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The
CPU:::...
The
FX57 continues the Socket939 herritage thus cheaper motherboards
and no need for registered memory.
I
dare say most of you are not interested but for those who
are, the part number breaks down like this:
ADA
= AMD Athlon 64 Desktop processor
FX57 = FX57 (no way!)
D = 939 Pin Organic micro-PGA
A = v.vvV (Operating Voltage)
A = ccC (Case Temp)
5 = 1MB L2 cache
BN = Part Definition
CPUID
sees the FX57 like this:
FSB
No More:
I
covered this in our X2 review but let's again tackle the
subject of AMD's Front Side Bus, or rather their lack of
it. When it comes to overclocking the Athlon64, you may
occasionally here us refer to the base frequency as the
FSB. AMD are quite keen to point out however that the term
isn't actually an accurate one when it comes to the way
their architecture works.
Here's
the rub. When FSB was genuinely FSB, data was sent specifically
along this bus based on the frequency it was running at.
AMD however have replaced this style of data bus with bi-directional
full-duplex (send and receive at same time) 2GHz HyperTransport
Link. Memory calls meanwhile are now handled directly on
the CPU core, therefor even here we can't correctly use
the term Front Side Bus. It should instead be the "CPU
to Memory Controller frequency".
So
what happens when we overclock? Well, what AMD would like
us to say is that we've increased the speed of the clock
generator, which of course is precisely what has been done.
The fact that this clock frequency is used as a basis for
the frequency off all the other components doesn't qualify
it as a front side bus because no data whatsoever is transferred
along it directly, therefor it's not technically a bus at
all, it's a base frequency.
I,
like many other reviewers will no doubt succumb to habit
and refer to the "base frequency" as "FSB"
from time to time. The fact is, it's no such thing.
Test
System:::...
Testing
was carried out on the very nice A8N-SLI Deluxe from ASUS
ASUS
A8N-SLI Deluxe
- Supports
AMD Socket 939 Athlon 64FX/Athlon 64
- NVIDIA
nForce4 SLI
- PCI
Express Architecture
- SATA
3Gb/s
- Dual
RAID
- Dual
Gigabit LAN & AI NET2
- NV
Firewall
- AI
NOS™ Inject "nitrous oxide" into your
CPU! The patented AI NOS™ (Non-delay Overclocking
System) technology intelligently detects system load and
automatically boosts performance for the most demanding
tasks. Unlike other dynamic overclocking techniques, AI
NOS™ reacts much faster to satisfy your unending
need for speeds.
- AI
Audio (8-channel Audio)
Crucial
Radeon X850 XT
Graphics
was handled by the extremely capable Crucial
Radeon X850 XT PCI Express 256MB.
- Powered
by RADEON™ X850 XT Series VPU, driven by 16-pipe
rendering architecture
- Full
support for DirectX® 9.0 and the latest OpenGL®
functionality 256-bit DDR memory interface, featuring
HYPER Z™ HD bandwidth-conserving technology
- 256MB
GDDR3 memory
- 400MHz
RAMDAC
- Native
x16 lane PCI Express support
- VGA
connector, TV-out connector
All,
tests were performed using WindowsXP with service pack 2
installed. Graphics drivers were ATi's CATALYST 5.5 set
for optimal performance.
All
64 bit tests were performed using XP Professional x64 Edition
retail version. Graphics drivers were ATi's CATALYST 5.6
Windows XP Professional x64 Edition.
Memory
consisted of 2x512MB of Corsair XMS 3200Pro running at 2-2-2-5.
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