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This thread will be used to list all the news, rumors and facts about AM2 socket to end all the confusion. So if you know something that we don't feel free to post it in here or discuss about what is known up to this point. Also if you can just provide a source where you have seen the info.
I will start off with some stuff that I have read so far from different sites:
Launch Date: / Tuesday 14 February 2006
AMD has a fixed date for its socket AM2 launch. We can now finally confirm that AMD has decided to rename its socket and to call it socket AM2. All of the dual core performance, mainstream and extreme gaming versions of the AM2 CPUs will sample by the end of this month. The production of these socket AM2 based CPUs or revision F is scheduled for April 30th while the channel orders will begin on May the 15th.
As of Tuesday, June the 6th, you will be able to buy these CPUs in the stores. AMD plans to reveal the CPUs at Computex, the Taipei based show. DDR 2 memory should boost the Athlon's performance but we still wonder why AMD didn't wait a while and adopt the upcoming DDR3. Some memory manufacturers think that now is the right moment to move from DDR one to DDR 2 as the cost is almost the same, and with DDR 2 667 or DDR 2 800 you can really see the performance difference.
AMD will continue to use its brands as Athlon 64 FX dual core processor, Athlon 64 dual core processor and Athlon 64 single core processor.
source: theinquirer.net
AMD's Socket AM2 to support DDR2 800 MHZ / Wednesday 15 February 2006
WE ALL expected that AMD planned to support DDR 2 400, 533 and 667 but very few of us expected that the firm plans to include DDR 2 800 MHz on its list. Before February, the plan was to support all memories up to DDR 667 but AMD eventually decided that it can and will support DDR 2 800 MHz from the outset. Now the migration to DDR 2 finally makes sense, as DDR 2 800 MHz can sure show sume difference compared with DDR 1 400 or even DDR 1 overclocked to 667.
It will simply offer more bandwidth and knowing that AMD places its memory controllers on the CPU it also means that it will show a bigger difference than Intel's DDR 2 capable chipsets.
Memory manufactures are thrilled as they will benefit the most. They will sell more DDR 2 800 than they ever imagined and the high end market along with mainstream will go toward the fast adoption of this fast memory.
AMD advises its partners to get some DDR 2 800 memory and to include it in DVT testing. It wants to be ready for all of the modules out there. DDR 2 also operates at a lower power level and it will indeed offer greater bandwidth. AMD thinks that the time is right for DDR 2. The desired speeds are there, it is available and the cost is just a little bit higher than DDR one. So there.
source: theinquirer.net
AMD to launch 5000+ and FX 62 at Computex / Wednesday 15 February 2006
OLD TAIPEI will be a grand place to launch a few of the new AMD marchitectures. We will see the Live® (Liver) platform launch, the socket AM2 launch. Last but certanly not least will be the dual core Athlon 5000+ and the dual core for gamers Athlon FX 62 launch. AMD will announce these marchitectures on the 6th of June at Computex 2006.
It seems that both 5000+ and FX62 come as socket AM 2 only things. We suspect that we are talking about a speed update of both cores and we expect that the 5000+ could end up at 2.6GHz while the FX 62 will rock at 2.8 GHz.
Both CPUs will have dual core under the hood. We cannot confirm the frequencies at this time but there is a possibility that AMD won't change the clocks, and that it will count DDR 2 as the speed update. We are not sure yet, but this has happened before.
This will come as a disappointment to some, for according to the current plans the FX60 will remain the fastest FX for socket 939. Athlon 4800+ will be the fastest 939 dual core CPU around. You should be able to grab those AM2 CPUs just after Computex.
source: theinquirer.net
AMD Socket AM2 Roadmap / Friday 17 February 2006
AMD has been quite the busy bee lately. The Athlon FX-60 launched a few weeks ago, the Opteron x85 series launches in a few weeks, and the whole platform will get an overhaul in early June. AMD's latest roadmap reveals more about all of these projects and adds several more that have not yet been disclosed. AMD's newest roadmaps claim the new 940 pin Socket AM2 will launch at Computex Taipei on June 6, 2006... that's 6-6-6 for those of you playing at home. The AM2 socket is not compatible with existing Socket 940 CPUs, but will allow AM2 processors to utilize up to DDR2-800.
Athlon 64, Athlon 64 X2, Athlon 64 FX and Sempron will all use the AM2 socket. The unified socket should alleviate many of the nightmares system builders experienced during the Socket 754/939 haydays -- and will also help AMD consolidate its manufacturing.
