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AMD is kicking off 2010 by introducing new low-power versions of some its most popular processors and bumping up the speed of a select few Phenom II and Athlon II CPUs. Today PCSTATS is looking at the 3.2GHz AMD Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition processor.
80% Rating: 
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AMD Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition |
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AMD is
kicking off 2010 by introducing new low-power versions of
some its most popular processors and bumping up the speed of a select few
Phenom II and Athlon II CPUs. Today PCSTATS is looking at the 3.2GHz AMD Phenom
II X2 555 Black Edition processor, which amongst other things has the distinction of
being AMD's fastest socket AM3 dual-core processor ever.
The Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition is based on the
PII X2 550 BE, AMD's first dual-core Phenom II chip.
The Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition uses the 'Callisto' core architecture, which
is nothing more than a code name for the quad-core "Deneb" design with two cores
disabled. The two active cores have full access to 6MB of L3 cache, as well as
512KB of L2 cache per core, for a total of 1MB. The Phenom II X2 555 Black
Edition has also received an extra 100MHz core clockspeed boost, bringing it up
to 3.2GHz.
Fast dual core processors are ideal for
general-purpose computing. The majority of desktop applications still don't make
full use of more than two cores at a time, and processors with extra cores often
can't reach the same high clockspeeds that a dual-core processor is capable of.
Gamers especially have a lot to be happy about, dual-core processors still have
the best price-to-performance ratios when it comes to intesive gaming.
Performance enthusiasts who want even more core clockspeed
will be doubly happy with the AMD
Phenom II X2 555 Black
Edition, since it has limitless overclocking potential. AMD's "Black Edition"
processors have an unlocked multiplier, and this chip in particular uses AMD's latest revision
C3 silicon, which could make for even greater overclocking potential. The Phenom
II X2 555 Black Edition also enjoys a relatively low 80W TDP, so there should be
a fair amount of headroom for this chip to go beyond its 3.2GHz native
clockspeed.
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AMD Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition Processor |
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| Tech
Specs |
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Phenom II X2 555 Black
Edition
Clock: 3.2 GHz
L1: 2x 128KB
L2: 2x
512KB
L3: 6MB
Multiplier: 16x
Package:
938-pin
Socket: AM3 (AM2+)
organic mPGA
Core: 45nm
SOI
Transistor: 758M
Power: 80W
Vcore:
0.875-1.40V
Cost: $99 USD |
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AMDs Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition supports full
hardware virtualization, allowing a single core to run a simulated Windows XP
environment inside of Windows 7. The revision C3 silicon also adds support for
hardware C1E states, which means the processor can dynamically disable cores to
cut down idle power draw. We'll be taking a look at the Phenom II X2 555 Black
Edition's power draw a little later on in this review.
Like all of AMD's socket AM3
processors, the Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition is compatible with socket AM3
motherboards and socket AM2+ processors as well. This is thanks to both DDR2 and
DDR3 memory controllers being integrated on the processor itself. The Phenom II
X2 555 Black Edition can run DDR2 memory at speeds up to 1066MHz, and DDR3
memory at speeds up to 1333MHz. That translates into 37.3GB/s bandwidth for
DDR3-based systems and 33.1GB/s bandwidth for legacy DDR2 platforms. The
processor's HyperTransport 3.0 link continues to operates at 4.0GHz, and its
on-board 128-bit wide memory controller runs at 2GHz, the same as its
predecessor.
The Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition is compatible with both
socket AM2+ and socket AM3 motherboards, and will support AMD's forthcoming 880G and
890G chipsets.
 The physical specifications of the Phenom II X2 555
Black Edition are the same as that of the AMD
Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition, which shares the same architectural base.
Both processors have 758 million transistors packed into a 258mm2
die, a feat possible thanks to AMD's 45nm die shrink. AMD's suggested retail price for the Phenom II X2
555 processor is $99 USD ($105 CDN, £62 GBP), which means most of its
competition comes from AMD's own processors, like the $125 AMD Athlon II X4 635.
The new Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition takes over where the
previous 550 model left off. Both processors have the same $99 price point, so
really what you're seeing here is a free speed bump. Having a $99 processor with
6MB of L3 cache and an unlocked multiplier isn't too shabby either!
Core-by-Core CPU Power Draw
Tests
CPU power draw (expressed
in Watts) can be easily measured by way of total system power if you have a
simple electrical power meter. To determine how much juice the CPU is consuming,
we only need to compare power draw with the processor resting at idle, and with
each core at 100% CPU utilization. For an accurate measurement it's necessary to
disable power saving features and CPU clock speed throttling technologies like
Cool 'n' Quiet, EIST (speedstep) and C1E power states, etc. To stress each core
in the processor individually, PCSTATS uses a free program called Stress Prime SP2004).
