AMD BullDozer Review + Benchmarks

The Joker

The Joker

Thread Killer MKII
So the long wait is finally over :D

First proper benches and reviews have been sent out over the net.
I have to say I was expecting more, Having said that though, Its right on par with the 2600K, with the 2600k winning some benches and the FX8150 winning others. Also the FX8150 is considerably cheaper, coming in at around $70 less than the 2600k. Which translates into R800-R1000 price difference.

http://www.guru3d.com/article/amd-fx-8150-processor-review/1

Concluding then. The reality remains that for me personally I would have preferred a faster per core performing AMD quad-core processor rather then an eight-core processor with just 'nice' per core performance. Who knows, for you, that just might not be the case. It's going to be interesting to see what you as an end-user will prefer. Overall though, the AMD FX 8150 is a processor we can recommend for the upper segment of mid-range computers at best.

It is nice and fast in your desktop environment with the many threads you can fire off at it, and if you love to compress, transcode or use your PC as a workstation, well it will offer heaps of performance and features for a fair price. The AMD FX 8150 can be purchased for 244 USD or cheaper for all that 8-core lovin'.
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Well I have my setup ready.
Landmark says they will have the cpu selling at close to R3k which means they can stick it up their ass.
Will call suppliers and get a true price estimate, or just buy from new egg and get my mate from the states to send it to me.
 
Very disappointing really. I was expecting it to at least be competitive on a per core bases with the i5 and i7. As it stands I'd be better off just upgrading from my Athlon II X4 to a Phenom II.

From Anandtech's conclusion.

So what do you do if you're buying today? If you have an existing high-end Phenom II system, particularly an X4 970 or above or an X6 of any sort, I honestly don't see much of a reason to upgrade. You're likely better off waiting for the next (and final) iteration of the AM3+ lineup if you want to stick with your current platform. If you're considering buying new, I feel like the 2500K is a better overall part. You get more predictable performance across the board regardless of application type or workload mix, and you do get features like Quick Sync. In many ways, where Bulldozer is a clear win is where AMD has always done well: heavily threaded applications. If you're predominantly running well threaded workloads, Bulldozer will typically give you performance somewhere around or above Intel's 2500K.
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Full review here.
 
I read some Anand benchies and i am not impressed. It looks like AMD is in the core race even though most applications can't make use of it. Time for them to change their game

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Isengard said:
Very disappointing really. I was expecting it to at least be competitive on a per core bases with the i5 and i7. As it stands I'd be better off just upgrading from my Athlon II X4 to a Phenom II.

From Anandtech's conclusion.
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the Athlon II X4 was one of the best chips ever released one of my pc's is still running an athlon II x4 620 and it is still running all the latest games admirably on medium to max. the cores never go above 38 degrees and that pc runs 24/7 yet it hasnt given a single proble since i assembled it back in 2009. suprising performance considering it lacks l3 cache memory
 
Yeah, I was holding off on getting the Phenom X4 BE 965, but now it looks like what I will be going for at the end of the day...
 
Isengard said:
Yeah, I was holding off on getting the Phenom X4 BE 965, but now it looks like what I will be going for at the end of the day...
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Totally, and it will more than likely be cheaper for the same performance in the coming months.

This tech is great for their server market though. Which might help them get some cash together to piledrive piledriver.

I will say though, that AMD is betting on software finally advancing and making use of threads better. Apparently windows 8 will be the first to help the Bulldozer, but then they should've waited for windows 8 to launch.

Lets hope that AMD mix things up in its next iteration eh.
 
in gaming performance it rocks but everything else it's looking a bit limp

couple of factors here
software support not there
design very new
single threaded performance not good

but then again. in newer games and apps it holds it's own quite well

but sadly future potential does not help me now

sigh... Phenom 2 X4 975 BE or X6 1100T BE for now...

which one? ... :(
 
Oh and you forget that this is their 2nd rate chip... the 8170 is their flagship. So really the 8150 is meant to compete with the 2500K but is more expensive.

If you get an AMD chip now, you will be on AM3+ and can then get the next generation without upgrading your motherboard. If you get the intel, you will need to upgrade your motherboard for ivy bridge.

In most games the CPU isn't the biggest limiting factor. So if you want it for gaming or you have apps that use threading heavily then the bulldozer is a decent deal. When the win8 beta comes out you can expect 10-15% increase on current performance on the 8150 and hopefully not see these massive dips to lightly threaded apps.
 
DarthSWNT said:
If you get an AMD chip now, you will be on AM3+ and can then get the next generation without upgrading your motherboard. If you get the intel, you will need to upgrade your motherboard for ivy bridge.
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Not true - Sandy Bridge sockets also support Ivy Bridge. Probably dependent on a BIOS upgrade but thats it.

So you can buy BD and have terrible performance now, or buy Sandy Bridge and have amazing performance right now, or buy Ivy Bridge and have even better performance later. Hmm, choices choices.
 
Ancalagon said:
Not true - Sandy Bridge sockets also support Ivy Bridge. Probably dependent on a BIOS upgrade but thats it.

So you can buy BD and have terrible performance now, or buy Sandy Bridge and have amazing performance right now, or buy Ivy Bridge and have even better performance later. Hmm, choices choices.
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You are right, my bad. I was thinking of the 2011 socket and did not mean to type ivy bridge.
 
Hmm, reading through some stuff about the 8120 makes me wonder if that is not the bulldozer saviour. It is a lot cheaper than the 8150 but is still an 8C.

The downside is less clockspeed but you can still overclock it.

I don't know.... doesn't seem like a good buy in general, but if you were looking for a bulldozer chip for a decent price that seems to be the one.
 
I cried (on the inside :p ) when I saw the benchies, I've always been pro-AMD and supported them through thick and thin, and thin, and thinner out of loyalty. I had such high hopes for the new architecture and new design, and thought: yes, they are back in the game. But perhaps this is just the beginning and foundation for for their new line. I trust they will bring out newer revisions of this and that the later models will show better performance, and hopefully less heat.

Bare in mind this is their first model in several years which have been redesigned from the ground up and requires some fine tuning. Or, ignorance is bliss. :)
 
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