AMD Phenom II 940 "Xtremely" Benchmarked

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I like that it gives an X3 8750 comparison too. Tom's only includes Phenom quads. Still not sure if I should get a 920 or not....

...once I have my new Acer 20.5" 1920 x 1080 LCD, I think I just won't be able to resist. My wife wants a better CPU than the X2 4600+, so she can have my motherboard and GPU. I'll get a 790GX board.

The thing is this; will a 3870x2 be enough or should I just go 4870 1 gig?

They'll take my tech upgrades from me when they pry it from my cold dead fingers as I die at 89 attempting my first quantum computer build. :lol:



Didn't Tom's use DDR2 800? Does that make any difference over DDR2 1066? In other words, can I just get 2 more sticks of DDR2 800 and not worry about upgrading the RAM if I go 940?

Edited to add: Cancel the AM2+ upgrade. I'll stick with the 8750. I want a Phenom II, but I want the 880G chipset:

From Tom's:
AMD plans to introduce the 880G chipset along with the AM3 version of the Phenom II processor. In addition to support for DDR3 RAM, this chipset will include a few other new functions as well. The northbridge will be equipped with a Radeon 4000-class graphics chip and be granted control over its own video RAM. This chipset also adds support for DirectX 10.1 and the UVD2.0 unified video decoder, which in turn provide hardware support for MPEG2, H.264, and VC1 processing.

That chipset with a 4xxx series IGP is just too good to miss. I'll hold off on upgrading until I can snag one of those, even if DDR3 is more expensive. Even with a good discrete GPU, I prefer having the best IGP as a backup and for more monitors when I can afford it and benefit from it.


 

Yeah DDR2 1066 does give a few percent better performance (about 3%) than DDR2 800 however many AM2+ motherboards only permit 2 sticks of DDR 1066 in dual channel whereas you can use all 4 sticks of DDR 800 and have them running.I went with 8 gigs of RAM DDR2-800 myself as I preferred having more RAM.
I agree about the 880G motherboards with the 4xxx IGP's.For the first time those 880G motherboards will probably have pretty decent gaming capabilities.
 
This should be a nice war started...its sad that amd finally finally can completly outperform the q6600..gotta give intel credit...that is one hell of a chip...

anyywho...this looks promising...idk if i get grab it now or wait for the am3s...!! SO TORN!!
 
Don't worry Yips. by that time DDR3 will fall in price again since Intel has had it out for over a year. Its already at decent prices. Not as cheap as DDR2 but once DDR3 becomes more standardized it will fall in price and then DDR2 will be the more expensive one as it becomes more rare just like with DDR.

And I am sure a IGP with a 4K series would rule. But no matter what they do I could never pull myself from an awesome discrete GPU. No reason. Of all the PCs I have built none have ever had a IGP. Intel or AMD/nVidia. Just can't do it.

My only problem with PhII outperforming the Q6600 is just that. It shouldn't have taken a 45nm die shrink + core improvements to do that. But then again something just went wrong with Phenom I so maybe I will cut them a little slack since they seem to be trying finally.
 


But the thing is people will still buy ddr3 at and inflated price because it goes with Intel....especially now its out with the "uber" processor the i core 7.

I cant see another rambus situation again... DDR3 seems to be making a good stand.. but in most cases the difference from ddr2 to ddr3 of 0.01 fps wont make a difference...I certainly wasnt impressed from the change from ddr to ddr2...

 


Oh I don't rely on the IGP either, except when I have to. My 3870x2 had to be RMA'd and I relied upon the HD3200 in LOTRO: MoM. I can say that I was impressed. It didn't do so well when I tested it with Oblivion, but I'd stopped playing that last year anyways.

I always like having a good IGP as a backup and I'm hoping that AMD will implement power saving such that the IGP takes over when not gaming. One thing Nvidia did right is that all their boards have IGP's, and power saving mode.



I could have made the same arguments vis a vis Conroe, that it took Intel too long to match Athlon X2 performance. Just consider Phenom 1 to be AMD's Pentium D. It's not that bad, but it's not that good either.



Okay, that explains why they used DDR2 800. I'll just get another two sticks for this board and not worry about DDR2 1066.



Yes, but I want 880G even more. I have a jones for basically ATI chipsets and graphics cards.



I'm waiting for AM3 only because I want the 880G chipset, plus I want that monitor and Blu-ray drive. I'm tired of gaming on a 17" CRT.

Here's Anandtech's review: they mention rumors of Intel price cuts at the end of January, but for now they recommend AMD over Intel at the Phenom II price points:

http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=3492
 


Bottom of the barrel? they are all the same chip all three models, do your homework....
 



Go on treat your self to a 920.... It is actually a great bit of silicon..

Intel must be working on a better igp solution not including LRB... Its still a long way off yet...

Core 2 Duo broke the mold in being a new chip from intel that actually made a performance difference when it was released compared to the previous new releases from Intel...

Ok in games I core is not that significant yet.. In Apps it is and dont forget it needs to have proper compiled apps for it to do well... Games will really start to kick in when i7 goes 8 core...

And then give your mrs the 8750 you currently have....


hence...

AMD4WIFE :) sorry yipsl, you knew it was comming...
 


That was funny! If there's a forum award for humorous digs you should win it.

It would be more appropriate if I was pawning off the old triple cripple on her while building a Yorkfield quad.

