AMD FX-series Piledriver CPUs Megathread: Links and FAQ

[Darkbreeze]

Piledriver is a microarchitecture developed by AMD as the successor to Bulldozer. It primarily targets the desktop, mobile, and server markets. This article will address the FX series Piledriver CPUs which are both budget and enthusiast desktop processors.

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In 2010 AMD revealed that the 2nd generation was scheduled for 2012; AMD referred to this generation as Enhanced Bulldozer. This later generation of Bulldozer core was codenamed Piledriver and for the purpose of this thread consists of the Vishera FX series Piledriver processors. This FX-series aimed at 95-225 W TDP features 4, 6 and 8 Piledriver core CPU models; with Turbo Core 3.0 while using the existing Socket AM3+ format and 900 series motherboard chipsets of the 1st generation FX-series Zambezi processor.

The 2nd generation FX-series was released on 23 October 2012 with the FX-8350, FX-8320, FX-6300 and FX-4300 CPU models. The FX-8350 featured slightly improved power consumption and was found to be approximately 15% more powerful than the fastest Bulldozer CPU.

The 2nd generation FX-series was praised for its affordability. The FX 8320 was recognized as a performance per dollar winner, often matching Intel's i7 2600 at half the cost. The Vishera CPUs competed well when compared to similarly priced Intel Ivy Bridge CPUs in multi-core-aware applications and somewhat underperform in overall efficiency and in tasks where most CPU cores were not fully utilized such as single-threaded applications and a number of games.

On June 11, 2013, AMD announced two additional FX-series eight Piledriver core CPUs, the FX-9590 and FX-9370, running at a maximum turbo speed of 5.0 GHz and 4.7 GHz respectively, making AMD the first company to ever release a 5 GHz CPU commercially. The FX -8310, 8320E, 8370 and 8370E were all released on September 9, 2014.

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Wikipedia Piledriver microarchitecture page

AMD CPU Temperature guide




-Piledriver compatible AM3+ motherboards-

990FX chipset

990X chipset

970 chipset

Other chipsets (880G/ 760G/ etc)




AMD 9 series motherboard chipset drivers

(Above driver includes current "9", "A" and "E" series motherboard chipset, AHCI, USB and RAID drivers.)




-AMD FX processor overclocking guides-

(Note-Neither myself nor Tom's Hardware will be responsible for any issues that may occur as a result of following the instructions outlined in any of the tutorials below.

Overclocking guides will use various motherboards. Obviously I cannot provide a guide for use with every motherboard, but since the majority of settings are standardized across the board for most, if not all AM3+ UEFI motherboards, any given guide should be similar to the settings used on other boards. I recommend reading and watching several versions prior to making any attempt to overclock so you can get a feel for what's involved and find a guide that works best for you. If you have specific questions, just ask or open a thread, somebody will be glad to help out.)


How To: Overclocking Your AMD Processor

Ultimate Overclocking Guide

How to overclock AMD Processors (Youtube tutorial)

AMD Bulldozer and Piledriver Overclocking Guide

Overclocking FX-8350 To 4.8GHz On Crosshair V Formula-Z





(FOUR CORE MODELS)
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FX-4300​

AMD Product page

Current pricing and availability

Passmark CPU rating

(Reviews)

*Tom's Hardware
*Anandtech
*Guru3D

*Tutorial - Overclocking the FX-4300

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FX-4320​

Discontinued. No AMD product page

(*No current pricing or availability)

(Reviews)

(NO reputable reviews.)

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FX-4350​

AMD Product page

Current pricing and availability
Passmark CPU rating

(Reviews)

*Technic 3D
*Play3r

*Overclocking for the FX-4350 should be similar to the FX-4300 (See above)

(SIX CORE MODELS)
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FX-6300​

AMD Product page

Current pricing and availability

Passmark CPU rating

(Reviews)

*Tom's Hardware
*Anandtech
*Guru3D
*Xbit labs
*Techspot

*Tutorial - Overclocking the FX-6300

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FX-6350​

AMD Product page

Current pricing and availability

Passmark CPU rating

(Reviews)

*Toms Hardware
*Review Studio
*Play3r

Overclocking for the FX-6350 should be similar to the FX-6300 (See above)

(EIGHT CORE MODELS)
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FX-8300​

AMD Product page

Current pricing and availability

(No available Passmark rating)

(Reviews)

(NO reputable reviews.)

