Hardware Canucks: Benchmarkers Guide to the Phenom II

We initially started writing this article based on the expectations of 6GHz CPU-Z validations and mid to high 5GHz benchmark results...that didn't exactly pan out. What we found out instead, is that even with a seemingly poor sample, the overclocking of the Phenom II appears to be much better than the original Phenom. The "overhead" as AMD is calling it on the Phenom II for air cooling is substantial, and with rather average processor cooling. Stable clocks of 3.6GHz in reasonable ambient temperatures doesn't seem at all out of the question for most users. Of course our statements at this time are strictly opinion based on limited exposure to a couple of early engineering sample processors, but the early results coming to forums from the first retail Phenom II users are starting to back up this data.

Of course, this article covers a lot more than basic air cooling, and was suppose to be focused on unbridled LN2 benchmarking. Unfortunately our experience resulted in some rather weak overclocking results and a very frustrating experience with LN2. Actually, we need to change that to many frustrating experiences with LN2 on our Phenom II samples. There were multiple attempts that all ended in more Window freezes than Apple would even lead you to believe that Vista causes. Despite these issues, we are still somehow optimistic in the idea that retail samples will fight off the cold bug completely like the processors AMD has been touting around at their tech demos. At this point, details on what to fully expect from the Phenom II isn't very clear, but it is starting to look like we - extreme overclockers - will again be hunting for cold bug-free processors like we always have with AMD. Except this time, the chances of finding one will have increased exponentially.
Despite the cloudy haze brought on by a full pot of LN2 boiling off, we did clear some things up today. The Gigabyte GA-MA790GP-DS4H is no slouch when it comes to clocking the Phenom II. Up to -50C under phase change cooling it performed flawlessly in conjunction with the AMD Overdrive software (AOD). Very few motherboards can claim this feat. The BIOS also provides more than enough options to satisfy our tweaking needs, and the voltage options are amazingly adequate, even for heavy sub-zero clocking. This combination of Phenom II and the Gigabyte AM2+ motherboard is extremely easy to get started with. The fact that the Phenom II brings no new wrinkles in how to overclock makes it quite simple for existing users to feel at home within minutes of firing up these new processors.

The fact of the matter is this, in order to upgrade to Phenom II, most AM2+ users will simply need to upgrade the processor. Everyday a list of current compatible motherboards increases, so the rest of your system components can remain untouched. If you are new to overclocking, the Phenom II should be an easy starting point. If you are an experienced overclocker, you'll be running 3.6GHz in a matter of minutes. If you are an extreme benchmarker, the Phenom II brings previously unknown possibilities to the AMD platform with sub-zero cooling. The simple prospect is enough to keep us excited, but we are still prepared to have to dig through piles of processors to get one completely cold bug free...