Review: amd fx 8350

This time the second generation of AMD FX processors , the FX-8350 or flagship of the Vishera range, has come down to us, based on the new Piledriver architecture The AMD FX8350 8-core 4 GHZ and 8MB cache.

This second review of FX processors is aimed directly at high-end enthusiasts, so in our test bench we will do the relevant tests with and without OC.

First of all, a few words about this architecture.

This AMD FX-8350 is the direct successor to the top-of-the-range AMD FX-8150 eight-core chip from the first-generation Bulldozer range. This is a similar CPU, which means we have eight AMD cores in a four module array with eight threads of processing power. This time, however, AMD has made the top chip also the fastest with a upload speed from the 3.6 GHz AMD FX-8150 up to 4GHz.

Product ceded by:

Piledriver is still based on the same basic design as Bulldozer, with the '8-core's' chip containing four Piledriver modules, each of which contains a pair of entire cores. Including read and decode drives, a floating point programmer (FPU) and 2MB of L2 cache. This is part of AMD's design philosophy of focusing on multi-threaded performance, and each module can process two threads simultaneously. AMD has also added support for the FMA3 and F16C instruction sets. With the same basic design, AMD's enhancements have focused on the Piledriver module leaving the CPU design intact, with many minor tweaks that add up to an overall improvement in performance.

AMD Turbo Core Technology

New instructional capabilities

Advanced Vector Extensions increase parallelism designed specifically for 3D and scientific applications, which make use of complicated floating point calculations

FMA4 and XOP

The floating point vector: multiply-accumulate, improves the performance of numerous vector functions (floating points and integers)

The Advanced Encryption Standard dramatically increases performance in newer encryption applications like TrueCrypt and benchmarks like PCMark

AMD Balanced Smart cache

Shared L3 cache (up to 8MB)

Improved planning and prereading capabilities 64 lanes (16 lanes / subcache) Larger data queue size Consistency for 8 cores

AMD Floating Point Accelerator

Shared FP Scheduler Dual 128-bit floating point motors, capable of achieving 256-bit AVX instructions or operating separately with each core.

HyperTransport ™ technology

DRAM controller integrated with AMD Memory Optimizer technology

A high-bandwidth, low-latency on-board memory controller Capable of up to DDR3-1866 ² Compatible with new low-voltage 1.35V and 1.2V memories Up to 29.9GB / s memory bandwidth for DDR3 New pre-read enhancements Direct communication from each core to dual-core module (APIC records on each core)

Advantage: Optimized memory controller to power more cores

AMD Virtualization ™ (AMD-V ™) Technology with IOMMU

AMD PowerNow! ™ Technology (Cool'n'Quiet ™ Technology)

The TUF series is born for the achievement of pre-eminent stability, all-round compatibility, and extreme durability

Ceram X - Tech Heatsink Coating.

50% greater area for heat dissipation with revolutionary ceramic coating technology

