our internal team, most CPUs overclock well at -190oC using HT1.0 settings. To get the best overclock possible, try setting HyperTransport to HT1 mode. This does not mean that HT Link must run at only 1.0GHz. You can tweak the HT reference clock to higher than the 200MHz default value which will increase the HT Link frequency and HT bandwidth. Try gradually working up with incremental jumps with an eye for a 300MHz HT reference clock (if possible with your chip). This would give a 1.5GHz HT Link speed.

HT3.0 Settings:

Though HyperTransport 3.0 is capable of higher frequencies than the northbridge/memory controller runs at, for best operation and performance, the HT speed should always be set to the SAME FREQUENCY as the memory controller specification for the particular CPU being tested. This can be done in the BIOS or in AMD Overdrive… or just left as-is (default settings) with proper BIOS support.

Example: the HT frequency for systems with the Phenom II X4 940 and 920 processors should be run at 1. 8GHz, again the same frequency as the memory controller

DISCLAIMER

While Bjorn3D.com and AMD try to provide information as accurate as possible OCing is a crap shoot. Bjorn3D.com and AMD accept no responsibility for any attempt at OCing or any attempt at (what we have termed) Bone Head Stunts. No guarentee exists that you will be able to OC, or that your part will OC at all. It’s a crap shoot. OCing is a combination of carefully selected parts and OCing skill. As usual the contents on this site are provided “as is” without express or implied warranty.

In no case or special event shall Bjorn3D.com or AMD be held responsible for indirect or consequential damages or any damages whatsoever resulting from loss of income or profits, whether in an action of contract, negligence or other tortuous action, arising in connection with the use or performance of this information.

Bjorn3D has provided a number of links to external sites as a service to our readers, this should not be construed as any link between us and any entity or individule nor can we be held responsible for any content on their site.

Bjorn3D.com reserves the right to alter amend or delete any content without further notice.

Any reproduction of information from this site in partial or full is strictly prohibited and will result in legal action unless you have prior written permission from the site owner, or Management Staff.

With that being said: Let the Bone Head Stunts Begin

AMD Phenom X4 CPU Specifications

AMD Phenom II X4 (AM2 Package) Specifications
Processor Frequency	X4 940 (Black Edition) = 3.0GHz X4 920 = 2.8GHz
Cache Sizes	L1 Cache Sizes: 64K of L1 instruction and 64K of L1 data cache per core (512KB total L1 per processor) L2 Cache Sizes: 512KB of L2 data cache per core (2MB total L2 per processor) L3 Cache Sizes: 6MB (shared)
Memory Controller Type:	Integrated 128-bit wide memory controller * (See Note)
Memory Controller Speed	Up to 1. 8GHz with Dual Dynamic Power Management
Types of Memory Supported	Support for unregistered DIMMs up to PC2 8500 (DDR2-1066MHz)
Memory Bandwidth	Up to 17.1GB
HyperTransport 3.0 Link	One 16-bit/16-bit link @ up to 3.6GHz full duplex (1.8GHz x2)
HyperTransport 3.0 Bandwidth	Up to 14.4GB/s
Total Processor Bandwidth	Up to 31.5 GB/s total bandwidth
Packaging	Socket AM2+ 940-pin organic micro pin grid array (micro-PGA)
Fab location	Fab 36 wafer fabrication facilities in Dresden, Germany
Process Technology	45-nanometer DSL SOI (silicon-on-insulator) technology
Approximate Transistor count	~ 758 million (45nm)
Approximate Die Size	258 mm2 (45nm)
Max Ambient Case Temp	62o Celsius
Nominal Voltage	0. 875 – 1.5 Volts
Max TDP	125 Watts
NOTE: * MC configurable for dual 64-bit channels for simultaneous read/writes

Phenom 2 General Specifications

AMD Phenom II X4 + X3 (AM3 Package Backwards Compatible AM2+) Specifications
Processor Frequency	X4 810 = 2.6 GHz 4MB L3 X3 720 Black Edition  2.8GHz 6MB L3 X3 710 = 2.6GHz 6MB L3 X4 910 = 2.6GHz 6MB L3 X4 805 = 2.5GHz 4MB L3
Cache Sizes	L1 Cache Sizes: 64K of L1 instruction and 64K of L1 data cache per core (512KB total L1 per processor) L2 Cache Sizes: 512KB of L2 data cache per core 2MB total L2 per processor for X4s 1. 5MB total L2 per processor for X3s L3 Cache Sizes: 6MB (shared) or L3 Cache Sizes: 4MB (shared)
Memory Controller Type:	Integrated 128-bit wide memory controller * (See Note)
Memory Controller Speed	Up to 2 GHz with Dual Dynamic Power Management
Types of Memory Supported	Support for unregistered DIMMs up to PC2 8500 (DDR2-1066MHz) AM2+ Board Support for unregistered DIMMs up to PC3 10666 (DDR3-1333MHz) AM3 Board
Memory Bandwidth	Up to 17.1GB
HyperTransport 3.0 Link	One 16-bit/16-bit link @ up to 4.0 GHz full duplex (2.0GHz x2)
HyperTransport 3. 0 Bandwidth	Up to 16 GB/s
Total Processor Bandwidth	Up to 33.1 GB/s total bandwidth
Packaging	Socket AM2+ 940-pin organic micro pin grid array (micro-PGA) or Socket AM3 938-pin organic micro pin grid array (micro-PGA)
Fab location	Fab 36 wafer fabrication facilities in Dresden, Germany
Process Technology	45-nanometer DSL SOI (silicon-on-insulator) technology
Approximate Transistor count	~ 758 million (45nm)
Approximate Die Size	258 mm2 (45nm)
Max Ambient Case Temp	71o Celsius / X4 73o Celsius / X3
Nominal Voltage	0. 875 – 1.425 Volts
Max TDP	95 Watts
NOTE: * MC configurable for dual 64-bit channels for simultaneous read/writes **NOTE: for DDR3-1333, AM3 boards will support 1-DIMM-per-channel @ 1333MHz

Individule CPU Specifications

AMD CPU Specs
Model	Clock Speed	System Bus Speed	Package Profile	Voltage	Max Temp	TDP	Total L2 Cache	Total L3 Cache
940 X4 (Black Edition)	3. 0 GHz	3.6 GT/s	Socket AM2+	0.875-1.5v	62°C	125w	2MB	6MB
920 X4	2.8 GHz	3.6GT/s	Socket Am2+	0.875-1.5v	62°C	125w	2MB	6MB
810 X4	2.6 GHz	4.0 GT/s	Socket Am2+ or AM3	0.875-1.425v	71°C	95w	2MB	4MB
910 X4	2. 6 GHz	4.0 GT/s	Socket Am2+ or AM3	0.875-1.425v	71°C	95w	2MB	6MB
805 X4	2.5 GHz	4.0 GT/s	Socket Am2+ or AM3	0.875-1.425v	71°C	95w	2MB	4MB
720 X3 (Black Edition)	2.8 GHz	4.0 GT/s	Socket Am2+ or AM3	0.875-1.425v	73°C	95w	2MB	6MB
710 X3	2. 6 GHz	4.0 GT/s	Socket Am2+ or AM3	0.875-1.425v	73°C	95w	2MB	6MB

Prices At time of Posting

Pricing

• $229 AMD Phenom™ II X4 940 Black Edition Pricing at time of Post
• $189 AMD Phenom™ II X4 920 Pricing at time of Post
• $175 AMD Phenom™ II X4 810 Lots of 1000 to Vendors
• $145 AMD Phenom™ II X3 720 Black Edition Lots of 1000 to Vendors
• $125 AMD Phenom™ II X3 710 Lots of 1000 to Vendors
• $Unknown AMD Phenom™ II X4 910 (Available in tray only)
• $Unknown AMD Phenom™ II X4 905 (Available in tray only)
• AMD’s official pricing page will be updated after launch:
• http://www.amd.com/us-en/Processors/ProductInformation/0,,30_118_609,00.html?redir=PR001

PICTURES & IMPRESSIONS

As you might guess we’re dealing with CPU’s so your not dealing with a product that is real conducive to a plethora of pictures. Knowing that we’re going to toss in a few tidbits that need to be covered to provide a little more relevant content.

Like we mentioned it’s a CPU except for minor variations they all look just about alike. In case you’ve ever wondered how we receive them we snapped a shot of them as soon as we opened the case. The large picture above is the AMD Phenom 2 X4 940 BE, the big dog of the lineup so far.

Unceremoniously delivered in a plain black box with a little golden logo saying AMD on the outer case we opened it to find not one but two Phenom 2’s held securely by the foam and rubber band around the case. The CPU on the left is the Phenom 2 X3 720 Black Edition. It’s the new triple core variant of the Phenom 2 lineup and features an unlocked multiplier. The CPU on the right is the Phenom 2 X4 810 and unlike the 940 X4 BE it has a locked multiplier and you’ll have to use a FSB overclock to get any OC out of that little jewel. The Phenom X3 720 BE and X4 810 are the first of the AM3 (backwards compatible with AM2+) CPU’s to hit the market. The difference between the AM2+ and AM3 CPU’s (Other than the Motherboard) is that the AM3 package CPU’s will be able to drive DDR3 on an AM3 board and DDR2 if used on an AM2+ board. The 940 and 920 AM2+ package are only used on AM2+ boards and will only drive DDR2.

While we would have liked to strap the new CPU’s into an AM3 board, we were asked by AMD to go ahead and test the X3 720 and X4 810 on AM2+ boards because they are still working with the programmers that write the BIOS for the boards to work kinks out of the AM3 BIOS. Since all of the new Phenom 2 series are compatible with AM2+ boards we don’t have a problem with that, but reserve the right to go back and revisit the CPU’s on an AM3 board as they come available and mature a little.

In this one you get the beauty shot of the CPU with a Phenom 2 X4 logo on it but that’s not why we wanted to post the shot. Behind the CPU is the actual wafer with etched CPU’s ready to be laser cut from the wafer. How would you like to have one of those bad boys to hang on the wall.

We always like to know what direction a particular platform is headed so we snagged this graphic from the AMD FTP. Like we mentioned, the X4 940 BE and X4 920 are strictly AM2+ capable, moving to the AM3 package CPU’s we were pleased to find out that they are indeed backwards compatible with AM2+ boards. That’s a big plus for the Dragon platform. With the Intel current offerings, Core i7 1366 CPU’s you have to go to a new X58 board, and DDR3 ram, preferably Triple Channel DDR3. The initial layout for CPU, Ram and Board all at once has pushed a lot of people into waiting for price drops and purchasing one component at a time to move to the new platform. With the Dragon lineup all you need is a compatible AM2+ board and inexpensive DDR2 which most of us already have (Meaning DDR2 Ram), spring for a new Phenom 2 CPU of choice and your good to go. Provided your board will support the CPU, most manufacturers are in the process of redoing BIOS’s for current AM2+ boards to make them compatible with Phenom 2. The one exception you will have to be careful on is the higher wattage Phenom 2 CPU’s. While the newer 95w CPU’s should work in almost any board, some of the Phenom 2 CPU’s require a board that will push 125w.

Now on the same tack, a low end Intel 920 Core i7 will set you back about $280, then a good board because you are going to want to OC that puppy so toss in another $300, then a good set of Triple Chanel DDR3 for another $250 and your out of pocket $830 give or take depending on the quality of equipment you want. Spring $224 (at the time of posting) for an X4 940 BE and enjoy an unlocked multiplier on your existing AM2+ board with whatever flavor of DDR2 you already have. Your not going to run at the same level as the i7 CPU is capable of performance wise, but you can do it $606 dollars cheaper. In a sagging economy it makes sense and for those already on the AMD path it makes a lot of sense. If your not AM2+ capable already, worst case (no components), then you can locate a decent AM2+ board for $100, an X4 940 for $224, and a set of decent ram for $60. Total outlay for CPU, board and ram $384 and your setting on a very capable Quad with an unlocked multiplier and having one heck of a lot of fun overclocking and tweaking. Top end Phenom 2 for $384, or entry level Core i7 for $830 that’s a choice you, and the economy are going to have to wrestle with. If your willing to go for one of the locked multiplier CPU’s or even a Black Edition X3 the the AMD path gets considerably cheaper.

Earlier we spoke of the Dragon Platform, to that end we snagged another graphic because, well we like graphics. The AMD Dragon Platform is the fusion of an AMD Phenom 2 CPU on an AMD 7 series chipset with an ATI Radeon GPU. While we’re focusing on the CPU performance end of things in this review, we have seen and tested the Dragon Platform as a whole and we have to tell you that for all intents and purposes it’s more than your average computer user needs. It’s enough for most enthusiast users. We didn’t see any games or applications that needed more horsepower to drive than exists in the Dragon Platform which confirms a lot of what we’ve been seeing through the last few platforms,computing power is exceeding current computing needs for most users. Core i7 is probably a little more future proof, but current applications and games run great on the Dragon platform and do it for about half the cost of the Intel Core i7 platform.

We’re not knocking the Intel platforms performance by any means, no-one is disputing the power of the current Core i7 platform, but the cost of the equipment and the initial layout is making a lot of people wait to move to the new technology. AMD has managed to slip in and provide a great price/performance ratio platform now. Not only that they’ve made it compatible with existing hardware and an easy upgrade path from AM2+ to AM3 and DDR3.

TESTING & METHODOLOGY

To test the Phenom 2 CPU’s we did a fresh load of Vista 64 and applied all the latest patches and updates. We also updated the motherboard drivers to the latest versions and checked to make sure we were using the latest BIOS. Once we had all the patches installed, motherboard drivers up to date, and all the little things that need to be done to bring a system up to snuff we cloned the drive using Acronis to keep the load safe from any little overclocking accidents we might have.

Speaking of overclocking accidents, we thought we’d privy you to a little information about that on this review. We tend to get in a hurry and when you do that things happen. We bricked at least two OS installs overclocking a little to aggressively. No fault of the equipment we assure you, but OCing accidents happen which is why we clone with Acronis and encourage anyone OCing to do the same. That spare drive that might cost you $50 is pretty cheap compared to reloading the OS 3 or 4 times during an extended overclocking session.

Along the same lines, on this review in particular the overclocks we managed are more a reflection of the amount of time that we had to spend with the product before the NDA (Non-disclosure agreement) lifts than the equipment itself. By that we mean 2 weeks spent with the New Phenom 2 CPU’s (3 of them) and a new never before used motherboard isn’t enough time to say “These are the maximum OC’s we achieved and we believe that these are the best overclocks we can get. ” We know they’re not the best OC’s we can get but they are the best OC’s we can get in the allotted time we had with the product before it was time to post the review. With more time and experience on the platform and motherboard we know we can achieve higher overclocks so please take that into consideration.

Test Rigs

We decided that since no matter what we do or say that the information about the review of Intel and AMD CPU’s people are going to look at them side by side and draw conclusions. To that end we used the same CPU cooler on all of the CPU’s. We used the Thermalright Ultra 120 with the same two fans for every CPU. We also used the Intel 80 GB Solid State Drive for every CPU reviewed. We also used the 4870X2 for all of the data obtained in this review on every CPU.

We used the same hard drive, same CPU cooler, and same GPU on all the platforms in an attempt to make the data as relevant as possible. We don’t think that it would be a fair comparison to use a high end SSD on the Intel platform and one of the top CPU coolers without extending the same courtesy to the AMD platform. To do so would make it a lopsided review and bias the numbers. So if you browse other CPU reviews one of the things you should be looking for and asking yourself is “Did the site use the Intel review kit items for all the CPU’s or did they use a traditional platter drive for the AMD CPU’s”. If they did it will make a tremendous difference in the platform numbers, we tested with and without SSD and the difference was large enough to invalidate data obtained using a platter drive against an SSD. To that end we used the same hard drive, CPU cooler and GPU on all of the CPU’s contained in this review.

Hardware Common To All The Test Rigs

• Thermaltake Tough Power 1200 Watt
• Intel 80 GB SSD
• Palit 4870×2
• Razer Lycosa
• Razer Lachesis
• Top Deck Testing Station Chassis
• Thermalright Ultra 120 w/2 83CFm Yate Loon Fans
• LG DVD/RW

So you can pretty much see that the only platform differences are going to be Motherboard, CPU, and Ram. In a cross platform test that’s about as good as you can get.

Platform Specific Hardware

• Phenom 2 X4 940 BE CPU Equipment
• MSI DKA790GX Platinum
• Crucial Ballistix DDR2 1066 4 GB Kit
• For more information on the MSI DKA790GX Platinum you can visit the MSI Website Here

• Phenom 2 X4 810 and X3 720 BE CPU Equipment
• Asus M3A78-T
• Crucial Ballistix DDR2 1066 4 GB Kit
• For more information on the Asus M3A78-T you can visit the Asus Website Here

• Intel Core I7 965 Equipment
• Asus P6T Deluxe
• Kingston HyperX Triple Channel DDR3 2 GHz
• For more information on the Asus P6T Deluxe you can see our review Here
• For more information on the Core i7 965 you can see our review Here 

• Intel Q6600 Equipment
• EVGA 790I
• Crucial Ballistix DDR3 1333 4 GB Kit
• For more information on the EVGA 790I you can see our review Here

• Intel E8400 Equipment
• Gigabyte EP45-Extreme
• Crucial Ballistix DDR2 1066 4 GB Kit
• For more information on the Gigabyte EP45-Extreme you can read our review Here

   

Just in case you were wondering, yes we have all those beautiful machines here in one spot up and running, not in the configuration we used in this review but yes they are all here in one spot running and fully functional, along with a stack of GPU’s that would make a grown man cry, and a stack of high end ram that would make you pull your hair out, and a stack of high end Hard Drives that will make you drool. We were deprived as children, we had the Atari console, we’re making up for it now.

Before we move onto the Testing Suite section lets get this out of the way. We ran all the CPU’s at stock Speed during testing, then we ran the AMD CPU’s at the best OC we could get in the time we had. We already know that some people are going to yell because we didn’t OC the Intel CPU’s in the review. If you want to see the Intel overclocks and results of those we have separate reviews for 3 of the Intel Core I7 CPU’s, each one contains OC information and testing. Feel free to browse those and compare numbers to this review. You can spend half a lifetime OCing and charting results in all the possible combination’s. We run each CPU at stock speed for comparison purposes, then the CPU being reviewed we OC that one. You might not even get an OC out of the same model CPU and unless it’s on the same board with the same ram and the OC is done identically the numbers won’t be the same.

