Question on AMD processor speed and sse4.1

[hellbringer616]

I'm planing on picking up a Phenom II X2 550 BE here pretty soon stock clock at 3.1ghz, Over my current processor (see sig) how much of a boost will i see?

Secondly, this processor has sse4a support, Will this work for sse41 in GSDX? Or is than an intel only thing?

And lastly, even if i can't use it whats the speed different usually like between sse2 and sse4.1?

[dr_thrax]

Yes, you will get a boost over your current CPU. No, sse4.a does not equal sse4.1. The speed difference is minimal, and only applies under rare occasions. You're not missing out much with an AMD.

[Koji]

hellbringer: I basically have the same CPU but with an extra core (triple core versus dual core) and I had the same proc you used to have (5000, though mine clocked at 2.9ghz) and I can tell you I noticed a huge difference, especially after my overclock. You should be able to get to 3.4-3.5ghz easy without even touching voltage on that CPU, with the upper average of overclocks being 3.8ghz (all deneb cores seem to hit a brick wall at 3.8ghz without some serious overvoltage. I managed to get mine stable at that clock at 1.55 but it wasn't worth the extra juice)

That said, I still get a couple games not running 100%... but I think it's pretty much the same ones EVERYONE has problems with getting full speed (MGS4 in cutscenes and in super grassy areas)

SSE4.1 is not SSE4a, no compatibility there. The speed difference between versions is minimal and only in certain situations in certain games. You'll definitely be happy with that CPU after a bit of overclocking.

[nataq01]

i have Phenom II 550 BE overclocked to 3817mhz and i can play shadow of the colosus at 100% ( but with speedhacks ( but no VU cycle stealing ) ), does this answer your question? Also look into my profile, all those games run at above 100%

[hellbringer616]

Yep it did answer my question. i will probably order the processor sometime next week or the end of this week. Thanks for the info