ATI Radeon HD5790

We recently announced the ATI Radeon™ HD 5970, the fastest graphics card on the planet¹. It’s been an exciting few months with our launch of the first DirectX 11 capable graphics cards, still the only cards in the world to support gaming over three monitors enabled with ATI Eyefinity Technology. This time around, we’re spicing up ultrahigh-end PC gaming with a massive jump in raw performance.

It has really been a huge privilege to be the product manager for the ATI Radeon HD 5970 since we get to work with some of the best hardware and software engineers in the industry and everyone’s been enthusiastically working around the clock to get this product out to you guys. One of the unique facets of this project was that we weren’t necessarily designing towards a strict product definition, but instead had the freedom to go a little wild in overdesigning and over-engineering this board to create something that can overclock like crazy.² Why did we do this? Let me give you a little glimpse of this monster in the making…

When we were first designing the ATI Radeon HD 5970, we came to a crossroads surrounding the board’s power consumption. We had two major options available to us. On one hand, we could cap ourselves at 300W and stay within the PCI Express specification. In doing so, we would stay compatible with the majority of the high-end power supplies in the market with 6-pin and 8-pin power connectors. On the other hand, we had the potential to fill a 400W power budget with performance, so we were considering using two 8-pin connectors and pushing this thing to its limits.

Ultimately, we went with a hybrid approach. We decided to appeal to the broader market and use a 6-pin + 8-pin power connector, but use the components from the 400W board design. We squeezed as much performance as we could out of the 300W, and left all the rest of the headroom as overclocking potential for you guys. It’s kind of like our Black Edition CPUs, where the premium chips are picked and shipped with unlocked multipliers so that you guys can overclock the @#$* out of them.

To give you an idea of some of the stuff that we’ve purposely over-engineered, here’s a few examples of some of the components we added purely for overclocking:

• The GPUs themselves were picked with three main criteria in mind:
  • 1600 stream processors for full performance
  • High-speed-capable for extra overclocking headroom
  • Low leakage for better power characteristics
• Digital Volterra Regulators that are capable of delivering far more current than the board draws at default settings
• Japanese 47 μF pure ceramic capacitors for ultra-clean power delivery to the GPUs
• High-speed 5.0 Gbps-rated GDDR5
• Massive vapor-chamber capable of pulling up to 400W worth of heat away from the GPUs
• External discrete SMSC fan controller to monitor multiple temperatures and optimize fan performance and acoustics

We’ve built all of this headroom into the board itself, and we’re also doing some special stuff in the software as well. The bar in the ATI Overdrive™ utility goes higher than ever before, and we’re working with some of our AIB partners on software that will unlock even more overclocking potential through voltage tweaking applications.

Note: AMD’s product warranty does not cover damages caused by overclocking, even when overclocking is enabled via AMD Software.  As well, unlike previous generations of ATI Radeon graphics cards, the overclocking potential of the ATI Radeon HD 5970 graphics card has been left uncapped. You control the amount of overclocking to which you subject your card. Please use discretion and caution when overclocking.

^{1. As of November 18, 2009, the ATI Radeon™ HD 5790 scores X12011.1 in 3DMark Vantage Extreme preset, which is the highest recorded single-card score.  System configuration: Intel Core i7 965 processor @ 3.33GHz, Gigabyte EX58-UD5 motherboard, Corsair XMS 6GB memory (3x2GB) at 1600MHz (8-8-8-24 timings), Windows 7 RTM x64, ATI Radeon™ HD 5970 1GB GDDR5, Drivers: ATI Catalyst™ 9.10  Beta (8.663.1) / NVIDIA ForceWare 191.07WHQL}

Devon Nekechuk is a Product Manager at AMD. His postings are his own opinions and may not represent AMD’s positions, strategies or opinions. Links to third party sites are provided for convenience and unless explicitly stated, AMD is not responsible for the contents of such linked sites and no endorsement is implied.

What do you get when you cross extreme engineering with extreme overclockability?

You get an AMD TWKR CPU.

**WARNING: Extreme overclocking is an activity that should be carried out only by experts, using expert tools in a safe and secure environment. Use of extreme cooling methods and materials, including but not limited to liquid nitrogen, can be extremely hazardous.  Extreme overclocking is not for everyone – AMD urges caution and disclaims all liability for any damages, of any type or character (including without limitation, system damage, loss of data or personal injury) caused as a result of or while engaged in engaging in extreme overclocking activities.

