i7-990X Extreme Edition vs Athlon 900
Primary details
Comparing Athlon 900 and Core i7-990X Extreme Edition processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | not rated | not rated |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Market segment | Desktop processor | Desktop processor |
| Series | no data | Intel Core i7EE |
| Architecture codename | Thunderbird (1999−2000) | Westmere (2010−2011) |
| Release date | 6 March 2000 (24 years ago) | 13 February 2011 (13 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $899 | no data |
Detailed specifications
Athlon 900 and Core i7-990X Extreme Edition basic parameters such as number of cores, number of threads, base frequency and turbo boost clock, lithography, cache size and multiplier lock state. These parameters indirectly say of CPU speed, though for more precise assessment you have to consider their test results.
| Physical cores | 1 (Single-Core) | 6 (Hexa-Core) |
| Threads | 1 | 12 |
| Boost clock speed | 0.9 GHz | 3.46 GHz |
| Bus type | no data | QPI |
| Bus rate | no data | 6.4 GT/s |
| Multiplier | no data | 26 |
| L1 cache | 128 KB | no data |
| L2 cache | 512 KB | 1.5 MB |
| L3 cache | 0 KB | 12 MB |
| Chip lithography | 180 nm | 32 nm |
| Die size | 102 mm2 | 239 mm2 |
| Maximum case temperature (TCase) | 70 °C | no data |
| Number of transistors | 22 million | no data |
| 64 bit support | - | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | - | - |
Compatibility
Information on Athlon 900 and Core i7-990X Extreme Edition compatibility with other computer components: motherboard (look for socket type), power supply unit (look for power consumption) etc. Useful when planning a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. Note that power consumption of some processors can well exceed their nominal TDP, even without overclocking. Some can even double their declared thermals given that the motherboard allows to tune the CPU power parameters.
| Number of CPUs in a configuration | 1 | 1 (Uniprocessor) |
| Socket | A | no data |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 60 Watt | 130 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Athlon 900 and Core i7-990X Extreme Edition. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| AES-NI | - | + |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | no data | + |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Athlon 900 and Core i7-990X Extreme Edition. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR1 | no data |
| Maximum memory size | no data | 24 GB |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Integrated graphics card | N/A | no data |
Pros & cons summary
| Recency | 6 March 2000 | 13 February 2011 |
| Physical cores | 1 | 6 |
| Threads | 1 | 12 |
| Chip lithography | 180 nm | 32 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 60 Watt | 130 Watt |
Athlon 900 has 116.7% lower power consumption.
i7-990X Extreme Edition, on the other hand, has an age advantage of 10 years, 500% more physical cores and 1100% more threads, and a 462.5% more advanced lithography process.
We couldn't decide between Athlon 900 and Core i7-990X Extreme Edition. We've got no test results to judge.
Should you still have questions on choice between Athlon 900 and Core i7-990X Extreme Edition, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
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