Test Suite

Synthetic Benchmarks

3DMark Vantage v. 1.01

3DMark06 v. 1.1.0

SiSoft SANDRA XII Professional SP2

Everst Ultimate Edition v. 4.50.1330

SuperPi Mod 1.5XS

Cinebench R10 64 bit

WinRar v. 3.71

3DMARK06 V. 1.1.0

 

3DMark06 developed by Futuremark, is a synthetic benchmark used for universal testing of all graphics solutions. 3DMark06 features HDR rendering, complex HDR post processing, dynamic soft shadows for all objects, water shader with HDR refraction, HDR reflection, depth fog and Gerstner wave functions, realistic sky model with cloud blending, and approximately 5.4 million triangles and 8. 8 million vertices; to name just a few. The measurement unit “3DMark” is intended to give a normalized mean for comparing different GPU/VPUs. It has been accepted as both a standard and a mandatory benchmark throughout the gaming world for measuring performance.

From our previous review of the Phenom 2 X4 940 we already know that in combination with the Dragon platform as a whole it’s no slouch when it comes to graphics. The score between the X4 940, X3 720 and the Core i7 965 are so close that it would be hard to make a definitive call. Credit where it’s due though at stock clocks the Phenom series CPU’s did well in 3DMark06 when combined with the Palit 4870×2.

3DMark Vantage

 

For complete information on 3DMark Vantage Please follow this Link: www.futuremark.com/benchmarks/3dmarkvantage/features/

The newest video benchmark from the gang at Futuremark. This utility is still a synthetic benchmark, but one that more closely reflects real world gaming performance. While it is not a perfect replacement for actual game benchmarks, it has its uses. We tested our cards at the ‘Performance’ setting.

Currently, there is a lot of controversy surrounding NVIDIA’s use of a PhysX driver for its 9800 GTX and GTX 200 series cards, thereby putting the ATI brand at a disadvantage. Whereby installing the PyhsX driver, 3DMark Vantage uses the GPU to perform PhysX calculations during a CPU test, and this is where things get a bit gray. If you look at the Driver Approval Policy for 3DMark Vantage it states; “Based on the specification and design of the CPU tests, GPU make, type or driver version may not have a significant effect on the results of either of the CPU tests as indicated in Section 7.3 of the 3DMark Vantage specification and white paper.” Did NVIDIA cheat by having the GPU handle the PhysX calculations or are they perfectly within their right since they own Ageia and all their IP? I think this point will quickly become moot once Futuremark releases an update to the test.

Moving to 3DMark Vantage which is a little more modern tool for determining CPU/GPU performance than 3DMark06 because it’s more multi-thread friendly we were surprised to see the Phenom X4 940 Black Edition ahead of the Core i7 965. Of course the X4 940 BE has the advantage of running the Dragon Platform configuration and the CPU, Motherboard, and GPU are designed and optimized to run together so it’s not to big of a surprise. It does show however that for gaming purposed the Dragon Platform isn’t to be sneezed at and with some OCing and optimization time could be a true force in the gaming world.

Cinebench

“CINEBENCH is a real-world test suite that assesses your computer’s performance capabilities. MAXON CINEBENCH is based on MAXON’s award-winning animation software, CINEMA 4D, which is used extensively by studios and production houses worldwide for 3D content creation. MAXON software has been used in blockbuster movies such as Spider-Man, Star Wars, The Chronicles of Narnia and many more. MAXON CINEBENCH runs several tests on your computer to measure the performance of the main processor and the graphics card under real world circumstances. The benchmark application makes use of up to 16 CPUs or CPU cores and is available for Windows (32-bit and 64-Bit) and Macintosh (PPC and Intel-based). The resulting values among different operating systems are 100% comparable and therefore very useful with regard to purchasing decision-making. It can also be used as a marketing tool for hardware vendors or simply to compare hardware among colleagues or friends.”

When we get to Cinebench we start to se the platform specific differences show. The Core i7 965 easily passes anything we tested for this review, but you still have to take into consideration Price/Performance. The Core i7 platform we’re showing in this test cost well above $3000 and on any given day with our favorite toys attached can run as high as $5000. Just the bare minimum on QuadZilla, the CPU, Motherboard and Ram run $1600 toss on the Palit 4870×2 and your looking at above $2000. The same components on the Phenom 2 X4 940 including GPU run $835. Your seeing 2/3 the performance of the Core i7 965 at less than 1/2 the cost so it’s hard to justify a direct comparison of the two platforms. Getting closer to it’s price point the Q6600 and the Phenom 2 X4 940 are pretty comparable.  Overclocked the X4 940 out ran the Q6600, but at stock clocks the Q6600 outran the X4 940 Black Edition. You have to keep in mind though that the Q6600 is still a very capable popular CPU that most people are happy with so that puts the X4 940 in the same class and it’s a lot more fun to OC.

Looking at the price point comparison for the Phenom 2 X3 720 which is the Intel E8400 the Phenom X3 720 Black Edition takes the lead over the E8400. That’s to be expected because the X3 720 BE is a triple core CPU and Cinebench can take advantage of the extra core on the X3 720. Again we hit 3.4 GHz on the X3 720 but we’re not done with it, it’s a Black Edition CPU and we know we can get more out of it but bringing all the test rigs up to snuff for this review and switching out equipment ate all our time. We know there’s more to get and since it’s an unlocked multiplier we know we can get more from it we just didn’t have time. The Intel E8400 Overclocked will probably take the lead in less multi-threaded applications, but multi-threaded applications will like the Phenom X3 720 Black Edition better.

Cinebench CPU Ratio’s, we’re not sure how much use this information is with the platforms so widely different but it makes a nice lead in for the shot of Cinebench we got running the Phenom 2 X3 720 Black Edition.

We we’re so used to dual core and quad core CPU’s running on Cinebench that it was a treat seeing a Triple Core CPU running Cinebench. Notice how the picture being rendered is split into 3 sections, one for each Core. It was a little bit of a reality check, Triple Core CPU’s offer a lot of savings for people that mainly game and would like a little extra oomph for heavily multi-threaded applications. The Phenom X3 720 Black Edition unlocked multiplier didn’t hurt our feelings any when we got to playing with it. If you’ve never experienced the joys of an unlocked multiplier you should treat yourself at least once in this life and spring for one. Unlocked multipliers open up a whole new world of performance possibilities and are just downright fun to OC.

WinRar v. 3.71

This module in WinRar generates random data, which contains specially introduced redundancy, increasing the load to both the processor and memory. Data is then passed through RAR compression and decompression algorithms, and the output of the decompression algorithm is compared to the source data. If any differences are found, WinRAR then reports “Errors found – Yes” in the command window. WinRAR displays a size of processed data and compression speed, current and resulting, in kilobytes per second.

Once again the more expensive Core i7 965 tops out the chart in WinRar, with it’s Quad core and Hyperthreading it trashes the rest of the CPU’s in the chart. Dropping back to reality in the price point comparison the Phenom X4 940 BE outperforms our old favorite the Intel Q6600 at it’s stock speed. Apply some OC to the Q6600 and it’s anybodies game. We were surprised by the X4 810 and X3 720 putting that much of a whipping on the Intel E8400. We really wish we’d have had another couple of weeks with the Phenom Dragon platform for some more tuning and learning. Even in single threaded tests the X3 720 Black Edition managed to squeeze out the E8400 which caused us to rerun the tests a few times but even retesting didn’t change the numbers.

EVEREST ULTIMATE

“EVEREST Ultimate Edition is an industry leading system diagnostics and benchmarking solution for enthusiasts PC users, based on the award-winning EVEREST Technology. During system optimizations and tweaking it provides essential system and overclock information, advanced hardware monitoring and diagnostics capabilities to check the effects of the applied settings. CPU, FPU and memory benchmarks are available to measure the actual system performance and compare it to previous states or other systems. Furthermore, complete software, operating system and security information makes EVEREST Ultimate Edition a comprehensive system diagnostics tool that offers a total of 100 pages of information about your PC. ”

Everest Memory

The Core i7 platform now sports an on CPU memory controller which offers increased efficiency and support for triple channel memory, it tops the chart for lowest latency. The rest of the CPU’s on the charts come out reasonably close in the latency department with the exception of the E8400 and it’s being run on an Nvidia chipset and in the configuration we had the memory (Unlinked) it turned in the highest latency.

Previous to Core i7 AMD held the memory crown for a lot of years. The reason for that, prior to Core i7, was that AMD went to an integrated memory controller on the CPU long before Intel adopted it for Core i7. When Intel adopted the on CPU memory controller and went to triple channel memory DDR3 came of age. Core i7 hold the memory bandwidth crown now, but as you can see the AMD chips all top Intel’s previous socket 775 platform Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad CPU’s.

We don’t see any big surprises in the memory read department, Core i7 and it’s triple channel memory dominate the field followed by all the AMD CPU’s we tested, then the previous generation 775 chips come in behind the AMD chips.

We were surprised to see the Intel Socket 775 CPU’s jump up in the charts in the Everest write test. Core i7 naturaly came out on top followed by the overclocked Phenom X4 810 and X4 940. The E8400 and Q6600 slid into 4th and 5th, we were surprised enough to repeat the test a few additional times but the numbers, like usual, didn’t change.

Everest CPU

CPU AES

This integer benchmark measures CPU performance using AES (a.k.a. Rijndael) data encryption. It utilizes Vincent Rijmen, Antoon Bosselaers and Paulo Barreto’s public domain C code in ECB mode.

CPU AES test uses only the basic x86 instructions, the test consumes 48 MB memory, and it is Hyper Threading, multi-processor (SMP) and multi-core (CMP) aware.

Everest CPU AES is heavily multi-threaded which is why it’s a good measure of a multi-core CPU’s power. It’s rather interesting that the Core i7 965 and the Overclocked Phenom X4 940 BE came in so close in this test considering that Intel’s Core i7 platform is Hyper Transport enabled (4 cores are split virtually into 8 cores). One of our old favorites the Q6600 did pretty well in this test followed by the rest of the pack of AMD CPU’s and the E8400 in last because it’s a dual core CPU.

CPU PhotoWorxx

This integer benchmark performs different common tasks used during digital photo processing.

It performs the following tasks on a very large RGB image:

• Fill

• Flip

• Rotate90R (rotate 90 degrees CW)

• Rotate90L (rotate 90 degrees CCW)

• Random (fill the image with random colored pixels)

• RGB2BW (color to black & white conversion)

• Difference

• Crop

This benchmark stresses the integer arithmetic and multiplication execution units of the CPU and also the memory subsystem.

CPU PhotoWorxx test uses only the basic x86 instructions, and it is Hyper Threading, multi-processor (SMP) and multi-core (CMP) aware.

Benching hardware never ceases to amaze us. In this test Core i7 965 comes out on top followed by the Phenom 2 X4 940 BE. that’s ot what amazed us though, in the last test the Q6600 dominated the E8400 but their roles have reversed in this test. This result makes us question the quality of the multi-threaded support in PhotoWorxx.

CPU Queen

This simple integer benchmark focuses on the branch prediction capabilities and the misprediction penalties of the CPU. It finds the solutions for the classic “Queens problem” on a 10 by 10 sized chessboard.

CPU Queen test uses integer MMX, SSE2 and SSSE3 optimizations. It consumes less than 1 MB system memory and it is Hyper Threading, multi-processor (SMP) and multi-core (CMP) aware.

In CPU Queen the Core i7 965 and Q6600 come out on top, the Q6600 is followed by the Phenom 2 940 BE and X4 810 when they are overclocked. Then the X4 940 and X4 810 at stock speeds are next in line followed by the Triple Core Phenom X3 720 BE. Pulling last place because of it’s dual core nature is the Intel E8400.

CPU ZLib
This integer benchmark measures combined CPU and memory subsystem performance through the public ZLib compression library Version 1. 2.3 (http://www.zlib.net).
CPU ZLib test uses only the basic x86 instructions, and it is Hyper Threading, multi-processor (SMP) and multi-core (CMP) aware.

Core i7 965 comes in on top the chart again in Everest’s CPU ZLIB test but what really amazes us is that a Phenom 2 X4 940 BE that costs 1/4 what the Core i7 965 costs comes that close to it’s score. The AMD Phenom 2 CPU’s are showing a good price/performance ratio.

Sisoft Sandra 2009 SP1

“SiSoftware Sandra (the System ANalyser, Diagnostic and Reporting Assistant) is an information & diagnostic utility. It should provide most of the information (including undocumented) you need to know about your hardware, software and other devices whether hardware or software. It works along the lines of other Windows utilities, however it tries to go beyond them and show you more of what’s really going on. Giving the user the ability to draw comparisons at both a high and low-level. You can get information about the CPU, chipset, video adapter, ports, printers, sound card, memory, network, Windows internals, AGP, PCI, PCI-X, PCIe (PCI Express), database, USB, USB2, 1394/Firewire, etc. ”

When it comes to memory testing with CPU’s you can just about predict the order they will score in without even looking at the results. Core i7 comes in on top, followed by every AMD CPU since they integrated the memory controller, then all the Intel 775 and below platform CPU’s. We’re hoping that the AM3 boards for the new Phenom 2 CPU’s comes out strong just so that we have a little mixing of results but we don’t think anything on the market can compete with triple channel memory except triple channel memory.

Sisoft Sandra’s Processor Arithmetic is a pretty good indicator of a CPU’s ability to do math, since a lot of a CPU’s job is computational it’s a good overall indicator of how the CPU will perform all around. Core i7 comes out on top the chart, which is no surprise to us. The Phenom 2 X4 940 BE Overclocked and Stock come in 2nd and 3rd, followed by the X4 810 Overclocked and stock, then the Phenom 2 X3 720 BE splits the win with the Q6600 and the E8400 again drops into last spot.

In our last test, before moving on to the Overclocking section the Core i7 965 tops the chart followed by the Phenom 2 X4 940 BE both overclocked and stock. Behind the X4 940 BE the X4 810 OCed followed by the X3 720 BE OCed then the Q6600. With the E8400 staying consistently close to the bottom of the charts due to it’s dual core nature it quickly becomes apparent which CPU’s will be more beneficial in a multi-threaded environment. We had to toss that in to get a little of the Dual core is good enough crowd VS the Quads rule crowd chatter going. As applications become more multi-thread capable we can foresee the day when Dual Core CPU’s go the way of the single core CPU.

OVERCLOCKING

Phenom 2 X4 940 BE

We’ve got a lot to cover in the OCing section so lets kick it off with the Phenom X4 940 BE CPU-Z Story.

Our first shot from CPU-Z shows the Phenom 2 X4 940 BE at it’s stock settings, we just slapped it on the board and fired it up and this is what CPU-Z reports. A nice comfortable 3 GHz out of the gate with no overclocking.

The Cache tab shows us that we’re looking at 6 MB of L3 cache and 2 MB total L2 cache. Grand total between L2 and L3 cache a hefty 8 MB. We’re glad to see the increased cache size on the new Phenom 2 series.

On the Phenom 2 940 BE we went with the MSI DKA790GX Platinum motherboard, the Asus board and MSI board we used for the AMD CPU’s both feature the same 790GX and SB750 AMD chipset. We would have preferred to have them all run on the same board but 3 CPU’s at once with 3 Intel rigs is a daunting task and for times sake we had no choice but to split the boards on the AMD CPU’s. We actually like the Asus board a little better for no other reason than we’re more used to Asus BIOS layout as you’ll see in just a little bit the MSI board is a quite capable OCer board, but we had to work harder to get the OC on the MSI board and the bulk of our overclocking time was spent on the big dog Phenom 2 X4 940 BE.

Both the Asus and MSI board gave us a little guff when it came to attaining the Crucial Ballistix’s rated speed of 1066, in both cases we had to set the ram timings and voltage manually and up the NB voltage just a tad to get the ram stable. Both MSI and Asus assure us that this is just an early BIOS issue and will soon be resolved.

Now lets take a look at the 3.8 GHz CPU-Z Screenie which is the speed we tested at.

We were able to hit 3.8 GHz pretty easily which is why we tested at that, with good cooling you can reasonably expect to be able to hit 3.8 with a good motherboard and an investment of time and effort.

Then lets look at the CPU-Z screenie for our maximum OC in AMD OverDrive (AOD).

We did a lot of testing of OC settings in AMD Overdrive until we maxed out the voltage available, then we set voltage high in BIOS and tested settings with the voltage higher than we like until we stabilized at 4 GHz.

Then lastly lets take a look at our CPU-Z BIOS OC screenie.

Then once we had stability (in AOD) with ample volts we went ahead and put the information into BIOS and kept reducing voltage on the CPU until we threw a blue screen then upped it a couple of notches, ran Prime 95 for a couple of hours and 4 GHz ran nice and stable at 1. 552 Vcore. Please be aware that we went to a high end water cooling system to attain this OC and it did take considerable time and effort to achieve. Is there more to get from the Phenom 2 X4 940 BE, yes you can achieve higher OC’s depending on your setup, cooling, and willingness to put in the time and effort. It took about a week to reach 4 Ghz stable under water spending 2-3 hours a day for the entire week until the 7th day and we spent about 6 hours on day 7 stabiizing and testing. Do we intend to run it at 4 GHz 24/7, no we have no intention of running it at 4 GHz 24/7 extreme Overclocks are best for benching then returning to a reasonable overclock which we consider to be 3.8 GHz.

Most time efficient means of overcocking the Phenom 2 X4 940 BE was testing in AMD OverDrive then running Prime 95 for stability testing. After stability testing the AOD settings entering them into BIOS and booting into Vista and Priming the system with the BIOS OC. You should be aware that we were able to get away with some things in AOD that didn’t fly in BIOS OCing and required some minor tinkering in BIOS to stabilize. You can expect that, software OCing is a different ballgame from BIOS OCing. AOD testing was good for giving us a quick and dirty testing method for rough BIOS settings.

To have any reasonable expectation of a good OC on the Phenom 2 series CPU’s we highly recommend the 790GX and SB750 chipset boards. The best, most reliable, overclocking results we got and have seen in our research are on boards with the 790GX and SB750 so don’t be suprized if you try it on a board without those chips and can’t achieve simular overclocking results. Remember OCing is a crap shoot, will most likely void your warranty, and if your not OCing RockStars like we are results may vary.

OVERCLOCKING

Phenom 2 X4 810

Lets jump right into the CPU-Z story on the Phenom 2 X4 810.

The Phenom 2 X4 810 would be a mainstream Phenom 2 X4 and has a locked multiplier, it’s stock multiplier is 13 and can be set lower but not higher. Stock speed on this one is 2.6 GHz and you’ll have to make your selection of motherboards carefully because the OC on this one is strictly tied to FSB speed the motherboard can achieve and hold. Needless to say OCing will take more time and effort and is less fun than OCing the unlocked multiplier version on Phenom 2 Black Editions.

Since it’s a mainstream version of Phenom 2 X4 cache on the X4 810 is reduced to 4 MB L3 cache.

We went with the Asus M3A78-T on the Phenom 2 X4 810 testing, like we mentioned earlier if you plan on serous overclocking we recommend a motherboard with the 790GX and SB750 chipset. The M3A78-T has a somewhat immature BIOS but we expect good things from the board as soon as it has a little BIOS maturity under it’s belt.

Same story on the memory on this board, due to a BIOS glitch it want’s to down clock the 1066 Crucial memory to 800 MHz unless you set it manually. To make the 4 GB kit entirely stable we had to fiddle with NB voltages a little and set timings and speed manually.