Stress Prime SP2004 is a multi-threaded
application so several iterations can be run concurrently to escalate load on
each CPU-core to 100%utilization (designated CPU-0, CPU-1, CPU-2, etc. using the
'Small FFTs - stress CPU' test). The power draw for the entire PC system is
measured with an Extech Power Analyzer Datalogger (model 380803). The Extech
Power Analyzer is located between the main 120AC supply and the PC's power
supply. An inexpensive device like the P3 Kill-A-Watt power meter will do the
trick too. Given that motherboards vary across these test systems this is not a
pure measure of CPU power draw alone, but rather a measurement of the total
computer system power draw, which we can compare for each specific platforms
between the CPU idle and CPU stressed states.
| Total System Idle Power
Draw |
| Processor |
Total System Power Draw |
| Intel Pentium 4
540 |
   150 Watts |
| Intel Pentium D
840 |
165 Watts |
| Intel Pentium D
940 |
168 Watts |
| Intel Core 2
Duo E6600 |
117 Watts |
| Intel Core 2
Duo E6750 |
123 Watts |
| Intel Core 2
Duo E8400 |
131 Watts |
| Intel Core i5
750 |
124 Watts |
| Intel Core i7
920 |
144 Watts |
| AMD Sempron
3600+ |
   120 Watts |
| AMD Athlon64
4000+ |
163 Watts |
| AMD Athlon64
FX-60 |
127 Watts |
| AMD Athlon64 X2
4800+ |
143 Watts |
| AMD Athlon64 X2
5000+ |
156 Watts |
| AMD Athlon64
FX-62 |
168 Watts |
| AMD Athlon II
X2 240e |
122 Watts |
| AMD Athlon II
X2 250 |
128 Watts |
| AMD Athlon II
X3 435 |
128 Watts |
| AMD Athlon II
X4 620 |
130 Watts |
| AMD Athlon II X4 635 |
127 Watts |
| AMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition |
145 Watts |
 AMD Phenom II X2 555 Black
Edition |
   143 Watts |
| AMD Phenom II
X3 720 |
155 Watts |
| AMD Phenom II X4 910e |
131 Watts |
| AMD Phenom II
X4 955 |
148 Watts |
| AMD Phenom II
X4 965 - 125W TDP |
150 Watts |
| AMD Phenom II X4 965 - 140TDP |
154 Watts |
The dual-core 3.2GHz AMD Phenom II X2
555 draws about the same amount of power as the Intel Core i7 920, which has
four cores capable of eight threads. A little disappointing, but AMD has always
had problems matching Intel's power draw numbers.
| Total System Stressed
Power Draw - All Cores/Threads |
| Processor |
Total System Power Draw (All Cores) |
| Intel Pentium 4
540 |
223 Watts |
| Intel Pentium D
840 (2 Core ) |
240 Watts |
| Intel Pentium D
940 (2 Core Load) |
253 Watts |
| Intel Core 2
Duo E6600 (2 Core Load) |
156 Watts |
| Intel Core 2
Duo E6750 (2 Core Load) |
163 Watts |
| Intel Core 2
Duo E8400 (2 Core Load) |
158 Watts |
| Intel Core i5
750 (4 Core Load) |
169 Watts |
| Intel Core i7
920 (8 Thread Load) |
213 Watts |
| AMD Sempron
3600+ |
148 Watts |
| AMD Athlon64
4000+ |
172 Watts |
| AMD Athlon64
FX-60 (2 Core Load) |
196 Watts |
| AMD Athlon64 X2
4800+ (2 Core Load) |
173 Watts |
| AMD Athlon64 X2
5000+ (2 Core Load) |
207 Watts |
| AMD Athlon64
FX-62 (2 Core Load) |
235 Watts |
| AMD Athlon II
X2 240e (2 Core Load) |
153 Watts |
| AMD Athlon II
X2 250 (2 Core Load) |
163 Watts |
| AMD Athlon II
X3 435 (3 Core Load) |
183 Watts |
| AMD Athlon II
X4 620 (4 Core Load) |
195 Watts |
| AMD Athlon II X4 635 (4 Core Load) |
211Watts |
| AMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition (4 Core
Load) |
181 Watts |
| AMD Phenom II X2 555 Black
Edition (1 Core Load) |
168 Watts |
| AMD Phenom II X2 555 Black
Edition (2 Core Load) |
187 Watts |
| AMD Phenom II X3 720 (3 Core Load) |
213 Watts |
| AMD Phenom II X4 910e (4 Core Load) |
176 Watts |
| AMD Phenom II
X4 955 (4 Core Load) |
236 Watts |
AMD Phenom II X4 965 - 125W TDP
(4 Core Load) |
243 Watts |
AMD Phenom II
X4 965 - 140W TDP
(4 Core Load) |
264 Watts |
Under full load the 3.2GHz Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition system draws 187
Watts. Now, let's see just how fast this revision C3 silicon will go, overclocking is next!
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