What are codecs and what are they for? Six-core Intel Core i5 and Core i7 (Coffee Lake) processors for the “new” LGA1151 Six-core intel core i7 processors

After the line of processors from AMD was replenished with FX models with a large number of cores, all users, even fans of Intel products, started talking about them. How can it be - the price of the processor is two times cheaper than that of a competitor, and the performance is right on your heels! In this article we will talk about a rather interesting modification of AMD - FX-6100. The fact is that this processor has 6 cores - a middling product between a budget device and a top-end 8-core chip, as the buyer might think. But he will be wrong. It would be more accurate to call the processor the most powerful device in the inexpensive budget class.

The reader will get acquainted with the technical tests of the new product and, thanks to reviews from the owners, will get a complete understanding of this wonderful AMD product.

Main competitor

Perhaps the world would not have seen an AMD processor with six cores on store shelves, but this became inevitable for the manufacturer when its main competitor Intel company- introduced the new Core i3-2125 to the market in the mid-budget class sector. The power of budget-class processors (on the Russian market there was only one crystal with the old Phenom technology, which all buyers bypassed) AMD at that time was not enough to fight the competitor, and modifications with eight cores competed for primacy with the Core i5. There was an urgent need to occupy an open price niche.

The manufacturer presented to the world community several products for the budget price niche. All of them differed slightly in cost and performance. Such a decision was supposed to drive the competitor out of the market. The new FX-6100, its characteristics and price immediately attracted the attention of the buyer. The new product was definitely interesting because there were six cores on board the crystal, which worked independently of each other. It was from this moment that the battle of the titans began:

Specifications

The consumer clearly liked the manufacturer's approach to creating the processor, because to create it, the company's technologists developed a completely new Zambezi core, refusing to use old technologies. As a result, the new AMD FX-6100 BOX received the following technical characteristics:

1. Interaction with motherboards on
2. The production uses a new 32-nanometer process technology, which makes it possible to place 1.2 billion transistors on one chip.
3. Quantity computing processes corresponds to the number of cores - 6 pieces.
4. The nominal core frequency is 3300 MHz (3900 in Max Turbo mode).
5. Full amounts of cache memory of all three levels are used.
6. The processor supports two DDR3 memory channels operating at frequencies of 1333/1600/1866 MHz.
7. All instruction sets are supported for running 32-bit and 64-bit applications, including MMX.
8. Heat dissipation at peak loads does not exceed 95 watts. We are talking about a base frequency of 3300 MHz. With increased performance, heat dissipation can reach 150 watts.

Appearance and packaging

Even though the AMD FX-6100 processor is the smallest device in the system, it is a given that the packaging for the “heart” of a computer will always be beautiful and huge in size. It is worth noting that the manufacturer has completely changed the design of the box for all Black Edition processors. Instead of the utopian black color, it is made in a red and white style, to match all AMD products. The main attribute - packaging with a window for contemplating the processor - has not changed. The contents of the box for all brands are identical and have long been considered the norm:

• the processor itself is in a miniature plastic package that can protect the device from physical impacts during transportation;
• AMD branded sticker on the owner’s system unit;
• cooling system assembly (fan and radiator);
• colorful instructions with pictures for installing the processor and mounting the cooler;
• a lot of “waste paper” (leaflets, certificates, guarantees and recommendations).

Questions about the cooling system

Coolers that came in the same package with devices always received low ratings from those who wanted to test processor power through overclocking. Therefore, the AMD FX-6100 Six-Core Processor product was no exception. The aluminum radiator with a copper core at the base and a 70mm cooler looks a bit weak. However, according to the manufacturer, such a system can cope with processor cooling at peak loads of up to 100 W.

As users note in their reviews, for standard frequencies (3300-3900 MHz) this cooling system is quite sufficient, but overclocking enthusiasts should think about more advanced coolers from well-known world brands. Accordingly, in such cases it is recommended to purchase the processor not in the BOX version, but to give preference to OEM delivery.

Sports interest

Naturally, all potential buyers are interested in comparing two processors in the same niche from different manufacturers. For the purity of the experiment, the AMD FX(TM)6100 Six-Core must be compared in tests with Intel Core i3-2125. In fact, these are two identical processors, judging by their technical characteristics and price, although the latter has only two cores.

As test results show, in resource-intensive applications that require processor power (archivers, password crackers, video and audio encoders, mathematical calculations), the new product from AMD is the leader. Undoubtedly, 6 cores are more productive than two. However, the situation changes dramatically in benchmarks, when only one core is involved in the test - Intel Core i3-2125 wins by a huge gap over its competitor (Cinebench R11.529, 3DMark).

But with games the issue is controversial. Applications that are designed to run on one or two cores undoubtedly show better results with an Intel processor. And all the rest, which require overall system performance, show decent results with the AMD FX-6100 crystal. It is worth noting that recently many game manufacturers have been writing codes without reference to processor threads, and accordingly, AMD’s new product has a greater chance of winning in performance over its competitor.

Higher, faster, stronger

In the media you can find many arguments from “experts” who assure others that the AMD FX-6100 Six processor is a lightweight version of its older brother FX-6300. Logically, these two processors have a lot of the same parameters: number of cores, cache, memory bus, instructions, heat dissipation and technical process. But the chipsets used for their production are different, and the technologies have slight differences. Testing will put everything in its place.