You may notice the TDP on the Athlon 64 FX-62 has been increased to 125W. Like Intel, there was a large emphasis on TDP this time around. The Athlon FX series is approaching thermal envelopes reminiscent of Prescott, and it seems clear to all parties involved that something more innovative needs to occur to counter that trend.
AMD will also soon unveil a new set of desktop Sempron and Athlon 64s specifically geared for HTPC and other low noise / low power devices. The goal is to build processors that do not need a lot of cooling -- specifically to reduce the noise of the overall system to the 27dBA range for idle and 30dBA under load. One of the upcoming Windows MCE requirements for CPUs is that the processor fan not exceed 30dBA for MCE certification.
The Energy Efficient CPUs will have a slightly redesigned Sleep, Power and Suspend states. These states are controlled by the operating system, but will require BIOS updates.
source: guru3d.com
AM2 FX line to up cache / Friday 17 February 2006
SO, WHAT IS AMD going to do to counter the upcoming Conroe based XEs, not to mention Kentsfield? Well, the obvious answer is the FX62, and that will be no slouch.
What do you do when it is not enough? Cache.
The next gen of AMD FX chips will have the full 'big cache' Opteron level of L3 cache, most likely 4MB. Until software becomes much more threaded than it is now, this will be more than enough to keep up with the competition, or at least keep things credible. For the first time, the line will be more than a plus one bin and no hard multiplier lock. AMD may wait until it sees competition before unleashing this, but it will happen sooner rather than later.
source: theinquirer.net
Why AMD renamed the Socket M2 to AM2 / Tuesday 21 February 2006
THE LATEST document seen by the INQUIRER indicates why AMD changed its socket name from socket M to socket AM2. Since we know that AMD didn’t want to confuse us all, we knew that there was a reason behind.
We managed to get confirmation that AMD actually had some copyright problems and that it could not use socket M. The alternative was to add an additional letter A and everybody was cool with that.
As a big company you don’t want to mess with copyrights and since we are still talking about unannounced products, AMD didn’t have any problems renaming it. We will all get used to it as much as we found it pretty easy to call the Hammer CPU Opteron. It can not get worse than that, I guess.
It will launch of 06/06/06 so beware of the new socket, new integrated memory controller, new CPUs and the new Liver.
source: theinquirer.net
I will start off with some stuff that I have read so far from different sites:
Launch Date: / Tuesday 14 February 2006
AMD has a fixed date for its socket AM2 launch. We can now finally confirm that AMD has decided to rename its socket and to call it socket AM2. All of the dual core performance, mainstream and extreme gaming versions of the AM2 CPUs will sample by the end of this month. The production of these socket AM2 based CPUs or revision F is scheduled for April 30th while the channel orders will begin on May the 15th.
As of Tuesday, June the 6th, you will be able to buy these CPUs in the stores. AMD plans to reveal the CPUs at Computex, the Taipei based show. DDR 2 memory should boost the Athlon's performance but we still wonder why AMD didn't wait a while and adopt the upcoming DDR3. Some memory manufacturers think that now is the right moment to move from DDR one to DDR 2 as the cost is almost the same, and with DDR 2 667 or DDR 2 800 you can really see the performance difference.
AMD will continue to use its brands as Athlon 64 FX dual core processor, Athlon 64 dual core processor and Athlon 64 single core processor.
source: theinquirer.net
AMD's Socket AM2 to support DDR2 800 MHZ / Wednesday 15 February 2006
WE ALL expected that AMD planned to support DDR 2 400, 533 and 667 but very few of us expected that the firm plans to include DDR 2 800 MHz on its list. Before February, the plan was to support all memories up to DDR 667 but AMD eventually decided that it can and will support DDR 2 800 MHz from the outset. Now the migration to DDR 2 finally makes sense, as DDR 2 800 MHz can sure show sume difference compared with DDR 1 400 or even DDR 1 overclocked to 667.
It will simply offer more bandwidth and knowing that AMD places its memory controllers on the CPU it also means that it will show a bigger difference than Intel's DDR 2 capable chipsets.
Memory manufactures are thrilled as they will benefit the most. They will sell more DDR 2 800 than they ever imagined and the high end market along with mainstream will go toward the fast adoption of this fast memory.