*Overclocking for the FX-8300 should be similar to the FX-8320 (See below)

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FX-8310​

AMD Product page

Current pricing and availability

Passmark CPU rating

(Reviews)

(NO reputable reviews.)

*Overclocking for the FX-8310 should be similar to the FX-8320 (See below)

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FX-8320​

AMD Product page

Current pricing and availability
Passmark CPU rating

(Reviews)

*Anandtech
*Guru3D
*Xbit labs
*Overclock.net (USER review)
*Vortez.net (USER review)
*Go! Gaming Giant
*Bit-tech (USER review)

*Tutorial - Overclocking the FX-8320

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FX-8320E​

AMD Product page

Current pricing and availability

Passmark CPU rating

(Reviews)

*Anandtech
*Guru3D
*Overclock3D
*Phoronix (Linux platform)
*Hexus
*Proclockers
*Techspot
*Hardware heaven


*Overclocking for the FX-8320E should be similar to the FX-8320 (See above)

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FX-8350​

AMD Product page

Current pricing and availability

Passmark CPU rating

(Reviews)

*Tom's Hardware
*Anandtech
*Anandtech (Review #2)
*Bit tech
*Xbit labs
*Play3r
*Techspot
*Techradar
*Legitreviews
*WCCF Tech
*Linustechtips (Detailed USER review)
*Phoronix (Linux Platform)
*Kitguru

*Tutorial - Overclocking the FX-8350

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FX-8370​

AMD Product page

Current pricing and availability

Passmark CPU rating

(Reviews)

*Anandtech
*Guru3D
*HiTech Legion
*Overclockers club
*LanOC
*Hot hardware
*Proclockers
*SemiAccurate

*Overclocking for the FX-8370 should be similar to the FX-8350 (See above)

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FX-8370E​

AMD Product page

Current pricing and availability

Passmark CPU rating

(Reviews)

*Tom's Hardware
Anandtechhttp://www.hitechlegion.com/reviews/processors/41733-amd-fx-8370-and-fx-8370e-reviewHiTech Legion
*The tech report
*Guru3D
*LanOC
*Proclockers
*Overclockers club
*eTeknix
*Hexus
*Kitguru
*Hardware heaven
*Phoronix (Linux platform)
*SemiAccurate

*Overclocking for the FX-8370E should be similar to the FX-8350 (See above)

(EIGHT CORE 225w MODELS)
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When it comes to overclocking the following two processors, my advice is, don't!

They're already 225w processors and nearly impossible to keep cool, especially without a very good liquid cooler. Frankly, I strongly suggest going with another FX model if you're in the market, but if you insist on one of these "Heat Misers" get the best liquid cooler you can afford, a 360mm liquid cooler with some very high static pressure, high volume, industrial fans, probably isn't overkill. IMO you can get just as good of performance, if not better, with a lower TDP chip.

(Some of you guys remember Heat Miser from the old Christmas cartoon special, I know you do. If you don't, look up Heat Miser on Wikipedia, you'll find a picture of these two chips next to it. Well, maybe not, but you get the idea.)



FX-9370​

AMD Product page

Current pricing and availability

Passmark CPU rating

(Reviews)

*Xbit labs
*Extreme tech
*LanOC
*Extremespec

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FX-9590​

AMD Product page

Current pricing and availability

Passmark CPU rating

(Reviews)

*Xbit labs
*Extreme tech
*LanOC
*Proclockers

The goal is to provide as much resource material and as many relevant links as possible to provide a centralized "go to" reference for information related to the Piledriver FX chips and offer a landing spot for questions and discussions related to the models included above.

-NOTE-
Under NO circumstances will flame wars, fanboyism, biased opinions or irrelevant comments be tolerated. Mods will appropriately deal with posts meeting that criteria. Posts meeting those criteria will be deleted and the infracting member may face appropriate sanctions. These guidelines apply in addition to the general forum and posting rules. Users are advised not to populate the thread with 'Thanks, that was helpful' posts as even they may get deleted. Relevant, useful posts will always be welcome once the thread is complete.​

 

[Darkbreeze]

This spot reserved for future use.