After some tinkering with voltages we were able to hit 3.063 GHz without increasing the Vcore voltage. We did have to tinker with and adjust other voltages and use a divider on the ram and Hyper-Transport Link. You can probably achieve a higher overclock than we did because we had a very limited time to work with 3 CPU’s spread across 2 boards. As soon as we tried to go to 3.1 GHz we spent about one full day trying to stabilize it and finally touched 3.2 GHz and booted into Vista at 3.2 GHz but didn’t have time to try and stabilize it. This ones not as much fun to OC as the Black Edition Phenom 2’s but if you don’t mind spending the time and doing some tweaking you’ll get a pretty decent OC.

Like we mentioned, best results for efficient overclocking were done in AOD then enter the settings into BIOS manually. In order to take the ram speed out of the equation we used a divider to reduce the ram speed to 800 MHz then let the FSB OC raise it back up to 942. On a kit like the Crucial Ballistix 1066 we used it wouldn’t be hard to OC the CPU and Max the OC on the ram achieving a little better OC. You will probably also want to reduce the Hyper Transport link speed during overclocking, going much past 2 GHz on Hyper Transport might de-stabilize or reduce your overclocking overhead.

Please note the the OC results on the Phenom 2 X4 810 are more a result of the limited time we had to work with it than the actual capabilities of the CPU itself.

OVERCLOCKING

Phenom 2 X3 720

Then the last CPU in the Phenom 2 lineup we tested was the X3 720 BE. We can feel comfortable telling you that of the Phenom 2 CPU’s that we tested that the Black Editions are highly recommended for the best and most fun overclocking and if you plan on serious overclocking on the Phenom 2 series we recommend the Black Editions and the 790GX and SB750 chipset. Yes we’ve repeated that several times but we already know that if we don’t pound that point home there will be people come back to us and say, “I couldn’t get it to OC like you did can you help me?” We can help to some extent, but not if you chose to go with a different chipset,  we haven’t tested on anything but the 790GX and SB750 chipset so we can’t tell you if it will OC on any other chipset, or how well it will OC. We will more than likely test on an AM3 board when one comes available but these CPU’s are designed for and run best on the AMD 790GX and SB750 chipsets that are currently available. Then lastly no we can’t predict if they will run better or worse on future chipsets, we can tell you that on the chipsets we tested, especially with the Phenom 2 X4 and Phenom X3 720 Black Editions it was a lot of fun overclocking, and games and applications ran like glass on them. Beyond that overclocking is a crapshoot heavily dependent on time, skill, and careful selection of hardware.

We’ve got to hand it to AMD when it comes to base clockspeed on the new Phenom 2 CPU’s, they’ve made a much needed and greatly appreciated clock speed increase on this series. For the average gamer wanting to run games and have a little extra punch when it comes to multi-threaded applications it would be hard not to recommend the Phenom 2 X3 720 BE. Most games use 2 cores efficiently but when you get past two cores (currently) most of the cores are wasted and just kind of hang around out there and idle. The Phenom 2 X3 720 BE provides a good balance of power and price. Not as expensive as it’s big brother the Phenom 2 X4 940 BE which is limited to the AM2+ boards, the X3 720 BE is AM3 board capable but backwards compatible with the AM2+ boards and features the unlocked multiplier that make it exponentially easier to enjoy OCing ease. We had a lot of fun with the X3 720 BE and fully intend to push it farther than we already have.

Since it’s a Triple Core Black Edition it gets the advantage of having a full 6 MB of L3 cache.

Again we went with the M3A78-T board for the Phenom 2 X3 720 BE and as we mentioned for no other reason than we’re more familiar with the Asus boards BIOS setup than the MSI boards BIOS. If you remember back a page or two we were able to stabilize the Phenom 2 X4 940 at 4 GHz on the MSI board so it’s no slouch. In general though we find that it’s easier to attain a good OC if you use one vendors boards and get to know the inherent tenancies of that manufacturers boards as opposed to going all over the map and playing on every vendors boards. In other words pick a flavor, pick a good flavor and stick with it, with experience on a particular vendors boards every OC gets easier.

Changing CPU’s didn’t make the BIOS recognize and set the ram speeds correctly so we had to set them manually and tinker with the NB voltage a little to get the ram up to, and stable at, 1066.

Yes we know this isn’t a CPU-Z shot it’s a task manager screenie but we just couldn’t get over seeing 3 cores in task manager and if you’ll notice all three cores were responding and working just like they should. The little spike you see there was a short burt of multi-threaded activity in Everest’s CPU testing suite, then we aborted, dumped out and grabbed the screenie to see if all 3 cores were active and we were rewarded with a spike in all three task manager windows. Most of the OCing we did we started with a 2 GB kit of Crucial Ballistic DDR2 1066, then when we got to the CPU speed we wanted we switched out to our 4 GB kit and tinkered with voltages to get the ram stable. One of the little secrets to our Overclocking success.

While we tested at 3.4 GHz shortly after we got all the charts made we got bored and went back and tinkered with the Phenom 2 X3 720 BE a little more and in a short time we hit 3.6 GHz stable. Please note that this was an early screenie of our success at 3.6 GHz and the actual voltage that stabilized it was more like 1.39 Vcore. That’s a nice little speed increase of 800 MHz and we’re reasonably sure that with a little more time and effort, with good cooling 3.8 GHz and beyond is obtainable. We consider 3.6 GHz a good and reasonable OC to run 24/7 and anything beyond that should remain in the realm of a temporary boost for benching and bragging rights.

CONCLUSION

There are a couple of ways to see the Phenom 2 series of CPU’s. The die hards will scream that they’re not up the standards of the Intel Core i7 CPU’s. We didn’t expect them to be up to the performance of Core i7. We did expect them to be up to the standards of the Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad series Intel CPU’s and they achieved that expectation. This technological advance for AMD represents the largest single computational increase in computing power in AMD’s history. While not up to Intel’s Core i7 performance levels the AMD Phenom 2’s and Dragon platform aren’t up to Intel’s Core i7 price levels either.

The Phenom 2’s come in at a good price/performance level and fill a much needed price point that has up until now has been lacking in computational power. Once again you can build a reasonably powerful system that will game and perform well enough to satisfy most enthusiasts without having to sell your kidney. That’s the true victory with the Phenom 2 CPU lineup. Performance at a price you can afford, and in the current economic downturn it was a much needed and awaited victory.

The Phenom 2 lineup in general was fun to overclock, the Phenom 2 Black Editions were a lot more fun to overclock so we highly recommend those if your into serious overclocking. They respond well to good cooling and we saw more overclocking overhead when we switched out to our high end water cooling system, but a good Air cooler like the Thermalright Ultra 120 provides enough headroom for most people to be happy with.

There’s more to CPU (and hardware) evaluation than just benches and overclocking, in order to evaluate it you also need to run it in day to day computing, and game on the platform to get a feel for it. We loaded up our favorite games including Crysis, Warhead, World In Conflict, FarCry 2 and a few others and gamed for a couple of hours in each and we’re happy to report that the Dragon platform ran the games and applications we tried as well as any machine we’ve had on the bench. Considering we have access to machines that fully dressed out cost as much as $4000 that’s saying a lot. (Yes QuadZilla fully dressed far exceeds $4k but we have some surprises on QuadZilla you haven’t seen yet)

With the economic down turn the great price/performance of the Phenom 2 CPU’s and Dragon platform is a welcome sight to cash starved consumers and we don’t have a problem recommending it from that standpoint. We fully expect a lot of consumers to take to the new Dragon platform eagerly and welcome both it’s computational power and price.

We are trying out a new addition to our scoring system to provide additional feedback beyond a flat score. Please note that the final score isn’t an aggregate average of the new rating system.

• Performance 8.5
• Value 10
• Quality 10
• Warranty 8
• Features 10
• Innovation 9

Pros:

+  Great Price/Performance
+  Nice OCing Headroom
+  Responds Well To Advanced Cooling Methods
+  Best Performance From AMD We’ve Seen To Date
+  Very Stable When OCed Properly
+  Fun To OC Black Editions
+  Entire Top End Dragon Platform Cheaper Than A Single Intel 965 Extreme CPU.

Cons:

–  Haven’t Caught Up To Core i7

For it’s Excellent Price/Performance Ratio, running all our games and applications at a more than acceptable speed, and whole Platform Concept (Dragon Platform) the Phenom 2 series CPU’s deserve a

Final Score: 8. 5 out of 10 and the Bjorn3D Seal Of Approval.

CPU Name	Cores	Clock	L2/L3 Cache	HT Bus	Socket	TDP	Price
AMD Phenom II X4 965 BE	4	3.4GHz	2+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	140W	$179
AMD Phenom II X4 955 BE	4	3.2GHz	2+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	125W	$165
AMD Phenom II X4 945	4	3.0GHz	2+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	125W	$159
AMD Phenom II X4 925	4	2.8GHz	2+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$139
AMD Phenom II X4 910e	4	2.6GHz	2+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	65W	$169
AMD Phenom II X4 905e	4	2. 5GHz	2+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	65W	$175
AMD Phenom II X4 810	4	2.6GHz	2+4MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$139
AMD Phenom II X3 720BE	3	2.8GHz	1.5+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$104
AMD Phenom II X3 710	3	2.6GHz	1.5+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$99
AMD Phenom II X3 705e	3	2.5GHz	1.5+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	65W	$119
AMD Phenom II X2 555	2	3.2GHz	1+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	80W	$99
AMD Phenom II X2 550	2	3.1GHz	1+6MB	4000MHz	AM3	80W	$91
AMD Athlon II X4 635	4	2. 9GHz	2MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$120
AMD Athlon II X4 630	4	2.8GHz	2MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$102
AMD Athlon II X4 620	4	2.6GHz	2MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$99
AMD Athlon II X3 440	3	3.0GHz	1.5MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$84
AMD Athlon II X3 435	3	2.9GHz	1.5MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$75
AMD Athlon II X3 425	3	2.7GHz	1.5MB	4000MHz	AM3	95W	$72
AMD Athlon II X2 255	2	3.1GHz	2MB	4000MHz	AM3	65W	$75
AMD Athlon II X2 250	2	3.0GHz	2MB	4000MHz	AM3	65W	$65
AMD Athlon II X2 245	2	2. 9GHz	2MB	4000MHz	AM3	65W	$61
AMD Athlon II X2 240	2	2.8GHz	2MB	4000MHz	AM3	65W	$53

AMD Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition HDZ940XCJ4DGI CPU

General information
Type	CPU / Microprocessor
Market segment	Desktop
Family	AMD Phenom II X4
Model number	940
CPU part number	HDZ940XCJ4DGI
Box part number	HDZ940XCGIBOX
Stepping codes	AACSC AC  CACVC AC   CACZC AC
Frequency (MHz)	3000
Bus speed (MHz)	533 MHz Memory controller One 1800 MHz 16-bit HyperTransport link
Clock multiplier	15
Package	940-pin organic micro-PGA
Socket	Socket AM2+
Weight	1. 4oz / 38.5g
Introduction date	Jan 8, 2009
Price at introduction	$275
Architecture / Microarchitecture
Platform	Dragon
Processor core	Deneb
Core stepping	C2
Manufacturing process	0.045 micron SOI 758 million transistors
Die size	243 mm2
Data width	64 bit
Number of cores	4
Floating Point Unit	Integrated
Level 1 cache size	4 x 64 KB 2-way associative instruction caches 4 x 64 KB 2-way associative data caches
Level 2 cache size	4 x 512 KB 16-way associative caches
Level 3 cache size	6 MB shared 48-way associative cache
Virtual memory (TB)	256
Features	MMX 3DNow! SSE SSE2 SSE3 SSE4a  Advanced Bit Manipulation AMD64 technology AMD-V (virtualization) technology Enhanced Virus Protection
Low power features	Cool’n’Quiet 3. 0 CoolCore Technology Dual Dynamic Power Management Core C1 and C1E states Package S0, S1, S3, S4 and S5 states
On-chip peripherals	Integrated 144-bit DDR2 Memory Controller HyperTransport 3 technology
Electrical/Thermal parameters
V core (V)	1.225 — 1.425
V NorthBridge (V)	1.15 — 1.3
Maximum operating temperature (°C)	55 — 62
Thermal Design Power (W)	125 (Socket AM2+/Socket AM3) 139.6 (Socket AM2)

More Information

Price View	Price Range
Manufacturer	AMD
L2 Cache	8 MB
Condition	Certified Refurbished
Condition Comment	Full working order
Warranty	30 Day RTB (Return to Base) Warranty
Important	It is your responsibility as a buyer to ensure this is compatible with your hardware or operating system before buying. Assume that any photo is a library photo, not the actual item you will receive, unless expressly mentioned above. Item has been pulled from salvage machine so expect the item to be in a used condition with minor scuffs etc. Unless expressly mentioned in the description, there will be no other parts included with the item. This includes items such as drivers, cables, manuals, warranty cards etc. Hard drives, tape drives, caddies etc. will not include any screws, fixing rails unless expressly mentioned.

We aims to deliver items ordered to you as soon possible. As a guide, we estimate that most items will be delivered according the following timescales. To help you plan for your delivery, we will send you an e-mail with tracking details, as soon as your order has been shipped.

UK Delivery

• Free Delivery: Monday-Friday (2-5 Working Days)
• Fast Delivery: Monday-Friday (1-2 Working Days)
• Next Working Day Delivery: if ordering before 1pm it is next day (excluding Saturday/Sunday), if you place order Saturday/Sunday we will dispatch your order Monday for delivery Tuesday.

  Please note that Saturdays, Sundays, and Bank Holidays are not classed as working days.

  Delivery services may take longer if you live in remote areas like the Scottish Highlands and Northern Ireland. As a result, Next Day service may not be guaranteed.

International Delivery (not including customs processing)

• You can choose UPS Courier at checkout, please fill in your address first to get a shipping quote. International orders are usually delivered within couple of days, speed depends on the services selected.
  

• Goods are despatched Monday – Friday only.

• Sending goods outside the United Kingdom may result in additional local customs clearance charges and taxes. Failure to pay these charges and taxes on arrival will result in the goods being returned to us. In such instances we may refund your order and delivery fees but retain a re-processing fee to cover the return costs and customs processing fees.

  Changes from 1^st January 2021 – Brexit

  On 1^st January 2021 the UK left the EU. A consequence of this is that goods purchased from the UK for delivery in the EU are now subject to additional duties and taxes as well as increased shipping costs. To our European customers we offering following delivery option:

  Delivery Only Service – we will deliver your order excluding any customs clearance fees, import charges and taxes. When the goods arrive in your country you will be contacted by the delivery company to pay these additional costs directly to them before final delivery as the importer of record.

  Delivery is processed under the ‘Delivery at Place’ (DAP) Incoterm.

  We would advise you to check the cost of delivery before making purchase as the customs clearance fees, import charges and taxes can amount to quite a significant cost.

We are so confident in the quality of our work that we stand behind every MicroDream Certified Refurbished product with a 12 Month Warranty as standard and we are able to offer our 30 Day Money Back Guarantee with complete confidence.

We guarantee this product against all hardware faults for a period of 12 months from receipt of the product.

If there is a hardware fault within the first 30 days of receipt we will arrange for collection free of charge and replace or repair the product.

If there is a hardware fault after the first 30 days, you are responsible for safely returning the product to us. We can arrange collection for £19 including VAT. We will pay for the carriage of the replacement or repaired product back to you.

WHO IS COVERED? This warranty is non-transferable and covers only the original end purchaser. An original or copy of a sales invoice is required for warranty service.

WHAT IS COVERED? In the event of your PC hardware developing a fault you can return it for repair or replacement (or equivalent).

WHAT IS NOT COVERED?

• Normal wear and tear of Product use
• Misuse, lack of care, mishandling, accident, abuse or other abnormal use
• Use of the Product other than for its intended purpose
• Damage caused by improper or unauthorized repair or maintenance
• Warranty is void if repairing without our consent or warranty seal is broken
• Product that has been modified or altered
• Software issues (any problems associated with software – whether bundled or installed by user, file corruption, internet setup etc. )
• Accidental damage like breaking the screen or spilling liquid on it. You would need independent insurance to cover this.
• Used batteries, although we do guarantee that it will hold at least one hour’s charge. We will replace batteries which do not meet these criteria if reported within one week of receipt and the battery supplied is returned. Batteries are considered as consumable items — as they are expected to degrade over time. Some may require replacement.

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AMD Phenom II X4 review 955 Black Edition

When AMD released its first AM3 Phenom socket processors in February, I noticed that most likely AMD was holding back the flagship mega-fast quad-core AM3 to avoid falling for socket AM2 + 940 Black Edition, a processor that was only a month old, but it was only limited to older motherboards. In this regard, I also suggested that those who are thinking about buying a quad-core Phenom II AM3 processor should wait a few months with the likely appearance of the Black Edition processor. Well, I don’t want to say that I told you about it, but I told you about it.

AMD’s fastest processor to date, the Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition (BE), went on sale today. It has a default clock speed of 3.2GHz, supports both AM3 and AM2+ socket motherboards (if the BIOS update allows), and is therefore compatible with DDR2 and DDR3 memory. Its most notable feature, however, is marked by this Black Edition moniker, namely, it has an unlocked multiplier that theoretically allows for very easy overclocking. Priced at £220 it competes directly with an Intel Core 2 Quad Q9 processor550, a noticeably slower clocked processor that on the surface won’t have the same overclocking potential.

Also announced today is the Phenom II X4 945, which runs at 3.0GHz but does not have an unlocked multiplier. Understandably, this means it’s on sale for a lower price of £196, though the difference seems small enough that we’d be inclined to shell out for an extra Black Edition. We did not receive a sample of this processor, so we left it out of our testing.

What’s immediately apparent from these prices is that AMD still doesn’t list its products as competitors to the best Intel processors. So if you want the best of the best, it’s safe to say that the Intel Core i7 system is still on the way. However, if you’re just looking for a reasonably priced yet still powerful system, then these processors are likely to be prime candidates.

Given that both processors announced today are simply faster versions of the original AM3 Phenom II processors we’ve already covered, we won’t include the full architecture of the chips. To do this, we refer you to our Phenom II X4 810 and Phenom II X3 720 Black Edition reviews, and for more information about the Phenom II architecture in general, you can also check out our Phenom II X4 review 940.

One last thing before we start testing; AMD specific naming scheme. You see, when the first Phenom II processors came out, AMD introduced a new three-digit numbering scheme. Even at the time it didn’t seem too sensible, since 940 there isn’t much room for improvement without going into four figures. What’s even more confusing is that, despite being so highly numbered, the 940 BE was an AM2+-only chip, so became obsolete almost immediately.

