Athlon 64 3800+ vs i5-2550K
Primary details
Comparing Core i5-2550K and Athlon 64 3800+ processor market type (desktop or notebook), architecture, sales start time and price.
| Place in the ranking | 1717 | not rated |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Cost-effectiveness evaluation | 1.65 | no data |
| Market segment | Desktop processor | Desktop processor |
| Power efficiency | 2.59 | no data |
| Architecture codename | Sandy Bridge (2011−2013) | Venice (2004−2005) |
| Release date | January 2012 (12 years ago) | June 2004 (20 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $189 | $160 |
Cost-effectiveness evaluation
Performance per price, higher is better.
Detailed specifications
Core i5-2550K and Athlon 64 3800+ 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 | 4 (Quad-Core) | 1 (Single-Core) |
| Threads | 4 | 1 |
| Base clock speed | 3.4 GHz | no data |
| Boost clock speed | 3.8 GHz | 2.4 GHz |
| Bus rate | 5 GT/s | no data |
| L1 cache | 64 KB (per core) | 128 KB |
| L2 cache | 256 KB (per core) | 512 KB |
| L3 cache | 6144 KB (shared) | 0 KB |
| Chip lithography | 32 nm | 130 nm |
| Die size | 216 mm2 | 230 mm2 |
| Maximum core temperature | 73 °C | no data |
| Maximum case temperature (TCase) | no data | 70 °C |
| Number of transistors | 1160 million | 227 million |
| 64 bit support | + | + |
| Windows 11 compatibility | - | - |
| Unlocked multiplier | + | - |
Compatibility
Information on Core i5-2550K and Athlon 64 3800+ 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 |
| Socket | FCLGA1155,LGA1155 | 939 |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 95 Watt | 89 Watt |
Technologies and extensions
Technological solutions and additional instructions supported by Core i5-2550K and Athlon 64 3800+. You'll probably need this information if you require some particular technology.
| Instruction set extensions | Intel® SSE4.1, Intel® SSE4.2, Intel® AVX | no data |
| AES-NI | + | - |
| AVX | + | - |
| Enhanced SpeedStep (EIST) | + | no data |
| Turbo Boost Technology | 2.0 | no data |
| Hyper-Threading Technology | - | no data |
| Idle States | + | no data |
| Thermal Monitoring | + | - |
| Flex Memory Access | + | no data |
| FDI | - | no data |
| Fast Memory Access | + | no data |
Security technologies
Core i5-2550K and Athlon 64 3800+ technologies aimed at improving security, for example, by protecting against hacks.
| TXT | - | no data |
| EDB | + | no data |
| Identity Protection | + | - |
Virtualization technologies
Virtual machine speed-up technologies supported by Core i5-2550K and Athlon 64 3800+ are enumerated here.
| VT-d | - | no data |
| VT-x | + | no data |
| EPT | + | no data |
Memory specs
Types, maximum amount and channel quantity of RAM supported by Core i5-2550K and Athlon 64 3800+. Depending on the motherboard, higher memory frequencies may be supported.
| Supported memory types | DDR3 | DDR1 |
| Maximum memory size | 32 GB | no data |
| Max memory channels | 2 | no data |
| Maximum memory bandwidth | 21 GB/s | no data |
Graphics specifications
General parameters of integrated GPUs, if any.
| Quick Sync Video | + | - |
Peripherals
Specifications and connection of peripherals supported by Core i5-2550K and Athlon 64 3800+.
| PCIe version | 2.0 | no data |
| PCI Express lanes | 16 | no data |
Synthetic benchmark performance
Various benchmark results of the processors in comparison. Overall score is measured in points in 0-100 range, higher is better.
Passmark
Passmark CPU Mark is a widespread benchmark, consisting of 8 different types of workload, including integer and floating point math, extended instructions, compression, encryption and physics calculation. There is also one separate single-threaded scenario measuring single-core performance.
Pros & cons summary
| Physical cores | 4 | 1 |
| Threads | 4 | 1 |
| Chip lithography | 32 nm | 130 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | 95 Watt | 89 Watt |
i5-2550K has 300% more physical cores and 300% more threads, and a 306.3% more advanced lithography process.
Athlon 64 3800+, on the other hand, has 6.7% lower power consumption.
We couldn't decide between Core i5-2550K and Athlon 64 3800+. We've got no test results to judge.
Should you still have questions on choice between Core i5-2550K and Athlon 64 3800+, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
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