AMD A8-3870K Unlocked Llano APU Review

Test Setups & Methodology

For this review, we have prepared four different test setups, representing all the popular platforms at the moment, as well as most of the best-selling processors. As much as possible, the four test setups feature identical components, memory timings, drivers, etc. Aside from manually selecting memory frequencies and timings, every option in the BIOS was at its default setting.

AMD Llano FM1 Test Setup

Intel Core i7 LGA2011 Test Setup

AMD Zambezi AM3+ Test Setup

AMD Phenom II AM3 Test Setup

Intel Core i5/i7 LGA1155 Test Setup

Intel Core i3/i5/i7 LGA1156 Test Setup

Intel Core i7 LGA1366 Test Setup

For all of the benchmarks, appropriate lengths are taken to ensure an equal comparison through methodical setup, installation, and testing. The following outlines our testing methodology:

A) Windows is installed using a full format.

B) Chipset drivers and accessory hardware drivers (audio, network, GPU) are installed.

C)To ensure consistent results, a few tweaks are applied to Windows 7 and the NVIDIA control panel:

• UAC – Disabled
• Indexing – Disabled
• Superfetch – Disabled
• System Protection/Restore – Disabled
• Problem & Error Reporting – Disabled
• Remote Desktop/Assistance - Disabled
• Windows Security Center Alerts – Disabled
• Windows Defender – Disabled
• Screensaver – Disabled
• Power Plan – High Performance
• V-Sync – Off

D) Windows updates are then completed installing all available updates

E) All programs are installed and then updated, followed by a defragment.

F) Benchmarks are each run three to eight times, and unless otherwise stated, the results are then averaged..

Here is a full list of the applications that we utilized in our benchmarking suite:

• 3DMark06 Professional v1.2.0
• 3DMark Vantage Professional Edition v1.1.0
• 3DMark11 Professional Edition v1.0.2
• 7-Zip 9.22 beta 64-bit
• AIDA64 Extreme Edition v1.85.1641 Beta / v2.00.1719 Beta
• Cinebench R10 64-bit
• Cinebench R11.529 64-bit
• Civilization V 1.0.1.383
• Crysis v1.2.1 64-bit
• Crysis 2 v1.9 + DX11 Pack + HiRes Texture Pack
• Deep-Fritz 12
• DiRT 3 v1.2.0
• Far Cry 2 v1.03
• HyperPI 0.99b
• Lame Front-End 1.0 (LAME 3.97 32-bit codec)
• Left 4 Dead 2 v2.0.8.9
• LuxMark v1.0
• MaxxMEM² - PreView v1.90
• PCMark 7 Professional Edition v1.0.4
• Photoshop CS4 64-bit
• POV-Ray v3.7 RC3 64-bit
• SPECviewperf 11
• Street Fighter IV Benchmark V1.0.0.1
• Team Fortress 2 v1.1.7.6
• TrueCrypt 7.1
• Valve Particle Simulation Benchmark v1.0.0.0
• WinRAR 4.0.1 64-bit
• World in Conflict Demo v1.0.0.0
• wPRIME version 2.05
• x264 HD Benchmark 4.0
• X3: Terran Conflict Demo v1.0

That is about all you need to know methodology wise, so let's get to the good stuff!