AMD’s product warranty does not cover damages caused by overclocking, even when enabled via AMD software. 

As they say, DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME! 

Matt Davis aka @dattymavis

@dattymavis and I ventured over to AMD’s “AREA 64″ with a newly minted AMD TWKR CPU to give it a testdrive under some extreme Ln2, and what ensued was pure overclocking awesomeness!

First, let me introduce to you the AMD TWKR:

AMD created a small number of limited edition AMD Phenom^TM II TWKR Black Edition processors expressly for the purpose of commemorating the record performance feats with the AMD platform technology codenamed “Dragon” and AMD Phenom^TM II processors. These processors are designed to reach the utmost performance barriers of the AMD Phenom II processor and operate beyond the specifications of typical production level processors.

Called the AMD Phenom^TM II X4 42 Black Edition TWKR processor, it is not currently for sale, and not covered by AMD’s product warranty. This processor is provided “as is” and AMD disclaims any and all liable for any damages, of any type or character (including without limitation, system damage, loss of data or personal injury), caused as a result of or in connection with the use of this processor. 

These processors demonstrate the sound engineering and superior process technology that is in each AMD Phenom II processor.

With our TWKR in hand and a solid warning from our buildings management staff, we headed across Austin to AMD’s Secret Lab – AREA 64.

The lab is fully stocked with all the hardware an overclocker could ever imagine or dream of, shopping made easy! Did I mention the 9,000 gallon Liquid Nitrogen tank outside with direct piping into the AREA 64 lab, yup, doesn’t get much better than that!

The motherboard of choice was a Gigabyte 790X.

4G of Corsair memory,

An ATI Radeon^TM HD 4870 X2 GPU.

And a TWKR CPU.

Hmmm, why is it not posting???

After 20 minutes of no posting at all, we finally realized that the DIMMS had been previously whacked and were no good… Step 1: Always make sure you have working hardware!

Once we had working hardware, we fired it up and started the “slow pour” of Ln2.

The steps we followed are detailed in this blog.

Ln2 engaged! First thermos of Ln2 got us to -120C, time for thermos #2.  The second pour brought us down to -139C!  Time for more!

The third thermos of Ln2 brought our TWKR part down to -186.6C – Ah, overclocking bliss!

At this point in time, I let @dattymavis take over as he is the obvious safer one between the two of us…

@dattymavis jokingly dons full protective gear and looks like something out of an alien movie…

Now time to see what this badboy can do!  We pushed the proc to a single core overclock of 6.42Ghz at a voltage of 1.725volts.  This was accomplished just having Windows at idle.  We will leave it up to the professional overclockers to push the proc’s with a heavy workload.

As for a 4-core OC, we achieved 6.2Ghz at 1.8 volts.  Again, this was at a temp of -182F with a light workload.

All in all, we achieved significant frequency for a couple of hacks with unlimited Ln2.

The TWKR is not currently for sale, but is designed to make a statement to the OC community: Thank you to each and every enthusiast who continues to support AMD and fights the good fight!

Ah, the sweat smell of Ln2…

If I’m lucky, I may be able to give away some of the TWKR processors via Twitter in the coming weeks.  I’m not making any promises, but follow me if you are on Twitter and you just might be lucky enough to become a proud owner of a TWKR yourself someday.

Also follow @AMDDesktop…they have some goodies for the community too!

Cheers!

Ian “Cabrtosr” McNaughton

Ian McNaughton is senior manager of advanced marketing at AMD. His postings are his own opinions and may not represent AMD’s positions, strategies or opinions. Links to third party sites are provided for convenience and unless explicitly stated, AMD is not responsible for the contents of such linked sites and no endorsement is implied.

The mainstream CPU market is awfully crowded these days, a full line-up of model numbers from AMD and a further full line-up of confusing model numbers from Intel.  Is the C2D E8600 better than a C2Q 8200, what about an i7920, is a 920 better or worse than a X4955?  Is it about frequency, cores, memory channels or controllers, DDR2 or DDR3??? #$%^&*()_#$%^&* WHICH CPU SHOULD I BUY?

This blog hopes to help answer that question.

At AMD we have tried to make things very simple – we started with graphics and moved that model numbering system into CPUs. The bigger the number, the more performance you will get! Simple. Clean. Easy.

