AMD is a notorious company that produces computer components. This company can rightfully be considered a pioneer in the field of integrated circuit electronics. AMD products have always been famous for their innovativeness, atypical technical solutions. For this reason, processors coming under this brand have enjoyed such popularity.
However, now everything has changed. AMD has decided to stop the development of new processors for desktop computers. This is confirmed by at least recently published plans of the company. In accordance with them, the company stops the development of the FX line. A new microarchitecture called Excavator and Steamroller will only be used in hybrid devices. Nevertheless, the Socket AM3 + platform will not leave store shelves for a long time. AMD is going to sell obsolete processors at a lower price. Apparently, the calculation is made on fans who, because of the affordable price, are ready to forgive the product flaws.
Relatively recently, the company released the new elite AMD FX-9590 processor . The new device can be considered a bullet in the history of the AMD FX line. Want to learn more about the FX-9590? The overview presented in this article will help you with this. In it, we will consider interesting features of the device, its characteristics, performance, competitiveness, etc.
AMD FX-9590: review
The first thing to notice: the new processor from AMD with the marking 9590 cannot boast of something interesting. Although the device formally refers to the nine thousandth series, in fact we are faced with the same FX-8350. The FX-9590 processor, like its predecessor, is based on eight cores (Piledriver microarchitecture), which are arranged in pairs in modules. The device has a cache memory of 8 megabytes (level 3). FX-9590 is intended for use in maternal posters that have a Socket AM3 + connector. Although the new device, like two drops of water, looks like its predecessor, the 9590 has a couple of interesting features. Want to know more about them? Welcome to this article.
Power
The FX-9590 has a performance spike relative to the 8350. And this growth can hardly be called subtle. The clock frequency of the device increased by 700-800 MHz. This allowed AMD to position its brainchild as the first processor that can run at around 5 gigahertz. In general, the FX-9590 is much more powerful than its predecessor. And this is clearly visible even by the characteristics of the device.
However, a sharp increase in productivity is not the result of interesting architectural transformations or new technological innovations. The device uses exactly the same semiconductor base, which is represented by a crystal with OR-CO stepping. In order to reach a new frontier of power, AMD used brute force. They simply increased the supply voltage in the processor. This, in turn, made it possible to set high clock frequencies. In a positive way, the processor power is affected by the ability to select semiconductor devices.
Thus, while the FX-9590 is operating at a standard frequency of 4.7 GHz, the voltage that is supplied to its core is about 1.44 V. And when using Turbo Core technology, the voltage can even jump to 1.5 V. Many buyers were attracted by the jump in performance in the device.
Heat dissipation and power consumption
The increase in processor clock speed by barbaric methods could not pass without a trace. Due to the increased voltage, power consumption and heat dissipation have increased significantly. This, in turn, has led to significant limitations in the operation of the processor. First of all, the FX-9590 requires powerful coolers that are highly efficient. Since no CPUs with such a level of heat dissipation simply exist, it is worth focusing on liquid and air cooling systems. Unfortunately, AMD does not supply coolers with the device, thus creating an additional headache with the search for a cooling system.
Another issue is motherboard compatibility. Socket AM3 + was not originally designed for 220-watt processors. And this means that they do not have a special power converter that would have sufficient power. There are just a few board models that are fully compatible with the FX-9590. And that's pretty sad. Indeed, such a feature of the processor significantly limits the final consumer in the choice of components. Many negative reviews are based precisely on these features of the 9590.
Overclocking
FX-9590 is actually legalized overclocking of the same 8350. This is evidenced by at least an increased supply voltage and increased heat dissipation. It is for this reason that it is not necessary to expect from 9590 work at high frequencies that would exceed the standard ones. Previously, the maximum performance for eight-core Vishera was considered a frequency in the region of 4.7 GHz. However, it is standard for the FX-9590.
Nevertheless, the 9590 can still be overclocked. By raising the voltage to 1.525, you can get a frequency of 4.9 GHz. At the same time, the processor works stably, without any overheating. However, for such overclocking you need a top-end and very efficient cooler, which costs a lot of money. But here in the head of users the question matures: "Is it worth it?"
Raising the frequency above will result in throttling and overheating. At a temperature of 76 degrees, the processor simply turns off. And this, in turn, means that the FX-9590 has a rather limited scope of operating temperature.
Application Performance
3D Max is a program in which the 9590 manages to demonstrate its full potential. Multithreaded computing is the strength of AMD processors. For this reason, the FX-9590 is superior to its main competitor in the face of the top-end Core i7. In addition, the device copes with video transcoding. Therefore, the 9590 performs very well when working in Freemake Video Converter.
Nevertheless, AMD processors also have weaknesses. These include single-threaded calculations. This is clearly noticeable while working in Photoshop SS or any modern browser.
Gaming performance
Modern games practically do not focus on the computing power of the device, but on its graphics system. That is, the role of the processor is extremely small. However, it affects FPS and stability. The FX-9590 has pretty big problems with this. Modern processors have gone far ahead in terms of gaming performance. As a result, AMD lagged behind its competitors, and even overclocking is unable to change this. Therefore, the FX-9590 in terms of gaming performance looks pretty faded compared to the competitor Core i7, which many gamers note.
Output
In the end, we can say that the 9590 is the sunset of the FX line. The new processor incorporates all the best AMD products. Nevertheless, the device is not capable of providing anything new. All this we have already seen in previous models.
If we consider the situation on the market, then here the FX-9590 can hardly be called a favorite. For almost the same price, you can purchase more powerful processors (the same Core i7). Therefore, 9590 can only be advised to loyal fans of the FX line.