Since then, the initial socketed AM3 Phenom II chips have been numbered 8xx due to their lower clock speeds. Meanwhile, the AM3 tri-core processors came out numbered 7xx, so up until that point, the first digit of the model number seemed to have a clear meaning. Now, with the release of the 955 and 945, AMD really messed up by making AM3 Phenom II sockets with model numbers starting from 9.

If you’re buying from a reputable store, the distinction between the AM2+ and AM3 Phenom II should be clear, but we think AMD could make life a lot easier by adopting a smarter numbering system in the first place.

Tested on Asus M4A79T motherboard using Qimonda DDR3 2GB 1333MHz memory and ATI HD 4870 X2 graphics card. The same graphics card and memory were used in our Core i7 and Core 2 testbeds, details of which are below.

«Common System Components»

AMD ATI Radeon 4870 X2 Video Card
Western Digital Raptor X 150GB Hard Drive
Pioneer BDC-S02BK Blu-ray Drive

«Core i7 test system»

Motherboard Intel DX58SO ”SmackOver”

2 x 1 GB RAM Qimonda IMSh2GU03A1F1C-10F PC3-8500 DDR3

«Core 2 test system»

Motherboard Asus P5E3

2 x 1 GB RAM Qimonda IMSh2GU03A1F1C-10F PC3-8500 DDR3

«AMD Phenom II AM3 Test System»

Asus Motherboard M4A79T Deluxe

2 x 1 GB Qimonda IMSh2GU03A1F1C-10F PC3-8500 DDR3

Despite being relatively modestly priced, this chip is still AMD’s best processor, so we’ve included results for two of Intel’s best processors, the Core i7 965 Extreme Edition and Core 2 QX9770 Extreme Edition. We’ve also included data for the more reasonably priced Core i7 920, which is available for around £250, and the Core 2 Q9550, which is the processor’s most direct competitor, for around £210.

In addition to competing with Intel, we also got results for the previous generation Phenom (no longer available), the 9950 Black Edition and the £150 Phenom II X4 810, and the phenomenal (Sic) Phenom II . X3 720 Black Edition for just £120.

We’ve run our usual cycle of mostly «real» tests that test the processor’s ability to actually do what we expect you to do. This includes photo editing, video transcoding, games, and mp3 converting. For 3D rendering testing, we had to resort to «canned» benchmarks, but we believe they are valuable industry benchmarks of performance.

Along the way, we also recorded the power consumption of the processors both at idle and when running a multi-threaded test in Cinebench.

«‘Results»‘

From gaming tests, we see a rather mixed bag. While the 955 BE competes very well against even the most expensive Intel processors in Crysis, Enemy Territory: Quake Wars shows clear favoritism towards all Intel processors. However, the 955 Black Edition still has enough performance to play both games satisfactorily.

Moving on to video encoding, we see a continuation of a trend that has been observed for some time. Intel processors are simply better at encoding video. However, the extra clock speed of the 955 BE means it keeps pace with its price-point rival, the Q9550.

This is a similar story with 3D rendering. While Intel has a clear lead, the 955 BE is still on the heels of the Q9550, at least in Cinebench. There are still quite a lot in POVRay: 9The 55 BE takes 1101 seconds compared to the Q9550’s 841 seconds — a difference of about four minutes.

Our image editing and file compression tests show less significant differences between all the different processors, but there’s still a general trend of Core i7 and Core 2 outperforming AMD’s best. However, once again, when we talk about price competitors, the 955 BE and Q9550 are a short distance apart. A trend that finally plays out in our final tests; mp3 encoding.

So, then, actually, the Q9550 looks like the best hit at the moment, simply. However, there are still all important overclocking opportunities to consider. Unfortunately, things didn’t go so well for us.

Essentially, we needed to update the BIOS of the test motherboard in order for it to correctly recognize the 955 BE. However, this beta BIOS was so incomplete that it refused to store any changes we made to the BIOS settings. This meant we couldn’t change things like the order of the boot drive etc. It was a bit of a pain but the board worked and gave seemingly correct results so we sold out (be aware that the operating system and drivers for the board were already installed on our test hard drive).

However, when it came to overclocking, we used AMD’s overdrive utility to increase the multiplier from 16x to 19x and the system crashed. So we tried 18x instead and it worked fine. Still not wanting to raise the voltage, we next tried 18.5x and the system crashed. Unfortunately, this resulted in damage to the operating system, which meant we had to do a recovery install, but of course we couldn’t change the boot options to make the system boot from CD.

Since we’re leaving overclocking until relatively late in the day, we didn’t have time to fully understand how we could solve this problem, so we had to rely on initial numbers we recorded with the processor running at 3.8GHz. At this level, the CPU appeared to draw no more power than at normal speed and was completely stable, with its multi-threaded Cinebench score going from 10461 to 11368 (an eight percent improvement).

On the
, in contrast, we were able to increase the FSB on our Q9550 from 333MHz to 400MHz without additional voltage by boosting our 2.8GHz chip to 3.41GHz in one simple step. This caused his Cinebench scores to go up from 11068 to 12676 (a 14 percent improvement).

So the Black Edition moniker doesn’t have to be everything and finish everything. However, it’s still a very competitive processor and you should definitely consider it.

«» Sentence «»

With the Phenom II 955 Black Edition, AMD has created a great processor that will satisfy the vast majority of power users, gamers and enthusiasts. Most importantly, it is very competitively priced and a great alternative to all Intel solutions priced around £200. However, the apparent overclocking ability of these chips, due to their unlocked multiplier, is not actually maintained under normal conditions. Maybe if you use water cooling or liquid nitrogen you can run this chip at 6.0 GHz (like people with the Phenom II X3 720 Black Edition), but in a conventional air cooled system you will just as well get the same amount of overclocking headroom. one of the Intel chips.

It can be argued that for many of you gaming performance will be of paramount concern when it comes to buying new parts for your PC. However, the simple fact is that if you have a powerful gaming PC, CPU performance will not be your bottleneck. So if you have a good enough dual, triple or quad core processor, you should be fine. For this reason, we didn’t go into town testing our games and only reviewed two games, Crysis and Enemy Territory: Quake Wars.

Both games use scripts to run a time demo with frame rate recording. Each option is run three times and is accepted on average to ensure a consistent and fair result. We used the «low» graphics setting to demonstrate the effect a fast processor can have when graphics card performance is not the bottleneck, and then we used a «high» setting to show the limited effect a fast processor has when your graphics card is is the bottleneck.

Crysis

Enemy Territory: Quake Wars

Perhaps the next most obvious task for a powerful desktop processor is video encoding. Whether it’s for editing your family videos or transcoding your favorite iPod videos, video encoding is becoming more and more common and that’s why we used two scenarios to test video encoding performance.

The first is our longstanding test of transcoding a portion of a DVD-quality MPEG-2 video to the open source Xvid format. This test is a little long, as the version of Xvid we’re using is quite old, so not multi-threaded (not to mention the raw frames aren’t even HD), but in the sense that it gives us a very solid indication of single-core performance.

The following script takes a piece of 1080p footage, again in MPEG-2 format, and transcodes it to h.264. This is a much more relevant test since the source material is Full HD and the h.264 codec is the most advanced video format currently available. For this task, we also use the open source AutoMKV converter, which is fully multi-threaded.

«»VirtualDub»»

«» AutoMKV «»

While many people associate 3D performance with a graphics card, for CAD applications, most of the heavy work is still done on processors, so we need to check it out. We use two industry standard benchmarks called POV-Ray and Cinebench. Both programs are free to download and the test starts with a single click, so it’s a really easy comparison tool if you want to see how your system stacks up.

Cinebench has both single threaded and multithreaded benchmark while POV-Ray is just multithreaded. A bit disappointing, Cinebench only returns the score, not the time to completion, so the numbers don’t mean anything in isolation. However, when compared, they adequately show any difference in performance.

«»Cinebench»»

»POVRay»

» Photoshop Batch Processing »

For this test, we ran every auto-adjustment available in Photoshop on a large collection of images and the time it takes to complete. This is an old test that is not multi-threaded, but is incredibly reliable for showing differences in single-threaded performance.

«Compressing WinRAR Files»

Although zipping and unzipping files is a fairly quick and easy task, the frequency with which a large computer user has to work means saving five seconds each time you decompress something is a real boon. Therefore, we believe that this is an interesting system performance test.

This test is divided into two parts. The first time how long it takes to compress a large video file and the second records how long it takes to compress the folder of photos used in the Photoshop test above. We will then repeat this test using the multi-threaded version of WinRAR.

Ah, MP3 encoding. No matter how many advances have been made in audio formats, and even with the proliferation of online music services, encoding our audio CDs to MP3 is still a stubborn element in common computer tasks. So let’s see how the Phenom II works.

» Singe-track, single-stream encoding » ‘

It has always been like this. One track after another until the album is over. For this test, we encode 11 tracks using the LAME encoder.

”’ Single track, multi-line ”’

A slight improvement over single threaded encoding, this method will take advantage of multiple cores for each track it is currently encoding. This test encodes the same 11 tracks and uses the multithreaded version of LAME.

«Multi-stream, multi-stream»

Finally, we have the fastest method; encoding as many mp3s at the same time as there are cores. We used the DBPowerAmp test to load as many cores or vCores as possible in the case of the i7.

Unlike other sites, we thoroughly test every product we review. We use standard industry benchmarks to properly compare features. We will always tell you what we find. We never, ever accept money for a product review.
Tell us what you think — send your letters to the editor.

List table of all AMD Socket AM2+ processors — Features, specifications, prices — FXeon.ru

03/29/2018 Fxeon Processors 234 comments

All AM2+ processors. This page contains the main technical specifications for all AM2+ processors. Also here are the current prices for processors.

The AM2+ range is represented by processors with 2 to 4 cores:

• Phenom (3-4 cores)
• Athlon (2 cores)
• Opteron (4 cores)
• Phenom II (2-4 cores: Phenom II x4 940, Phenom II x4 920 and Phenom II x3 715) — other processors of the Phenom II family have an AM3 socket and may not fit into a motherboard with an AM2+ socket. 1800MHz 125W 45nm DDR2-1066 Deneb Phenom II X4
  920 1_518_₽ 4 2,8  2+6  1800  125  45  DDR2-1066 Deneb Phenom X4
  9950 BE 1 887 ₽ 4 2.6 GHC 2+2 MB 200256
  140/125 W 65 nm DDR2-1066 Agena Phenom X4
  9850 1 285 ₽ 4 2,5  2+2  2000  125/95  65  DDR2-1066 Agena Phenom X4
  9750 1 210 ₽ 4 2. 4 GHz 2+2 MB MHz 125/95 W.0256
  Agena Phenom X4
  9700 ? 4 2.4 GHz 2+2 MB 1800 MHz 125 W 65 Nm DDR2-1066 AGENA

  66
  Phenom X4
  9650 815 ₽ 4 2,3  2+2  1800  95  65  DDR2-1066 Agena Phenom X4
  9600 770 ₽ 4 2.3 GHz 2+2 MB 1800 MHz 95 W DDR2-10254 AGENA
  Opteron
  1356 ? 4 2.3 GHz 2+2 MB 2000 MHz 115 W 65 nm DDR2 6 9025 Budapest 6
  Phenom X4
  9550 40256

  2+2MB 1800MHz 95W 65nm DDR2-1066 Agena Phenom X4
  9500 777 ₽ 4 2,2  2+2  1800  95  65  DDR2-1066 Agena Opteron
  1354 ? 4 2. 2GHz 2+2MB 1800MHz 115W 65 nm DDR2 Budapest Phenom X4
  9450e ? 4 2.1 GHz 2+2 MB 1800 MHz 65 W 65 Nm DDR2-1066 AGENA

  66
  Opteron
  1352 ? Budapest0256
  Phenom X4
  9350e 998 ₽ 4 2  2+2  1600  65  65  DDR2-1066 Agena Phenom X4
  9150e 506 ₽ 4 1,8  2+2  1600  65  65  DDR2-1066 Agena Phenom X4
  9100e 760 ₽ 4 1.8 GHz 2+2 MB 1600 MHz 65 W 65 nm DDR2-1066

  666666666666666666666666666666666E

  90OAL
  Phenom II X3
  715 ? 3 2. 8 GHz 1.5+6 MB 2000 MHz 95 W 45 Nm DDR2-1066 HeKA

  666
  Phenom X3
  8850 ? 3 2.5 GHz 1.5_2MB 1800MHz 95W 65nm DDR2-1066 Toliman Phenom X3
  8750 876 ₽ 3 2,4  1,5+2  1800  95  65  DDR2-1066 Toliman Phenom X3
  8650 $6.9 95W 65nm DDR2-1066 Toliman Phenom X3
  8600 464 ₽ 3 2,3  1,5+2 1800  95  65  DDR2-1066 Toliman Phenom X3
  8550 ? 3 2.2GHz 1.5+2MB 1800MHz 95W 65nm DDR2-1066 Toliman Phenom X3
  8450e ? 3 2. 1 GHz 1.5+2 MB 1800 MHz 65 W 65 Nm DDR2-1066 TOLIMAN

  666
  Phenom X3
  8450 388 ₽ 3 2,1  1,5+2 1800  95  65  DDR2-1066 Toliman Phenom X3
  8400 392 ₽ 3 2,1  1,5+2 1800  95  65  DDR2-1066 Toliman Phenom X3
  8250e 852 ₽ 3 1,9  1,5+2 1800  65  65  DDR2-1066 Toliman Athlon X2
  7850 1 162 ₽ 2 2.8 GHz 1+2 MB 1800 MHz 95 W 65 nm DDR2-1066

  90OAL
  Athlon X2
  7750 396 ₽ 2 2,7  1+2  1800  95  65  DDR2-1066 Kuma Athlon X2
  7550 ? 2 2. 5 GHz 1+2MB 1800MHz 95W 65nm DDR2-1066 Kuma Athlon X2
  7450 503 ₽ 2 2,4  1+2  1800  95  65  DDR2-1066 Kuma Athlon X2
  6500 ? 2 2.3GHz 1+2MB 1800MHz 95W 65nm DDR2-1066 Kuma Athlon X2
  5000+ ? 2 2.2GHz 512K 1600MHz 65W 45nm DDR5 eb2 9025
  

  Other processors:
  List table of all AMD socket AM2 processors
  Which processor to buy for socket am2

  AM2+AMD

  processors

  Best processors on socket AM2

  The AMD Athlon 64 X2 FX processor released by AMD, despite the name, has nothing to do with the FX line. It is an improved version of the Athlon 64 X2. The Athlon 64 X2 has two cores with 1MB L2 cache and runs at 2400 MHz, while the new Athlon 64 X2 FX has the same number of cores running at 2700 MHz.

  Quad-core processor introduced by AMD in 2008. He managed to earn recognition all over the world. Suitable for installation in server stations and similar systems.

  • Connector: AM2;
  • Number of cores: 4;
  • Process: 65 nm;
  • Frequency: 2.3 GHz;
  • L3 cache: 2 MB;
  • Heat dissipation: 115 W;
  • Price: $90.

  AMD Athlon 64 X2 and Phenom processors for Socket AM2

  The relatively long lifespan and good stability of the «method 5.0» led to the fact that we tested all the current families of processors with its help (and in some cases not one at a time — two representatives of each), and there is still time left to take excursions into history

  In general, from a practical point of view, they are no less important than tests of new products — many old platforms still have and work, so the question “how much in grams” can be gained with an upgrade is not an idle one. And for an accurate answer to it, you need to know both the performance of new processors and the level of outdated ones. You can, of course, use the results of long-term tests, but after all, they all refer to equally popular versions of software, and it tends to change. Therefore, new tests are needed. It is quite difficult to carry out which — both the processors themselves must still be found, and the other environment must be prepared to meet the requirements of the methodology. Therefore, for example, within the framework of the main version of the testing methodology, we basically cannot touch Socket 754, since it is impossible to find 8 GB DDR SDRAM and a board on which all this will work. There is a similar problem with Socket 939, but you can handle the newer (but, in principle, equivalent to the previous one in terms of performance) AM2 platform. What we, in fact, will do today, fortunately, we managed to find as many as five suitable processors. More precisely, seven, but two were too out of the general range in terms of performance, which is why they were considered last time. And today is the era of late AM2 and even AM2+.

  Test bench configuration

  Processor	Athlon 64 X2 3800+	Athlon 64 X2 5200+ Unfortunately, no other junior «classic» 90 nm dual-core processors and no representatives of the 65 nm process technology could be found. So conclusions about the dual-core family will have to be drawn on the basis of the mentioned «initial» 3800+ and three models formally (since two of them appeared after this family lost the status of maximum performance devices) of a high level: 5200+, 6000+ and FX- 62. Strictly speaking, we could do without the latter, since testing it will not bring us any exclusive information — the clock frequency is exactly in the middle between the other two participants. But we could not pass by the processor, which at the time of the announcement was sold at a price of around 1250 (!) Dollars, having the opportunity not to pass. A legend, after all. Although it has been greatly devalued over the past years, but once the processor rightfully occupied its price level, being the most productive x86 solution on the market. 9500 and the breakthrough Phenom II X4 940. Again, the latter is not that interesting, since we tested the Phenom II line for AM3, and they differ only in supported memory, but formally 940 is the best thing that was done under AM2+. In practice, on many boards with this socket, you can also use more efficient solutions, thanks to the backward compatibility of the two platforms, but the formal status is also a reason to get acquainted. -a bug.» Its discovery forced the company to switch to the corrected B3 stepping (such models are easily distinguished by the fact that their number ends with «50»), and BIOS patches appeared to ensure the stable operation of already sold processors. At one time, we tested one of the Phenom engineering samples with the TLB patch enabled and disabled and came to the conclusion that its use reduces performance by an average of 21% (in some programs, by several times). Well, since this error did not always spoil the user’s life with the instability of the system, many naturally preferred to disable this fix at their own peril and risk. Unfortunately, with modern software, this is already very difficult to do, unlike the times of Windows XP — Microsoft has built the error fix directly into its operating systems. It started with SP1 for Windows Vista and, of course, migrated to Windows 7. In principle, there are ways to disable this «parking brake», but we did not do this, since most users do not do this either. And from the point of view of testing processors in modern software, such tweaks are not correct. But it’s worth remembering their capabilities if someone still has to use a computer based on the first generation Phenom (moreover, according to reviews, performance increases even on models with the correct stepping). As well as the fact that simply disabling the TLB-patch in Setup when working under modern Windows operating systems no longer affects anything (we did a quick check of this to make sure clearly). Or, by the way, this situation can be considered as another reason not to rush to install a new OS on an old computer, which is already not too fast so that it would have a desire to work with the most “fresh” versions of application software — it’s better or “ the old fashioned way”, or, after all, to start an upgrade.
  Number of compute cores/threads	2/2	4/4	2/2	3/3
  	256/256	128/128	192/192
  L2,	2×512	4×1024	2×512	3×512
  L3, MiB	—	—	6	6
  UnCore frequency, GHz	85 W	95 W
  Price	N/D ()	N/D (0)	N/D ()	N/D (0)

  models from the AMD range. First, A4-3400 and A6-3670K. The second one, after a recent price cut, «lives» at the level of older Pentiums, and the first one is comparable to Celeron. In addition, the FM1 platform is interesting to us because it offers the buyer a good level of integrated graphics — higher than the discrete AM2 heyday. Accordingly, if someone has not yet raised a hand to throw out a five-year-old system unit, the cheaper FM1 can stimulate this process. An added bonus is that both processors run at 2.7 GHz, which is exactly between the 5200+ and the FX-62. And two old Phenom II operating at a clock frequency of 3 GHz are also asking for the list of test subjects: X2 545 and X3 740. From a practical point of view, of course, it’s too late to remember them, but from a theoretical point of view they will fit.