On June 2, 2009 we launched the newest addition to our mainstream CPU line-up, the AMD Phenom^TM II X2 550 Black Edition and the AMD Athlon^TM II X2 250 processors.

The press release reads as such:

“AMD Athlon^TM II processor delivers new native dual-core architecture, efficient 45nm technology and 3 GHz performance at an affordable price –
AMD Phenom^TM II X2 Black Edition processor combines value and unlocked potential for gamers and tuners on a budget”

Very well stated I must say!  This sums up the benefit of each processor and now I will endeavor to take it one step further.

When a shiny new toy, like a quad core CPU, enters the market people tend to mentally move on and forget about past products, like the once dominant dual core. Historically, enthusiasts are the first to clamor for the latest and greatest, often regardless of cost.  But let’s keep this ‘bleeding edge’ in perspective, currently only a small proportion of shipping CPU’s are quad core, the rest are made up of triple-, dual- and single-core processors. Usage and computing continue to evolve to take advantage of multicore processors but dual core processors still have a big piece of the pie.

Let’s bring this all back to the two little gems we launched on June 2.  The AMD Phenom^TM II X2 550 Black Edition is the single fastest dual-core client CPU we have ever engineered and brought to market. Incredibly, you can buy it at Newegg today for only $102.00 with free shipping.

That is just short of astounding! And this processor is built off the same die as the acclaimed AMD Phenom^TM II quad-core processors.

The AMD Athlon^TM II X2 250 is another product we launched on June 2, 2009 in Taipei; it’s simply an incredible little performance monster.  Currently priced at $87.00 on Newegg with free shipping, this processor is born from its own die, meaning its half the size of its sibling mentioned above and does not share the same wafer.

How does that impact you, the consumer? Lower cost, lower power consumption.

This processor has a maximum design spec of 65W; average daily use can often fall well below even that..

Both processors feature the AM3 socket, which means they’re compatible with AM3 motherboards using DDR3 memory, OR they can be dropped into an AM2+ motherboard with DDR2 memory (which can further help reduce your overall system price).

Which one should you buy?

Well, here is my quick swag at generalizing which processor I think you should buy:

Like with any recommendation, take it with a grain of salt, it all comes down to your budget and expected longevity of your system.

It’s always tough for a corporate spinner like me to write about our own products.  I try not to prop AMD products unless I have used them or I am extremely passionate and knowledgeable about them, in this case, I am all three: A user of an AMD Phenom II X4 550 processor in my system at home, absolutely passionate about the tremendous value these parts offer a consumer and a bit of an expert as I was part of the product management team who helped birth these products to see the light of day on our roadmaps.

It’s confusing to know what to purchase, I can honestly say, I don’t think you can go wrong with choosing either of these processors.  But as always in my blogs, please, don’t take my word for it, check out what the reviewers have been saying:

“With the Athlon II X2 250 and the Phenom II X2 550 AMD has released two very competitive dual-core parts. They both perform and overclock well and are easily competitive with Intel’s Pentium E6300…I’ve really got no complaints here. AMD has done very well in both the pricing and execution of its first 45nm dual-core products.”

- Anand Shimpi, AnandTech

“Zipping along at 3.0GHz, the Athlon II X2 250 will take its place as the fastest Athlon processor in AMD’s lineup. Other vitals include a 45nm manufacturing processor, 65W TDP, and an AM3 package allowing it to support both DDR2 and DDR3 memory. Perhaps best of all, the new chip is being priced at a budget-friendly $87.”

- Paul Lilly, Maximum PC

Lost Circuit’s Michael Schuette on the AMD Athlon II X2 250, “Overall, well done, AMD, this little gem might be poised to capture even more market share.”

“If you are looking for great performing processors at an even greater price, you would be a fool not to consider the Phenom II X2 550 BE or the Athlon II X2 250. Their price to performance ratio is unmatched, and will not leave you hanging.”

- Alan Matson, Overclockers Club

Cheers!

Ian “Cabrtosr” McNaughton

Ian McNaughton is senior manager of advanced marketing at AMD. His postings are his own opinions and may not represent AMD’s positions, strategies or opinions. Links to third party sites are provided for convenience and unless explicitly stated, AMD is not responsible for the contents of such linked sites and no endorsement is implied.

Does your PC have overclock potential?  Our new AMD Phenom^TM II processors certainly do, and to showcase this I ventured over to our super secret lab buried deep inside the bowels of our Austin campus to prove the point!

Picture long hallways of unmarked doors, the hum of machinery, people milling about eyeing you up and down, wondering who you are and why you’re there.  Now imagine a dream job for an enthusiast, one where you have almost limitless access to silicon, hardware and time to hone your craft. This is the life of Pete Hardman, one of AMD’s in-house overclocking gurus!

Pete comes into work every day, passes through the “MI6″ type security barriers, enters his lab and proceeds to break records the world may never ever know about (at least that’s what he tells us)! All in a day’s work I say!

You may have seen some of the insane things we’ve done with Dragon platform technology and liquid helium, both at CES and with our friends in Finland. But for this blog we’re going to keep it simple and break down a ‘tried and true’ method for getting more performance out of your AMD Phenom II processor.

Check out his classy nameplate

Pete's work desk – a little unorthodox to say the least

Pete and I took the new AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition processor and walked it through a proper overclocking methodology using AMD OverDrive^TM software*.  Here are the steps we went through in detail:

Overclocking 101

Step 1 – Figure out your goals, small increase or one shot big gain? Power efficiency, is it important? Going for a full system max overclcok? Find the limits?

Step 2 – Procure the right hardware and software.

Our test system:

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition quad-core processor

ASUS M4879T Deluxe DDR3 Motherboard 

4G Corsair DDR3 Memory

ATI Radeon^TM HD4870 X2 GPU

Thermalrite Ultra 120 Extreme “TRUE”

2 – 120mm high volume fans

Software add-ons:

AMD OverDrive software

Maxon Cinebench benchmark R10

3DMark® 05 benchmark

CPU-Z

Step 3 – Prep system – thermal paste the CPU, mount your air cooling solution as per guidelines.  Keep the thermal paste to a nice thin amount; this will be beneficial once the heatsink is applied and pressure is added.

Step 4 – Power on system and boot to the OS – Install AMD OverDrive software*

Step 5 – Change frequency; make small incremental changes to the systems multiplier.

Once you have made your frequency multiplier changes, run a benchmark like Cinebench or 3DMark® to check for stability.  Adjust frequency using stock voltage first before increasing voltage.

Step 6 – Increase multiplier and redo step 5 until the benchmark does not complete.

Step 7 – Once you have established the ‘ceiling’ in terms of frequency at stock voltage, do a cold reset/reboot.

Step 8 – Now increase voltage; this should also be done incrementally. You need to know how the voltage scales with frequency. As you increase voltage, frequency should increase, but there is a limit where too much voltage will start to reduce frequency; this is the “Sweet Spot” – find it!

Step 9 – Make a small 50mv increase, now retry the benchmark at the same frequency you previously failed at.

Step 10 – Continue to increase frequency at the new voltage until you find a fail case (meaning your computer hangs or blue screens).

Step 11 – Once you have a fail case at the new frequency, increase the voltage another 50mv and redo Step 10

Step 12 – Once you have established a threshold on voltage and frequency, we now move to the Northbridge and we make those changes via BIOS

Step 13 – Restart and enter BIOS

Step 14 – Click on CPU/NB Frequency and make an increase; we went from 2G to 2.4G which is a large jump and ended up at 2.8Ghz.

Step 15 – Continue to make incremental increases until you have a fail.

Step 16 – Take the results from steps 5, 8 and 12 and put them all together into a total system overclock. CPU cores, Voltage and North Bridge frequency all overclocked to establish a high performing PC experience

Overclocking can be a lot of fun; I personally like to do a moderate overclock and leave my system at that performance level.  Pete, on the other hand, is pushing the boundaries of silicon every day.  Chances are you are wondering what frequency we ended at, well, the results may vary, and what Pete and I achieved may not be representative of what everyone can do.  With that caveat clearly stated, our final frequency was 4.2G on air without overclocking the memory.  Not bad considering we did not spend a lot of time tweaking, we simply followed the steps above that delivered a good 1 Ghz OC.

*And remember kids, AMD’s product warranty does not cover damage caused by overclocking, even when enabled via AMD OverDrive^TM software.

Ian “Cabrtosr” McNaughton

Ian McNaughton is senior manager of advanced marketing at AMD. His postings are his own opinions and may not represent AMD’s positions, strategies or opinions. Links to third party sites are provided for convenience and unless explicitly stated, AMD is not responsible for the contents of such linked sites and no endorsement is implied.