TUF Thermal Radar

Real-time temperature detection and heat removal

DIGI + VRM

They announce the arrival of a new Digital Power Design Era

UEFI BIOS

Flexible and easy BIOS interface

ESP Efficient Change Power Design

Optimal energy efficiency for key components

TUF Alloy Choke, Cap & Mosfets Components Extreme Durability Components

CPU	AMD FX ™ / Phenom ™ II / Athlon ™ II / Sempron ™ 100 Series Processors Supports AM3 + 32nm CPU Supports CPU up to 8 cores Supports CPU up to 140 W AMD Cool ´n´ Quiet ™ Technology
Chipset	AMD 990FX / SB950
Memory	4 x DIMM, Max. 32GB, DDR3 1866/1600/1333/1066 MHz ECC, Non-ECC, Un-buffered Memory Dual Channel Memory Architecture Visit www.asus.com or the user manual to see the list of qualified sellers (QVL). * It is recommended to install a maximum of 3GB of memory because it is the maximum. * AMD 100 series CPU specifications support up to DDR3 1066MHz. With ASUS design, these boards can support up to DDR3 1333MHz.
System bus	Up to 5.2 GT / s HyperTransport ™ 3.0
Multi-GPU Compatible	NVIDIA® Quad-GPU SLI ™ Technology Compatible Compatible with AMD Quad-GPU CrossFireX ™ Technology
Expansion slots	3 x PCIe 2.0 x16 (dual x16 or x16 / x8 / x8) * 1 1 x PCIe 2.0 x16 (x4 mode, black) 1 x PCIe 2.0 x1 1 x PCI
Storage	AMD SB950 Controller: 6 x SATA 6Gb / s port (s), brown Compatible with Raid 0, 1, 5, 10 ASMedia® PCIe SATA controller: 2 x SATA 6Gb / s port (s), gray 2 x eSATA 6Gb / s port (s), red
Net	Realtek® 8111F, 1 x Gigabit Network Controller
Audio	Realtek® ALC892 8 Channel High Definition Audio CODEC - Compatible with: Jack-detection, Multi-streaming, Front Panel Jack-retasking Audio Features: - Absolute Pitch 192kHz / 24-bit True BD Lossless Sound - Optical S / PDIF output on rear panel - Blu-ray audio layer Content Protection - ASUS Noise Filter
USB ports	ASMedia® USB 3.0 Controller: 2 x USB 3.0 / 2.0 port (s) (2 at mid-board) ASMedia® USB 3.0 Controller: 4 x USB 3.0 / 2.0 port (s) (4 at back panel, blue) AMD SB950 Controller: 12 x USB 2.0 / 1.1 port (s) (8 at back panel,, 4 at mid-board)
