Dual Core Stress Test: AMD vs. Intel

Tuesday, June 14 Update

Tuesday, June 14 2005: A new day with several events. Intel, which had examined the motherboards (D955XBK) from our test, contacted us in the morning. According to the company, the boards are running flawlessly in its labs. Intel sent a technician to the THG lab in the afternoon to get detailed information about the motherboard problems we experienced a week ago. After a few test runs, the cause of the failures was found: The boards simply do not work with every DDR2 memory, which allowed Intel to at least partially reproduce the events. Especially some of our DDR2 modules - some of which are review samples - do not work with Intel's D955X motherboard.

For our tests, we reset our counters to zero once again to enable further examinations. Let's also review our performance results from previous days. In the file compression tests, the AMD system leads with 6435 created archives compared to 4906 archives for the Intel system. AMD also leads in our FarCry race. Intel however leads the MP3 encoding competition: It finished 894 Michael Jackson CDs, while the AMD unit counts 837 CDs. We also saw a significant advantage for the Intel system for the DivX encoding of the James Bond movie. Intel leads with 3950 minutes, AMD clearly trails with just 300 minutes.

A summary of results for systems is shown in the charts below.

As announced previously, we will examine the unequal load balancing of the AMD system within DivX encoding activities. We have restarted both systems and shut down Hyperthreading in the Intel system - resulting in only two physical CPU units, matching the AMD system. Perhaps we will get an answer why the AMD system allocates a low priority to Divx encoding. Perhaps this effect is caused by the operating system and re-scheduling events as a result of different core and application numbers.

There is yet another change of the configuration of the Intel system. Since the Asus board did not allow a deactivation of Hyperthreading, we are using another Intel board (D955BK). Unfortunately, this board does not grant access to data of fan speeds and supply voltages. As a result, these data will not be listed in the charts.

So as our tests continue and as we gain more experience with the dual core systems, here is what we will be doing in the coming days. First, we will put a full load on both systems using one application for several hours. This will allow us to see which platform does especially well in certain applications such as gaming, audio and video encoding and file compression. We will follow this with a series of tests that will run four applications simultaneously. This time, DivX will be run with higher priority.

Thanks for your continued interest and all your emails and comments.

Latest in CPUs
Ryzen 5 9600X
AMD Ryzen 5 9600X hits all-time low price
Core Ultra 200S CPU
An Arrow Lake refresh may still be in the cards with only K and KF models, claims leaker
Tech Deals
Our alternate pick for the best gaming CPU is $190 cheaper than the 9800X3D right now - pick up the AMD Ryzen 7 9700X for just $289
ASRock fixes AM5 motherboard by cleaning it
ASRock claims to fix 'burned out' AM5 motherboard by cleaning the socket
Ryzen AI
AMD's Gorgon Point APU line-up breaks cover — Allegedly aiming for a 2026 launch
Nvidia Blackwell Ultra B300
The week in chip news: Nvidia's GTC 2025 blitz, new NVMe HDDs and watercooled SSD, Intel's restructuring begins
Latest in Features
Free Alternatives to Photoshop
Five Best Photoshop Alternatives Tested: Image Editing for Free
Awekeys Antiques Metal keycaps
Awekeys Antiques Metal keycaps are Viking-themed luxury for your fingertips
The Gigabyte X870E AORUS ELITE WIFI7
Get the most out of your processor with this motherboard's Turbo Mode
AMD RDNA 4 and Radeon RX 9000-series GPUs
AMD RDNA 4 and Radeon RX 9000-series GPUs start at $549: Specifications, release date, pricing, and more revealed
MSI Prestige GPU
Tested: Intel's Arrow Lake 140T iGPU mostly maintains an edge over AMD's older 880m
MechBoards Hyper7 R4
I’m typing this on the world’s largest keyboard, a 178-key beast designed to make you more productive