  LGA1155 Biostar TH67XE (H67) Corsair Vengeance CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9B (2×1333/1066; 9-9-9-24 / 8-8-8-20)

  Officially, all dual-core processors under AM2 support DDR2-800, for 5200+ and 6000+ the real memory frequencies are slightly different from the theoretical ones: 746 and 752 MHz, respectively, due to a limited set of dividers (which we already mentioned last time). The difference from the regular mode, however, is small, but it can affect somewhere compared to the FX-62, which works in a “canonically correct way”, since its frequency is divided by 400 completely (the same for the 3800+, but, of course, these “monsters a priori not competitors). And all Phenoms (both the first and second generations) also support DDR2-1066, but only in the “one module per channel” configuration, which for obvious reasons does not suit us: the volume required “according to the standard” for the technique is 8 GB with two modules we were unable to provide. In general, also trifles, but we focus on them to reduce the number of subsequent questions

  Testing

  Traditionally, we divide all tests into a number of groups, and show the average result for a group of tests/applications on the diagrams (for details on the testing methodology, see a separate article). The results on the diagrams are given in points, the performance of the iXBT.com reference test system of the 2011 sample is taken as 100 points. It is based on the AMD Athlon II X4 620 processor, but the amount of memory (8 GB) and video card (NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 1280 MB by Palit) are standard for all tests of the “main line” and can only be changed within the framework of special studies. Those who are interested in more detailed information are again traditionally invited to download a table in Microsoft Excel format, in which all the results are shown both in converted points and in «natural» form.

  Interactive work in 3D packages

  Almost identical results of three Phenom II once again show that these tests are unable to utilize more than two computation threads. It would seem that an ideal situation for older Athlon 64 X2 is high-frequency dual-core processors with a relatively large and fast L2. But… even the 6000+ lags not only behind the A4-3400 with a frequency of 2.7 GHz, but also behind the two-GHz (!) Celeron G530T, and the results of the rest in this scenario can be ignored. In general, over the past years, processor architectures have stepped far ahead (not all at once, but the overall progress is not bad), which cannot be ignored. There were, of course, extremely unsuccessful steps along the way, such as the first Phenom. The Lion’s Share of Responsibility for Failure 9500 is based on the TLB patch, but even without this, one cannot count on high results of the first K10 — low-frequency models with a small (by modern standards) cache memory capacity, and even a slow one. And the cores here, we repeat, are useless.

  Final rendering of 3D scenes

  These subtests are useful, but Phenom X4 9500 still managed to overtake only a part of dual-core processors, and even then not the fastest ones. The reason is simple — low frequency. Yes, and cache memory for these tasks is important. Although it is clear that it was necessary to release these processors at least as a carcass, at least as a stuffed animal (at least, based on such loads), since the Athlon 64 X2 is even slower, and AMD did not have other processors at that time. Later, Phenom II X4 turned out to be an excellent work on bugs, so the quad-core modification is still relevant today. By the way, the fastest processors for FM1 (Athlon II X4 651 and A8-3870K) in this group demonstrate a score of 124 points, i.e. almost the same as that became available to AM2+ holders almost four years ago. Not so bad, all in all0004 Well, unless, of course, one does not stress too much on the fact that the Core i7-920, which appeared at the same time at a fairly close price, is capable of 182 points.

  Packing and unpacking

  A very revealing group of tests. Firstly, the terrible results of the Phenom X4 9500 were predetermined: at one time, the inclusion of a «patch» for TLB slowed down an engineering sample three times. However, even without it, the Phenom at 2.6 GHz (not 2.2 as here) only slightly outperformed the Athlon 64 X2 6000+, so we can even say that its performance has improved slightly over the years, the reason for which is multithreading support new versions of 7-Zip. But she did not allow it either (this is the second observation) Phenom II X4 940 to overtake at least the tri-core Phenom II X3 740, which has a higher cache frequency and works with faster DDR3 RAM. The third interesting point is that the Athlon 64 X2 6000+ scores exactly 100 points: just like the reference Athlon II X4 620 operating at a lower frequency. But Celeron and others like it cannot reach the same frequency. And the A4-3400 (2.7 GHz, 2×512 KB L2) is faster than the Athlon 64 X2 5200+ (2. 6 GHz, 2×1024 KB L2).

  Well, and one more interesting result (albeit a little from a different opera): the Core i3-2120T is approximately equal to the Phenom II X3 740. Although the second has twice the L3 capacity, the frequency is almost 15% higher, and there are three cores, which at Other things being equal, it’s still better than two cores with Hyper-Threading support.

  Audio encoding

  The cache is unimportant — pure mathematics, so the Phenom X4 9500 managed to demonstrate relatively good results (for the purposes of this article, of course) The high clocked Core i3-2120T isn’t radically faster. However, the dual-core Pentium G860 is by no means much slower, and it also managed to overtake the equal-frequency tri-core Phenom II X3 740. Apparently, it is for this reason that the «classic» three-core processors died a long time (three-module FX is a slightly different story). Also, Athlon 64 X2 6000+ managed to outperform Celeron G530T and A4-3400: new instruction sets and other improvements of modern architectures are not involved in these subtests, so the high frequency saved us. Although, of course, if we remember that it is one and a half times higher than that of the 530T … But let’s not talk about sad things — it is already more than enough. In particular, the fact that all other Athlon 64s, including the once-legendary FX-62, are, for obvious reasons, even slower. And the 3800+ is only slightly faster than modern single-core models (such as those equipped with HT Celeron G460/G465 support), despite the lack of alternatives to multi-core for this group of tests.

  Compilation

  For once, the FX-62 managed to outperform both the Celeron G530T and the A4-3400 — a Pyrrhic, but a victory. In any case, in comparison with other groups of tests. Another thing worth paying attention to is that the results of the FX-62 are closer to 6000+ than to 5200+, although in terms of core frequency it is exactly in the middle between them — the features of the K8 memory controller under such a load are of considerable importance. Accordingly, the defeat of the Phenom X4 9500 was predetermined — TLB-patch «kills» L3 performance so much that only the presence of four cores allowed this processor to overtake Athlon 64 X2 6000+ and even almost catch up with Celeron G550. Well, that Phenom II X4 940 will be the best of all test participants, we also had no doubts — the frequency is high (the rest are either the same or slower), four full-weight cores and 6 MiB L3 speak for themselves.

  Mathematical and engineering calculations

  But here the benefits of multithreading are small, so 940 only slightly outperformed 545, but lagged behind 740. However, this is also a good result, albeit suitable only for intra-company competition — a certain “Pro-Intel” essence of packages there is a professional purpose, and there is no getting away from it. But AMD has clearly not stood still — even though the A4-3400 loses to Celeron, its «specific» (per unit clock frequency) advantage over the Athlon 64 X2 is about 20%.

  Bitmap graphics

  Some of the tests are multi-threaded, some are not, so Phenom II X3 from AMD already looks quite sufficient for solving such problems: 940 turned out to be only slightly faster than 740 due to slow memory and lower cache frequencies, and A6- The 3670K «hangs» at the same level due to the complete absence of the latter and a lower clock frequency. But, generally speaking, high-frequency Celerons and Pentiums look best here, and low-frequency ones are also not bad. The «old» AMD processors cannot be saved by either the frequency or the number of cores — Athlon 64 X2 6000+, which has become familiar, is also behind the A4-3400.

  Vector graphics

  As we have already established, these programs are undemanding in terms of the number of computational threads, but their performance depends on the cache memory, so there is nothing surprising in the fact that three equal frequency Phenom II showed similar results with a slight loss of 940 — there the L3 frequency is lower by 200 MHz. But this is just a Sandy Bridge level with a frequency of 2.6 GHz (i3 is slightly faster than Celeron just due to the «extra» megabyte of cache memory), and one of the best Athlon 64 X2 managed to overtake only A4-3400 and 2 GHz Celeron. Other representatives of the line are even slower, and for Phenom X4 9500, such a load promises an inglorious defeat — the frequency of the cores is low, and the TLB-patch has a disgusting effect on the performance of the cache memory, not for the first time. However, it is obvious that even without it we would get a result only a little higher than that of Athlon 64 X2 3800+, which is clearly not enough to compete with modern processors.

  Video encoding

  Phenom X4 9500 once again managed to overtake some relatively modern dual-core processors: the cache doesn’t bother it much here, but there are four cores. But slow. Athlon 64 X2, for obvious reasons, cannot suffer from the «TLB bug», so this bug is fixed, too, but their cores are just as slow architecturally, and there are only two of them. And even the frequency does not help much. The results of Athlon 64 X2 3800+ and 6000+ are especially indicative — they are almost twice inferior to equal-frequency Celeron G530T and Pentium G860. And the 5200+ is a third slower than the A4-3400 with a comparable clock speed. In general, big things are seen from a distance — just a little over six years ago, there was simply no line better than Athlon 64 X2 on the market, and now it is simply unable to compete even with budget models from both AMD and Intel. Here is the Phenom II X4 940 is capable of this with ease, but this is a significantly newer processor, and its brothers now live in the budget sector. Phenom II X4 955, for example, the company has been shipping in bulk for $81 since September, but what makes it different from the 940? Only support for DDR3 memory and +200 MHz to cores and L3. By the way, we recall that at the time of the announcement, the recommended price of 940 was neither more nor less, but 275 full-weight dollars — processors

  are quickly devalued in the modern world. Office software

  The vast majority of tests in this group are single-threaded, and they do not use intensive improvements in modern architectures, so Athlon 64 X2 is quite enough for such an application. Unless, of course, you are embarrassed by the cost of electricity — the 6000+ traditionally lags behind both the G530T and the A4-3400, and these processors do not require hundreds of watts at all. It is clear that the «old men» are also not fully loaded with such work, so they will cost a few dozen, but «a few» — in their case more. And also some kind of video will be needed additionally. But overall, it’s enough to get the job done. Which is quite consistent with the fact that in offices many still use various Celerons or Semprons, and even slower ones than we recently tested. Accordingly, Athlon 64 X2 3800+ will be at least as good, and if you use some gluttonous antivirus, it will be much better

  Java

  Phenom X4 9500 once again had a blast, because there are still four cores, and cache memory and its performance do not really matter here, but in its case, “totally” means only a result equal to Celeron G550. However, taking into account the fact that above, as a rule, everything was much worse, and such a victory over oneself (and over patches) causes respect. What about the other members? As usual: Athlon 64 X2 is unsuccessfully trying to catch up with at least some modern budget processor, and Phenom II X4 demonstrates that it can be considered as such

  Games

  There was a time when Athlon 64s (not even X2s) were the best gaming processors. Now, let’s face it, even the Phenom II X4 and younger Core i3 can only apply for this position “by pull”, not to mention dual-core models. Modern dual-core models. And not the ancient ones, to which laptop processors can be considered competitors only in the terminology of Russian tenders don’t think about «TLB martyrs».

  Multitasking environment

  By the way, even here this ancestor of AMD’s multi-core processors failed to overtake earlier dual-core models from the same manufacturer — the last Chinese warning to those who like to buy «cores for the sake of perspective» without regard to what cores they are. Otherwise, everything is the same as usual — Athlon 64 X2 are unable to cope with at least a two-GHz Celeron or dual-core Llano (by the way, the younger Athlon II X2 have the same performance as the A4), and Phenom II X4 940 is just Phenom II X4. A good processor for about a hundred dollars, even if it cost almost three hundred at one time — devaluation, sir.

  Total

  In the end, we have what we expected — a hodgepodge of one-, two- and multi-threaded tests (which is, in fact, an exact projection of modern software; including the one that lends itself poorly to benchmarking, and, therefore, does not fit into the test methods just as poorly) made the best processor for Socket AM2+ approximately equal to an equal-frequency Pentium. Two conclusions follow from this — good and bad. The first is due to the fact that the compatibility of this platform with AM3 is almost complete — unlike the owners of systems based on LGA775, owners of a good motherboard with AM2 + and a sufficient amount of DDR2 memory can upgrade their computer to a very good level. Not the top, of course, but the Phenom II X6 1100T has a «weighted average» performance of 159points, and Phenom II X4 980 — 143 points. Minus the inevitable 5% (or so) for slower memory — we get somewhere between 150 and 135 points. And the maximum for LGA775 is 132 points. And even then — only if you’re lucky to find a Core 2 Quad Q9650 somewhere on the secondary market for a reasonable price, since «during its lifetime» it never dropped below $316 in bulk, and if it also works on an existing board: despite the name same socket, LGA775 is four limited compatible platforms (however, problems are also possible with the oldest AM2 boards). AMD, on the other hand, continues to sell 980 and 1100T for $163 and $198 respectively. It’s a little expensive to some extent, but if you really want to «boost» the system by replacing only the processor, such costs may well turn out to be optimal (in any case, a new set of Core i5, boards with LGA1155 and memory will cost much more).

  And now the bad news, which follows directly from the good news — it makes no sense to use a board with AM2+ together with a processor for AM2 or AM2+. And it is not even necessary to look closely at the top models for AM3 mentioned above — besides them, AMD has a lot more in its assortment. And not only among new processors, but also among retail stores or in the secondary market. Where to buy some Athlon II X3 or even X4 can be very cheap — since now the manufacturer values ​​the younger Phenom II X4 at only 80-90 dollars. Is there any reason? Yes there is. After all, even the best Athlon 64 X2, as we saw today, are inferior to the A4-3400, and this processor is approximately equal to the Athlon II X2 215. Let’s note that X2 is also the best. Well, replacing, for example, Athlon 64 X2 3800+ with Athlon II X4 630, which has long been discontinued, will simply double the average performance.

  It’s clear that all these arguments are justified only if the available board supports processors for AM3: otherwise it’s easier to change the platform (to LGA1155, FM1 or FM2 — it doesn’t make much difference). And it is even more clear that in general it makes sense to fill your head with them only when the performance of the existing computer is no longer enough. After all, many still somehow use Pentium 4, Athlon XP or Celeron and Sempron (even slower ones than we recently tested). Accordingly, Athlon 64 X2 3800+ will seem to them something no less reactive than the famous Pink Panther (after all, even within the framework of AM2 it is 53 points against 30 for Sempron 3000+), and the owner of such a device is a man taken to heaven during flesh, like one of the biblical prophets

  But that’s all.

  Despite the fact that in the summer of 2006 the Athlon 64 X2 3800+ was a dream (and the Athlon 64 FX-62 was a pipe dream) of many users, today one can look at their results only with a smile or a nostalgic sadness. Moreover, the process of devaluation began in the same 2006 — the FX-62 was the “king of the hill” for only one quarter, after which it lost even to the top-end, but only close to that Core 2 Duo (over the past years, the ratio, by the way, has not actually changed: according to the latest method, the FX-62 scored 73 points, and the E6600, which was also topped by the E6700 and X6800, all 77). Well, in the future, both companies have gone far ahead. Let’s emphasize both.

  Of course, Intel’s success looks more prominent: Celeron G530T has a frequency of only 2 GHz and a TDP of 35 W (together with the graphics core). But after all, the A4-3400 overtakes the same old people to the same extent. Yes, of course, it needs 2.7 GHz for this (that is, the specific performance is about a third lower than that of the “bridges”), and the heat pack is already 65 W, but the A4 has a rich inner world of graphics more powerful. Moreover, both of these processors are not new: they were announced last year and are already giving way on the shelves to faster “changers”, while AMD has also launched a new architecture. Caused a lot of criticism at the start, however, at least everything went without such a scandal, which accompanied the release of the first Phenom. Moreover, it should be noted that even if there was no notorious «TLB-bug» and the need to fix it, Phenom X4 still could not count on high results. Simply because even the best model in the line with an index of 9950 (which the company did not get right away) worked only at a frequency of 2.6 GHz. The closest analogue from the modern line is A6-3650 with the same frequency. And, by the way, the same cache memory capacity, despite the L3 in the first Phenom — a total of 4 MiB both there and there. Let the A6 have a separate, but full-speed, while the Phenom had only L2.

  Well, today’s testing showed how the «new» AMD cores correlate — the «extra» 100 MHz and the increased cache still did not prevent the FX-62 from falling behind the A4-3400 by almost 10%. Accordingly, a similar picture would be when comparing Phenom X4 9950 with A6-3650. The latter has a result of 110 points, i.e. the best that 9950 could count on — 100 points. Reference. Which are typical for Athlon II X4 620 (by the way, with the same frequency of 2.6 GHz; and we have already observed something similar) or … Celeron G550/G555

  What can we say about the younger representatives of the line, where the frequencies are also low? Suppose, without problems with the TLB 9500, it would have caught up with the FX-62 (at one time, our testing showed that the patch reduces the overall performance by about 21%) — what would it change? Yes, nothing!

  In general, the best thing that can be said about Agena processors is the debug versions of the Stars family, by working on which (and improving the technical process, of course), we managed to move on to the really successful Deneb, which still remains relevant. They did not have any other advantages. Unlike FX, where it immediately became possible to evaluate not only the minuses, but also the pluses. And how AMD knows how to work on bugs is very clearly seen just on the example of the first and second generation Phenom. Well, there is just nothing left before the release of Piledriver, so we cross our fingers and wait for similar results

  We thank the companies Corsair , Palit , F-Center and Ulmart for their help in completing test stands

  Conclusions

  In this article, we were able to evaluate the most advanced am2 processors. You most likely will not be able to purchase these processors in the primary market, but you can do this by looking for ads for sale on some site on the Internet.

  These socket AM2 processors were very famous and in great demand at the time. Particularly due to the great opportunity to install processors for AM2 in new generation motherboards with faster RAM. What processors of this generation did you use? Which ones are the best? Write in the comments!

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  Manager2

• Vlad 11.06.2019 Manest 9000 II X4 put mother in AM2
• Sergey 12/06/2019 Reply

  Did you hit your head? 945 fen 2 is am3

• Vlad 10/10/2020 Reply

  I didn’t succeed.