Special features	TUF ENGINE! Power Design: - 8 + 2 phase digital power design - TUF Components (Alloy choke, Cap. & MOSFET; certified by military-standard) - ASUS DIGI + Power Control Utility - ESP: Efficient Switching Power Design Ultimate COOL! Thermal Solution: - TUF CeraM! X Heatsink Coating Tech. - TUF Thermal Radar ASUS Exclusive Features: - Remote GO! - USB BIOS Flashback - MemOK! - AI Suite II - Ai Charger + - Anti-Surge - ESD Guards - ASUS UEFI BIOS EZ Mode with friendly graphical user interface - USB 3.0 on front panel - Network iControl - USB 3.0 Boost ASUS EZ DIY: - DirectKey - ASUS OC Profile - ASUS EZ Flash 2 - Multilingual BIOS - ASUS MyLogo 2 ASUS Q-Design: - ASUS Q-Shield - ASUS Q-LED (CPU, DRAM, VGA, Device boot indicator LED) - ASUS Q-Slot - ASUS Q-DIMM - ASUS Q-Connector
Rear panel I / O	1 x PS / 2 keyboard / mouse combo port 2 x eSATA 6Gb / s 1 x Network (RJ45) 4 x USB 3.0 (blue) 8 x USB 2.0 1 x Optical S / PDIF Out 6 x Audio Jack (s) 1 x USB BIOS Flashback Button
Internal I / O	1 x USB 3.0 connector (s) support (s) additional 2 USB 3.0 port (s) (19-pin, moss green) 2 x USB 2.0 connector (s) support (s) additional 4 USB 2.0 port 1 x TPM connector (s) 1 x COM connector (s) 8 x SATA 6Gb / s connector (s) 1 x CPU fan connector (s) (1 x 4 -pin) 4 x Chassis fan connector (s) (4 x 4 -pin) 1 x CPU OPT Fan Connector (1 x 4 -pin) 1 x S / PDIF Out Header 1 x 24-pin EATX power connector 1 x 8-pin ATX 12V power connector 1 x Front panel connector 1 x System Panels (Q-Connector) 1 x MemOK! Button 1 x DirectKey Buttons 1 x DRCT head 1 x Jumper Clear CMOS
accessories	User manual ASUS Q-Shield 4 x SATA 6Gb / s Cable (s) 1 x Q-connector (s) (2 in 1) 1 x SLI bridge (s) 1 x TUF certification card 1 x TUF 5 year warranty card (depending on country)
BIOS	64 Mb Flash ROM, UEFI BIOS, PnP, SLP2.1, DMI2.0, WfM2.0, SM BIOS 2.7, ACPI 2.0a, Multilingual BIOS, ASUS EZ Flash 2, F12 PrintScreen, F3 shortcut function and information ASUS DRAM SPD (Serial Presence Detect) memory.
Management skills	WfM 2.0, DMI 2.0, WOL by PME, WOR by PME, PXE
Support Disc	Drivers Antivirus software (OEM version) ASUS Update ASUS Utilities
Factory format	ATX Factory Format 12 inches x 9.6 inches (30.5 cm x 24.4 cm)
Note	* 1: To enjoy the maximum performance of a dual graphics configuration, be sure to install the graphics in the first and third PCIex16 slot.