Believe it or not, I was tempted to build her a Q6600 just so I couldn't be accused of being an AMD fanboy. I could make comparisons on Saturday night when she's asleep and doesn't have a clue that I'm messing with her system. She's good with graphics programs, but very clueless with hardware and she's paranoid every time I upgrade because she's afraid Windows will freak out or something.

She's had a stable X2 system for a few years. I should check and see if ASUS actually has a bios for the 690G board that supports a P2 920. Doubtful, but possible. I know that it's not worth putting a 9600 in it.

This issue just came to mind. What if one buys a DDR2 only Phenom 2 and down the line their motherboard dies on them? Their only choices years hence might be one of the bargain bin motherboard makers.

If one waits for the AM3 Phenom 2's, then they not only have more choices of clockspeeds and cores, but if their motherboard dies down the line, they can find a replacement much more easily.

After all, they will work in DDR2 boards, but the opposite can't be said of the first two released today.
 
True yipsl, but so far I've found that my CPUs and motherboards have lasted quite a while to the point where I want to upgrade both. My original nForce4 SLI board is still going strong and is only getting retired to nongaming this weekend after four years and two processors (and three sets of ram, and three different GPUs, etc.)
 


I doubt it. AMD does not have official support for it. In theorry it would work tho... but I'm not an early adopter... gonna wait until somebody tries it out successfully on a 690G... or until I find the cash to buy one =P.
 


Hadn't checked the support page for my wife's ASUS M3A78-EMH HDMI since last summer. I'm happy to find out that it supports the 8750 with bios 2101. That means I can just transfer the 8750.

My GA-MA78GM-S2H supports both DDR2 Phenom II's with bios F6. Looks like I'll hold off on 880G till next year and just transfer the triple cripple and go for a 920 myself.



 



Bah,,, you talked you self initially into a I-Core 7 and within almost the same sentence your going to get a Phenom 2..

I really hope Phenom 2 is a success, but i know Intel will not let it... You know it as well..

AMD are $5 billion in debt, still losing money and cant afford another harsh winter...

AMD - well done for Phenom 2 - shame about the intel copying numbers,,, next they will introduce a pin less lga design... The chips getting there but not there all the way yet.... should be called phenom plus to be honest..

Stick with ddr2 as it still has some life and its cheaper..
 


I think I'm gonna upgrade to an AM2+ 880G with my trusty BE-2400. That way when everyone is sick of the Phenom II...
 


I've always acknowledged that i7 will be better than Phenom II, and that Phenom II would compete against EOL Kentsfield and lower cost Yorkies. I never almost talked myself into an i7 because it's out of my price range.

My system now fits close enough to Anandtech's $835 build for AMD. I didn't go E7300 because I don't like Intel and Nvidia chipsets, and I like having a good IGP as a backup or to troubleshoot with the GPU removed. Only AMD and Nvidia make good IGP's these days. Intel makes dreck IGP's.

I need to keep 3 PC's upgraded. If I only needed to keep 1 then i7 would be an option.

Plus, I still like pins on my CPU's and prefer the ease of AMD stock heatsinks. :kaola:



Debt means bupkis in the long term. Most companies are in debt and just reorganize. Intel can't let AMD go under due to regulatory issues, unless they want to offer an x86 license to Nvidia. There has to be competition but Intel doesn't have to let the competitor thrive.

When AMD begins to thrive, it will be because of ATI, fusion and bulldozer. Phenom II is what Phenom should have been, and it's a nice improvement but they've lost market share already. Still have the best GPU's though and, IMHO, the best chipsets.

ATI has kept up their side of the bargain, now it's AMD's turn.



I thought 880G was AM3. Will 880G support DDR2? Wouldn't that be a mutant motherboard manufacturer option, sort of like the boards that have two slots for two memory types, the kind that PC Chips and ECS put out?

Your best bet is a Gigabyte 780G with sideport memory or a 790GX. That way, you can use your current CPU and upgrade to a cheaper Phenom II later.
 


Well up untill amds 780 etc, Nvidia was the only choice...

I really never liked nvidia chipsets that much, nforce 4 ran very very hot... buggy etc

nforce 680i had a buggy sata controller which had to have a bios flash... although mines running ok now...


I havent tried the latest nvidia series but if im gonna build a AMD system it will have a AMD/ATI Chipset..

Still today Intel make the best chipsets ( not integrated graphics mind ) but alas there is no AMD socket Intel chipset mobo..
 
Intel makes the most trouble-free chipsets... then AMD... then VIA... then maybe SIS...

I have always had bad experiences with Nvidia chipsets...

That's why I like AMD... a balance between performance and stability.
 
^Intels chipsets are also the best performance for their chips. Every review I see shows their performance and overclockability to be betetr than the nVidia chipsets.

Maybe Intel will have a deal with ATI again and we will see some good ATI IGP mobos for them. But chances of that are pretty low if Intel plans on their SoC with Larrabee GPUs in the future.

Of course we have to wait and see what Larrabee is capable of before we can say they are any good but you never know, right?

BTW, new season of Scrubs thus far is awesome.
 


Ello Jimmy, long time no talk...

whats happend to the previous AMD fanboy.... his name escaped me but his motto was factboy...

sorry i forgot his name... its old age creeping on..

oh well, the worlds in financial meltdown, loads are being made redundant day in day out and I cant even get the latest series of Scrubs because in in old Blighty.......

I'm looking forward to the 4th series of heroes when it comes out... its only fantasy we got left now as the reallity is crap.... thank god virtual reallity stopped . imagine a financial meltdown in computer world...no gold to spend...
 

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