Good to buy an AMD bulldozer Cpu next year?

[KillerBee]

Dear Geeks,
I was thinking of buying a amd bulldozer cpu next year. They look relatively cheaper than intel.But i have heard that amd has
some kind of heating problem. Is it ok buy a AMD CPU? I have a intel currrently.

 

[jaguarskx]

Not sure of any heat issues, but Bulldozer CPUs are definitely power hungry. They offer little performance over the Phenom II CPU series, but I do believe multithreaded programs do run a little faster on a Bulldozer CPU. Gaming performance wise, they are about equal.

What is your current computer's specs?

 

[we1shcake]

what are your current specs, a new cpu may not provide much of an upgrade

 

[rds1220]

I haven't heard of heat problems with bulldozer but power hungry and under performing yea. What is this computer for gaming or work? If it's for gaming I wouldn't bother with the bulldozer. It's not as good as the I5 and it's not really going to be much of an upgrade from the Phenom II.

 

[geekapproved]

The reason the benchmarks show BD score so low, is because Windows 7 doesn't recognize the architecture, therefore can't place the threads in the correct order for best efficiency. This should be better with Windows 8.

The quad BD's seem pretty nice at $100 and 4.6ghz overclock.

Also Piledriver is supposed to arrive after Bulldozer on AM3+.

 

[rds1220]

Yea but it's said that there will only be a 20% increase in performance with the Bulldozer when paired with Windows 8. That's better than the benchmarks now but it's still not great, it's still not going to beat out the I5/I7. I also doubt it's going to beat out the new Ivy Bridges CPU's.

 

[jaguarskx]

Yea but it's said that there will only be a 20% increase in performance with the Bulldozer when paired with Windows 8. That's better than the benchmarks now but it's still not great, it's still not going to beat out the I5/I7. I also doubt it's going to beat out the new Ivy Bridges CPU's.

Actually, if Piledriver can manage a 20% increase in processing power, it should more or less match Sandy Bridge CPU performance. A 20% increase would be phenomenal, but it is doubtful. The last estimate I've seen was a 10% increase over Bulldozer. If Piledriver can actually achieve a 20% increase, then that basically means their CPUs' performance would advance by two generations to catch up with Intel.

In a 20% performance increase scenario, PileDriver will only be an estimated 6% behind Ivy Bridge CPUs. The estimated performance increase for Ivy Bridge over Sandy Bridge ranges between 6% - 10%. I say 6% is more likely since the architecture is already mature and Intel should have been devoting most of it's efforts and resources into Haswell's performance.

 

[rds1220]

Actually, if Piledriver can manage a 20% increase in processing power, it should more or less match Sandy Bridge CPU performance. A 20% increase would be phenomenal, but it is doubtful. The last estimate I've seen was a 10% increase over Bulldozer. If Piledriver can actually achieve a 20% increase, then that basically means their CPUs' performance would advance by two generations to catch up with Intel.

In a 20% performance increase scenario, PileDriver will only be an estimated 6% behind Ivy Bridge CPUs. The estimated performance increase for Ivy Bridge over Sandy Bridge ranges between 6% - 10%. I say 6% is more likely since the architecture is already mature and Intel should have been devoting most of it's efforts and resources into Haswell's performance.

I doubt they're going to jump two generations that fast.

 

[iam2thecrowe]

have you not read that the AMD bulldozer processors are slower than the Phenom II range core for core and a LOT slower than intels processors core for core? A Quad core intel I7 2600k is faster overall than an 8 core AMD bulldozer CPU.

 

[rds1220]

Yes I know that is what I'm trying to say. In the end its still not going to be that great even with that slightly better performace.

 

[gmaster456]

The only real flops in the BD line is the 4 core (still not that bad, especially after it gets an inevitable price drop) and the 8 core models. The 6100 still has some value imo. It matches the 1156 i5's and roughly matches the i7 920, and the 95w TDP isn't THAT bad for a six core, granted its single threaded performance is still abysmal.

 

[iam2thecrowe]

The only real flops in the BD line is the 4 core (still not that bad, especially after it gets an inevitable price drop) and the 8 core models. The 6100 still has some value imo. It matches the 1156 i5's and roughly matches the i7 920, and the 95w TDP isn't THAT bad for a six core, granted its single threaded performance is still abysmal.

or you could just get the faster, more efficient phenom x6 for the same price. ALL bulldozer models are not worth considering for any reason bar getting an OC record.

 

[rds1220]

Yea crow is right you would be better off just getting the Phenom II. The Bulldozer can't even compete with the older PhenomII.

 

[enzo matrix]

It depends on what you are doing. The 8-core FX-8150 is the best processor... for an EXTREMELY limited amount of tasks. Even well-threaded tasks fall short on this new 8-core compared to AMD's previous 6-core processor.

I was rather disappointed. With all the hype, I really didn't expect a very unoptimized-for-desktop server processor to be released. 16 cores at 2-2.5GHz fall into a very nice power envelope and provide more throughput than 12 2-2.3GHz older-gen processors. However, the processors could not scale high enough in clockspeed for the desktop without becoming the new "pentium 4"

So, if you are running very specific tasks and need the best performance for a specific price, do the research on all the architectures and how well they run for your task.

However, if you are gaming, get either a Phenom IIx4 or a core i5 2500K, according to your pricepoint.

If you are doing video encoding, research the program you are using. You will most likely choose a Phenom IIx6 or a core i5 2500K (I am assuming you hope for ~<300$ pricepoint)

"I have a intel currently"
Way to be specific. Please be more specific. Also tell us your specific uses for the computer and your pricepoint. That way, we can help you choose a good CPU for you.

 

[KillerBee]

Well, i have a pentium 4 right now, so any processor upgrade would be huge for me

 

[KillerBee]

anything in 100 dollars to 150 dollars would be good

 

[we1shcake]

athlon/phenom x4 is a great proc and falls into your price range, will need a mobo aswell though and ram

 

[gmaster456]

anything in 100 dollars to 150 dollars would be good

For that price range I'd either get an i3 2100 or a Phenom ll X4 955

 

[jaguarskx]

I doubt they're going to jump two generations that fast.

Yep. I don't know of any CPU that achieved anything close to a 20% increase in processing power within a single generation.

 

[KillerBee]

Best answer selected by KillerBee.