CPU	AMD AM3 + FX ™ / Phenom ™ II / Athlon ™ II / Sempron ™ 100 Series Processors Supports AM3 + 32nm CPU Supports CPU up to 8 cores Supports CPU up to 140 W AMD Cool 'n' Quiet ™ Technology
Chipset	AMD 990X / SB950
Memory	4 x DIMM, Max. 32GB, DDR3 2133 (OC) / 1866/1600/1333/1066 MHz ECC, Non-ECC, Un-buffered Memory Dual Channel Memory Architecture Visit www.asus.com or the user manual to see the list of qualified sellers (QVL). * It is recommended to install a maximum of 3GB of memory because it is the maximum. * AMD 100 series CPU specifications support up to DDR3 1066MHz. With ASUS design, these boards can support up to DDR3 1333MHz.
System bus	Up to 5.2 GT / s HyperTransport ™ 3.0
Multi-GPU Compatible	NVIDIA® Quad-GPU SLI ™ Technology Compatible Compatible with AMD Quad-GPU CrossFireX ™ Technology
Expansion slots	2 x PCIe 2.0 x16 (x16 or dual x8) 1 x PCIe 2.0 x16 (x4 mode, black) 2 x PCIe 2.0 x1 1 x PCI
Storage	AMD SB950 Controller: 6 x SATA 6Gb / s port (s), gray Compatible with Raid 0, 1, 5, 10 ASMedia® PCIe SATA controller: 2 x eSATA 6Gb / s port (s), red
Net	Realtek® 8111F, 1 x Gigabit Network Controller
Audio	Realtek® ALC892 8 Channel High Definition Audio CODEC - Compatible with: Jack-detection, Multi-streaming, Front Panel Jack-retasking Audio Features: - Absolute Pitch 192kHz / 24-bit True BD Lossless Sound - Optical S / PDIF output on rear panel - Blu-ray audio layer Content Protection - DTS Ultra PC II - DTS Connect - ASUS Noise Filter
USB ports	ASMedia® USB 3.0 Controller: 4 x USB 3.0 / 2.0 port (s) (2 at back panel, blue, 2 at mid-board) AMD SB950 Controller: 14 x USB 2.0 / 1.1 port (s) (8 at back panel, black + red, 6 at mid-board)
Overclocking functions	Overclocking protection: - ASUS CPR (CPU Parameter Recovery)
Special features	ASUS Dual Intelligent Processors 3 with New DIGI + Power Control: SMART DIGI +: - Smart DIGI + Key - Optimize VRM frequency and current with one click to increase CPU and DRAM memory overclocking performance ASUS TPU: - Auto Tuning - TurboV - TPU button ASUS EPU: - EPU - EPU button ASUS Digital Power Design: - The industry leading digital design in 6 + 2 phases - CPU Power Utility - DRAM Power Utility - The industry leading 2-phase digital design ASUS Exclusive Features: - Remote GO! - USB BIOS Flashback - MemOK! - AI Suite II - Ai Charger + - ASUS UEFI BIOS EZ Mode with friendly graphical user interface - USB 3.0 on front panel - Network iControl - USB 3.0 Boost ASUS Thermal Solutions: - Elegant Design without fans (Heat-pipe) - ASUS Fan Xpert ASUS EZ DIY: - DirectKey - Precision Tweaker 2 - ASUS OC Profile - ASUS EZ Flash 2 - Multilingual BIOS - ASUS MyLogo 2 ASUS Q-Design: - ASUS Q-Shield - ASUS Q-LED (CPU, DRAM, VGA, Device boot indicator LED) - ASUS Q-Slot - ASUS Q-DIMM - ASUS Q-Connector
Rear panel I / O	1 x PS / 2 keyboard / mouse combo port 2 x eSATA 6Gb / s 1 x Network (RJ45) 2 x USB 3.0 8 x USB 2.0 (One port can be used for USB BIOS Flashback) 1 x Optical S / PDIF Out 6 x Audio Jack (s)
Internal I / O	1 x USB 3.0 connector (s) support (s) additional 2 USB 3.0 port (s) (19-pin) 3 x USB 2.0 connector (s) support (s) additional 6 USB 2.0 port 1 x TPM connector (s) 1 x COM connector (s) 6 x SATA 6Gb / s connector (s) 1 x CPU fan connector (s) (1 x 4 -pin) 3 x Chassis fan connector (s) (3 x 4 -pin) 1 x CPU OPT Fan Connector (1 x 4 -pin) 1 x S / PDIF Out Header 1 x 24-pin EATX power connector 1 x 8-pin ATX 12V power connector 1 x Front Panel Audio Jack (AAFP) 1 x System Panels (Q-Connector) 1 x MemOK! Button 1 x TPU switch 1 x EPU switch 1 x DirectKey Buttons 1 x DRCT head 1 x Jumper Clear CMOS 1 x USB BIOS Flashback Button (s)
accessories	User manual I / O protection 4 x SATA 6Gb / s Cable (s) 1 x Q-connector (s) (2 in 1) 1 x SLI bridge (s)
BIOS	64 Mb Flash ROM, UEFI BIOS, PnP, DMI2.0, WfM2.0, SM BIOS 2.7, ACPI 2.0a, Multilingual BIOS, ASUS EZ Flash 2, F12 PrintScreen, F3 shortcut function and system information ASUS DRAM SPD (Serial Presence Detect).
Management skills	WfM 2.0, DMI 2.0, WOL by PME, WOR by PME, PXE
Support Disc	Drivers ASUS Utilities ASUS Update Antivirus software (OEM version)
Factory format	ATX Factory Format 12 inches x 9.6 inches (30.5 cm x 24.4 cm)

