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We couldn't
possibly call our performance testing of the Athlon XP 2200+
complete, without a healthy dose of gaming benchmarks.
We ran three different tests to demonstrate the new Athlon's
gaming prowess, MadOnion's 3DMark 2002SE, Novalogic's
Comanche 4 and Quake 3 Arena.
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Gaming Benchmarks
and Comparisons |
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MadOnion,
Comanche 4 and Quake 3 Benchmarks |
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We ran 3DMark
2002SE though a default benchmark run, on all of the test
systems (1024x768x32). The 2.53MHz. Pentium 4 managed
to outpace everything else, but the Athlon XP 2200+ was
right behind it. With the Athlon overclocked, we
gained over 200 3DMarks, but were still about 500 points
behind the 2.53GHz. machine.
Novalogic's
Comanche 4 benchmark is a heavily CPU dependant test.
We ran the time demo at a low-resolution and color depth
with no audio, to further isolate CPU performance. At
it's default clock speed, the Athlon XP 2200+ was
outperformed by both of the Pentium 4's, albeit by a very
small margin. With the CPU overclocked, we gained a
couple of frames per second but still were not able to catch
the 2.53Ghz. P4.
We saw more of
the same with Quake 3 Arena, which traditionally favors the
Pentium 4. The 2200+ fell about 6 FPS behind the
2.2GHz. P4 at it's default clock speed. When we
overclocked the Thoroughbred, we managed to gain almost 7
FPS, which put the Athlon XP 2200+ slightly ahead of the
2.2GHz. P4 but still a full 19.5 FPS lower than the 2.53GHz.
system.
Overall, we have mixed
feelings about the AMD Athlon XP 2200+. We were
pleased to see AMD deliver a CPU based on their new .13
micron manufacturing process but were a bit disappointed
that the new "Thoroughbred" core doesn't bring any new
features to the table. When Intel introduced the
"Northwood" Pentium 4's, they doubled the on-die cache to
512K, and have since upped the FSB to 533MHz. AMD on
the other hand has simply taken the "Palomino" Athlon core
and started manufacturing it on a .13 micron process.
Had AMD increased the on-die cache, upped the FSB or
introduced some other performance enhancing feature, we
possibly would have been much more impressed. What
this new core amounts to essentially, is more headroom for
clock speed and better profit margins for AMD.
That certainly is not to say the new Athlon XP 2200+ is
without merit. Initial word is that this CPU will sell
for $241 US in lots of 1000, which is less than half of what
Intel is charging for their top of the line 2.53GHz. Pentium
4. At an introductory price this low, with it's
relative performance being so high, there is no better CPU
than the Athlon XP 2200+ for cost conscious consumers.
AMD still has a firm grasp on the "Price vs. Performance"
crown. Looking forward, as AMD further refines their
manufacturing process and yields get better, we're excited
with the prospect of seeing even higher clocked Athlons.
We have no doubt hardcore overclockers, and perhaps AMD
themselves, will soon take the "Thoroughbred" well beyond
the 2GHz. mark. With Athlons clocked that high, and
the impending release of "faster" chipsets like the KT400
and 200MHz DDR (DDR400) memory, the battle between AMD and
Intel shows no signs of subsiding. Later in the year
AMD is also set to release their new "Hammer" line of 64-bit
CPUs, which should further fuel the fire...
Competition, you've gotta love it!
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