1. The GeekBench CPU benchmark shows the 6300's CPU performance to be 7,677 (the 6100's 6,945).
2. The AMD FX-6100 processor does not support FMA3, which is used to speed up tasks.
3. The 6300 chip runs 10% faster with all applications running the updated version of the Turbo Core AMD instructions (video editing and 3D modeling).

The right approach

Many potential buyers who want to overclock the AMD FX-6100 processor are led by owner reviews to believe that it is worth purchasing a decent cooling system to protect the chip from overheating. The choice falls on expensive high-end devices, the cost of which is not comparable to the price of the processor itself. Naturally, the buyer immediately gives up his desires. There is no need to rush here, the main thing is to know one truth: any cooler on the market positioned for a certain heat dissipation is definitely more efficient than the BOX version.

The choice of a decent cooling system within 3,000 rubles is quite large, and for most buyers it is not carried out at the level of characteristics, but is tied to the brand. Devices from Zalman, Scythe, Deepcool, and Cooler Master have proven themselves to be excellent. Any cooler you like from the proposed options is guaranteed to cope with the task. For an AMD FX-6100 processor with a heat dissipation of 95 W, it is worth choosing a cooling system with a coefficient of one and a half. That is, the cooler must cope with the dissipated power of the processor of 142.5 W.

Overclocking potential

Many beginners after installing a proprietary software AMD Catalyst detects that on one of the application tabs there is information on the processor, which indicates the nominal processor frequency and overclocking potential. Very often the user contemplates a figure equal to 4.3 GHz; naturally, he overclocks the crystal to the maximum.

You should not do this at the initial stages; IT experts recommend overclocking the AMD FX-6100 3.3 GHz processor to the maximum permissible level specified in the device specification - 3.9 GHz in Max Turbo mode. It is necessary to work in this mode, observe the temperature characteristics of the cooling system, including programmatically, using special utilities. If there are problems, reduce the frequency by 100 units. If heating is under control and the processor is operating stably, you can start increasing the frequency in 100 MHz increments.

Overclocking instructions

How to overclock AMD FX-6100? Judging by reviews in the media, many users are interested in complete step-by-step instruction with recommendations for overclocking the processor. No problem:

1. Go into the computer's BIOS.
2. Go to the "Advanced" tab.
3. Select the item “JumperFree Configuration”.
4. Find the “CPU Ratio” menu.
5. To the right of the found menu there is an “Auto” option. You need to click on it and select the correct multiplier in the list that appears (19.5x corresponds to a frequency of 3900 MHz).
6. Save and restart your computer.

But the overclocking saga doesn’t end there, because many users pay minimal attention to the cooling system, so the manufacturer took full responsibility. The AMD FX-6100 Six processor is equipped with an overheating protection system (58 degrees Celsius). The protection works great - it simply reduces the core frequency by half by setting the required parameter in the BIOS. There are two ways to solve the problem: either put powerful system cooling, or deceive the lock.

Walking on the blade

As a result, through trial and error, the user will arrive at the correct result. It is worth noting that for each computer these indicators are different (3600 MHz and 1.24 V, 3900 MHz and 1.36 V). After overclocking, many owners in their reviews recommend not focusing on the maximum, because at peak loads the processors do not have time to cool in a timely manner, and accordingly, blocking will occur.

CPU stress test

Many users, judging by their reviews, are not particularly clear about the question of testing an overclocked processor, because there is so much similar software on the Internet that their eyes wander when choosing. Professionals recommend testing the stability of the AMD FX-6100 processor, the characteristics of which have been changed by the user, using the OCCT program. The fact is that only this application can perform testing according to given parameters and provides a lot of useful information.

To set parameters in the OCCT program, the user must set the test time (10-20 minutes is considered normal). Be sure to specify the test version (32 or 64 bits). Select the maximum testing mode - a large set, and it is better to set the number of tests to “Auto”.

In addition to the test result, at the end of the program, the user is given the opportunity to monitor the temperature and voltage of the processor while the cores are loaded. The system will naturally freeze. This is normal, because OCCT takes over all the resources.

When you buy new laptop or building a computer, the processor is the most important decision. But there is a lot of jargon, especially regarding kernels. Which processor to choose: dual-core, quad-core, six-core or eight-core. Read the article to understand what this really means.

Dual core or quad core, as simple as possible

Let's keep it simple. Here's everything you need to know:

• There is only one processor chip. This chip may have one, two, four, six or eight cores.
• Currently, an 18-core processor is the best you can get on consumer PCs.
• Each "core" is the part of the chip that does the processing. Essentially, each core is a central processing unit (CPU).

Speed

Now simple logic dictates that more cores will make your processor faster overall. But it is not always the case. It's a little more complicated.

More cores only give more speed if a program can divide its tasks among the cores. Not all programs are designed to split tasks between cores. More on this later.

The clock speed of each core is also a decisive factor in speed, as is the architecture. Newer dual core processor with a higher clock speed will often outperform an older quad-core processor with a lower clock speed.

Power consumption

More cores also result in higher CPU power consumption. When the processor is turned on, it supplies power to all cores, not just the ones involved.

Chip makers are trying to reduce power consumption and make processors more energy efficient. But, general rule states that a quad-core processor will drain more power from your laptop than a dual-core processor (and therefore drain the battery faster).

Heat release

Each core affects the heat generated by the processor. Again, as a general rule, more cores lead to higher temperatures.