• Dmitry 01/23/2021 Reply

  Am3 processors are suitable for an am2 motherboard

• Maxim 03/01/2021 Reply

  Am3 processors will go to these boards only if they have AM2 + support, not on a mother with a simple AM2 socket

• 4
• 04.03.2021 Reply

  all this line of sockets AM940 940+ AM2 AM2+ AM3 support all AMD processors developed at that time. Usefulness question

AMD Phenom II — frwiki.wiki

Phenom II is the commercial name given by AMD to its heat shrink dies from Phenom at 45 nm . Announced at November 2008 and launched in early 2009, Phenom II aims to restore balance after the failure of Phenom to collide with Intel’s Core 2. The Phenom II is being sold in three phases: first offered for socket AM2+ (DDR2) ( Jan 2009 ), then with new socket AM3 (DDR3/DDR2) ( February 2009 ) and finally with movable declination ( May 2010 ). It competes directly with Intel processors engraved 45 nm and then 32 nm with architecture Intel Core and architecture Nehalem. Since the second half of 2009, this range has been supplemented by Athlon II processors approaching the lower end of the range.

Summary

• 1 Architecture
  • 1.1 Matrix shrinkage 45 nm
  • 1.2 AM3 connector
  • 1.3 DDR3 memory controller
  • 1.4 Version C3
  • Platform 1.5 AMD
    • 1.5.1 Dragon
    • 1.5.2 Lev
  • 1.6 Overclocking
• 2 Nomenclature
  • 2.1 Prototype
  • 2.2 official version
• 3 Error and other problems
  • 3.1 DDR3-1333 MHz control
  • 3.2 Processor Unlock
    • 3.2.1 Reactivation of cores
    • 3.2.2 L3 cache reactivation
    • 3.2.3 Unlock multiplier
  • 3.3 High voltage Vcore
• 4 Office range
  • 4.1 Tuban
  • 4.2 Zosma
  • 4.3 Deneb FX
  • 4.4 Deneb
    • 4.4.1 Black Edition TWKR
    • 4.4.2 AM3 connector
    • 4.4.3 Connector AM2 +
  • 4.5 Geka
  • 4.6 Callisto
• 5 Business class range
• 6 Mobile assortment
• 7 Athlon II derivatives
• 8 compatible component kits
  • 8. 1 ATI/AMD
  • 8.2 NVIDIA
• 9 Phenom II successor
• 10 Notes and references
  • 10.1 Notes
  • 10.2 Links
• 11 See also
  • 11.1 Related Articles
  • 11.2 External links

Architecture

Figure 1: Organizational diagram of die from Phenom II.

The

Phenom II remains based on the K10 architecture (also called « Stars «) that the Phenom was discovered. While it’s only a shrinkage of , AMD hasn’t revealed much about the evolution of its architecture. In addition to the elements described below, we can quote:

• increasing the size of certain areas of the buffer memory, facilitating data preload mechanisms,

The

• contributes to the Smart-Fetch technology, which allows the contents of the L1 and L2 caches of each core to be transferred to the L3 cache to completely stop it in the event of a period of inactivity.

45nm die shrink

The jump to 45nm is almost a year late compared to its rival Intel. Still based on SOI type plates, it is the use of a new engraving technology co-developed with IBM called immersion lithography. Its principle is based on the use of pure water through which the light beam passes in order to reduce the wavelength of the beam and therefore reduce the fineness of the engraving.

Improving the fineness of etching is also accompanied by a modification of the matrix (Fig. 1). First of all, this allows you to reduce its size, which is from 285 mm ² to 258 mm ^2, and the number of transistors increases and reaches 758 million against 450 million before. This increase in components mainly affects caches, where L3 goes from 2 Mio to 6 Mio while L1 and L2 remain unchanged. However, the L3 cache frequency drops slightly: 1800 MHz versus 2000 MHz for Phenom.
Power consumption considered excessive on Phenom returns to levels close to Core 2 but remains slightly higher. Power management has also been improved in the same way, which was shown on the Phenom to be incorrect : Cool n’Quiet evolves in version 3.0 and now allows the factor to be reduced to × 4 at rest.

AM3 connector

Figure 2: Pin assignment of AM3 and AM2 (+) connectors. Dark on connector AM2, on auxiliary contacts.

The AM3 socket is an evolution of the AM2+ socket, which features a slightly different pin configuration: thus processors for socket AM3 have 938 pins compared to 940 for AM2+ (Figure 2). This difference of only 2 pins is manifested in the modification of the stops on the socket and thus allows processors for socket AM3 to maintain compatibility with sockets AM2 and AM2 +, while the reverse is not possible. Therefore, this initiative allows for a lower cost upgrade from an AM2/AM2+ socket motherboard, provided that motherboard manufacturers update their BIOSes.
However, the marketing of processors with socket AM3 is second, because the founder first marketed Phenom II for socket AM2. While this choice may satisfy owners of the AM2 platform, it risks misleading consumers who would like a completely upgraded platform. During the release of the first Phenom IIs, AMD was criticized for not waiting several months to offer socket AM3-only processors.

DDR3 memory controller


Socket AM3 Phenom II appearance introduces DDR3 memory management in addition to DDR2. Thus, two memory controllers are installed on the die (Figure 1), but for models designed for socket AM2 +, the DDR3 controller is disabled. DDR2 memory is officially managed up to DDR2-1066 although its interest is limited as it has performance close to DDR2-800 while DDR3 is managed up to 1600 MHz . However, unlike the Intel Nehalem architecture, which drives three-channel DDR3 memory, the Phenom II only supports dual-channel control.

Revision C3


Start November 2009 , AMD releases a new version that replaces C2. This version of C3 primarily announces AMD’s better control over its manufacturing process so that it can offer lower TDP models thanks to the voltage drop applied to the processor (Vcore). The first to be announced is the X4 965s, with a TDP of 140 W to 125 W . The founder also took the opportunity to fix a bug related to the simultaneous use of four DDR3-1333 memory modules, and the C1E idle state management is now completely material, like the Athlon II. Finally, this new revision also gives AMD the opportunity to offer a new version of their Overdrive software (version 3.1).

AMD Platform

Platforms is an AMD initiative designed to convince users as well as OEMs of the usefulness of a 100% AMD platform that includes a CPU-Chipset-GPU assembly. In appearance, the platform is attractive for games and multimedia, as it facilitates the integration of components. Its principle was laid on the AMD Phenom and Spider platform.

Dragon

Phenom’s successor to the Spider platform, the Dragon platform doesn’t have any notable changes other than the addition of Phenom II. So this first Phenom II platform seems like a temporary solution as it keeps the chipsets from the previous Phenom line (AMD 790FX/GX) and video cards based on RV7x0 (HD4x00 series). This situation is explained by the delay in the development of the next generation 8×0 chipsets and, on the other hand, by the very good performance of the Radeon HD48x0.

Leo

The Leo platform positions itself as a mature platform for the Phenom II. It thus opens a series of 8×0 chipsets (890FX/GX chipsets) designed specifically for the Phenom II and linked to the SB850 southbridge. It also benefits from the marketing of the next generation Radeon HD58x0 compatible with DirectX 11 and engraved 40 nm .

Overclocking

With a higher initial frequency boost and better engraving precision control, the Phenom II offers much better overclocking performance than its predecessor. So Phenom II X4 940 BE (3.0 GHz ) can reach 3.6 GHz while Phenom can only reach 200 to 300 MHz. Also, it no longer depends on the cold bug which allows the use of extreme cooling (phase change cooling: dry ice, liquid nitrogen (or LN2) and helium) down to temperatures below -100 °C . On the occasion of their marketing, AMD Overdrive software has been updated to version 3.0, integrating profile and fan speed control. Unfortunately, increasing the frequency through the processor bus using the Overdrive software is not so simple, and it turns out to be easier if you adjust the multiplier factor.

Even before they were marketed ( Nov 2008 ) AMD had already announced that the Phenom II is very easy to overclock to the point where you can easily reach 4 GHz in simple air cooling and up to 6 GHz in extreme cooling. This moment contrasts strongly with the previous generation, which was hardly popular for overclocking. The first demonstration is during the Austin, Texas trade show, where AMD engineers would have been able to reach 6 GHz by cooling to -185°C, and 1.9V, which is a value higher than practiced overclocking. Nehalem processors.
Phenom II has demonstrated its potential since its introduction to the market with peaks over 7 GHz (7192.73 MHz ). If such extreme cooling performance allows Phenom II to significantly outperform Intel Core 2 processors (6820.31 MHz ), then this does not apply to air cooling. In addition, their good extreme cooling performance for quad-core processors has since been matched or even improved by the Intel Core i7 (7195.53 MHz ) and Bulldozer (8794.33 MHz ).

Frequency records identified by CPU-Z in January 15, 2013

	Author	Processor	Frequency	Dated
World Record
	Andre Jan	AMD FX-8350	8794.33 MHz	November 19, 2012
AMD Phenom II
1	420 forints	Phenom II X4 955 BE	7192. 73 MHz	October 3, 2011
2	AMD nord	Phenom II X4 955 BE	7182.46 MHz	March 28, 2011
3	chew *	Phenom II X4 955 BE	7168.72 MHz	January 30, 2011
4	TaPaKaH	Phenom II X4 955 BE	7163.31 MHz	April 14, 2011
5	Biostar_Korea NAMEGT	Phenom II X4 955 BE	7153. 89 MHz	November 30, 2010
Other AMD
K8	IT168_OCP Carter	Athlon 64 X2 5400+ BE	4294.49 MHz	December 24, 2008
Intel Record
NetBurst	duck	Celeron 360	8320.40 MHz	October 17, 2011
Other Intel
Core ix	duck @ Intel Japan KK	Core i5 655K	7307. 84 MHz	1 — September 2010
Core 2	FOGNA	Core 2 Duo E8600	6820.31 MHz	October 10, 2009

Nomenclature

Like the previous Phenom line, all Phenom II processor codenames correspond to common names in astronomy:

• Thuban: Arabic name meaning Draco, referring to the main star in the constellation Draco
• Deneb: The traditional name for Alpha Cygnus, the brightest star in the constellation Cygnus.
• Heka: The traditional name for Lambda Orionis, a star in the constellation Orion.
• Callisto: The name of one of Jupiter’s natural moons.

Prototype

First nomenclature proposed by AMD introduced during month September 2008 . It is built as a continuation of the previous Phenom nomenclature. This first draft revealed models without Cache L3 cache in preparation.

Reference	Heart	Connector	L3 cache
Phenom X4 20×00	Deneb	AM3	6 MB
Phenom X4 20×50	Deneb	AM2/AM2+	6 MB
Phenom X4 16×00	Pass	AM3	—
Phenom X3 14×00	Heka	AM3	6 MB
Phenom X3 12×00	Wound	AM3	—

Official version

After the release of the Core i7 processors, the nomenclature was revised and the release date was moved to early 2009of the year. Thus, the presence of the number 5 in the third position corresponds to the updated models based on the AM3 socket. The new nomenclature is similar to that adopted by Intel for its Core i7 to make it easier to compare, although the latter has a higher level of performance. In addition to the traditional range, AMD should offer a lower TDP power efficiency range. Thus, it will replace Phenom 9xx0e and 8xx0e.

Reference	Heart	Connector	L3 cache
Fenom II
Phenom II X6 Xxx	Tuban	AM3	6 MB
Phenom II X4 9xx	Deneb	AM3	6 MB
Phenom II X4 9×0	Deneb	AM2 +	6 MB
Phenom II X4 8xx	Deneb	AM3	4 MB
Phenom II X3 7xx	Heka	AM3	6 MB
Phenom II X2 5xx	Callisto	AM3	6 MB

Bug and other problems


DDR3-1333 MHz control

Phenom II on socket AM3 are the first AMD processors to integrate DDR3 memory control, like the Intel Core i7. While the latter can only officially support up to DDR3-1066, the DDR3 Phenom II controller can accept up to DDR3-1333. However, AMD has acknowledged a mistake in managing four DDR-1333 arrays. This bug forces users to install only two sticks of this type, or prefer a four-stick DDR3-1066 (PC3-8500) build. Subsequently, it will be settled with version C3.

We unclench the processor


Some Phenom II references are based on the deactivation of certain matrix components that are considered defective in order to make production lines profitable. However, some series do not seem to have defective components to the point where they can be reactivated. It turns out that the CPUID allows you to determine the type of chip used for each range of processors:

• RB: Phenom II X4 chip
• BL: Athlon II X4 chip
• DA: Athlon II X2 chip

Heart reactivation


The first known case concerns the reactivation of the fourth Phenom II X3 core. A simple manipulation of the BIOS allows you to reactivate it and convert Phenom II X3 to Phenom II X4. However, the success of such manipulation depends on the week of manufacture of the processor and cannot be generalized, which can sometimes make the system unstable. Very quickly, rumors revealed that AMD wanted to ban this practice by changing the CPU microprobe or even asking manufacturers to update the BIOS of motherboards, it would take AMD a few months to react by debunking such an idea given that only a lucky few will be able to unleash their Phenom. II. Meanwhile, some motherboard manufacturers have confirmed to the press the possibility of such manipulation. ASRock first introduced its motherboards based on 79 chipsets0GX and 780G, Gigabyte then released a series of illustrations to the press praising this practice, but based on the nForce 720d chipset, thereby confirming that unlocking is possible on Nvidia chipsets as well, thanks to the addition of the NVCC feature, AMD’s equivalent of the ACC feature. ASRock later did it again, pointing out that the Athlon II X3 could also find its missing fourth heart. In October 2009 , manufacturer Asus took advantage of BIOS updates on some motherboard models to integrate a feature called Unleashing mode, which will make it easier to re-activate functional cores.

Reactivating the L3 cache


Like cores, you can re-enable the missing L3 cache for the Phenom II X4 8xx series (4M instead of 6M ) by updating the motherboard BIOS. However, this method is unstable because a simple reset or clearing the CMOS is enough to undo the modification. It seems that ACC is the cause because the latter subsequently disappears.

Unlock multiplier factor


To facilitate overclocking, you can turn Phenom II into a test copy (engineering sample). The manipulation has been discovered by Overclocked Inside and allows you to unlock the multiplier factor as well as the virtual core. All you have to do is enable AAC, save the configuration, exit the BIOS, and hit the reset button on the machine when the BIOS startup screen appears.

High voltage Vcore


Tested after marketing Phenom II X4 965 BE showed that AMD increased the CPU voltage (Vcore) and passing in practice 1.328 V (X4 955 BE) to 1.408 V . This voltage increase is all the more surprising since the processor can run perfectly at around 1.25V and causes a significant increase in TDP, which reaches 140W for compared to 125W for for 955BE. One possible explanation could be to justify the energy efficiency range of (x4 9xxe) due to the relatively low TDP (65 W ), like its Vcore. However, there are rumors that AMD may offer the X4 965 BE with a lower TDP of 125 W, as the X4 955 BE by the end of 2009.

Office range

Tuban

Following Intel’s announcement of offering a six-core version (codenamed Gulftown) based on the Nehalem architecture to the general public, AMD responded with a launch in this segment. Although its name matches the use of the star name, this overlap with AMD’s CPU platform name Dragon sparked rumors of its possible commercialization, which was subsequently confirmed by AMD.
The T at the end of the link seems to indicate the presence of a new generation chip, which can also be attributed to the Thuban acronym and which corresponds to the public version of Opteron Istanbul. Its final name, Phenom II X6, was officially unveiled during the presentation of the first 8xx series chipsets at CeBIT 2010.

Model	Number of cores	Frequency		Hidden			Mult.	Voltage	Revision	TDP	Hypertransport	Help	Marketing
		based on	Turbo	L1	L2	L3							Start	End of life
Phenom II X6 Black Edition
X6 1100T BE	6	3.3 GHz	3.7 GHz	6×128 KB	6×512 KB	6 MB	16.5			125 W	4.0 Gt/s	HDEOZFBGRBOX	December 2010
X6 1090T BE	6	3. 2 GHz	3.6 GHz	6×128 KB	6×512 KB	6 MB	16			125 W	4.0 Gt/s	HDT90ZFBGRBOX	April 27, 2010
Phenom II X6 10x5T
X6 1075T	6	3.0 GHz	3.5 GHz	6×128 KB	6×512 KB	6 MB	15			125 W	4.0 Gt/s	HDT75TFBGRBOX	3 e cut. 2010
X6 1065T	6	2.9 GHz	3.4 GHz	6×128 KB	6×512 KB	6 MB	14.5			95 W	4.0 Gt/s	HDT65TFBK6DGR	April 26, 2010
X6 1055T	6	2.8 GHz	3.3 GHz	6×128 KB	6×512 KB	6 MB	14			125 W	4.0 Gt/s	HDT55TFBK6DGR	April 26, 2010
X6 1055T	6	2. 8 GHz	3.3 GHz	6×128 KB	6×512 KB	6 MB	14			95 W	4.0 Gt/s	HDT55TWFK6DGR	May 2010
X6 1045T	6	2.7 GHz	3.2 GHz	6×128 KB	6×512 KB	6 MB	13.5			95 W	4.0 Gt/s	HDT45TWFGRBOX
X6 1035T	6	2.6 GHz	3. 1 GHz	6×128 KB	6×512 KB	6 MB	13			95 W	4.0 Gt/s	HDT35TWFGRBOX	3 e cut. 2010

Zosma

Zosma will be a variation of Thuban, but with two deactivated cores and no L3 cache (except for the 960T, which has 6MB of L3 cache), which explains the T at the end of the link.

Model	Number of cores	Frequency		Hidden			Mult.	Voltage	Revision	TDP	Hypertransport	Help	Marketing
		based on	Turbo	L1	L2	L3							Start	End of life
Phenom II X4 9xxT
X4 960T	4	3. 0 GHz	3.4 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB				95 W	4.0 Gt/s		3 e cut. 2010
Phenom II X4 8xxT
X4 840T	4	2.9 GHz		4×128 KB	4×512 KB					95 W			2010?

Deneb FX

AMD Phenom II X4 (Deneb) line logo

The purpose of the Deneb FX line was to restart AMD in the very high-end processor sector after dropping the Agena FX marketing due to Phenom frequency increase difficulties. If the range was described on the slide provided by AMD, the Deneb FX line was never developed, leaving a very high-end sector represented by the Black Edition (BE) and, more anecdotally, the Black Edition TWKR models.

Deneb

The Deneb core corresponds to the Phenom II quad-core processor line. This is the only range that was offered with models designed for the AM2+ connector. According to the backwards compatibility rule, AM3 socket models can be used with AM2 and AM2+ sockets, but not vice versa.

TWKR Black Edition

During the month of June 2009 , the Maingear PC assembler discovers the existence of a new atypical processor: the Phenom II 42 Black Edition TWKR (TWKR = TWeaKeR). Then, little information about the characteristics of this new processor is reported. At best, the rumors were about a quad-core processor very similar to the X4 955 BE, but sorted by AMD to provide better overclocking performance. These processors will also be sold in a box.

