Dual Core Stress Test: AMD vs. Intel

Components Under Pressure: Athlon 64 X2 4800+ And Pentium 840 EE

We are running the fastest AMD and Intel processors the two vendors could offer, which will soon be available in stores. The AMD system runs on the Athlon 64 X2 4800+, comprising two FX-53 cores (each with 2.4 GHz and 1 MB L2 cache), manufactured in Dresden using a 90-nanometer process. The processor now offers expanded commands, supporting SS3 in addition to SSE and SSE2. This addition should be noticeable with applications using video encoding.

Entering the ring as the rival contender is the Intel Pentium 840 EE, running on two Pentium 4 540 cores . These are both clocked at 3.2 GHz and furnished with 1 MB L2 cache. Just looking at the clock speed suggests that Intel's dual core processor offers greater performance. But even Intel has stopped talking about clock speed and now uses code designations. What we have here in the end are two dual-processor systems that do not require two separate sockets on the motherboard.