Because of this extra heat, manufacturers must add better radiators or other cooling solutions.

Price

More cores are not always a higher price. As we said earlier, clock speed, architectural versions, and other considerations come into play.

But if all other factors are equal, then more cores will fetch a higher price.

All about the software

Here's a little secret that processor manufacturers don't want you to know. It's about It's not about how many cores you use, but what software you run on them.

Programs must be specifically designed to take advantage of multiple processors. This kind of "multithreading software" is not as common as you might think.

It's important to note that even if it's a multi-threaded program, what it's used for is also important. For example, web browser Google Chrome Supports multiple processes as well as Adobe Premier Pro video editing software.

Adobe Premier Pro offers different engines to work on different aspects of your editing. Given the many layers involved in video editing, this makes sense as each core can work on a different task.

Likewise, Google Chrome offers different kernels to run on different tabs. But therein lies the problem. Once you open a web page in a tab, it is usually static after that. No further processing is necessary; the rest of the work is to store the page in RAM. This means that even though the kernel can be used to lay out the background, it is not necessary.

This Google Chrome example provides an illustration of how even multi-threaded software may not give you much of a real performance boost.

Two cores don't double the speed

So let's say you have the right software and all your other hardware is the same. Will a quad core processor be twice as fast as a dual core processor? No.

Enlargement of cores does not affect software problem scaling. Scaling to cores is the theoretical ability of any software to assign the right tasks to the right cores, so each core computes at its optimal speed. This is not what is really happening.

In reality, tasks are split sequentially (as most multithreaded programs do) or randomly. For example, let's say you need to complete three tasks to complete an activity, and you have five such activities. The software tells core 1 to solve problem 1, while core 2 solves the second, core 3 solves the third; Meanwhile, core 4 is idle.

If the third task is the hardest and longest, then it would make sense for the software to split the third task between cores 3 and 4. But that's not what it does. Instead, although cores 1 and 2 will complete the task faster, the action will have to wait for core 3 to complete and then compute the results of cores 1, 2, and 3 together.

This is all a roundabout way of saying that the software, much like today, is not optimized to take full advantage of multiple cores. And doubling the cores does not equal doubling the speed.

Where will more cores really help?

Now that you know what cores do and their performance limitations, you should ask yourself, "Do I need more cores?" Well, it depends on what you plan to do with them.

If you frequently play computer games, then more cores on your PC will undoubtedly come in handy. The vast majority of new popular games from major studios support multi-threaded architecture. Video gaming is still largely dependent on what kind of graphics card you have, but a multi-core processor helps too.

Any professional who works with video or audio programs will benefit from more cores. Most popular audio and video editing tools use multi-threaded processing.

Photoshop and design

If you are a designer, then higher clock speeds and more CPU cache will increase speed better than more cores. Even the most popular design software, Adobe Photoshop, largely supports single-threaded or lightly threaded processes. Lots of cores won't be a significant incentive for this.

Faster web browsing

As we've already said, having more cores doesn't mean faster web browsing. While all modern browsers support multi-process architecture, kernels will only help if your background tabs are sites that require a lot of processing power.

Office tasks

All core Office applications are single-threaded, so a quad-core processor won't add speed.

Do you need more cores?

In general, a quad-core processor will perform faster than a dual-core processor for general computing. Each program you open will run on its own kernel, so if the tasks are separated the speeds will be better. If you use many programs at the same time, often switch between them and assign their own tasks to them, choose a processor with a large number of cores.

Just know this: Overall system performance is one area where there are too many factors. Don't expect a magical performance boost by replacing just one component, even the processor.

The first computer processors with multiple cores appeared on the consumer market back in the mid-2000s, but many users still do not quite understand what multi-core processors are and how to understand their characteristics.

Video format of the article “The whole truth about multi-core processors”

A simple explanation of the question “what is a processor”

The microprocessor is one of the main devices in a computer. This dry official name is often shortened to simply “processor”). The processor is a microcircuit with an area comparable to a matchbox. If you like, the processor is like the engine in a car. The most important part, but not the only one. The car also has wheels, a body, and a player with headlights. But it is the processor (like a car engine) that determines the power of the “machine”.

Many people call a processor a system unit - a “box” inside which all the PC components are located, but this is fundamentally wrong. System unit- this is the computer case along with all its component parts - hard drive, RAM and many other parts.

Processor Function - Compute. It doesn't matter which ones exactly. The fact is that all computer work is based solely on arithmetic calculations. Addition, multiplication, subtraction and other algebra - all this is done by a microcircuit called a “processor”. And the results of such calculations are displayed on the screen in the form of a game, a Word file, or just a desktop.

The main part of the computer that performs calculations is what is a processor.

What is a processor core and multi-core

From the beginning of processor centuries, these microcircuits were single-core. The core is, in fact, the processor itself. Its main and main part. Processors also have other parts - say, “legs”-contacts, microscopic “electrical wiring” - but it is the block that is responsible for calculations that is called processor core. When processors became very small, engineers decided to combine several cores inside one processor “case”.

If you imagine a processor as an apartment, then the core is a large room in such an apartment. A one-room apartment is one processor core (a large room-hall), a kitchen, a bathroom, a corridor... A two-room apartment is like two processor cores along with other rooms. There are three-, four-, and even 12-room apartments. The same is the case with processors: inside one “apartment” crystal there can be several “room” cores.