CPU	AMD AM3 + FX ™ / Phenom ™ II / Athlon ™ II / Sempron ™ 100 Series Processors Supports AM3 + 32nm CPU Supports CPU up to 8 cores Supports CPU up to 140 W AMD Cool ´n´ Quiet ™ Technology
Chipset	AMD 990FX / SB950
Memory	4 x DIMM, Max. 32GB, DDR3 2400 (OC) / 2133 (OC) / 2000 (OC) / 1800 (OC) / 1600/1333/1066 MHz ECC, Non-ECC, Un-buffered Memory Dual Channel Memory Architecture * Refer to www.asus.com or user manual for the Memory QVL (Qualified Vendors Lists). * Due to OS limitation, when installing total memory of 4GB capacity or more, Windows® 32-bit operation system may only recognize less than 3GB. Install a 64-bit Windows® OS when you want to install 4GB or more memory on the motherboard.
System Bus	Up to 5.2 GT / s HyperTransport ™ 3.0
Multi-GPU Support	Supports NVIDIA® Quad-GPU SLI ™ Technology Supports NVIDIA® 3-Way SLI ™ Technology Supports AMD 3-Way CrossFireX ™ Technology
Expansion Slots	3 x PCIe 2.0 x16 (dual x16 or x16 / x8 / x8) 1 x PCIe 2.0 x16 (x4 mode) 2 x PCIe 2.0 x1
Storage	AMD SB950 controller: 6 x SATA 6Gb / s port (s), network Support Raid 0, 1, 5, 10 ASMedia® ASM1061 controller: 2 x SATA 6Gb / s port (s), network 2 x eSATA 6Gb / s port (s), network
LAN	Intel®, 1 x Gigabit LAN Controller (s)
Audio	SupremeFX III built-in 8-Channel High Definition Audio CODEC - Supports: Jack-detection, Multi-streaming, Front Panel Jack-retasking Audio Feature: - SupremeFX Shielding ™ Technology - 1500 uF Audio Power Capacitor - Gold-plated jacks - Blu-ray audio layer Content Protection - DTS Ultra PC II - DTS Connect - Optical S / PDIF out port (s) at back panel
USB Ports	ASMedia® USB 3.0 controller: 6 x USB 3.0 port (s) (4 at back panel, blue, 2 at mid-board) AMD SB950 controller: 12 x USB 2.0 port (s) (8 at back panel, black + white, 4 at mid-board)
Overclocking Features	ROG Connect: - RC Diagram - RC Remote - RC Poster - GPU TweakIt Extreme Engine Digi + II: - 8 + 2 phase power design - 2 -phase Memory power design UEFI BIOS features: - ROG BIOS Print - GPU.DIMM Post GameFirst iROG Extreme tweaker Overclocking Protection: - COP EX (Component Overheat Protection - EX) - ASUS CPR (CPU Parameter Recall)
Special Features	ASUS Power Design: - ASUS EPU TurboV Core Unlocker ASUS Exclusive Features: - AI Suite II - Ai Charger + - USB 3.0 Boost - Disk Unlocker ASUS Quiet Thermal Solution: - ASUS Fan Xpert ASUS EZ DIY: - ASUS OC Profile - ASUS CrashFree BIOS 3 - ASUS EZ Flash 2 - ASUS MyLogo 3 ASUS Q-Design: - ASUS Q-Shield - ASUS Q-Code - ASUS Q-LED (CPU, DRAM, VGA, Boot Device LED) - ASUS Q-Slot - ASUS Q-DIMM - ASUS Q-Connector
Back I / O Ports	1 x PS / 2 keyboard / mouse combo port (s) 2 x eSATA 6Gb / s 1 x LAN (RJ45) port (s) 4 x USB 3.0 8 x USB 2.0 (one port can be switched to ROG Connect) 1 x Optical S / PDIF out 6 x Audio jack (s) 1 x Clear CMOS button (s) 1 x ROG Connect On / Off switch (es)
Internal I / O Ports	1 x USB 3.0 connector (s) support (s) additional 2 USB 3.0 port (s) 2 x USB 2.0 connector (s) support (s) additional 4 USB 2.0 port (s) 1 x TPM connector (s) 8 x SATA 6Gb / s connector (s) 2 x CPU Fan connector (s) 3 x Chassis Fan connector (s) 3 x Optional Fan connector (s) 1 x S / PDIF out header (s) 1 x 24-pin EATX Power connector (s) 1 x 8-pin ATX 12V Power connector (s) 1 x 4-pin ATX 12V Power connector (s) 1 x Front panel audio connector (s) (AAFP) 1 x System panel (s) 1 x DirectKey Button (s) 1 x DRCT header (s) 8 x ProbeIt Measurement Points 3 x Thermal sensor connector (s) 1 x EZ Plug connector (s) (4-pin Molex power connector) 1 x Power-on button (s) 1 x Reset button (s) 1 x Go Button (s)
Accessories	User´s manual I / O Shield 6 x SATA 6Gb / s cable (s) 1 x 3-Way SLI bridge (s) 1 x SLI bridge (s) 1 x CrossFire cable (s) 1 x Q-connector (s) (2 in 1) 1 x ROG Connect cable (s) 1 x 12 in 1 ROG Cable Label (s)
BIOS	64Mb Flash ROM, UEFI BIOS, PnP, DMI2.0, WfM2.0, SM BIOS 2.5, ACPI2.0a, Multi-Language BIOS
Manageability	WOL by PME, WOR by PME, PXE
Support Disc	Drivers GameFirst II Kaspersky® Anti-Virus DAEMON Tools Pro Standard ROG CPU-Z ASUS WebStorage ASUS Utilities (AI SUITE II / TurboV EVO / ASUS Update)
Form Factor	ATX Form Factor 12 inch x 9.6 inch (30.5 cm x 24.4 cm)

