Dx12: is it the best friend that AMD has?
About a month ago Anandtech ran some extensive 3dMarkv1.5 API Overhead benchmarks. They tested both dGPU and integrated APU's and IGP.
http://bit.ly/1GCjLzU
Here is an interesting fact.
Using DX11 as a baseline to compare the performance delta the following was undertood.
Intel i7 4960 and GTX980 can produce 2.2MILLION draw calls running DX11.
i7-4960 has 6 cores and 12 threads.
Intel i7-4960 = $1200
nVidia GTX-980 = $540
Total = $1740
Of course DX11 is the API that all benchmarks have been running up until now.
However when you run 3dMark API Overhead test using DX12 something interesting happens.
AMD's A6-7400 APU can produce 4.4 million draw calls.
AMD A6-7400 costs $90-150 depending upon outlet.
A6-7400k has 2 cores. Hmmmmm..... 2 cores vs 6 cores? $100 vs $1200?
Of course when you run the same benchmark on A6 using DX11 API the Draw Call Overhead drops to 513,000. When compared to the Intel/nVidia system costing $1700 the justifcation becomes clear. You spend the money for 2.2 million draw calls or a 4x performance increase over a $100 cpu!!!
Seriously? $1700 just for a 400% peformance increase over a $100 APU?
Mantle and DX12 has changed the game.
Last year the media was comparatively benching very expensive dGPU silicon just gain a few percentage points for a score that NOW can be achieved with a $100 AMD APU. Not ONLY achieved but can gain a 100% increase in performance over the more expensive system.
Still think DX12 will have no impact?
Intel and nVidia has been ripping off the consumer using DX11 when a much better API; Mantle and now DX12 makes low priced and low performing $100 APU's OUTPERFORM the "BEST ON THE MARKET".
Now that XBOX will be adopting DX12 the gain in performance will be far better than ANY combination of Intel CPU and nVidia GPU you can put together and currently running DX11.
In otherwords.....
...if you are happy and satisfied with the performance of your current DX11 $2000 gaming system then you should be ecstatic to achieve 2x the performance with a $400 DX12 AMD gaming system.
How does this relate to how AMD can save itelf?
1. AMD needs to change the way the media benchmarks it's silicon. Now the media bench's Radeon against nVidia on an Intel platform.
Well if I am going to spend $1500 on a new DX12 dGPU card the I want to know EXACTLY what CPU is best for my investment.
In fact if Tom's hardware can't tell me as a consumer the best SYSTEM suing BOTH Intel AMD mainboards then they should just dry up and blow away.
Two proprietary design features of GCN give AMD Radeon APU''s and dGPU a considerble performance advantage: Asynchronous Shader Pipeline and and Asynchronous Compute Engines. Unlike Intel CPU's AMD CPU's can execute graphics instruction on ALL CPU cores.
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