Multi-core- This is the division of one processor into several identical functional blocks. The number of blocks is the number of cores inside one processor.

Types of multi-core processors

There is a misconception: “the more cores a processor has, the better.” This is exactly how marketers, who are paid to create this kind of misconception, try to present the matter. Their job is to sell cheap processors, moreover, more expensive and in huge quantities. But in fact, the number of cores is far from the main characteristic of processors.

Let's return to the analogy of processors and apartments. A two-room apartment is more expensive, more comfortable and more prestigious than a one-room apartment. But only if these apartments are located in the same area, equipped in the same way, and their renovation is similar. There are weak quad-core (or even 6-core) processors that are significantly weaker than dual-core ones. But it’s hard to believe in this: of course, the magic of large numbers 4 or 6 against “some” two. However, this is exactly what happens very, very often. It seems like the same four-room apartment, but in a ruined state, without renovation, in a completely remote area - and even at the price of a luxurious two-room apartment in the very center.

How many cores are there inside a processor?

For personal computers and laptops, single-core processors have not been produced properly for several years, and it is very rare to find them on sale. The number of cores starts from two. Four cores - as a rule, these are more expensive processors, but there is a return from them. There are also 6-core processors, which are incredibly expensive and much less useful in practical terms. Few tasks can achieve a performance boost on these monstrous crystals.

There was an experiment by AMD to create 3-core processors, but this is already in the past. It turned out quite well, but their time has passed.

By the way, AMD also produces multi-core processors, but, as a rule, they are significantly weaker than competitors from Intel. True, their price is much lower. You just need to know that 4 cores from AMD will almost always turn out to be noticeably weaker than the same 4 cores from Intel.

Now you know that processors come with 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 and 12 cores. Single-core and 12-core processors are very rare. Triple-core processors are a thing of the past. Six-core processors are either very expensive (Intel) or not so strong (AMD) that you pay more for the number. 2 and 4 cores are the most common and practical devices, from the weakest to the most powerful.

Multi-core processor frequency

One of the characteristics of computer processors is their frequency. Those same megahertz (and more often gigahertz). Frequency is an important characteristic, but far from the only one. Yes, perhaps not the most important one. For example, a 2-gigahertz dual-core processor is a more powerful offering than its 3-gigahertz single-core sibling.

It is completely wrong to assume that the frequency of a processor is equal to the frequency of its cores multiplied by the number of cores. To put it simply, a 2-core processor with a core frequency of 2 GHz has a total frequency in no case equal to 4 gigahertz! Even the concept of “common frequency” does not exist. In this case, CPU frequency equal exactly 2 GHz. No multiplication, addition or other operations.

And again we will “turn” processors into apartments. If the height of the ceilings in each room is 3 meters, then the total height of the apartment will remain the same - the same three meters, and not a centimeter higher. No matter how many rooms there are in such an apartment, the height of these rooms does not change. Also clock speed of processor cores. It does not add up and does not multiply.

Virtual multi-core, or Hyper-Threading

There are also virtual processor cores. Hyper-Threading technology in Intel processors makes the computer “think” that there are actually 4 cores inside a dual-core processor. Very similar to how the one and only HDD divided into several logical — local disks C, D, E and so on.

HyperThreading is a very useful technology for a number of tasks.. Sometimes it happens that the processor core is only half used, and the remaining transistors in its composition are idle. Engineers came up with a way to make these “idlers” work too, by dividing each physical processor core into two “virtual” parts. It’s as if a fairly large room was divided into two by a partition.

Does this make any practical sense? trick with virtual cores? Most often - yes, although it all depends on the specific tasks. It seems that there are more rooms (and most importantly, they are used more rationally), but the area of ​​​​the room has not changed. In offices, such partitions are incredibly useful, and in some residential apartments too. In other cases, there is no point at all in partitioning the room (dividing the processor core into two virtual ones).

Note that the most expensive and productive class processorsCorei7 is mandatory equippedHyperThreading. They have 4 physical cores and 8 virtual ones. It turns out that 8 computational threads work simultaneously on one processor. Less expensive but also powerful Intel processors class Corei5 consist of four cores, but Hyper Threading does not work there. It turns out that Core i5 work with 4 threads of calculations.

Processors Corei3- typical “average”, both in price and performance. They have two cores and no hint of Hyper-Threading. In total it turns out that Corei3 only two computational threads. The same applies to frankly budget crystals Pentium andCeleron. Two cores, no hyper-threading = two threads.

Does a computer need many cores? How many cores does a processor need?

All modern processors are powerful enough for common tasks. Browsing the Internet, correspondence on social networks and e-mail, office tasks Word-PowerPoint-Excel: weak Atom, budget Celeron and Pentium are suitable for this work, not to mention more powerful Core i3. Two cores are more than enough for normal work. A processor with a large number of cores will not bring a significant increase in speed.

For games you should pay attention to processorsCorei3 ori5. Rather, gaming performance will depend not on the processor, but on the video card. Rarely will a game require the full power of a Core i7. Therefore, it is believed that games require no more than four processor cores, and more often two cores are suitable.

For serious work such as special engineering programs, video encoding and other resource-intensive tasks Really productive equipment is required. Often, not only physical, but also virtual processor cores are used here. The more computing threads, the better. And it doesn’t matter how much such a processor costs: for professionals, the price is not so important.

