Dual-Core Opteron Revision "F" on 15 / Aug

[Splash]

AMD is set to launch dual-core Opteron revision "F" on 15/Aug, with improvements in multicore processing, virtualisation and system-level performance per watt, compared to current Opteron chips...


http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/0/4EDE9D4B2509C2B3CC2571BF007D2B57?OpenDocument

 

[Clocker]

How are these different than the X2 chips?

 

[ddrueding]

Bigger cache, different socket, and now, apparently faster and more efficient.

 

[P5-133XL]

You forgot more $$$

 

[Mercutio]

Lower Total Cost of Ownership presumably makes up for that.

 

[Splash]

Opteranium Revision "F" dual-core is the same as what you have now with a dual-core Opteron (as in Rev. "E1" ~ "E6"), except better thermal and VM performance, and DDR2 memory (like Athlon64 X2 Socket AM2).

 

[ddrueding]

Will it be a socket AM2 chip? That would be neat.

 

[Clocker]

Oh..no Socket 939. Nevermind. :-(

 

[Splash]

Will it be a socket AM2 chip? That would be neat.

The 940-pin socket for dual-processing or multi-processing Opteron is not at all compatible for anything called Athlon and vice versa.

939-pin socket for Opteron solo processo is not at all compatible for anything called Athlon and vice versa.

 

[Splash]

939-pin socket for Opteron solo processo is not at all compatible for anything called Athlon and vice versa.

Hold on. Scratch that last part. You can certainly plug a 939-pin Opteron and a 939-pin Athlon into the same mobo.

 

[ddrueding]

Hold on. Scratch that last part. You can certainly plug a 939-pin Opteron and a 939-pin Athlon into the same mobo.

Yup. Been doing that for quite a while. That's why I was hopefull for the AM2 compatability. Considering the talk of 4x4; we know multi-proccessor support is there.

 

[LiamC]

Socket F for the new Opterons is 1207 pins.

 

[Splash]

1207 pins for the future: DDR-2 channels, quad cores, extra pins for new protocols (Pacifica technology), etc.

 

[Splash]

Yup. Been doing that for quite a while. That's why I was hopefull for the AM2 compatability. Considering the talk of 4x4; we know multi-proccessor support is there.

Speaking of AMD 4x4, I never did get a chance to review what the hell this was precisely about. I got stuck on a work assignment for a while.

 

[sechs]

Will socket F be able to support FB-DIMMs?

 

[P5-133XL]

Will socket F be able to support FB-DIMMs?

Not originally, they are going the DDR2 route: the same as the X2's.

 

[Gilbo]

4x4 is an attempt by AMD to deal with Intel on the highend now that Conroe is out. Since their architecture scales much more easily to multiple sockets they're saying they're going to release consumer 2-socket systems that use regular (not registered DDR2), in motherboards that aren't crazy expensive. It's much cheaper for motherboard manufacturers to produce 2-socket K8 mobos than it is to produce those expensive Woodcrest Dempsey mobos. And let's not even talk about the price of FB-DIMMs. Apparently you should be able to get a pair of coherent hypertransport (SMP) enabled Althon FXs for <~US$1000. Oh ya, and the motherboards arre going to be enthusiast-oriented. i.e. you can actually overclock them.

The price of the CPUs is still steep though. If I could put a pair of X2 3800+s in there, it'd be great, but US$500 / chip is way beyond what I will spend on a CPU these days.

 

[Splash]

Not originally, they are going the DDR2 route: the same as the X2's.

If they want to support gobs of the latest memory, they will need to. AMD does have a license for Fully Buffered DDR2 memory.

...And let's not even talk about the price of FB-DIMMs.

I can buy Kingston 667 MHz 512 MB FB-DIMMs for US$92 versus regular 667MHz 512 MB DDR2 DIMMs for US$40.

 

[sechs]

But how much for registered, ECC DIMMs? A price premium, definitely; but the advantages are great.

FB-DIMMs actually have me excited about RAM. It's been so ho-hum since the advent of DDR.

 

[Buck]

If I could put a pair of X2 3800+s in there, it'd be great, but US$500 / chip is way beyond what I will spend on a CPU these days.

ADA3800CUBOX for US$199.00 each.

 

[LiamC]

1207 pad land grid array (a la Intel)

..."2.0 to 2.6GHz for the 82xx line, and the 22xx adds a low end 1.8GHz model as well. They come in 68W and 95W SKU"...

..."
One other tidbit is that Opterons are adding a good deal of RAS features to the mix. The new memory controller adds online spare memory and address parity protection. The online spare is just that, there is an extra DIMM so if the memory controller hits a certain error threshold, it will disable the bum one and turn on the good one. This is probably aimed at the supercomputer set more than anything else. Address parity just adds a bit more protection to memory subsystem.
So, overall, new Opterons, new name, new memory new features, and a slight performance kick. Nothing huge, nothing earth shattering, just another step in the grand march forward. It is a little better, a little faster, and, finally, it is out."...

http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=33689