Woohoo! Thoroughbred Is Here!

[Guest Max Cowgill]

:-jumpy It's June 10th folks, and you know what that means: Throroughbred is official! AMD has announced the Throroughbred core Athlon XP CPU today (specifically the 2200+ model). The Tbred core brings a die shrink and some core design-optimization (rearranged layout w/L2 cache being moved and fewer transistors used) to the Athlon XP line of CPUs. For more info on the Tbred, visit amdmb.com, amdzone.com, hothardware.com, tech-report.com, or athlonxp.com. Other major hardware sites are sure to follow with reviews very shortly. Max Cowgill

[Guest]

whats the speed of the CPU?:-yellow1

[Guest Max Cowgill]

>whats the speed of the CPU? >:-yellow1 An XP 2200+ rating translates to 1.8GHz actual clock speed.Max Cowgill

[Guest]

Hey Max,Just so we don't steer people in the wrong direction on this one, lets make sure we give the most important information. I hope you don't mind me stepping in here and clarifying a bit...The TBred, while a nice improvement that hedges the future because of its die shrink, is no faster than existing Athlon XP's - its die is *not* changed as far as improvements, and thus its speed, clock for clock, is exactly the same. You won't be buying one of these to run your system faster (other than the obvious small increases in stock MHz as all Athlon's progress). As a matter of fact, I've long been trying to get people to put off their purchases until this fall - one of the reasons is because the TBred is not worth an upgrade from an existing Athlon system. Worse, because of its smaller die without a heat spreader (unlike the upcomming Hammer line and the existing P4's), you won't even be able to overclock it much higher than an existing Athlon XP.Barton, the next Athlon XP improvement, is right around the corner (three to four months). Now the Barton *is* a processor to wait for: it'll be the first Athlon to include 512MB of secondary cache at full processor speed (the original Athlon in Slot-A form had 512MB of on-board but external L2 cache, so its speed was always lower than the processor speed by a third or even two thirds depending on clock). This in itself will make the Barton a great chip to upgrade to - if you don't want to wait for the Hammer to come down in price (possibly up to a year).So, to reiterate, if you're thinking of buying a new Athlon system, don't place much stock on the TBred in making the decision. If you're going to buy anyway, of course go for the TBred. But if you can wait for the Barton die Athlon XP, by all means do so. You'll be much happier with your purchase.Recommended system to buy this fall:Athlon XP with Barton die (2500+ or higher at 2.0+ real GHz) (Available in 3-4 months)VIA KT400 based motherboard with AGP 8x, USB 2.0, FireWire, Serial ATA and thermal die protection (just becoming available)PC3200 (DDR400) memory at CAS2 (available today) Video card based on one of the new chips this fall at 8x AGP (just becoming available)Take care,http://members.rogers.com/eelvish/elrondlogo.gifhttp://members.rogers.com/eelvish/flyurl.gif

[Guest Max Cowgill]

>Hey Max, >>Just so we don't steer people in the wrong direction on this >one, lets make sure we give the most important information. >I hope you don't mind me stepping in here and clarifying a >bit... N/P Elrond, I was only posting news, not recommending anyone buy an AXP TBred or implying that it's faster than the previous Palomino core. BTW, I agree with your assessment of the Tbred, except to say that the Tbred was a necessary step for AMD in the journey towards Hammer. Despite the lack of architectural improvements, I will probably be purchasing a Tbred within the next couple months as soon as good o/c steppings start showing up ;) Then I'll have to get a Barton in another couple months and a Claw/Sledgehammer in another couple months. It never ends, does it? Max Cowgill

[Guest]

"It never ends, does it?"It sure doesn't. Of course, thats why we're so addicted too. I don't think I'd like to build my career around a slow moving industry - like vacuum cleaners or toilet bowls! :-lol(Disclaimer: I have *nothing* against you vacuum cleaner and toilet bowl salesmen and manufacturers! I promise!):-) http://members.rogers.com/eelvish/elrondlogo.gifhttp://members.rogers.com/eelvish/flyurl.gif

[Guest PaulL01]

Hi Elrond,>PC3200 (DDR400) memory at CAS2 (available today) Can you steer me towrards the CAS2 PC3200? all I can find is the CAS2.5 stuff.Paul

[John_Tavendale 453]

First review. Doesn't sound too impressivehttp://www.lostcircuits.com/cpu/xp_2200/

[Guest]

Hi Paul,Sure. You must have missed it, as I posted it to your thread the other day:http://ftp.avsim.com/dcforum/DCForumID8/5135.htmlAnd the direct link:http://www.ncix.com/usa/productdetail.php?...00238b497c20b2bI've been off work for the past week and will probably be so for half this week as well, so I haven't had time to get one of these modules in yet (it looks like NCIX and I share some of the same suppliers as their stock usually reflects what I can get, and close to the same end-user price). So, I haven't personally verify it runs at CL2 just yet - but that is its rating.Take care,http://members.rogers.com/eelvish/elrondlogo.gifhttp://members.rogers.com/eelvish/flyurl.gif

[Guest PaulL01]

>Hi Paul, >>Sure. You must have missed it, as I posted it to your >thread the other day: >>http://ftp.avsim.com/dcforum/DCForumID8/5135.html >>And the direct link: >>http://www.ncix.com/usa/productdetail.php?...00238b497c20b2b >>I've been off work for the past week and will probably be so >for half this week as well, so I haven't had time to get one >of these modules in yet (it looks like NCIX and I share some >of the same suppliers as their stock usually reflects what I >can get, and close to the same end-user price). So, I >haven't personally verify it runs at CL2 just yet - but that >is its rating. Elrond,I am familiar with that memory, it is rated by Corsair as CAS2.5 and under testing it cannot achieve anywhere near 200Mhz at CAS2. It is CAS2 up to 166Mhz but as recommended by Corsair must be timed at 2.5 -3 -3 t2 to run 200Mhz. Vey slick way of advertizing:"CMX512-3200 CAS2"! Yeah Right! Since Corsairs naming convention correlates directly to the DDR's Bandwidth/speed (3200=3200mb/s) That site is very misleading. Specs:http://www.corsairmemory.com/main/products/specs/CMX512-3200.pdfPaul

[Guest]

Hi Paul,You're thinking of the older 32x8 memory. These new boards (CMX512A, not the older CMX512) just came out a week and a half ago. These new boards have the higher density 32x64 layout (and both sets are Samsung chiped... Well, the first was so I'm assuming the second is since Samsung is one of the few producing DDR400 spec at the moment).I haven't checked Corsair's site for the updated PDF on the new boards... Maybe you can track them down. They are, however, CAS2 rated as given by my supplier. But again, I haven't ordered in any of these new boards since I've been off with the back problems. I'll be doing so if I get back to work this week.Take care, http://members.rogers.com/eelvish/elrondlogo.gifhttp://members.rogers.com/eelvish/flyurl.gif

[Guest PaulL01]

Thanks Elrond, Yes the old "mystery chips" once again! :-lolVery enteresting, It would be nice if Corsair updated their site!Their "Extreme" site says: "JUST RELEASED!XMS3000 CAS-2 and XMS3200 CAS-2.5 512MB DIMMs. The ultimate RAM for the enthusiast!I guess they have to get rid of the old before they start selling the new.Take care,Paul