Are there any benefits to multi-core processors?

Absolutely yes. The computer simultaneously deals with several tasks - at least Windows work(by the way, these are hundreds of different tasks) and, at the same moment, playing the movie. Playing music and browsing the Internet. Job text editor and music turned on. Two processor cores - and this is, in fact, two processors - will cope with different tasks faster than one. Two cores will make this a little faster. Four is even faster than two.

In the first years of the existence of multi-core technology, not all programs were able to work even with two processor cores. By 2014, the vast majority of applications understand and can take advantage of multiple cores. The speed of processing tasks on a dual-core processor rarely doubles, but there is almost always a performance increase.

Therefore, the deep-rooted myth that programs cannot use multiple cores is outdated information. Once upon a time this was indeed the case, today the situation has improved dramatically. The benefits of multiple cores are undeniable, that's a fact.

When the processor has fewer cores, it’s better

You should not buy a processor using the incorrect formula “the more cores, the better.” This is wrong. Firstly, 4, 6 and 8-core processors are significantly more expensive than their dual-core counterparts. A significant increase in price is not always justified from a performance point of view. For example, if an 8-core processor turns out to be only 10% faster than a CPU with fewer cores, but is 2 times more expensive, then it will be difficult to justify such a purchase.

Secondly, the more cores a processor has, the more voracious it is in terms of energy consumption. There is no point in buying a much more expensive laptop with a 4-core (8-thread) Core i7 if the laptop will only handle processing text files, browsing the Internet and so on. There will be no difference with the dual-core (4 threads) Core i5, and the classic Core i3 with only two computing threads will not be inferior to its more eminent “colleague”. And such a powerful laptop will last much less on battery power than the economical and undemanding Core i3.

Multi-core processors in mobile phones and tablets

The fashion for multiple computing cores inside one processor also applies to mobile devices. Smartphones and tablets with a large number of cores almost never use the full capabilities of their microprocessors. Dual-core mobile computers sometimes actually work a little faster, but 4, and even more so 8 cores are frankly overkill. The battery is consumed absolutely ungodly, and powerful computing devices simply sit idle. Conclusion - multi-core processors in phones, smartphones and tablets are just a tribute to marketing, and not an urgent need. Computers are more demanding devices than phones. They really need two processor cores. Four won't hurt. 6 and 8 are overkill for normal tasks and even games.

How to choose a multi-core processor and not make a mistake?

The practical part of today's article is relevant for 2014. It is unlikely that anything will change significantly in the coming years. We will only talk about processors manufactured by Intel. Yes, AMD offers good solutions, but they are less popular and more difficult to understand.

Note that the table is based on processors from 2012-2014. Older samples have different characteristics. We also did not mention rare CPU options, for example, the single-core Celeron (there are such even today, but this is an atypical option that is almost not represented on the market). You should not choose processors solely by the number of cores inside them - there are other, more important characteristics. The table will only make it easier to select a multi-core processor, but specific model(and there are dozens of them in each class) should be purchased only after carefully familiarizing yourself with their parameters: frequency, heat dissipation, generation, cache size and other characteristics.

CPU	Number of Cores	Computational threads	Typical Applications
Atom	1-2	1-4	Low-power computers and netbooks. The goal of Atom processors is to minimize power consumption. Their productivity is minimal.
Celeron	2	2	The cheapest processors for desktops and laptops. The performance is sufficient for office tasks, but these are not gaming CPUs at all.
Pentium	2	2	Intel processors are just as inexpensive and low-performance as Celeron. An excellent choice for office computers. Pentiums are equipped with a slightly larger cache, and, sometimes, slightly increased performance compared to Celeron
Core i3	2	4	Two fairly powerful cores, each of which is divided into two virtual “processors” (Hyper-Threading). These are already quite powerful CPUs at not too high prices. A good choice for a home or powerful office computer without particular demands on performance.
Core i5	4	4	Full-fledged 4-core Core i5 processors are quite expensive. Their performance is lacking only in the most demanding tasks.
Core i7	4-6	8-12	The most powerful, but especially expensive Intel processors. As a rule, they are rarely faster than Core i5, and only in some programs. There are simply no alternatives to them.

A brief summary of the article “The whole truth about multi-core processors.” Instead of a note

• CPU core- its component. In fact, an independent processor inside the case. Dual-core processor - two processors inside one.
• Multi-core comparable to the number of rooms inside the apartment. Two-room apartments are better than one-room apartments, but only with other characteristics being equal (location of the apartment, condition, area, ceiling height).
• The statement that the more cores a processor has, the better it is- a marketing ploy, a completely wrong rule. After all, an apartment is chosen not only by the number of rooms, but also by its location, renovation and other parameters. The same applies to multiple cores inside the processor.
• Exists "virtual" multi-core— Hyper-Threading technology. Thanks to this technology, each “physical” core is divided into two “virtual” ones. It turns out that a 2-core processor with Hyper-Threading has only two real cores, but these processors simultaneously process 4 computational threads. This is a really useful feature, but a 4-thread processor cannot be considered a quad-core processor.
• For Intel desktop processors: Celeron - 2 cores and 2 threads. Pentium - 2 cores, 2 threads. Core i3 - 2 cores, 4 threads. Core i5 - 4 cores, 4 threads. Core i7 - 4 cores, 8 threads. Laptop (mobile) CPU Intel have a different number of cores/threads.
• For mobile computers Energy efficiency (in practice, battery life) is often more important than the number of cores.

The battle between two eternal rivals - manufacturers of central processors continues. Some time after Intel announced the new six-core Intel Core series processors for the consumer segment, AMD released its six-core AMD Phenom II X6 processor, thereby proving that six cores can cost no more than $300. The new AMD processor includes all the best from the previous series, and also introduced a new technology called Turbo CORE. We will talk about the new processor, its technical characteristics and innovations, as well as testing results in this article.

The new AMD Phenom II X6 processors are based on the Thuban core, while the K10.5 architecture remains the same. Unlike Intel, AMD went its own way: having increased the Phenom II X4 by two cores and thereby turning it into the Phenom II X6, it did not increase the L3 cache in the processor. This made it possible to reduce the total number of transistors and not go beyond the thermal package, without changing the 45-nm process technology.

New episode AMD processors The Phenom II X6 today offers the user a choice of four six-core processors with support for the new Turbo CORE technology. The first and weakest model is the AMD Phenom II X6 1035T (2.6 GHz with an increase to 3.0 GHz), followed by the AMD Phenom II X6 1055T, which has a clock frequency of 2.8 GHz with the ability to increase the frequency of individual cores to 3.2 GHz in Turbo CORE mode. The AMD Phenom II X6 1075T processor has a clock speed of 3 GHz, up to 3.4 GHz when Turbo CORE mode is enabled. The latest processor in this line, the AMD Phenom II X6 1090T, was the most powerful AMD processor in the consumer segment of the market at the time of writing. Its nominal clock speed is 3.2 GHz, boosted to 3.6 GHz. It comes with an unlocked multiplier, allowing you to overclock it to high frequencies. In World Wide Web there are rumors about plans to release more powerful processor AMD Phenom II X6 1095T, which have not yet been confirmed by anything.

AMD Phenom II X6 1090T processor

The AMD Phenom II X6 1090T is based on the Thuban core found in the Phenom II X4 quad-core processors, but the new processor is enhanced with AMD Turbo CORE technology. According to its technical data, this function is the antipode of the Cool’and’Quiet technology, which lowers the clock frequency of the processor cores when there is no load on them. The new technology allows you to increase the clock frequency of active processor cores (no more than three) if the remaining cores (three or more) are not loaded. In this case, the frequency increase factor is chosen in such a way that the processor does not exceed the TDP package during operation. A sort of analogue of the TurboBoost technology that Intel uses in its processors. And if Intel's TurboBoost technology is more transparent (its work can be seen using any system processor monitoring utility, for example CPU-Z), then for AMD processors with Turbo CORE it is possible to detect an increase in frequency only using special utility AMD OverDrive. Unlike Intel, AMD Phenom II X6 processors do not have any special control chips that monitor processor temperature and current consumption in real time. The principle of operation of the Turbo CORE technology is quite simple: as soon as three or more processor cores are in a power-saving state with the frequency reduced to 800 MHz as part of the Cool’and’Quiet technology, the processor raises the frequency of the active cores by 400 MHz, that is, the multiplier increases by two. At the same time, to ensure stability of operation on increased frequency The processor supply voltage automatically increases from 1.3 to 1.475 V (in our testing). According to AMD's announcement, the new Turbo CORE technology will be used in the next processors of this and other Phenom II X4 processor lines. That is, the company is betting on this technology because, according to AMD, it allows for performance gains for applications that do not support multi-cores. This is a very large segment of software, because until now no more than 30% of programs provide full multi-core support. The rest either use it ineffectively, or only one core is enough for them. In general, parallelization support is a topic for a separate article, so we won’t digress. Let us only note that the introduction of TurboBoost and Turbo CORE technologies by processor giants speaks volumes. Specifications processor AMD Phenom II X6 1090T are given in table. 1 .

We cannot ignore the announcement of the new AMD Leo platform, which should become a continuation of the Dragon platform, combining the highest-performance processor, high-performance video subsystem and the most functional AMD chipset. New platform should include a six-core AMD Phenom II X6 processor, video card(s) of the series AMD Radeon HD5800 and AMD 890FX system logic set. There has been no official announcement of this platform yet.

But let's return to the processor in question. The AMD Phenom II X6 1090T model arrived at our test laboratory in the form of an engineering sample, so it is not yet clear in what packaging it will be delivered to the end user. Appearance The processor remained the same, only the inscription was updated - AMD Phenom X6.

In order to see how Turbo CORE technology works, we installed latest version AMD OverDrive Utilities 3.2.1. To load the processor cores, we used our laboratory’s own development, which is used when testing coolers. The processor was gradually loaded with several threads. When running one, two or three load threads, the OverDrive utility displayed a very interesting result (Fig. 1).

Unlike Intel processors, where each thread is sent to a separate core, this model takes a different approach. Each thread is evenly distributed among the processor cores, that is, first part of the code is executed on one core, then on another, etc. As a result, smooth heating of the processor is achieved, and the clock frequency of all cores without exception varies from 800 MHz to 3.645 GHz. This pattern of operation is observed when the processor load is one, two or three threads.

When increasing to four threads (Fig. 2), Turbo CORE technology is disabled, and the frequency of all processor cores without exception becomes standard - 3.2 GHz. Today it is difficult to say how justified this approach is when implementing this technology.

Testing methodology

To test this processor we were provided with motherboard Gigabyte 890GPA-UD3H, based on the latest AMD 890GX chipset. Since this board, like all modern models, supports DDR3 memory, two modules were installed in it Kingston memory KVR1333D3N8K2, each 1 GB. As operating system 32-bit version was used Microsoft Windows 7. The testing methodology for this processor is no different from that described in detail in the article “ A new version test script ComputerPress Benchmark Script v.8.0" and published in the November issue of the magazine last year. In table Figure 2 shows the execution time of test tasks in seconds for the assembled stand and the reference PC we used for comparison. In addition, using utilities from the AMD CPU Cooler Test Kit, the AMD Phenom II X6 1090T was tested under stress load mode to determine its temperature performance. Note that during testing we used a standard cooler for AMD processors.

Test results

Based on those given in table. 2 test results, it can be argued that this processor has 33% lower performance than the reference system. The fields where the processor lags behind by more than a minute when executing a task are highlighted in red, and those tests in green are those in which the result of the new processor approaches the reference values. Let us recall that as a reference PC we used a stand based on the Inte Core Extreme I7-965 processor and Gigabyte boards GA-EX58-UD7. According to our classification, the result obtained can be characterized as quite expected. Since AMD has been pursuing a policy of developing mid-range and budget-class processors for quite some time, you shouldn’t expect very high performance from the new processor. However, AMD has decided to take an important step towards users by making six-core processors available with fairly high performance. As can be seen from table. 2, in most tests the new processor loses to its competitor. However, in the Adobe Soundbooth CS4 test when editing an audio stream, this processor outperformed the Intel Core Extreme I7-965.

As for heat dissipation tests, here the new processor can pleasantly amaze the user. When operating in idle mode with all cores, the processor temperature did not exceed 25 °C. In the maximum load mode for all cores, the temperature increased by only 20 °C and stabilized at around 45 °C. This is a very worthy result, considering the six processor cores combined with the 45 nm process technology.

conclusions

Compared to previous high-performance Phenom II X4 models of the previous generation, the new product has a number of important advantages. The first is, of course, two additional cores, which gives a certain increase in performance when working with multi-threaded applications. The second plus is low power consumption and heat dissipation for 45 nm technological process. The third advantage, of course, is the introduction of the new Turbo CORE technology, which can increase processor performance when working with single-threaded applications. However, the most important advantage of the new AMD processors is price policy a company that continues to make inexpensive, technologically advanced, but at the same time productive processors available to users. The officially recommended price of the most productive Phenom II X6 1090T model is set at up to $300 - this means that multi-core architecture will be available to the user like never before.

Until recently, Intel processors were developed according to the time-tested Tick-Tock system, that is, according to the principle of a pendulum: at each “tick” a new, significantly redesigned architecture is born, and at each “tick” the existing architecture is transferred to a new one , a more advanced technical process. Intel plans to continue to adhere to this approach, but the pendulum does not swing quite evenly, and therefore some “intermediate” solutions appear periodically. One of these products is the Intel Core i7 980X processor we are considering, which represents the Nehalem architecture, which is being transferred as part of the next “so” to a 32-nm process technology. But in this case, the swing of the pendulum is slightly different from usual - the transition to a new technological process most often makes it possible to increase the operating frequency of the processor, but Intel chose a different path and increased the number of cores to six. So, Intel Core i7 980X is the first six-core processor for desktop computers, which ended up in our testing laboratory. Let's take a closer look at its architecture.

⇡ Architecture

The Intel Core i7 980X processor belongs to the Gulftown family and is its first and so far the only representative of processors of this family. There are no fundamental differences from the architecture of the Bloomfield family, on which all other processors for the LGA1366 platform are based, in the Intel Gulftown architecture. We can assume that the Core i7 980X is the same Bloomfield, operating at a frequency of 3.33 GHz, with a third-level cache increased by 4 MB and manufactured using a 32 nm process technology. However, there are some significant differences.

First, thanks to Intel HyperThreading technology, this six-core processor can handle up to twelve data threads, which is four more than all other Core i7 processors.

Secondly, the Core i7 980X received a new AES-NI (Advanced Encryption Standard New Instructions) instruction set, consisting of twelve different instructions designed to speed up all applications that actively use the AES algorithm. The AES-NI instruction set is already used in Clarkdale processors, but this is the first solution for the LGA1366 platform with this instruction set. Adding them will significantly increase processor performance in tasks such as encryption, VoIP, Internet firewalls and other applications that rely heavily on encryption. For other applications, the presence of AES-NI will have virtually no effect.

Thirdly, the L3 cache increased to 12 MB can have a positive effect on performance in games and other applications that use large amounts of cache memory. At the same time, other applications may lose some performance, since the increase in cache memory also led to an increase in latencies - the Uncore bus frequency in the new processor was reduced from 3.2 GHz to 2.6 GHz.

Finally, fourthly, the transfer of the processor to a 32-nm process technology using transistors with a metal gate had a positive effect on its physical dimensions: the Gulftown die has an area of ​​248 mm², while the quad-core Bloomfield die has an area of ​​263 mm², and the Lynnfield die has an area of ​​263 mm², and altogether 296 mm². Reducing the technological process standards should have a positive effect on the heat dissipation of the processor and its overclocking potential. The Core i7 980X has 1.17 billion transistors, making it the first home processor to surpass one billion transistors.

