All About Phenom II Processors with AM2 Plus Socket

The Phenom II is a family of 64-bit multi-core processors produced by AMD. A multi-core CPU is efficient at running multiple tasks at the same time, whether it's web browsing, word processing, virus protection, or multimedia playback. All of these processors are compatible with the AM2 Plus socket in certain computers.

What type of motherboards are these microprocessors compatible with?

The AM2 Plus socket, which provides a physical and electronic connection between the CPU and the motherboard, is a partial upgrade between AM3 and AM2 CPUs. It is not compatible with AM3 motherboards, but it can work with AM2 motherboards, although the operations may be slower than normal. It is designed to work exclusively with DDR2 RAM. Other types of RAM are not compatible. If the current motherboard in your computer is not compatible with an AM2 CPU, then you will need to change it.

Which AMD processors use an AM2 Plus socket?

Most Phenom II microprocessors use AM3. There are only three microprocessors that use AM2 Plus instead. They are grouped together according to a few different factors, including clock speed and CPU cache. The cache is a small amount of memory embedded directly on the CPU. There are three different levels of cache: L1, L2, and L3. When the CPU needs to access data, it will first attempt to access the cache first, always in a specific order, before trying to access the main system RAM. Some microprocessors that use the AM2 socket are:

  • X4 920: Based on the 45-nanometer Deneb architecture, this quad-core processor has a 2.8GHz clock speed. It has 512KB of L2 cache per core and an L3 cache of 6MB.
  • X4 940 Black Edition: The 940 is similar to the 920, except the clock speed is 3GHz per core.
  • X3 715 Black Edition: Based on the 45-nanometer Heka architecture, this tri-core processor has a clock speed of 2.8GHz. It also has 512KB of L2 cache per core and an L3 cache of 6MB.
What are some features of AM2 CPUs?

All the microprocessors share a similar set of features, including:

  • HyperTransport 3.0: HyperTransport is a communication technology that increases bandwidth speeds and reduces latency between integrated circuits in the CPU. It eliminates bottlenecks by reducing the number of bus interfaces present within the system.
  • AMD Cool'n'Quiet: This technology saves power by reducing clock speed and voltage when the CPU is idle.
  • NX Bit: NX Bit disables dangerous code before it is injected into the data storage area of other programs.
  • AMD Enhanced 3DNow: This technology improves graphical performance in games and other graphically-intensive programs.
  • AMD-V: This is a virtualization technology that allows multiple operating systems to use CPU's resources.
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