AMD advises its partners to get some DDR 2 800 memory and to include it in DVT testing. It wants to be ready for all of the modules out there. DDR 2 also operates at a lower power level and it will indeed offer greater bandwidth. AMD thinks that the time is right for DDR 2. The desired speeds are there, it is available and the cost is just a little bit higher than DDR one. So there.
source: theinquirer.net
AMD to launch 5000+ and FX 62 at Computex / Wednesday 15 February 2006
OLD TAIPEI will be a grand place to launch a few of the new AMD marchitectures. We will see the Live® (Liver) platform launch, the socket AM2 launch. Last but certanly not least will be the dual core Athlon 5000+ and the dual core for gamers Athlon FX 62 launch. AMD will announce these marchitectures on the 6th of June at Computex 2006.
It seems that both 5000+ and FX62 come as socket AM 2 only things. We suspect that we are talking about a speed update of both cores and we expect that the 5000+ could end up at 2.6GHz while the FX 62 will rock at 2.8 GHz.
Both CPUs will have dual core under the hood. We cannot confirm the frequencies at this time but there is a possibility that AMD won't change the clocks, and that it will count DDR 2 as the speed update. We are not sure yet, but this has happened before.
This will come as a disappointment to some, for according to the current plans the FX60 will remain the fastest FX for socket 939. Athlon 4800+ will be the fastest 939 dual core CPU around. You should be able to grab those AM2 CPUs just after Computex.
source: theinquirer.net
AMD Socket AM2 Roadmap / Friday 17 February 2006
AMD has been quite the busy bee lately. The Athlon FX-60 launched a few weeks ago, the Opteron x85 series launches in a few weeks, and the whole platform will get an overhaul in early June. AMD's latest roadmap reveals more about all of these projects and adds several more that have not yet been disclosed. AMD's newest roadmaps claim the new 940 pin Socket AM2 will launch at Computex Taipei on June 6, 2006... that's 6-6-6 for those of you playing at home. The AM2 socket is not compatible with existing Socket 940 CPUs, but will allow AM2 processors to utilize up to DDR2-800.
Athlon 64, Athlon 64 X2, Athlon 64 FX and Sempron will all use the AM2 socket. The unified socket should alleviate many of the nightmares system builders experienced during the Socket 754/939 haydays -- and will also help AMD consolidate its manufacturing.
You may notice the TDP on the Athlon 64 FX-62 has been increased to 125W. Like Intel, there was a large emphasis on TDP this time around. The Athlon FX series is approaching thermal envelopes reminiscent of Prescott, and it seems clear to all parties involved that something more innovative needs to occur to counter that trend.
AMD will also soon unveil a new set of desktop Sempron and Athlon 64s specifically geared for HTPC and other low noise / low power devices. The goal is to build processors that do not need a lot of cooling -- specifically to reduce the noise of the overall system to the 27dBA range for idle and 30dBA under load. One of the upcoming Windows MCE requirements for CPUs is that the processor fan not exceed 30dBA for MCE certification.
The Energy Efficient CPUs will have a slightly redesigned Sleep, Power and Suspend states. These states are controlled by the operating system, but will require BIOS updates.
source: guru3d.com
AM2 FX line to up cache / Friday 17 February 2006
SO, WHAT IS AMD going to do to counter the upcoming Conroe based XEs, not to mention Kentsfield? Well, the obvious answer is the FX62, and that will be no slouch.
What do you do when it is not enough? Cache.
The next gen of AMD FX chips will have the full 'big cache' Opteron level of L3 cache, most likely 4MB. Until software becomes much more threaded than it is now, this will be more than enough to keep up with the competition, or at least keep things credible. For the first time, the line will be more than a plus one bin and no hard multiplier lock. AMD may wait until it sees competition before unleashing this, but it will happen sooner rather than later.
source: theinquirer.net
Why AMD renamed the Socket M2 to AM2 / Tuesday 21 February 2006
THE LATEST document seen by the INQUIRER indicates why AMD changed its socket name from socket M to socket AM2. Since we know that AMD didn’t want to confuse us all, we knew that there was a reason behind.
We managed to get confirmation that AMD actually had some copyright problems and that it could not use socket M. The alternative was to add an additional letter A and everybody was cool with that.
As a big company you don’t want to mess with copyrights and since we are still talking about unannounced products, AMD didn’t have any problems renaming it. We will all get used to it as much as we found it pretty easy to call the Hammer CPU Opteron. It can not get worse than that, I guess.
It will launch of 06/06/06 so beware of the new socket, new integrated memory controller, new CPUs and the new Liver.
source: theinquirer.net
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