Amd Phenom Ii X45/9/2021
While Intel has a clear lead overall, the 955 BE stays biting at the heels of the Q9550, at least in Cinebench.As such I also suggested those thinking of buying an AM3 quad core Phenom II should wait a few months for the likely arrival of a Black Edition processor.
Today sees the launch of AMDs fastest CPU to date, the Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition (BE). It features a 3.2GHz default clock speed, support for both socket AM3 and AM2 motherboards (BIOS updates permitting) and consequently is compatible with DDR2 and DDR3 memory. Its most notable feature, though, is signified by that Black Edition moniker, namely it has an unlocked multiplier that theoretically makes it very easy to overclock. Coming in at 220, its in direct competition with Intels Core 2 Quad Q9550, a CPU that has a markedly lower clock speed and that on the surface wont have quite the same overclocking potential. Also announced today is the Phenom II X4 945, which runs at 3.0GHz but doesnt feature an unlocked multiplier. Understandably this means it comes in at a lower price, namely 196, though the difference seems small enough that wed be inclined to fork out the extra for the Black Edition. We werent provided with a sample of this CPU, though, so weve left it out of our testing. So if you want the best of the best its a safe bet that an Intel Core i7 system is still the way to go. However, if youre just after a sensibly priced but still powerful system then these CPUs are likely to be prime candidates. For that we refer you to our reviews of the Phenom II X4 810 and Phenom II X3 720 Black Edition and, for further information on the Phenom II architecture in general, you might also like to look at our Phenom II X4 940 review. One last thing before we get onto testing; AMDs peculiar naming scheme. You see, when the first Phenom II CPUs launched, AMD introduced a new three-digit numbering scheme. Even at the time it didnt seem overly sensible, starting as it did at 940 not much room for improvement there without moving to four-digits. What was even more confusing is that despite this high numbering the 940 BE was an AM2 only chip so was almost obsolete straight away. Meanwhile triple core AM3 processors came out with a 7xx numbering so up until this point the first digit of the model number seemed to have a clear meaning. Now, with the release of the 955 and 945, AMD has really confused things by making socket AM3 Phenom IIs with model numbers beginning in 9. This same graphics card and memory was then used in our Core i7 and Core 2 test beds, the details of which are listed below. Weve also included figures for the more sensibly priced Core i7 920, which is available for around 250 and the Core 2 Q9550 thats this CPUs most direct competitor at around 210. This includes photo editing, video transcoding, playing games, and converting mp3s. For the 3D rendering testing we have had to resort to using canned benchmarks but we feel they are valued industry-standard performance indicators. Nevertheless, the 955 Black Edition still has plenty enough performance to play both games satisfactorily. That said, the extra clock speed of the 955 BE means it keeps up with its price competitor, the Q9550.
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