AMD has unveiled a new six-core desktop processor that is positioned as a great leap forward in performance speed and efficiency over its quad-core offerings.
Phenom II X6, known alternately by the code name Thuban, boasts a performance uptick of 40 percent to 50 percent, offering a clock speed of up to 3.2GHz.
Hardware Central has the story about AMD’s new desktop processor and its accompanying platform for hobbyists.
AMD today announced the availability of a new six-core desktop processor and platform to accompany it, which includes a new chipset and support for hobbyists who like to tweak their processors to the limits of their heat sink and warranty.
The Phenom II X6, codenamed “Thuban,” ranges in clock speed from 2.4GHz to 3.2GHz and has a new feature called Turbo Core that turns off unused cores and gives more clock speed to the few cores in use. Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) offers a similar feature it calls TurboBoost on select processors. In the case of Thuban, AMD said it can offer about 400MHz to 500MHz more per core. So the top-end part can hit 3.6GHz, according to Adam Kozak, platform marketing manager for desktops at AMD (NYSE: AMD).
The Turbo Core technology monitors the power levels of the processor, so it knows when cores are being shut off from disuse. As the cores are “falling asleep,” Turbo Core kicks in, keeping the processor in its existing thermal levels. It does not require a new cooling fan and older motherboards may be able to support it, said Kozak. Those that can support it will need to perform a BIOS upgrade.
