Hardware Reference
In-Depth Information
Photo courtesy of AMD.
The Athlon 64 FX differs from the standard Athlon 64 in the following ways:
• Supports only Socket 940, 939, or AM2.
• Has dual-channel DDR or DDR2 memory controller with ECC support.
• Socket 940 versions require registered memory.
• Features speeds from 2.2GHz to 2.8GHz.
• 1MB L2 cache (standard).
AlthoughAMDhasbeencriticizedbymany,includingme,foritsconfusingperformance-
rating processor names in the Athlon XP series, AMD also uses this naming scheme with
the Athlon 64. AMD developed its own chipsets for the Athlon 64, but also encouraged
chipset development by third parties, including ATI (which AMD acquired in 2006 for
both its chipset and GPU design experience).
Table 3.21 Athlon 64 and 64 FX Processor Information