 

[Epic Sasa]

will AMD processor melt after 1 year with stock cooler

 

[junkeymonkey]

I feel the shame with AMD's fx line is its kinda dated, and if they could of updated there am3+ boards with pci-e 3 and native usb-3 [as with the apu boards ] they would look more desirable over all over the some old same old from 4 years past [opinion]
remember there was to be the 1090 chipsets and it got dropped like a hot potato and been stagnant on the 990 ever since .. if you just got a lower end chip like a 4300 it maybe fine to upgrade to a higher end chip [under the 220w type witch I yet to understand its purpose outside of just being 220w hog/novelty ] to get some more out of things but after that may as well go intel and have a more to the date set up [more opinion]

 

[Darkbreeze]

will AMD processor melt after 1 year with stock cooler

Heh. No. I'm pretty sure it won't melt. Especially since your system tends to shut down at about 100-120°C, and the silicone wafer your processor is composed of won't melt until it reaches about 1414°C. It does present a humorous image though.

In all seriousness, while the stock coolers are often louder, don't tend to last AS long as aftermarket versions and are not suitable for overclocking, they also won't allow your CPU to "melt", or be otherwise incinerated, unless of course something is wrong. The stock cooler is fine for the average user. Enthusiasts, gamers and overclockers will usually want something a little more advanced though.

 

[junkeymonkey]

for what I recall the intel chips get hotter then AMD running sustained full loads but amd has a lower top thermal limit as well . amd can hit around 55-65c [max] where intel can go to 65-80 with ease -heck look at all the is my 46/4790 too hot threads just here at toms. lol, there not called devil's canyon just for fun .. where amd gets hammered is the performance per watt..

 

[Darkbreeze]

It really depends on the chipset, motherboard, cooler used, overclock values (IF any) and case cooling. Some are only "heat meisters" when overclocked, others tend towards higher temps even at stock clocks. And again, the cooling solution has much to do with this as most stock coolers leave a lot to be desired and while a budget case with no more than a single front intake and rear exhaust may be "ok" for some users, temperature management isn't going to be very likeable with minimal case cooling and a stock cooler.

 

[junkeymonkey]

if it was not for the fact there a been there done that deal I'd still use them .. reason I went intel cause I went as far as I felt I could go with am3+ with out going 220w , and another reinvestment for the small gain just could not be justified . amd's apu stuff did not hold interest to me and what I felt were my needs .. a first time builder or a guy who has a lower end chip to be upgraded to a higher end is still in fair shape.. got to hand it to amd for getting the miles out of this platform that it has

when am3+ first came out I started with a asus snaggletooth 990fx rev.1 and a bulldozer 6100 then moved up to 8320

 

[Darkbreeze]

Yep, there's no doubt that Intel vs AMD is like an old black and white movie of somebody getting spanked on down the street with a boot strap. Which by the way is a very interesting yet disturbing image if you think about it. Pretty funny though. But the FX chips definitely have their place for some builds. That much can't be argued until or unless the day comes when the i5 drops in price to comparable levels, which I doubt we'll ever see.

 

[junkeymonkey]

as like I said above if there was a new board with updated features like pci-e 3 and native usb-3 with the new m2 sata and whatever it would give then a little more boost and more appeal ... look at the apu boards why not do this with the am3+ ??? what told me it was stuck in the mud as like I said above is when the 1090 chipset just got dropped and forgot about like the investment was at its end and not to go further , but yet here it is still hanging on

http://www.techpowerup.com/154796/amd-1090fx-and-1070-chipsets-disclosed-no-pci-express-3-0.html

one other thing I ask myself is why did they not try to use the am3+ chips to do some of there apu stuff if it was there so called best desktop chips but went back to Athlon chips for this ?? no 8350 with graphics

 

[Darkbreeze]

I'm not sure you're right about that, aside from the M.2. There are AM3+ boards with both USB 3.0, which may be ASmedia but a lot of LGA 1150 boards use ASmedia controllers and USB as well. And there are some with PCIe 3.0, like this:

http://www.asus.com/Motherboards/SABERTOOTH_990FXGEN3_R20/

 

[Darkbreeze]

And M.2 as well:

http://www.techpowerup.com/201653/asrock-launches-first-socket-am3-motherboard-with-m-2-slot.html

 

[junkeymonkey]

still 3ed party usb 3 intel its native on the chipsets atleast with the z87 I run

ya I keep forgetting about asrocks new releases.. there the same boards but the extreme6 is the one that will do the 220w the fatality don't I believe and as far as m2 that's it the exe6
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&IsNodeId=1&N=100007625 600166242 600540657

the asus deal with the pcie-3 is ''funny'' 3 x PCIe 3.0/2.0 x16 (dual x16 or x16/x8/x8) * and not really supported as true and a gimmick seeing amd don't support that with am3+ by amd specs - ?????

