• AMD Phenom II X2 550 BE: For those on a Budget

    AMD Phenom II X2 550 BE: For those on a Budget

    Roydon Cerejo, Jun 22, 2009 1414 hrs IST

    Will this dual core Phenom II offer better value compared to the X3?

    Unlocked multiplier, good performance, AM3 support, good memory performance, good overclocker

    Power consumption is still high compared to Intel

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They just keep on coming don't they! Today we have the newest member of the Phenom II family, the X2, the dual core variant of the Phenom II X4 9xx series CPU's. What we have with us today is the flagship model, X2 550, which is a descendant of the Phenom II X4 955, as it features the same 6MB of L3 cache but with 1MB of L2 instead of 2MB. Being a flagship model it runs at a high 3.1GHz that can easily be pushed ahead thanks to the unlocked multiplier. And yes, this one is a Black Edition processor too.


 



 


 



 

The die of the Phenom II X2 with the two disabled cores



The Phenom II X2 550 is priced a little below the Phenom II X3 720 BE but the X2 runs at a slightly higher stock speed. It should perform better as far as raw processing is concerned, however, the extra core in the X3 will prove useful when it comes to multithreaded applications. Looking at the specifications the new Phenom II X2 is essentially the same core with two of the cores disabled.



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AMD Phenom II X2 550 review AMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition CPU Phenom II X3 720 Phenom Phenom II X3 720 Phenom II X4 955



Discussion Board
(17) Comments
PK Trehan
,Bharuch, on Jun 22, 2009 08:35 PM
Please somebody tell a matching killer mobo for this.
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Shyam
,bhopal, on Aug 25, 2009 12:25 PM
BIOSTAR TA790GX 128M A3+ plus AMD Phenom II X2 550 BE is a killer value for money combo..just grab it
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Chirag
,Mumbaii, on Oct 17, 2009 06:51 PM
GA-MA78GPM-DS2H Its a Gigabyte motherboard with DDR3 Onboard graphics. I've this configuration and it works awesome :)
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marees
,chennai, on Jul 02, 2009 08:33 PM
Rodon, how does this processor compare with Athlon II X2 250? In terms of power consumption, overclocking, perfomance and combination with 780g and 785g motherboards?
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Ani
,Bangalore, on Jun 30, 2009 01:21 PM
If you want to refer for some external analysis, google for "TechReport: A bevy of new desktop processors " and go to page-14 "the value proposition" to get an idea. Thanks a lot really nice article....I think ill go for the X3 seems better value and more future proof than dual cores....And im primarily going to game and gaming performance of these processors iscomparable to intels offerings..though please tell me whether there will be any problems with running a nvidia graphics card with amd processor and mobo?Because the nvidia mobos r out of my budget unless u can recommend one below 6000..Thanx a lot
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marees
,chennai, on Jun 30, 2009 05:52 PM
probably you can post the graphics card question on the forum. I dont have much experience with graphics cards. Only card I used was a GeForce 6600GT agp card which went bust within the warranty period of 2 years. After that I have dis-abled Aero installed Vista Starter and never gone near a graphics card again :-)
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Ani
,Bangalore, on Jun 26, 2009 08:06 PM
ok thanx marees and vinayak i was going to buy intel e7400 soon.....ya lga775 chip is ending with thecore i7s already in the market...but then power consumption and heat is also a factor...very confused what to buy
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marees
,chennai, on Jun 29, 2009 06:55 PM
AMD - best for gaming INTEL - best for offcice applications VIDEO - depends on graphics processor. Hope this helps...
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marees
,chennai, on Jun 30, 2009 12:19 AM
Ani, The Athlon II 250 seems to run as cool as the Pentium E6300 processor. If you want a more powerful processor go for the triple-core Phenom II 720 processor. Do not buy the dual-core Phenom II 550 processor unless you absolutely cannot spare the extra Rs 1500 for the upgrade. Again, I have to re-emphasise that Intel systems are better suited for office applications involving file read/write, usb and winzip etc. because of the poorer i/o performance of AMD motherboards. You can try to overcome this problem by using NVIDIA motherboard in combination with AMD processor... BUT with all the recent graphics card related problems Nvidia has had, make sure you either have a 5-year warranty or Aero disabled and Vista mode set to balanced instead of performance. Cheers.
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marees
,chennai, on Jun 30, 2009 12:24 AM
If you want to refer for some external analysis, google for "TechReport: A bevy of new desktop processors " and go to page-14 "the value proposition" to get an idea.
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Ani
,Bangalore, on Jun 22, 2009 08:01 PM
Atleast tell something bout how it compared to intel core 2 duo.!!!!!!!!!!man the reviews r getting worse by the day
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Vinayak
,Chandigarh, on Jun 23, 2009 09:03 AM
i Just a new PC using it . It sells for Rs 5950 in Chandigarh. For Motherboard Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-USHP sells around Rs 4600 . Its better then Intel C2D as there chipset LGA775 is going too end soon , but not in case with AMD as its AM3 processor.
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marees
,chennai, on Jun 25, 2009 07:50 PM
The performance is better than any Intel processor which sells at the same price. (Intel E7xxx series and pentiums) At any given price-point AMD processor gives better performance, while Intel processor consumes less powe, runs cooler and hence is more durable for Indian weather conditions.
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Satheesh
,Cochin, on Jun 24, 2009 04:39 PM
Go for BIOSTAR TA790GX 128M A3+ best price performance board
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Danish
,Navi Mumbai, on Jun 23, 2009 09:44 PM
Consider these processor seriously with Biostar TA790GXB, best deal for budget users.
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Krishna
,Bangalore, on Jun 23, 2009 12:27 PM
Any AM3 motherboard based on 7-Series chipset is good combination. Phenom II 550 market price is Rs. 5800. But it may very from location to location. This is great value for money product.
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Anonymous
,Anonymous, on Jun 23, 2009 05:30 AM
It sells for 5200/- in Calcutta..
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