Thunderbird vs Duron

[Capt_Andy]

Guys, forgive me for asking such a beginner's question, but what are the major differences between a Thunderbird and a Duron? And, on an OCs perspective, which is a better processor? Thanks for the help!

[theflyingrat]

Hey, it may be a beginner's question, but it's not like everyone knows this stuff off the top of their head; you have to find out somehow...

A Duron(the older "Spitfire" core, anyway) is basically a scaled-down Thunderbird. This is the only major difference. Whereas the Thunderbird has 256K of L2 cache (which improves performance greatly), the Duron only has 64K. The die on the Duron is physically much smaller than that of a Thunderbird because of this - there's not as much stuff inside!

Minor differences:
1) To date, no Durons run on a 133MHz front side bus. All run on a 100MHz front side bus, but many Thunderbirds run on the 133 bus.
2) The voltage used to run the two differs. Because the Duron has less componentry to power, they usually run at about 1.65 volts. Most Thunderbirds start at 1.75 volts.
3) Earlier Durons ( the kind that were derived from the Thunderbird core) are really cheap. $30 in some places for 700-750 MHz parts. Old Thunderbirds (800-950 MHz parts) start at around $60.

There is also another type of Duron, though. Any Duron 1.0 GHz and above use a shrunken down "Palomino" Athlon core. AMD called this the "Morgan" core. Morgan Durons are fast, but quite a bit more expensive than the older "Spitfire" Durons. Spitfires are available in speeds from 600 to 950 MHz. Morgans scale from 1.0 to 1.2 GHz. Thunderbird Athlons go from 750 (I think) to 1400 MHz.

It's arguable which one OCs better. 600 Durons will run upwards from 900MHz if you give 'em enough juice, thus making a very good investment of only a few bucks. The Thunderbirds that overclock better (the 1.0+ GHz "AXIA" chips) start at $70 to $80, so it costs more, but perform very well, often making it to 1.4 GHz. However, they create a TON of heat at these speeds and voltages, so make sure you got a nice big heat sink.

[wild_andy_c]

To add to that -

Durons based on the Morgan core often do not overclock any further than 1.3GHz. Due to the fact that they are manufactured on a hybrid process, they are less receptive to voltage than their Spitfire counterparts.

Performance of the newer Morgan Duron is comparable clock for clock with that of Thunderbird, making it a most excellent performer on a bang for buck basis.

[David]

just a few additions:

Thunderbird Athlons range from 700 - 1300 using a 200MHz FSB. These are Athlon-B processors. Athlon-Cs - generally faster per Mhz - are available at 1000MHz, 1133MHz, 1200MHz, 1333Mhz and 1400MHz.
Lower end tbirds run at 1.7volts, newer ones (>1GHz?) at 1.75V.

[wild_andy_c]

and just one more.....

Athlon B can also be purchased at 1.4GHz in AXIA and AHYJA

[David]

Originally posted by wild_andy_c
and just one more.....

Athlon B can also be purchased at 1.4GHz in AXIA and AHYJA

I thought that most KT133 or KT133A boards could only support up to a 13x multiplier? I may be wrong.

[wild_andy_c]

Originally posted by penguinfreak


I thought that most KT133 or KT133A boards could only support up to a 13x multiplier? I may be wrong.

Since the multiplier is set by the FID pinning of the processor, and the multiplier is locked, it'll run on any 200FSB board that can handle the power throughput.

My Dad's got one running a treat in his KL133M which only does 200MHz FSB.

[David]

Thanks! I see now.