no fx 990 board states pcie-3
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&IsNodeId=1&N=100007625 600166242

 

[junkeymonkey]

this is what I remember on that asus board as well '' I am afraid to say this SABERTOOTH 990FX/GEN3 R2.0 board won't be provided in the US after they are sold out.''

they saw right through that

https://vip.asus.com/forum/view.aspx?board_id=1&model=SABERTOOTH+990FX%2FGEN3+R2.0&id=20130624104830089&page=1&SLanguage=en-us

 

[Darkbreeze]

Considering that some users, especially in other countries, are still using older Athlon and Phenom systems, the AM3+ platform is a considerable step up for them. Like I said, there are places where this platform still makes sense. Considering for the majority of non-gamers that an FX 8 core chip will barely see full use of it's capabilities, it's still relevant for a significant segment of the market.

 

[junkeymonkey]

I may fire up on Linux tomorrow and see if I got a article saved where they interviewed amd head guys and that admitted the am3+ was a mistake or wrong direction , something [ don't hold me to that until I find that link on one of these drives ] I thought I'd save that for a time like this ... took me by surprise when I read that cause of how long its been going for them and still a money maker.

heres what was said

'' Ultimately AMD’s focus on new “growth areas” isn’t the culprit. What has hurt AMD is a big bet on a Bulldozer architecture — in which two CPU integer cores share a floating-point unit and other components — that simply didn’t work out. “Everyone knows that Bulldozer was not the game-changing part when it was introduced three years ago,” then-CEO Rory Read said at a Deutsche Bank event. “We have to live with that for four years [through 2015]. . .” (Read has since been replaced by Lisa Su.) ''

the road map
http://www.extremetech.com/gaming/190026-amd-ceo-just-laid-out-companys-two-year-roadmap

 

[Darkbreeze]

Ok, and just so you understand, this Mega-thread isn't a venue for "this is better than that" or " I don't like this or that", it's simply a place to gather information about the platform so that those who may be looking into moving forward with this CPU on a potential system or possibly already have one but maybe need some additional information on it, can easily find what they're looking for or determine if it's the right hardware for their needs. It's also a place for asking questions related to Piledriver.

We already know Intel boasts better single core and general overall performance, but not everybody's budget is broad enough for inclusion of an i5, i7, Xeon or even an i3 in some cases. Others may simply not like Intel. The reasons are many but the information will be available regardless of why they're interested. Since there are people still rocking the Pentium 4 out there, there is still clearly a need for members to easily find this information.

 

[junkeymonkey]

my 3ed box is rocking a socket A Barton ?? all I stated is toward the AM3+ and where it stands and with the last post how amd feels about it .. in my 15+ years I never considered intel until my AM3+ experience once upgraded to the higher chip its a dead end .. that's all .. could of went with one of them 220w chips but wheres the logic in that ?? as long as the platform been out and covered anything today is just beating a dead horse .. fresh new items is what sparks interest and discussion. what could be covered here that has not for years ?? thing with that roadmap interview is now what has AMD got lurking in the wings ?? can or will they pull that rabbit out of there hat ??

then you say for folks who cant afford .. well there not too concerned about performance ... that's like I want a performance car like a z28 or corvette but I only can go with the 4door family sedan with the 4 banger but just like the old AMD catch phrase ''its good enough''.... it will get me to work , cruse the posted speed limit and when I'm driving it I hear a horn honk and head lights flash when that z28 or corvette passes me by and runs off into the sun set ... maybe I need to upgrade to a 6cyl. or V8 ?? with that now my cost will be right at what the z28 cost's to start with but still stuck in the 4 door sedan ??

 

[Titillating]

Enough, junkeymonkey. Stop instigating and trolling. You've been warned on multiple occasions for various other incidents. Consider this a public warning. Next time, there won't be a warning. Civility is compulsory here, and I am not nearly as tolerant as some of the moderators may be.

Everybody is entitled to their own opinions but that doesn't mean you get to shove it down other people's throats. If you don't think that these CPU's are worth discussing, fine, good for you. The world and this community does not revolve around you though, and the FX-series is still commonly used by many people. If you have nothing positive or constructive to contribute, kindly stay out of the discussion.