WE RECOMMEND i5-9600KF better than a Ryzen 7 3800X? Intel claims that if

TESTING BENCH
Processor:	AMD FX-8350
Base plate:	Asus Sabertooth 990FX R2.0
Memory:	Kingston Hyperx Predator
Heatsink	Corsair H60
HDD	Samsung 840 SSD Series 120GB
Graphic card	Gigabyte GTX 670 OC SLI
Power supply	Antec HCP 750W

software

Windows 7 RTM 64-bit SP1 GeForce R304 Driver 306.97 Whql SiSoft Sandra Lite 2012 x264 HD Benchmark v5.01 Cinebench R11.5 64-bit FutureMark 3DMark 11 v1.0.3.0 FutureMark 3DMark Vantage v1.0.2 Unigine Heaven 3.0 Aliens vs. Predator DirectX 11 Benchmark v1.03 Metro 2033

Testing Methodology.

The tests have been passed with the stock processor, and with a 4.8 Ghz overclock. Below we show you the results to be able to observe the gain that there is with that overclock, nothing difficult to achieve for these processors.

To round off the comparison, we have faced the Fx-8350, the i7 3930K, both processors at 4.8 Ghz.

The AMD FX 8350 is the most powerful processor AMD has to offer right now in its Pilever range. Specially designed for gaming teams, professional use and even virtualization thanks to its 8 physical cores, its speed of 4000/4200 mhz Turbo core activated and its TDP of 125W.

The boards that we have used have been 3 ASUS:

- Asus M5A99FX Pro R2.0: It is the third most powerful board by ASUS, with DIGI + Control Power, USB 3.0 Boost, UEFI BIOS, With 990FX chipset, Compatible with 32GB DDR3 and NVIDIA or CrossFire SLI systems. TO YOU.

- Asus Sabertooth 990FX R2.0: Optimized for the best cooling on the market thanks to its CeraM! X technology, temperature control and monitoring software, UEFI BIOS and Remote GO! - Center for remote control of your PC and home entertainment. Obviously it is compatible with SLI and Crossfire. The only but that we can get out of this board that Asus has to fine-tune the BIOS to make it 100% stable.

- Asus Crosshair V Formula-Z: The new revision of the Crosshair V Formula with support for Windows 8 and Pilever processors. Its great improvements are found in the Extreme Engine Digi + II phases, the possibility of mounting a 3-way sli / crossfire, Gigabit network card, compatibility with Windows 8 and being the Asus ROG series, only compatible with the best gaming?

Like all the new motherboards that are coming out from Asus it incorporates the following two certifications:

Leader in USB 3.0 certification on your boards (we include the Asus Maximus V Extreme and the entire 7 series). This certification is acquired by successfully passing more than 180 tests. Ensuring a better user experience and product compatibility. TCO = Total Cost of Ownership . What does this mean? That your products reduce the operating costs of the equipment, saving energy, increasing the useful life of the equipment, enhancing the performance of the components and also reduces maintenance costs, thanks to protection against overvoltages, ESD, CrashFree BIOS, USB BIOS Flashback

In our test bench we have verified that the microprocessor performs excellently in all facets: games, daily work and graphic design. The comparison with the i7 3930K processor we notice a great difference between one processor and another, but it is true, that its rival costs three times as much money as him. Perhaps the difference in money between an FX8350 and an FX8320 of € 25, makes us opt for the FX8320.

The point that we liked the least is its consumption, arriving with a GTX 670 OC up to 550W. We believe that this could be solved with the new StreamRoller platform that will come out in the middle of this year 2013 and we expect an improvement of 10 to 20% more performance in its IPC.

In short, if you need a cheap equipment that offers excellent performance and requires many cores, the AMD FX8320 / FX8350 should be one of your candidates. Because AMD always thinks about the best consumer treatment with the backward compatibility of motherboards.

The Professional Review team awards him the gold medal:

Editor's choice