At the end of the same month, the Legit Reviews website presented the specifications and overclocking potential of the processor. Thus, Phenom II 42 Black Edition TWKR is a processor intended exclusively for the overclocking community as part of promotional activities and therefore will not be sold. Finally, the processor is provided in a special package (Fig. 3) called « Pandora’s Box» (Box of Pandora).
The term 42 refers to the 4 cores in a processor, each clocked at 2 GHz , but it also refers to the Galactic Traveler’s Guide, whose answer to «Life, the Universe, and the Remnant» is 42. No other information about the hardware no. Recognition: Bios as well as CPU-Z provide «AMD processor model unknown». The default frequency is only 2.0 GHz , which means that the processor must be overclocked to reach even the frequencies of the sold Phenom II; then the fastest was Phenom II X4 955 BE on 3.2 GHz , which 42 BE outperforms by 100 MHz in air cooling and by 200 MHz in extreme cooling (?) with slightly lower voltage.
Despite its promotional restrictions, AMD has decided to list one of these TWKR Black Edition processors on eBay as part of Family Eldercare, a charity for the elderly, located in Austin, Texas, USA. Originally put on the market at price 1 dollars , price has risen to 11 600 dollars making it the most expensive processor sold to date.

Model	Number of cores	Frequency	Hidden			Mult.	Voltage	Revision	Die	TDP	Hypertransport	Help	Marketing
			L1	L2	L3
Phenom II TWKR Black Edition
42	4	2. 0 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB	Free		C2	RB	125 W	1800 MHz		any

Test list for Phenom II TWKR Black Edition

• 42
  • (en) HotHardware , InsideHW , Legit Reviews , neoseeker , overclockersclub , Tom’s hardware .

Socket AM3

The AM3 (DDR3 / DDR2) socket range matches most Phenom II X4 models. Here you can feel the shrinkage of the matrix due to the decrease in TDP. Compared to socket AM2+ models, they benefit from a higher HyperTransport bus frequency of 200 MHz, , and better power management. There are two links depending on L3 cache size: X4 9xx (6 MiB ) and X4 8xx (4 MiB ). This difference is due to the partial deactivation of the L3 cache, which can be reactivated in some cases. The difference between the two ranges is found in some applications, such as games, where the 8xx models are slightly behind.

The X4 950 (3.1 GHz ) was originally programmed for socket AM3 but was eventually replaced by the X4 955 BE (3.2 GHz ). The X4 805 and 910 models are reserved for the OEM market.

Model	Number of cores	Frequency	Hidden			Mult.	Voltage	Revision	Die	TDP	Hypertransport	Help	Marketing
			L1	L2	L3								Start	End of life
Phenom II X4 9xx Black Edition
X4 980 SE	4	3.7 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB	× 18.5		C3	RB	125 W	4.0 GT/s	HDZ980FBK4DGI	April 2011
X4 975 SE	4	3.6 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB	× 18		C3	RB	125 W	4. 0 GT/s	HDZ975FGMBOX	February 2011
X4 970 SE	4	3.5 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB	× 17.5	0.85 — 1.425 V	C2	RB	125 W	4.0 GT/s	HDZ970FBGMBOX	September 2010
X4 965 BE X4 965s BE	4	3.4 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB	× 17	0.85 — 1.425 V	C2 C3	RB	140 W 125 W	4.0 GT/s	HDZ965FBK4DGI HDZ965FBK4DGM	August 13, 2009 November 4, 2009
X4 955 BE	4	3. 2 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB	× 16	0.875 — 1.5 V	C2	RB	125 W	4.0 GT/s	HDZ955FBK4DGI	April 23, 2009
Phenom II X4 9xx
4 x 945	4	3.0 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB	× 15	0.875 — 1.5 V	C2	RB	125W 95W	4.0 GT/s	HDX945FBK4DGI	April 23, 2009 July 23, 2009
4 x 925	4	2. 8 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB	×14			RB	95 W	4.0 GT/s		April 2009
4 x 910	4	2.6 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB	× 13	0.875 — 1.425 V	C2	RB	95 W	4.0 GT/s	HDX910WFK4DGI	February 9, 2009
Phenom II X4 9xxe
X4 910e	4	2.6 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB	× 13		C3	RB	65 W	4. 0 GT/s		1- cut. 2010
X4 905e	4	2.5 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB	× 12.5	0.825 — 1.25 V	C2	RB	65 W	4.0 GT/s	HD905EOCK4DGI	June 9, 2009
X4 900e	4	2.4 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB	× 12	0.825 — 1.25 V	C2	RB	65 W	4.0 GT/s	HD900EOCK4DGI	June 9, 2009
Phenom II X4 8xx
4 x 820	4	2. 8 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	4 MB	× 14	0.875 — 1.425 V	C2	RB	95 W	4.0 GT/s		Unknown
4 x 810	4	2.6 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	4 MB	× 13	0.875 — 1.425 V	C2	RB	95 W	4.0 GT/s	HDX810WFK4FGI	February 9, 2009	July 29, 2009
X4 805	4	2.5 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	4 MB	× 12. 5	0.875 — 1.425 V	C2	RB	95 W	4.0 GT/s	HDX805WFK4FGI	February 9, 2009

Test list for Phenom II X4 9xx and X4 8xx — Socket AM3

• X4 965s BE
  • (ru) bit-tech.net, Guru3D, X-bit labs.
  • (fr) 59Hardware , Comptoir du Hardware , PC INpact , Revioo .
• X4 965 SE
  • (en) AnandTech , Club Overclocker , Elite Bastards , FiringSquad , Guru3D , Hexus.net , Hot Hardware , Legit Reviews , Neoseeker , PC Perspective , The Tech Report , Tom’s hardware , X-bit labs .
  • (fr) 59Hardware , Clubic , Ere Numérique , Hardware.fr , PCWorld .
• X4 955 BE
  • (en) AnandTech , Bjorn3d , Guru of 3D , Hi Tech Legion , HotHardware .
  • (fr) 59Hardware , Clubic , Hardware.fr , matbe , Comptoir du Hardware , Revioo , Tom’s hardware .
• 4 x 945
  • (en) Guru 3D .
  • (en) 59 Hardware , matbe .
• 4 x 925
  • (en) Silicon madness.
• 4 x 810
  • (en) AnandTech, Techgage.
  • (fr) matbe , Comptoir du Hardware .
• X4 805
  • (fr) matbe.

AM2+ connector


Socket AM2+ (DDR2) models are the first models released. Their TDP is similar to the previous Phenom, but has a higher frequency range (3 GHz vs. 2.6 GHz earlier). Their first release is mainly used to meet the needs of socket AM2+ motherboard owners who want to upgrade at a lower price. However, the marketing of the AM3 socket and special models a few months later limits interest to such processors that are not compatible with this new socket, and explains the reduced catalog of AM2+ models. Some specialized sites will thus express doubts about ‘s interest in marketing such models that they consider to be stillborn.

Model	Number of cores	Frequency	Hidden			Mult.	Voltage	Revision	Die	TDP	Hypertransport	Help	Marketing
			L1	L2	L3								Start	End of life
Phenom II X4 9xx Black Edition
X4 940 SE	4	3. 0 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB	× 15	1.15 — 1.30 V	C2	RB	125 W	3.6 GT/s	HDZ940XCJ4DGI	January 8, 2009	July 29, 2009
Phenom II X4 9xx
4 x 920	4	2.8 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB	× 14	1.15 — 1.30 V	C2	RB	125 W	3.6 GT/s	HDX920XCJ4DGI	January 8, 2009	July 29, 2009

Test List for Phenom II X4 9xx — Socket AM2+

• 4 x 940
  • (ru) AnandTech , Bjorn3d , » DriverHeaven » ^{(Archive • Wikiwix • Archive. is • Google • What to do? )} , InsideHW , iXBT Labs , Legit Reviews , OverclockersClub , Tbreak , TechReport , TechSpot , TweakTown 3D Guru, X-bit Labs.
  • (FR) Clubic, Hardware.fr, Matbe, Overclocking-Masters, PC INpact, PC INpact #2, Comptoir du Hardware, Revioo, Hardware Volumes, Hardware Volumes #2.
• 4 x 9twenty
  • (en) AnandTech , Elite Bastards , techReport , TechSpot , X-bit Labs .
  • (fr) Matbe, PC INpact, Comptoir du Hardware.

Heka

The Heka core is a line of tri-core Phenom II processors available only on socket AM3. They correspond to the X4 9xx models which had the core disabled, like their predecessor, the Phenom X3 8xx0. Thus, this method allows limiting losses at the end of the production chain by reusing dies in which one of the cores is considered defective. However, some processors will include a viable fourth core that can be reactivated. Such manipulations make the Phenom II X3 even more attractive compared to the Phenom II X4. Their L3 cache is 6 MB allows them to perform better than the Phenom II X4 8xx under certain conditions.

Model	Number of cores	Frequency	Hidden			Mult.	Voltage	Revision	Die	TDP	Hypertransport	Help	Marketing
			L1	L2	L3								Start	End of life
Phenom II X3 7xx Black Edition
X3 720 BE	3	2. 8 GHz	3×128 KB	3×512 KB	6 MB	× 14	0.85 — 1.425 V	C2	RB	95 W	3.6 GT/s	HDZ720WFK3DGI	February 9, 2009	At the end of life
Phenom II X3 7xx
3 x 740	3	3.0 GHz	3×128 KB	3×512 KB	6 MB	× 15	0.875 — 1.425 V	C2	RB	95 W	3.6 GT/s		2009
3 x 715	3	2.8 GHz	3×128 KB	3×512 KB	6 MB	× 14	0. 875 — 1.425 V	C2	RB	95 W	3.6 GT/s		2009
X3 710	3	2.6 GHz	3×128 KB	3×512 KB	6 MB	× 13	0.875 — 1.425 V	C2	RB	95 W	3.6 GT/s	HDX710WFK3DGI	February 9, 2009	July 29, 2009
Phenom II X3 7xxe
X3 705 e	3	2.5 GHz	3×128 KB	3×512 KB	6 MB	× 12. 5	0.825 — 1.25 V	C2	RB	65 W	3.6 GT/s	HD705EOCK3DGI	2009
X3 700 e	3	2.4 GHz	3×128 KB	3×512 KB	6 MB	× 12	0.825 — 1.25 V	C2	RB	65 W	3.6 GT/s	HD700EOCK3DGI	2009

Test list for Phenom II X3 7xx

• X3 720 BE:
  • (en) AnandTech, OCIA, Techgage.
  • (ru) Matbe.
• X3 710:
  • (en) Matbe, Power PC.

Callisto

Introduced at Computex Taipei June 2, 2009 , the Phenom II X2 is a version of the X4 with 2 cores cut off.

Model	Number of cores	Frequency	Hidden			Mult.	Voltage	Revision	Die	TDP	Hypertransport	Help	Marketing
			L1	L2	L3
Phenom II X2 5xx Black Edition
X2 565 BE	2	3. 4 GHz								80 W
X2 560 BE	2	3.3 GHz								80 W
X2 555 BE	2	3.2 GHz	2×128 KB	2×512 KB	6 MB	× 16	0.875 — 1.40 V	C3	RB	80 W	4.0 GT/s	HDZ555WFK2DGM	January 25, 2010
X2 550 BE	2	3. 1 GHz	2×128 KB	2×512 KB	6 MB	× 15.5	0.85 — 1.425 V 0.875 — 1.4 V	C2 C3	RB	80 W	4.0 GT/s	HDZ550WFK2DGI HDX550WFK2DGM	June 2, 2009 November 4, 2009
Phenom II X2 5xx
2 x 545	2	3.0 GHz	2×128 KB	2×512 KB	6 MB	× 15	0.875 — 1.425 V 0.9 — 1.4 V	C2 C3	RB	80 W	4. 0 GT/s	HDX545WFK2DGI HDX545WFK2DGM	June 2, 2009 November 4, 2009

Test list for Phenom II X2 5xx

• X2 555 BE
  • (en) AnandTech, HotHardware.
• X2 550BE
  • (ru) VR-Zone , X-bit labs
  • (fr) Hardware.fr , matbe .

Business-Class Range

AMD started with the first generation of Phenom, a business-class product line aimed at the professional market. It differs from the public range in that the processors are available for 24 months, while the motherboards and their chipsets are available for 18 months. In addition, these models, although similar to the main models, have a special designation that will be clearly individualized with the Phenom II. So platform 9The 1820 Kodiak is based on Phenom II or Athlon II processors paired with an AMD 785G chipset. They also differ in the addition of a TPM (Trusted Platform Module) 1.2 chip. Other more powerful models should appear in 1 — ^m quarter 2010.

Model	Number of cores	Frequency	Hidden			Mult.	Voltage	Revision	Die	TDP	Hypertransport	Help	Marketing
			L1	L2	L3								Start	End of life
Phenom II Business Class
X4 B95	4	3. 0 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB	× 15	0.80 — 1.425 V	C2	RB	95 W	4.0 GT/s	HDXB95WFK4DGI	3 e cut. 2009
X4 B93	4	2.8 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	6 MB	× 14	0.80 — 1.425 V	C2	RB	95 W	4.0 GT/s	HDXB93WFK4DGI	3 e cut. 2009
X3 B75	3	3. 0 GHz	3×128 KB	3×512 KB	6 MB	× 15	0.80 — 1.425 V	C2	RB	95 W	4.0 GT/s	HDXB75WFK3DGI	3 e cut. 2009
X3 B73	3	2.8 GHz	3×128 KB	3×512 KB	6 MB	× 14	0.80 — 1.425 V	C2	RB	95 W	4.0 GT/s	HDXB73WFK3DGI	3 e cut. 2009
X2 B55	2	3. 0 GHz	2×128 KB	2×512 KB	6 MB	× 15	0.80 — 1.425 V	C2	RB	95 W	4.0 GT/s	HDXB55WFK2DGM	3 e cut. 2009
X2 B53	2	2.8 GHz	2×128 KB	2×512 KB	6 MB	× 14	0.80 — 1.425 V	C2	RB	95 W	4.0 GT/s	HDXB53WFK2DGM	3 e cut. 2009

Mobile Range

From Q2 2010, AMD will offer a new mobile platform called Danube based entirely on K10 45nm heat shrink. This platform will include a processor + chipset component (RS880M) whose IGP will be the Radeon HD4200. They will be accompanied by the SB820M southbridge and will support both DDR3 and DDR3L (low power variant) memory.

Model	Number of cores	Frequency	Hidden			Mult.	Voltage	Revision	TDP	Hypertransport	Help	Marketing
			L1	L2	L3							Start	End of life
Phenom II XXx0 BE
X920 BE	4	2.30 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	—				45 W	3. 6 GT/s		May 2010
X620 BE	2	3.10 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	—				45 W	3.6 GT/s		May 2010
Phenom II NXx0
N930	4	2.00 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	—				35W	3.6 GT/s		May 2010
N830	3	2.10 GHz	3×128 KB	3×512 KB	—				35W	3. 6 GT/s		May 2010
N620	2	2.80 GHz	2×128 KB	2 × 1 MB	—				35W	3.6 GT/s		May 2010
Phenom II PXx0
P920	4	1.60 GHz	4×128 KB	4×512 KB	—				25W	3.6 GT/s		May 2010
P820	3	1. 80 GHz	3×128 KB	3×512 KB	—				25W	3.6 GT/s		May 2010

Athlon II derivatives


The Athlon II completes the Phenom II line. Unlike previous Athlon series, this one includes tri- and quad-core options in addition to the traditional dual-core processor, since it’s a Phenom II without Level 3 (Cache L3) cache. So they benefit from smaller specific dies, but it turns out that some products may be Phenom II, whose L3 cache, thought to be defective, has been deactivated. The first Athlon II was released at the same time as the Phenom II X2 at Computex 2009. The X2 version released first is slightly different due to twice the L2 cache (2×1 million ).

Compatible component kits

List of all component kits (chipsets) compatible with socket AM3 . For chipsets compatible with the AM2+ socket, see the dedicated Phenom page.

Chipset	Marketing	Architecture			GPU
		Codename	Engraved	South Bridge	Model	Frequency	DirectX	OpenGL	Engine HD
AMD 8×0
890FX	April 2010	RD890	?	SB850	—
890GX	March 2, 2010	RD890	55 nm	SB850	RV620 — Radeon HD4290	700 MHz	10. 1	?	ATC 2
880 g	May 2010	RS880	?	SB810	?	?	?	?	?
880M	May 2010	RS880M	?	SB820M	RV620 — Radeon HD4200	?	10.1	?	ATC 2
AMD 7×0
790GX	August 2008	RD790	55 nm	SB750	RV610 — Radeon HD3300	700 MHz	10	?	ATC
790FX	October 2007	RS780D	55 nm	SB750	—
790X	?	RD780	55 nm	SB750	—
785G	July 2009	RS880	55 nm	SB750	RV620 — Radeon HD4200	500 MHz	10. 1	2.0	ATC 2
780 g	March 5, 2008	RS780	55 nm	SB700	RV610 — Radeon HD3200	500 MHz	10	2.0	ATC
770	October 2007	RX780	55 nm	SB710	—
760 g	January 2009	RS760	55 nm	SB710	Radeon HD3000	350 MHz	10	2.0	—
NVIDIA nForce 9×0
980a SLI	March 2009	MCP82 XE	?	—	—
NVIDIA nForce 7×0
720d	March 2009	MCP78D	?	—	—

Phenom II Chipset Test List

• 890GX
  • (en) AnandTech .
  • (fr) 59 Hardware , Hardware Counter , PC INpact , PC World .

ATI/AMD


Unable to deliver a new generation of 8xx chipset at Phenom II launch that won’t be finalized until Q2 2010, AMD decided to offer models already on the market for the first Phenom but modified to support the AM3 socket. He took the opportunity to complete the entry level with the introduction of the 760G.
Subsequently, however, the founder took advantage of the innovations in these RV7x0 graphics chips to update some of his IGP models with the HD4x00 (785G) graphics chips. The main innovations are support for DirectX 10.1, implementation of the HDMI 1.3 standard, as well as more transistors. However, despite their nomenclature, these chips do not differ much from previous RV610-based models, but are more in line with the evolution (RV620). Also, they still don’t support 7.1 LPCM audio.

It was at Cebit 2010 that AMD introduced its first models of 8×0 series chipsets. Compared to the 7×0 generation, this new line does not represent a major development. It is mainly characterized by the introduction of SATA 6 Gb / s, driven by the new SB850 south bridge, but still requires a third-party Nec PD720200 chip to support USB 3.0. As a result, the bus between the south and north bridges (Alink Express III) was boosted to 2 Gb /s versus 1 Gb /s. Finally, the chipset natively manages a gigabit network.
The graphics part has changed little with the Radeon 4290. It can only be connected in parallel with the Radeon HD5450 (Hybrid CrossFire) for a 25% increase in performance, but then we lose DirectX 11.

NVIDIA

By default, all chipsets (MCP61, MCP72, MCP78) for AMD processors are compatible with the Phenom II line, with the exception of MCP68 (nForce 630, 560, 520), which, however, is an evolution of MCP61.

