Platform And Benchmark Configuration
| Test System Configuration | |
|---|---|
| CPU | AMD FX-8150 (Bulldozer): 3.60 GHz, 2 MB L2 Cache Per Module, 8 MB Shared L3 Cache, Socket AM3+ |
| CPU Cooler | Sunbeamtech Core-Contact Freezer w/Zalman ZM-STG1 Paste |
| Motherboard | Asus Sabertooth 990FX, BIOS 1304 (07/20/2012) |
| RAM | Kingston KHX1600C9D3K2/8GX: 8 GB DDR3-1600 CAS 9-9-9-27 |
| Graphics | AMD Radeon HD 6950 2 GB: 800 MHz GPU, GDDR5-5000 |
| Hard Drive | Samsung 470 Series MZ5PA256HMDR, 256 GB SSD |
| Sound | Integrated HD Audio |
| Network | Integrated Gigabit Networking |
| Power | Seasonic X760 SS-760KM: ATX12V v2.3, EPS12V, 80 PLUS Gold |
| Software | |
| OS | Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate x64 SP1, Windows 8 RTM |
| Graphics | AMD Catalyst 12.8 |
| Chipset | AMD Platform Driver 3.0.825.0 |
We tested Windows 7 in two ways: first with Windows Update patches applied through August 2012, and then after adding Microsoft's hotfixes released shortly after Bulldozer's introduction. Those patches have to be installed manually, so our combination of configurations should demonstrate whether any automatic updates affect performance.
Carried over from our previous exploration of post-patch performance, Asus’ award-winning Sabertooth 990FX gets yet another firmware upgrade before participating in today’s tests.
We're throwing our full content creation and productivity benchmark suites, plus a few games, into testing the FX-8150. Heavily-threaded applications should demonstrate fairly similar performance between all three Windows configurations, since full utilization doesn't leave much room to improve scheduling. Programs that use fewer than eight threads are expected to enjoy the biggest boost from Microsoft's optimizations.
| Benchmark Configuration | |
|---|---|
| 3D Games | |
| Battlefield 3 | Campaign Mode, "Going Hunting" 90-second Fraps Test Set 1: Medium Quality Defaults (No AA, 4x AF) Test Set 2: Ultra Quality Defaults (4x AA, 16x AF) |
| DiRT Showdown | V1.0.0.0, In-Game Benchmark Test Set 1: Medium Quality Preset, No AA Test Set 2: Ultra Quality Preset, 8x AA |
| Skyrim | Update 1.5.26, Celedon Aethirborn Level 6, 25-seconds Fraps Test Set 1: DX11, Medium Details Defaults Test Set 2: DX11, Ultra-High Details Defaults |
| Adoby Creative Suite | |
| Adobe Photoshop CS6 (64-bit) | Version 13 x64: Filter 15.7 MB TIF Image: Radial Blur, Shape Blur, Median, Polar Coordinates |
| Adobe After Effects CS 6 | Version: CS5.5: Tom's Hardware Workload, SD project with three picture-in-picture streams, source video at 720p, Render Multiple Frames Simultaneously |
| Adobe Premiere Pro CS 5.5 | Video length 2 m 21s, Export to H.264 Blu-ray Source 960x720, Output 1280x720 |
| Adobe Acrobat X Professional | V10.0.0, PDF Creation from PowerPoint 2010 Presentation (3.6 MB) |
| Audio/Video Encoding | |
| iTunes | Version 10.4.1.10 x64: Audio CD (Terminator II SE), 53 minutes, default AAC format |
| Lame MP3 | Version 3.98.3: Audio CD "Terminator II SE", 53 min, convert WAV to MP3 audio format, Command: -b 160 --nores (160 Kb/s) |
| HandBrake CLI | Version: 0.9.8, Video: Video from Canon EOS 7D (1920x1080, 25 frames) 1 Minutes 22 Seconds, Audio: PCM-S16, 48 000 Hz, Two-Channel, to Video: AVC1 Audio: AAC (High Profile) |
| MainConcept Reference | Version: 2.2.0.5440: MPEG-2 to H.264, MainConcept H.264/AVC Codec, 28 sec HDTV 1920x1080 (MPEG-2), Audio: MPEG-2 (44.1 kHz, Two-Channel, 16-Bit, 224 Kb/s), Codec: H.264 Pro, Mode: PAL 50i (25 FPS), Profile: H.264 BD HDMV |
| Productivity | |
| Blender | Version: 2.62: Syntax blender -b thg.blend -f 1, Resolution: 1920x1080, Anti-Aliasing: 8x, Render: THG.blend frame 1, Cycles renderer and internal tile renderer (9x9) |
| Visual Studio 2010 | Compile Chrome project (1/31/2012) with devenv.com /build Release |
| Autodesk 3ds Max 2012 | V14.1.0.328 x64: Space Flyby Mentalray, Frame 248, 1440x1080 |
| WinZip | Version 16.5 Pro: THG-Workload (1.30 GB) to ZIP, command line switches "-a -ez -p -r" |
| WinRAR | Version 4.20.0.0: THG-Workload (1.30 GB) to RAR, command line switches "winrar a -r -m3" |
| 7-Zip | Version 9.28: THG-Workload (1.30 GB) to .7z, command line switches "a -t7z -r -m0=LZMA2 -mx=5" |
| ABBYY FineReader | Version 10.0.102.82: Read PDF save to Doc, Source: Political Economy (J. Broadhurst 1842) 111 Pages |
