Intel Core i7-960 vs AMD Athlon X2 BE-2300

Comparative analysis of Intel Core i7-960 and AMD Athlon X2 BE-2300 processors for all known characteristics in the following categories: Essentials, Performance, Memory, Compatibility, Security & Reliability, Advanced Technologies, Virtualization. Benchmark processor performance analysis: PassMark - Single thread mark, PassMark - CPU mark, Geekbench 4 - Single Core, Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core, 3DMark Fire Strike - Physics Score, CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Video Composition (Frames/s), CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s).

Intel Core i7-960

AMD Athlon X2 BE-2300

Differences

Reasons to consider the Intel Core i7-960

CPU is newer: launch date 2 year(s) 0 month(s) later
2 more cores, run more applications at once: 4 vs 2
Around 82% higher clock speed: 3.46 GHz vs 1.9 GHz
A newer manufacturing process allows for a more powerful, yet cooler running processor: 45 nm vs 65 nm
2x more L2 cache, more data can be stored in the L2 cache for quick access later
2.3x better performance in PassMark - Single thread mark: 1458 vs 644
5.9x better performance in PassMark - CPU mark: 3347 vs 570

Specifications (specs)
Launch date	October 2009 vs October 2007
Number of cores	4 vs 2
Maximum frequency	3.46 GHz vs 1.9 GHz
Manufacturing process technology	45 nm vs 65 nm
L2 cache	256 KB (per core) vs 512 KB
Benchmarks
PassMark - Single thread mark	1458 vs 644
PassMark - CPU mark	3347 vs 570

Reasons to consider the AMD Athlon X2 BE-2300

2.9x lower typical power consumption: 45 Watt vs 130 Watt

Thermal Design Power (TDP)	45 Watt vs 130 Watt

Compare benchmarks

CPU 1: Intel Core i7-960
CPU 2: AMD Athlon X2 BE-2300

PassMark - Single thread mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

1458

644

PassMark - CPU mark

CPU 1

CPU 2

3347

570

Name	Intel Core i7-960	AMD Athlon X2 BE-2300
PassMark - Single thread mark	1458	644
PassMark - CPU mark	3347	570
Geekbench 4 - Single Core	565
Geekbench 4 - Multi-Core	2198
3DMark Fire Strike - Physics Score	0
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Face Detection (mPixels/s)	1.115
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Ocean Surface Simulation (Frames/s)	59.327
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - T-Rex (Frames/s)	0.374
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Video Composition (Frames/s)	0.395
CompuBench 1.5 Desktop - Bitcoin Mining (mHash/s)	4.942

Compare specifications (specs)

	Intel Core i7-960	AMD Athlon X2 BE-2300
Essentials
Architecture codename	Bloomfield	Brisbane
Launch date	October 2009	October 2007
Launch price (MSRP)	$316
Place in performance rating	2765	2782
Price now	$99.99
Processor Number	i7-960
Series	Legacy Intel® Core™ Processors
Status	Discontinued
Value for money (0-100)	17.14
Vertical segment	Desktop	Desktop
Performance
64 bit support
Base frequency	3.20 GHz
Bus Speed	4.8 GT/s QPI
Die size	263 mm2	126 mm
Front-side bus (FSB)	1333 MHz
L1 cache	64 KB (per core)	256 KB
L2 cache	256 KB (per core)	512 KB
L3 cache	8192 KB (shared)
Manufacturing process technology	45 nm	65 nm
Maximum core temperature	67.9°C
Maximum frequency	3.46 GHz	1.9 GHz
Number of cores	4	2
Number of QPI Links	1
Number of threads	8
Transistor count	731 million	154 million
VID voltage range	0.800V-1.375V
Memory
Max memory channels	3
Maximum memory bandwidth	25.6 GB/s
Maximum memory size	24 GB
Supported memory types	DDR3 800/1066
Compatibility
Low Halogen Options Available
Max number of CPUs in a configuration	1	1
Package Size	42.5mm x 45.0mm
Sockets supported	FCLGA1366	AM2
Thermal Design Power (TDP)	130 Watt	45 Watt
Security & Reliability
Execute Disable Bit (EDB)
Intel® Trusted Execution technology (TXT)
Advanced Technologies
Enhanced Intel SpeedStep® technology
Idle States
Instruction set extensions	Intel® SSE4.2
Intel 64
Intel® AES New Instructions
Intel® Demand Based Switching
Intel® Hyper-Threading technology
Intel® Turbo Boost technology
Physical Address Extensions (PAE)	36-bit
Thermal Monitoring
Virtualization
Intel® Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
Intel® VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT)