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Before
Christmas, my boss (the owner of my company) asked me to build the fastest
computer for his daughter. He also said that money was no object and he wanted
this as her Christmas present so I only had about a week to put it together. As
usual, I went online to newegg.com and purchased the necessary hardware which
included this AMD Athlon 64 FX-57 processor. Although, I had to go
to
CompUSA (my favorite offline computer store) to get the case and
other big stuff. This processor cost me about $1020.00 (including shipping). I
combined this processor with the
Asus A8N-SLI Premium motherboard. I did not get
the newest AMD Athlon
FX-60 processor because it is fairly new therefore I cannot find any
reviews on it yet.
Please refer to the
How to purchase a processor guide for
full details on what questions to ask yourself before purchasing a processor.
INSTALLATION :
As always the installation for this AMD Athlon 64 FX-57 processor was no
problem; if you install as many processors as me you will be able to install
these with your eyes closed (well sort of). On the other hand, these AMD
processors are very simple to install anyways. All you have to do is follow the
instructions in the quick install guide which will comes in handy if you are
doing this for the first time, even the second time, or if you just want to
refresh your memory. If you follow the steps in the setup guide properly, you
should not encounter any problems. This guide will also help you if you use the
heatsink and fan that came in the box, otherwise you will need to follow the
instruction that came with the other heatsink and fan.
I would not recommend overclocking your processor if you choose to use the stock
heatsink and fan (they may not be rated to work with higher temperatures). After
all, this processor is one of the very fastest one’s so you technically do not
have to overclock it. I would highly recommend you use Arctic Silver thermal
grease to install your heatsink because it transfers heat more efficiently to
keep your processor running cooler at all times. You can purchase these from
your local computer store or online for about five to eleven bucks a piece.
Overtime, your heatsink will accumulate dust and dirt so the best thing for you
to do to prevent it is to clean the inside of your computer every two to three
months or so. This onetime I did not clean mine for over six months and the
processor started running hotter than usual, but after I cleaned the headsink
and the inside of my computer thoroughly, it was back to normal again. You can
use the Falcon Dust Off duster to blow all the dirt and dust off. It will cost
you between four and nine dollars.
The first boot is always the trickiest one of all, so it is best to clear your
CMOS/Bios settings to factory defaults. This is to make sure you start with a
clean new system; doing so will reduce the chances of crashes and conflicts once
you start installing stuff. Also, some new systems will not work properly if you
do not reset the settings. Although, you may not have to do this if you are just
replacing or upgrading your processor.
Next, you will need to install your favorite operating system or if you already
have an operating system installed, just boot up. One thing to keep in mind when
booting up for the first few times, is to keep a close eye on the processor and
memory (RAM) temperatures; especially if you used a different heatsink and also
overclocked the processor. I also suggest that you make sure the memory sticks
you used are compatible and can overclock without problems.
WHATS HOT?
First and most important of all is that this processor is rated at 2.8 GHz and
that was the main reason for this purchase as my boss wanted a very fast
computer. I had told him about the
FX-55 that was very close to this one and
cheaper, but he chose to go with this FX-57 anyways. When you compare this
processor to its competitor Intel, you may think that it is slower (because of
the higher speed ratings), but when you use it, you will notice huge differences
in overall performance and power (different manufacturers have different speed
rating standards). I would always recommend AMD processors over any Intel just
because they are easy to overclock, install, use, maintain, and plus they
perform better.
Windows (or any other) operating system(s) will boot up way faster and your
applications will startup much quicker than you are used to. So far I have not
used a processor that is faster than this FX-57 because I have not had a
customer who was willing to pay about $1400 just for the processor (the
AMD Athlon 64 FX-60).
Maybe I will be the first to install it on my own system before I install it on
my client’s computers. If you cannot afford this Athlon 64 FX-57 or the
FX-55, I
would highly recommend the
AMD Athlon 64 4000+ or
AMD Athlon 64 X2
4400+ as an alternative (it also costs about half).
A lot of my clients ask me if the 64-bit processors actually are better than the
older 32-bit ones, and I always assure them that it is right way to go. Once
they try it for their selves, they know right then that they will be ready for
the future. If the client does not mind paying a bit more for the upgrade I
would highly recommend the newer dual core (X2) processors. I think the dual
core processors are more powerful and they will probably replace the FX series.
This processor uses the 939 pin design like most of AMD's 64-bit processors. The
1024 KB L2 cache memory will run the 2000MHz (1000 x 2) of FSB (Front Side Bus)
without any problems. If you get a motherboard that will speed up your DDR
memory, it will just add to the performance and power of your new or upgraded
system. You will be able to run almost anything many times faster than you have
ever experienced.
Let me tell you a little about processor temperatures. Heatsinks, airflow, and
voltage levels of the motherboard are some things that affect your processor
temperature. In idle you can expect a 35 Degrees C temperature and when stressed
it peaked at merely 56 Degrees C. With air-cooling I could pumped it up to 3GHz,
but anything higher resulted in a somewhat unstable system. Basically I
increased the core Voltage to 1.45V, a multiplier of 15 and HTT set at 200. But
I reduced it to the recommended 2.8GHz because I did not want to reduce its
life.
WHATS NOT?
I always say that a review is not complete without the cons or not so hot part
of the product. But I have not noticed any problems with this processor or any
AMD processors I have ever used or installed in my clients computers. One thing
I can say for sure is that you can never go wrong with AMD. I updated all
software, drivers, and games to make sure there were no problems. I do not like
to take any chances with the systems I build because I do not want a return job.
I would recommend that you check for driver and software at least once a month
or as needed. I would also recommend updating your motherboards Bois regularly
to keep it performing at its best.
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE :
I had about a week to put this computer together and test it out and as of now I
did not find any problems or crashes of any kind. It does not overheat (my
client did not want to overclock it just yet) ever. My boss said the computer is
running very fast and has not problems with anything. I did perform some
benchmarks with 3DMark 05 and 03. I got a score of 7125 with 3DMark 05 and 15134
with 3DMark 03 (actual data). These benchmarks are accurate as of December 17th,
2005. These benchmark scores do not mean a lot if you do not play games, but
they are calculated with the CPU test scores at hand. The computer runs very
fast with Windows XP Pro SP2 installed on it; it boots up in just about 10
seconds and becomes ready for use.
WARRANTY INFORMATION :
AMD provides a three-year limited hardware warranty that includes phone support.
You can visit
www.amd.com or dial (408)
749-3060 to get warranty support. You may be asked for the serial/model
number and date of purchase for this unit, which can easily be found by
following instruction in the manual or asking one of the representatives on the
phone.
FINAL THOUGHTS :
After using this processor for a few days, I wish it was affordable so I could
upgrade my own system. This is the best processor for your gaming rig, but not
everyone can afford it yet. The AMD Athlon 64 FX-57 is a monster, it is
impressive, and a top-notch high-end processor. For all the tweakers and
overclockers out there, the multiplier is unlocked (whoohoo). Play around with
it and the FSB for some fun, but I would not recommend overclocking a thousand
dollar processor.
If you want a very fast computer and do not care too much about the price, I
would highly recommend the FX series processors. You will definitely be amazed
by the speed and power for these processors. Best of all, your computer will
startup faster, all applications will run quicker, and you will be able to
multi-task seamlessly. |