 

[MU_Engineer]

as like I said above if there was a new board with updated features like pci-e 3 and native usb-3 with the new m2 sata and whatever it would give then a little more boost and more appeal ... look at the apu boards why not do this with the am3+ ??? what told me it was stuck in the mud as like I said above is when the 1090 chipset just got dropped and forgot about like the investment was at its end and not to go further , but yet here it is still hanging on

http://www.techpowerup.com/154796/amd-1090fx-and-1070-chipsets-disclosed-no-pci-express-3-0.html

AMD is apparently trying to figure out what it wants to do. They saw the stagnation in the desktop market and saw that the growth is in mobile, so they concentrated their limited resources on mobile. The desktop APUs are essentially the laptop chips with a higher TDP budget and a slightly different socket- that's it. Making a new desktop-only chip wasn't in their best interest to keeping the company afloat. Intel, well, they have a market cap equal to a small country's GDP, so sure, they can plow billions into big-die desktop/server-only chips. It's just pocket change to them.

then you say for folks who cant afford .. well there not too concerned about performance ... that's like I want a performance car like a z28 or corvette but I only can go with the 4door family sedan with the 4 banger but just like the old AMD catch phrase ''its good enough''.... it will get me to work , cruse the posted speed limit and when I'm driving it I hear a horn honk and head lights flash when that z28 or corvette passes me by and runs off into the sun set ... maybe I need to upgrade to a 6cyl. or V8 ?? with that now my cost will be right at what the z28 cost's to start with but still stuck in the 4 door sedan ??

Ironically the current Z/28 Camaro is a massively overpriced offering relative to its performance, not unlike some of Intel's high-end chips. The Z/28 is more expensive than a standard Corvette but the 'Vette will eat the Z/28 for lunch. AMD's chips are more like the 2014 5.0 Mustang. Yes, the Z/28 is faster but MUCH more expensive, and the Mustang provides 99% of the fun for less than half of the price. Also Ford didn't take the bailout like GM did, just like AMD isn't a monopoly but Intel is.

 

[Darkbreeze]

And considering the restrictions AMD has had to work within due to their contracted agreements with Intel, related to what foundries could manufacture chips for AMD and exactly what architecture those chips could use, it's not much wonder that AMD has always been behind Intel except maybe in the P4 era, for a short time. Intel throttled AMD to the point where they were almost entirely blue in the face, and then relented after the monopoly findings, mainly because at that point they didn't much care anymore. They were so far ahead in every facet of the business that it no longer really matters to them what AMD does. Barring some performance shattering breakthrough on AMD's part, I don't much see that changing anytime soon either.

No one but a handful of lawyers know what AMD’s x86 license agreement with Intel actually says, but we can extrapolate. Before its anti-trust settlement with Intel in November 2009, AMD operated under heavy restrictions: It could only hire third-party foundries like TSMC or IBM to manufacture a handful of its chips, it had to retain ownership of its fabs, and its x86 license would immediately vaporize if AMD were to be acquired by another company.

The exact terms of the 2009 settlement remain a secret. But it’s generally known that the new agreement relaxed some of the restrictions on AMD. Chimpzilla eventually agreed to cede its stake in GlobalFoundries, and it began using TSMC to manufacture x86 CPUs like Brazos and Kabini. Prior to the settlement, it had no such option. The one restriction that supposedly didn’t change, however, was that AMD is required to remain an independent entity. To the best of my knowledge, if Samsung acquires AMD, AMD’s x86 license is null and void. It’s not clear what would happen to the company’s already-manufactured inventory, or its PS4 and Xbox One designs — though presumably deals would be worked out to ensure that existing hardware could be sold and the rights of Microsoft and Sony to the hardware they paid for would presumably be respected.

Samsung would almost certainly jettison the x86 license and focus AMD on ARM silicon with ultra-mobile Radeon graphics hardware. Whether the combined company would retain any interest in the enthusiast GPU market or in features like heterogeneous system architecture (HSA) is anyone’s guess.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Will be adding motherboard "out of the box" and "with BIOS update" compatibility soon.

 

[atf_mart]

AMD CPU's have never looked better check this bencharmks from Digital Foundry

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZ_5p9wd2dk

$150 vs $240

 

[ZacKxFaiR]

I love AMD it's very cheap and good for overclocking.
Thanks for the guide of overclocking FX 8350

 

[Darkbreeze]

Thanks for saying so.