The Kaveri Refresh 'Godavari' Review: Testing AMD's A10-7870K
by Ian Cutress on June 1, 2015 11:59 AM ESTProfessional Performance: Windows
Agisoft Photoscan – 2D to 3D Image Manipulation: link
Agisoft Photoscan creates 3D models from 2D images, a process which is very computationally expensive. The algorithm is split into four distinct phases, and different phases of the model reconstruction require either fast memory, fast IPC, more cores, or even OpenCL compute devices to hand. Agisoft supplied us with a special version of the software to script the process, where we take 50 images of a stately home and convert it into a medium quality model. This benchmark typically takes around 15-20 minutes on a high end PC on the CPU alone, with GPUs reducing the time.
Cinebench R15
Cinebench is a benchmark based around Cinema 4D, and is fairly well known among enthusiasts for stressing the CPU for a provided workload. Results are given as a score, where higher is better.
HandBrake v0.9.9: link
For HandBrake, we take two videos (a 2h20 640x266 DVD rip and a 10min double UHD 3840x4320 animation short) and convert them to x264 format in an MP4 container. Results are given in terms of the frames per second processed, and HandBrake uses as many threads as possible.
Hybrid x265
Hybrid is a new benchmark, where we take a 4K 1500 frame video and convert it into an x265 format without audio. Results are given in frames per second.
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nikaldro - Monday, June 1, 2015 - link
It's funny how most people don't know that they have 2000W washing machines, yet they whine about stuff like this.Oxford Guy - Monday, June 1, 2015 - link
Don't forget the vacuum cleaner amp wars.RafaelHerschel - Tuesday, June 2, 2015 - link
I don't have a washing machine in my livingroom or office and I don't use my washing machine as often as my PC's.Less power means less heat and less noise. It also means better performance in a (very) small case. It also means a more modest PSU.
A fast i3 coupled with a GTX 960 in a Mini ITX case makes for small, potentially quiet system.
Oxford Guy - Monday, June 1, 2015 - link
CPUs and GPUs should have three ratings:1) Standby
2) Average (when in use) (with an industry-wide set of benchmarks)
3) Maximum (also industry-wide benchmarks)
barleyguy - Tuesday, June 2, 2015 - link
My biggest energy usage is definitely climate control. I've switched to LED lightbulbs, and in my kitchen which was a flourescent grid, I'm using an LED rope light. But I have an 80,000 BTU natural gas heater, and 2000 watts worth of air conditioning. Those aren't on constantly since they use a thermostat, but the bulk of my utility bill is definitely represented there. My PVR computer is on 24 hours a day, but probably only represents a couple of dollars of energy usage.Oxford Guy - Monday, June 1, 2015 - link
AMD FX 8320E, Gigabyte UD3P motherboard with 8 phase power and VRM sinks = 161.98 tax incl.Intel i5 4690, MSI Z97 PC Mate (cheap 3 phase + doubler) = $280.78 tax incl.
difference = $118.8
You can use that money to get a refurb EVGA 750 Ti 2 GB from Newegg and have three dollars and 80 cents left over to get an extra 120mm fan for your EVO cooler (which you would get with either processor... no one should use a stock cooler).
Since that AMD processor and motherboard easily overclock to around 4.2 GHz on low voltage (1.27 - 1.3) with a moderate-quality cooler it would be very interesting to see the results in this article coupled with that "free" 750 Ti. Also, one can set the chip to "one core per module" in the BIOS of that motherboard in order to get much higher overclocks (higher voltage but much less heat output) for poorly-threaded applications like most games, which helps a bit to let the chip hang in there with an Intel i5, although you'll likely be GPU bound with a 750 Ti anyway.
Even if you decide to use the stock cooler for the Intel you're still saving some money with the AMD combo -- unless you are going to pair your chip with an expensive GPU.
jann5s - Monday, June 1, 2015 - link
am i the only one amazed by how Otten the 7870 is beat by the 7850???jann5s - Monday, June 1, 2015 - link
Often*Gigaplex - Monday, June 1, 2015 - link
No, you're not the only one. And that's not the only AMD chip it loses to.Cryio - Monday, June 1, 2015 - link
Yep. The results are way off. Both in CPU and GPU.