The nForce 980a SLI itself is not a new chipset, but an update to the nForce 780a SLI. As such, it incorporates the features of the MCP72 XE, including DDR3 memory support and AM3 socket control. At the entry level, it is complemented by the nForce 720d (MCP78D). These new chipsets also use NVCC features equivalent to the ACC features on AMD chipsets.

However, these models will be the last chipsets offered by NVIDIA for Phenom II processors. The manufacturer has announced that it will stop all development in the chipset sector due to AMD’s platform policy of combining processor and chip, which limits competition. This initiative extends to Intel processors for various reasons.

Phenom II successor

On the occasion of marketing the power-efficient Athlon II models, AMD released its roadmap, which points to a move to 32nm engraving in 2011, while its competitor, Intel, keeps a step ahead, because it has to sell these first models in 32nm technologies. nm at the beginning of 2010. The new lineup will feature Zambezi processors, formerly Orochi, which will have at least four cores. These models will also announce changes to drop DDR2 memory support and AM3r2 socket management. Everything will make up the Scorpio platform.

Notes and links


Notes

1. ↑ Despite its age, Intel has just over 12 months left to engrave into 45 nm .
2. ↑ Intel intends to use this technology when moving to 32 nm .
3. ↑ Compatibility subject to motherboard BIOS update.
4. ↑ LimitTeam’s 7127.85MHz clock record (Sigh qooitry Ultra40) is actually fake/bogus, as pointed out by Chipsy on the Guru3D forum.
5. ↑ Athlon II X3 40x with four reactivated cores will be recognized as Athlon II X4 B0x.
6. ↑ The term Tuban also means Dragon in Arabic.
7. ↑ John Taylor of AMD Blog describes TWK as « Those Who Know» .
8. ↑ As stated in the AM3 socket chapter, AM3 processors are backwards compatible with the AM2+ socket, but the reverse is not possible.
9. ↑ SATA 6Gb/s benefits from a dedicated bus, unlike Intel chipsets, which require the use of a 500 or 250 MB/s PCIe 1x bus.

Recommendations


1. ↑ ^{a and b} David Legrand. Phenom II: all the details about the models that will be released on PC INpact November 18, 2008.
2. ↑ Pascal Thevenier. What is the Stars, Phenom Architecture? at TT-Hardware, December 26, 2007 .
3. ↑ David Legrand. Phenom II X4: Revision C3 is finally out on PC INpact on November 4, 2009.
4. ↑ David Legrand. (Update) AMD Announces New Version of its Overdrive PC Tool INpact, Nov 4, 2009 , Updated Nov 5, 2009 .
5. ↑ (ru) Visionary. Is the AMD Leo 2010 platform an enthusiast’s dream rig? VR-Zone at 1 — ^th September 2009.
6. ↑ Bruno Cormier. AMD announces it has overclocked its Phenom from 45 nm to 6 GHz on PC INpact, Nov 21, 2009 .
7. ↑ (in) Jeff. AMD 45nm processor naming scheme changed to Expreview, September 22, 2008.
8. ↑ (in) Jeff. New name for Phenom Ⅱ X3/X4 processors on Expreview, November 17, 2008 .
9. ↑ Florian Vieru. New power efficient processor on AMD on matbe site, May 7, 2009 .
10. ↑ David S. Phenom II AM3 doesn’t like DDR3-1333MHz on PC Power, February 13, 2009
11. ↑ David Legrand. Sempron, Athlon II and Phenom II: Update on INpact PC Models January 5, 2010
12. ↑ Bruno Cormier. Is it possible to activate the fourth core of Phenom II X3? on PC INpact, February 23, 2009G.
13. ↑ (ru) bl4ckdr4g00n. Phenom II X3 can be unlocked to X4 (WTF???) on the VR-Zone Forum, February 23, 2009
14. ↑ Thibaut G. X3 in X4: bracadabra or patatra? on Power PC, February 23, 2009
15. ↑ (ru) C-buzz. Phenom X2 550BE Unlocking / Overclocking Consolidated at http://forums. overclockers.com.au, accessed 30 October 2012.
16. ↑ Yannick Guerrini. Phenom X3 to X4 conversion: it works! on Tom’s equipment, February 23, 2009G.
17. ↑ Mathieu Lamelot. AMD will ban Phenom II X3 unlocking on Tom’s hardware on February 26, 2009.
18. ↑ (in) Paul Taylor. AMD denies blocking cores at The Inquirer, June 11, 2009
19. ↑ Pierre Dandumont. Asrock opens Phenom II on Tom’s hardware, March 19, 2009.
20. ↑ David Legrand. Phenom II X3 Becomes X4: nForce Chipsets Also Reviewed at PC INpact, March 31, 2009
21. ↑ Yannick Guerrini. ASRock Unveils Future Athlon II X3 on Tom’s Hardware, April 28, 2009of the year.
22. ↑ Guillaume. Asus Improves Core Unlock for AMD Processors at Case & Cooling, October 21, 2009
23. ↑ Pierre Dandumont. Phenom, hide after cores? on Tom’s hardware, March 9, 2009
24. ↑ Thibaut G. No More Cache on Phenom II X4 810: Sequel to Power PC, March 10, 2009
25. ↑ (in) AMD Phenom II CPU multiply, Vcore unlock and 4th core on OverClocked Inside, accessed 7 July 2009.
26. ↑ David Siver. Transfer your Phenom II in Engineering Sample to Tom’s equipment, July 2009of the year.
27. ↑ David Legrand. AMD Phenom II X4 965 BE: What About Voltage Drop? on PC INpact, August 13, 2009
28. ↑ Gary Key. Phenom II X4 965 — is it possible to lower the voltage? at AnandTech, August 14, 2009
29. ↑ David Legrand. AMD: X4 965 with 125W TDP by the end of the year on PC INpact, August 20, 2009
30. ↑ David D. Hexacore AM3 in development? at Le Comptoir du Hardware, September 2, 2009
31. ↑ (in) Gordon Ma Ung. Official: AMD Confirms Six-Core Thuban Processor on MaximumPC, September 21, 2009G.
32. ↑ Mark. Phenom II X6 officially launched on Hardware.fr March 2, 2010
33. ↑ Pierre Dandumont. AMD has 6 cores? Phenom II X6 on vol.fr hardware, March 2, 2010
34. ↑ Florian Vieru. AMD confirms Phenom II X6 and ATI Radeon HD 5000 «upgrade» at PCWorld.fr, January 26, 2010.
35. ↑ David S. Phenom II X4 840T getting close to AMD? at Comptoir du Hardware, July 27, 2010
36. ↑ Bruno Cormier. Detailed Roadmap for AMD Desktop Processors by 2009on INpact PC, September 15, 2008
37. ↑ David S. Mystery processor on AMD: BE TWKR on Power PC, June 12, 2009
38. ↑ AMD Phenom II 42 TWKR Black Edition Processor, Legit Reviews, June 30, 2009
39. ↑ AMD Phenom II X4 42 TWKR sold for $11,600 93,049 on a gen processor, July 22, 2009.
40. ↑ Florian Vieru. Phenom II X4 950 from AMD? on Matba, January 23, 2009
41. ↑ Pierre Dandumont. Phenom II X2 and Phenom II X4 955 on volume hardware, March 3, 2009
42. ↑ Florian Vieru. AMD Athlon II X3 in October, Phenom II X4 975 in 2010? on PCWorld.fr, 21 September 2009
43. ↑ Roman. Eight new Phenoms and Athlons on AMD in April? on Clubic, February 10, 2009
44. ↑ Thibaut G. 2 new AMD AM3 processors on Power PC, June 17, 2009
45. ↑ ^{a b c and d} Florian Vieru. Wave of AM3 processors arrives at AMD on PCWorld.fr, September 9, 2009
46. ↑ 9Florian Vieru. AMD Expands Business-Class Lineup to PCWorld, August 17, 2009
47. ↑ ^{b c e e e and d} Jérôme G.
48. ↑ ^{a and b} (en) Visionnary. AMD 800 Series Chipset Release Schedule in VR-Zone, September 4, 2009
49. ↑ Florian Vieru. New chipset from AMD, 880G on Matbe, December 15, 2008
50. ↑ David Legrand. AMD announces its Radeon HD 4200 based 785G chipset on INpact PC on August 4, 2009.
51. ↑ Steve Klein. AMD 785G, like 780G, limited to stereo LPCM! via HomeMedia, August 5, 2009
52. ↑ Pierre Dandumont. AMD Announces 890GX for Phenom II X6 on Tom Hardware March 2, 2010
53. ↑ (ru) Visionnary. Does your nForce board support 45nm Phenom processors? on VR-Zone, December 15, 2008
54. ↑ Yannick Guerrini. NVIDIA: MCP82 XE for AM3 processors on Tom’s hardware, March 18, 2009
55. ↑ David Legrand. nForce and AM3: On March 31, 2009, NVIDIA launches a low-cost PC version of the 720d on the INpact PC.
56. ↑ Florian Vieru. The end of nForce chipsets at NVIDIA… due to Intel and AMD on PCWorld.fr, October 8, 2009.
57. ↑ David Legrand. Tuban and Zambezi: AMD Confirms Projects in Roadmap at INpact PC, October 20, 2009

See Also

Related Articles

• AMD Sempron: A variation on AMD’s entry-level

processors

• AMD Athlon II: Medium variant of AMD

processors

External links

• Overclock the AMD CPU stuck on Tom’s hardware.
• Compare AMD processors at amd.com
• (en) AMD

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Best Socket AM2 Processors

Best Socket AM2 Processors

Before AMD’s Ryzen entered the world’s processor market, and AM3 and AM3+ socket platforms began to be produced, these processors were very famous and in great demand among many people. Currently, these processors can be found on the secondary market at the most affordable cost.

All of these processors support DDR2 memory up to 800 MHz. The price of processors is given at the time of their release, now they can be found on various sites much cheaper.

AMD Phenom X4 9850

A good option for old game fans, it will fit many systems with AM2 motherboard. Also, this processor is perfect for servers and workstations. The model belongs to the Black Edition series, therefore it has a free multiplier and supports overclocking. It has a rather low critical temperature for processors of this series.

Features:

• Socket: AM2+;
• Clock frequency: 2.5 GHz;
• Cores: 4;
• L3 cache size: 2048 KB;
• Process: 65 nm;
• Heat dissipation: 125W;
• Price: around $20.

AMD Phenom X4 9750

This processor model is an older version of the previous one. It also has a higher clock speed. The number of cores is the same.

Features:

• Socket: AM2+;
• Clock frequency: 2.4 GHz;
• Cores: 4;
• L3 cache size: 2048 KB;
• Process: 65 nm;
• Heat dissipation: 125W;
• Price: $20.

AMD Phenom X4 9650

This is almost a top processor at the time of release, which is quite subject to overclocking. At a single core voltage of 1.296 volts. The processor is able to quickly and effortlessly accelerate to 3 GHz and at this frequency it easily passes all the tests. However, it does get quite hot.

The clock speed is slightly lower than the previous model. It is also worth considering its critical temperature of 62 degrees Celsius.

Features:

• Socket: AM2+;
• Clock frequency: 2.3 GHz;
• Cores: 4;
• L3 cache size: 2048 KB;
• Process: 65 nm;
• Heat dissipation: 95W;
• Price: $90.

AMD Phenom X4 9950

The processor has a higher frequency than all previous models and runs on 4 cores. Like all other processor models on the list, it is installed in the AM2 socket, and which all supports only DDR2 RAM.

Features:

• Connector: AM2+;
• Number of cores: 4;
• Frequency: 2.6 GHz;
• Process: 65 nm;
• L3 cache: 2 MB;
• Heat dissipation: 125W;
• Price: $60.

AMD Athlon 64 X2 6400+

Proven high clocked dual core processor. It can also be overclocked a bit. Like other processors in this list, the model supports dual-channel DDR2 memory. The maximum amount of RAM for this model is 16 GB.

• Connector: AM2;
• Cores: 2;
• Frequency: 3 GHz;
• Process: 90 nm;
• L2 cache: 2 MB;
• Heat dissipation: 125W;
• Price: $70.

AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+

This is a fairly strong processor for its age. In fact, this model symbolizes what AMD was like in one of its best periods of development when fighting Intel, since the products of these manufacturers have almost leveled off in all respects, and even more so in terms of performance.

Features:

• Socket: AM2;
• Number of cores: 2;
• Processor frequency: 3 GHz;
• Process: 90 nm;
• L2 cache: 1 MB;
• Heat dissipation: 75W;
• Price: $50.

AMD Athlon 64 X2 5600+

A solid mid-ranger of its time. This model is suitable for servers and workstations. In terms of cost, it has many analogues among processors from Intel. DDR2 RAM supported. The maximum amount of memory is 16 gigabytes.

• Socket: AM2;
• Number of cores: 2;
• Frequency: 2.8 GHz;
• Process: 90 nm;
• L2 cache: 2 MB;
• Heat dissipation: 89 W;
• Price: $50.

AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+

The processor showed itself well in the test with games and at the same time requires quite high-quality cooling, because even without overclocking to full power its power consumption reaches 65 watts. An efficient cooler will be required to work with heavy video and modern games.

• Socket: AM2;
• Number of cores: 2;
• Frequency: 2. 6 GHz;
• Process: 90 nm;
• L2 cache: 512 KB;
• Heat dissipation: 65W;
• Price: $50.

AMD Athlon 64 X2 FX-62

The AMD Athlon 64 X2 FX processor released by AMD, despite the name, has nothing to do with the FX line. It is an improved version of the Athlon 64 X2. The Athlon 64 X2 has two cores with 1MB L2 cache and runs at 2400 MHz, while the new Athlon 64 X2 FX has the same number of cores running at 2700 MHz.

• Connector: AM2;
• Cores: 2;
• Process: 90 nm;
• Frequency: 2700 MHz;
• L2 cache: 1024 KB;
• Heat dissipation: 125W;
• Price: $60.

AMD Opteron 1356

Quad-core processor introduced by AMD in 2008. He managed to earn recognition all over the world. Suitable for installation in server stations and similar systems.

• Connector: AM2;
• Number of cores: 4;
• Process: 65 nm;
• Frequency: 2.3 GHz;
• L3 cache: 2 MB;
• Heat dissipation: 115 W;
• Price: $90.

AMD Ryzen 5 2600

• SOCKET: AM4
• LITOGOGRAGHOGRAPHIS: 12 NM
• Cores: 6
• Threads: 12
• Base clock: 3.4 GHz
• Turbo clock: 3.9 GHz
• Free multiplier: yes
• Integrated graphics: no
• TDP: 65 W the people’s favorite is the Ryzen 5 2600. The processor was born in the second quarter of 2021, but still gives a “light” to many competitors. True, the popularity of the model played a cruel joke on users. The price tag for this stone has increased significantly over the past year. But it is quite possible to snatch it at discounts for an acceptable price.

  The CPU is made on a 12nm process technology and has an unlocked multiplier. The frequency in the turbo is 3900 MHz, inside 6 cores and 12 threads. There is no integrated graphics. The L3 cache is 16 megabytes, which is the same as the top 11th generation Intel processors. Although the difference between them is 3 years. In terms of performance, the Ryzen 5 2600 is roughly comparable to the 10400F, which beats it in synthetics in single-threaded tasks, but is significantly inferior in multi-threaded tests.

  In games, the processor performs more than well. The ideal combination would be a build with 2600 and RTX 2070, or even with 2070 Super. At the same time, the bottleneck is practically excluded if you play in FullHD. At 2K or 4K resolution, there is a chance that the processor will be fully loaded, while the video card still has some headroom. In short, the Ryzen 5 2600 is the perfect choice for an AMD-powered mid-range gaming build.

  Conclusions

  In this article, we were able to review and evaluate the most advanced supported am2 processors. You most likely will not be able to purchase these processors in the primary market, but you can do this by looking for ads for sale on some site on the Internet.

  These socket AM2 processors were very famous and in great demand at the time. Particularly due to the great opportunity to install processors for AM2 in new generation motherboards with faster RAM. What processors of this generation did you use? Which ones are the best? Write in the comments!

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  1. Vlad 11.06.2019 Reply
     AMD Phenom II X4 945 You can put in AM2 Mother
  • Sergey 06/06/2019 Reply

    You did not move your head? 945 hairdryer 2 is am3

  • Vlad 10/10/2020 Reply

    I didn’t succeed.

  • Dmitry 01/23/2021 Reply0002 Am3 processors will go to these boards only if they have AM2 + support, not in any way on a mother with a simple AM2 socket Usefulness Question

  Editor’s Choice

  AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3970X

  AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3970X. Photo: market.yandex.ru
  Today, according to netizens, AMD Ryzen Threadripper 39 is considered the best processor model for cryptocurrency mining.70X. This model is very expensive, but quickly pays off. It has 32 cores and 64 threads. In the new Castle Peak design, the memory controller and the PCI Express 4.0 controller are placed in a separate chiplet, so that all processor cores have equal access to all memory and all expansion devices. This makes any delays in work not only predictable, but also reduces their likelihood, which is extremely important for mining. The high power of this processor requires high-quality cooling. There are no coolers in the basic configuration of the system, but they can be purchased separately in almost any hardware store, since this processor is compatible with many models.

AMD Processors
Current	x86-64 AMD FX Athlon X4 Ryzen Epic
Abandoned	Up to x86 Am9080 Am2900 (ru) x86-16 (16bit) Am286 x86-32 (32bit) Am386 Am486 Am5x86 K5 K6 K6-2 K6-III Duron Athlon Geode x86-64 / AMD64 (64bit) Mobile Athlon 64 Sempron Athlon 64 Athlon Neo Athlon 64FX Athlon X2 Name II Athlon II Turion Opteron Merger Other Am29000 Au1
Microarchitectures	Primary K5 K6 K7 K8 K10 Bulldozer Piledriver (ru) Steamroller Excavator Zen Zen 2 (ru) Low consumption Alchemy Lynx Jaguar (en) Puma HAND K12 ( inch )
Sockets	7 Super 7 B 563 S1 754 939 940 AM2 AM2 + F F+ AM3 G34 C32 AM3 + FM1 FM2 AM4 TR4
Memory frequency	3200 MHz
The maximum number of memory channels	4

pluses and dignity

Work well and has excellent performance of

, separate setting is required for the maximum performance of the maximum performance. no coolers

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How to choose a processor for cryptocurrency mining. Expert advice

Choosing a processor for mining is not as difficult as it might seem at first glance. Komsomolskaya Pravda turned to programmer and system engineer of IT company Ahmed Ajaj . He spoke in detail about the most important parameters that must be considered when choosing a processor.

Motherboard compatibility

The first thing to consider when choosing a processor is its motherboard compatibility. The latter must have an appropriate socket for the device (Socket). If the processor is purchased for the motherboard that you already have, then find out its model and pay attention to the list of processors with which it is compatible.