Phenom II X6 1090T
Unlocked Phenom IIs are far less novel—AMD has been doing this for years.
No doubt, the excitement over seeing Intel follow suit stems from the company’s advanced manufacturing technology, which facilitates the massive scalability we got out of the Core i5-655K.
AMD’s 45 nm process is no slouch, though. The company was able to introduce a six-core processor at the same 125W TDP as previous quad-core models. According to AMD, this is a result of adding low-k dielectric material in the metal layers to reduce capacitance. Low-leakage parts mean less heat—and that’s good for overclocking on air (the high-end guys actually prefer high-leakage parts, since they overclock more aggressively, and dissipating heat using LN2 isn’t really a challenge).

I struggled to get the hexa-core 1090T stable at 4.3 GHz with Turbo CORE enabled. Then it was 4.2 or even 4.1 GHz. At each setting, general instability kept us from finishing testing (and heat wasn’t even the issue, despite voltages of up to 1.525V). At the end of the day, the X6 1090T was dialed in at 4 GHz with a voltage of 1.475V. The screenshot below was snapped before we started scaling back voltage at 4 GHz to minimize power use.
I won't be surprised if this chip doesn't make it to my next processor review, though. It was definitely ridden hard and put away wet.
Phenom II X4 965
Available under $200, the quad-core Phenom II X4 965 makes a good contender for the Core i5-655K (though it’s worth noting you can get a six-core Phenom II X6 1055T for less, as well; we simply haven’t purchased any yet).

Our 125W sample proved just as stubborn above 4 GHz as the Phenom II X6 1090T, despite our oversized cooler, 1.5V+ CPU VID, and 1.25V NB VID. Prime95 simply wouldn’t let this chip dig in at 4.2 or 4.1 GHz. Nevertheless, we were happy to settle down to a 1.4625V setting while retaining stability at 4 GHz.
And with that, all four of our test subjects were running at 4 GHz or higher and ready for a dash through the gauntlet.
- So Many Ways To Exceed 4 GHz
- Intel: 4.8 GHz On Air? Sure!
- AMD: Two CPUs At 4 GHz
- Test Setup And Benchmarks
- Benchmark Results: Synthetics
- Benchmark Results: Media And Transcoding
- Benchmark Results: Productivity
- Benchmark Results: Crysis
- Benchmark Results: Just Cause 2
- Benchmark Results: Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
- Benchmark Results: DiRT 2
- Power Consumption
- Conclusion
On Xtremesystems.org, I just read about a guy reaching 4.644GHz on air with his i7 930. Granted, he has a great chip, but by no means is a unlocked multiplier needed for high overclocks.
If I were to build a new PC, the 1090T/1055T would be very complelling.
1099'd for $1499? I hate how contest prizes all have full MSRP on everything. Even if you win it end up costing you $500+ in taxes.
The only good thing here is that these chips will probably ship with heat sinks that don't suck and a good price drop for the i7 870. Otherwise, who cares, FSB stability on decent P55 boards has not been a problem. What the socket really needs from Intel is a better chip-set, not easier overclockers.
1099'd for $1499? I hate how contest prizes all have full MSRP on everything. Even if you win it end up costing you $500+ in taxes.
Also, as a side note, I do have a problem with the benchmarks and more accurately with the conclusion you extracted from them. Who in their right mind would buy a processor, overclock it, and then do iTunes all day ... I mean come on, there's more to life then music ripping. What I'm saying is that the benchmark section SHOULD be remade entirely. Same old tests, that I could anticipate the outcome of every time, isn't a very compelling way to make a point. I do appreciate the game section though, at least i saw a new title.
Don't get me wrong but I was getting bored with the tiny world of ARM and Tegra and on the other side of the spectrum the hexacores and dual Xeons were far and away for my budget.
On Xtremesystems.org, I just read about a guy reaching 4.644GHz on air with his i7 930. Granted, he has a great chip, but by no means is a unlocked multiplier needed for high overclocks.
If I were to build a new PC, the 1090T/1055T would be very complelling.
For only 200bucks I got my 1055t to 4Ghz!!
1.445v 32c Idle, ~53c Load
My ~$1000 rig...maybe a little more.
1055t AMD Phenom II X6 @ 4Ghz (287*14) w/turbo OFF!!
gotta turn of to get max oc!)
4Gb G.Skill DDR3 2000Mhz (Tom's Best ot the Best sku#
ASUS PRO 890GX USB 3/Sata II
XFX ATI RADEON 5770 1 Gb DDR5
60Gb Vertex Sata II SSD
2x WD Caviar Black 640Gb
CoolerMaster 212 Plus
NXZT Lexa Case with 5*120mm w/fan controller
Corsair TX650w PSU
Extras
Klipsch THX 2.1
Samsung 46' 1080p HDMI HDTV
HP 23' 1080p HDMI EYEFINITY 3x MONITORS
Samsung 1440*900 DVI
MS Natural Keyboard
Logitech invisible optical wirless mouse
320Gb Ext Backup Segate USB 2.0
Either way
Throw some suggestions out there! I'm always watching the comments for feedback
These are going to hit after Computex. This was really supposed to be a preview
lol the bulldozer will kill the intel line finally maybe