Otherwise, the Core i7 980X is similar to the Core i7 975: the same QPI bus frequency of 6.4 GT/s, that is, 25.6 GB/s, a similar built-in memory controller that allows you to work with DDR3 1333 memory in three-channel mode. Both processors operate at the same frequency and have an unlocked multiplier, the value of which can vary from 12 to 60 (in nominal mode - 25, in Turbo Boost mode - 27).

⇡ Cooling system

Many buyers of top-end Intel processors were very surprised when they took out of the box with a processor for several tens of thousands of rubles a simple aluminum radiator with radially diverging fins and a small noisy fan. Standard Intel cooling systems practically did not change from processor to processor, except that the height of the fins increased. With the release of the Core i7 980X, for the first time in many years, Intel changed its approach to standard processor cooling and equipped the new product with a much more serious cooler, called the Intel DBX-B Thermal Solution.

The new cooler is a tower heatsink with four heat pipes running through a copper base. On one side there is a fan with a diameter of 100 mm with a transparent impeller and blue backlight. Let's look at the cooler in a little more detail.

The radiator itself consists of aluminum fins of medium thickness, and the distance between them is very small - it will be difficult for fans with low speeds to blow through such a structure. Four heat pipes with a diameter of 6 mm are neatly sealed in the hollows of the base - there is, of course, no technology for direct contact of heat pipes with the processor itself, but this is not necessary. The top of the radiator is covered with a cover with protrusions for heat pipes, on which the Intel logo is placed.

The fan impeller is the strangest part of the cooler: its blades have a slightly curved shape, and it is not enclosed in a frame. As a result, only a small part of the air flow is sent directly to the radiator, but it blows around the processor space motherboard is at the top.

The processing of the base of the cooler is at an average level: it is not mirror-like, but without any distinct irregularities. At the same time, the base is slightly convex, which ensures good contact with the processor cover in the middle, where the crystal itself is located. This solution is ineffective if the processor cover is perfectly flat, but in our case it turned out to be slightly concave, and here the convexity of the cooler base came in very handy.

The Intel DBX-B thermal Solution attaches to the motherboard with four finger-tight screws. A soft plastic plate is installed on the back of the motherboard, into which screws are screwed. Despite the inconvenient placement of the screws (you have to reach up to the heads of two of them) and the flimsy design of the plate, this mount is a huge step forward compared to all previous versions fastenings.

There is a two-position switch at the top of the radiator. The letter "S" stands for Silence, while the letter "P" stands for Performance. In the first mode, the fan rotates at a speed of approximately 800-900 rpm, and in the second - about 1800 rpm. And if in the Silence mode the fan can be called moderately noisy, then in the Performance mode it is very loud: its noise is covered by both the power supply fan, the video card fan, and the sound from the heads hard drive. The blue illumination of the impeller cannot be turned off, but it is not too bright and does not hurt the eyes.

In general, despite the huge number of shortcomings, the Intel DBX-B cooler is far superior to all previous cooling systems that were equipped with Intel processors. Unfortunately, it is intended only for Gulftown processors - other processors will be equipped with old coolers. Let's see what new system cooling is capable of operation - let's try to overclock the processor.

The maximum frequency we were able to load the system at using air cooling was almost 4.5 GHz. At this frequency it was even possible to pass some tests, but no stability was observed. Therefore, the frequency had to be reduced to 4.2 GHz - at this frequency, all tests passed properly, and the processor with the Intel DBX-B Thermal Solution cooler installed on it did not warm up above 65 degrees Celsius. However, when trying to check the stability of the processor in the OCCT utility, the Core i7 980X processor with a standard cooler still warmed up to 85 degrees, and the system eventually displayed blue screen. Despite this, we will consider the operation of the processor at this frequency to be conditionally stable, since the loads created by the OCCT LinPack utility are not encountered in real applications.

⇡ Temperature and power consumption

Let's move on to the processor performance tests and compare its results with the results of other latest generation Intel processors, but first let's evaluate the system's power consumption.

Test bench configuration:
Processors	Intel Core i7 980X 3.33 GHz Intel Core i7 920 2.66 GHz Intel Core i7 870 2.93 GHz
Cooling systems	Intel DBX-B Thermal Solution for Core i7 980X Titan Fenrir for Core i7 920 and Core i7 870
motherboards	Asus Rampage II Extreme MSI P55-GD65, Socket LGA1156 ASUS P6T Deluxe Palm OS Edition, Socket LGA 1366
RAM	3x 1GB Apacer DDR-3 2000 MHz (9-9-9-24-2T) @ 1333 MHz (7-7-7-24-1T) 2x 2 GB Corsair XMS 2 @ 1066 MHz (5-5-5-15-2T)
Hard disks	Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 750 Gb Samsung SpinPoint SP750
Video card	NVIDIA GeForce GTX 295, WHQL 186.18 drivers
power unit	Hiper M730

At standard frequencies our test stand together with the Core i7 980X processor, it consumed only 185 W, which is not bad for a computer with the most powerful desktop processor and a dual-chip video card. Under load using the OCCT utility, the system's power consumption increased significantly and amounted to 297 W - this is only due to the processor, because the OCCT LinPack test does not load the video card.

Overclocking with an increase in processor voltage to 1.35 V does not greatly affect the system's power consumption when idle - it is 192 W, but under load, power consumption increases to 344 W - almost 50 W more than without overclocking.