Overclocking the next generation of Intel CPUs

Subject: General Tech | October 14, 2011 - 11:24 AM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: sandy bridge-e, overclocking, lynx point, Ivy Bridge, Intel, haswell

 Perhaps not everybody has fond memories of overclocking past architectures with jumpers on motherboards and needing to be able to do math to determine what overclock you want and more importantly if it took or if the system bailed back to default clocks.  Those days are behind us now, as the BIOS becomes the UEFI and you can use a mouse to affect changes on your system timings.  Bulldozer does offer some complexity to those looking for a challenge but for most it is the unlocked Sandy Bridge processors that are the go to chip for overclockers.  According to information VR-Zone picked up at IDF, overclocking the upcoming families of processors will be even easier.  Intel has changed quite a bit over recent years, from the extreme of locking all their processor frequencies to making it easy for the enthusiast to push their CPU beyond design specs.

"Ivy Bridge CPUs decouple the main clock finally, following what the coming Sandy Bridge - E Socket 2011 is also implementing. Now, you can overclock the cores and memory without worrying about affecting the I/O and PCIe clocks. But then comes the more interesting piece news. A year later, in early 2013, the pinnacle of Intel's 22 nm process show off, the initial Haswell processor, is expected to go another step further, where CPU core, GPU, memory, PCI and DMI ratios are all set independently here, on top of fine grain BCLK base clock available within the Lynx Point chipset."

Here is some more Tech News from around the web:

Tech Talk

• EUV closer to commercialization @ SemiAccurate
• RRAM to take on flash at 11nm @ SemiAccurate
• AMD Ports Open-Source Linux Driver To Windows Embedded @ Phoronix
• Did a Seagate sales bloke just say 5TB drives are coming? @ The Register
• TEXT GOES HERE
• Kisai Rogue Touch LED Watch Review @ Tech-Reviews
• AMD’s Sasa Marinkovic speaks to Kitguru about Bulldozer FX
• Weekly Giveaway #13: OCZ Vertex 3 120GB Solid State Drive @ eTeknix
• Real World Labs And Other World Computing Joint Contest

Ivy Bridge will power three headed Linux powered monsters

Subject: General Tech | October 6, 2011 - 12:41 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: Ivy Bridge, linux, multi monitor

Intel's Linux graphics driver is open source and the developers who work on it ensure that their code is publicly available which results in findings such as the one Phoronix is reporting on this morning.  While examining the Direct Rendering Manager kernel driver they discovered more information on the triple video output support that Ivy Bridge is supposed to support.  It seems that some Ivy Bridge motherboard will sport three DisplayPort outputs which can all be used simultaneously and others a pair of HDMI ports with a D-SUB connector making up the third output.  More importantly, because this was found in the Linux driver it becomes obvious that Intel intends to support multi-monitor output on Linux.  Watch out AMD.

"Patches were made public by Intel yesterday for their Linux graphics driver that enable "Ivy Bridge" hardware to simultaneously drive three monitors. Thanks to Intel's Linux driver being open-source and their OSTC developers doing the hardware enablement work in public, there's some new details about this triple monitor support for the next-generation Ivy Bridge hardware."

Here is some more Tech News from around the web:

Tech Talk

• Chinese comedians in Samsung hybrid drive con @ The Register
• IBM and Crocus join MRAM-forces @ SemiAccurate
• Sony DEV-5 Digital Recording Binoculars sample photos and video @ Engadget
• Attack on Apache server exposes firewalls, routers and more @ The Register
• TSMC to visit Apple for more talks @ DigiTimes
• Can't stop the tweet: the peril—and promise—of social networking for IT @ Ars Technica
• SuVolta to take on Intel’s FinFET transistors @ SemiAccurate

Take a trip on the Ivy Bridge

Subject: Processors | September 22, 2011 - 02:35 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: Intel, Ivy Bridge, tick, 22nm, tri-gate

Over at AnandTech you can read about the first processor to be designed using Intel's new Tri-Gate transistors, Ivy Bridge.  As well this new take on Sandy Bridge will natively support USB 3.0 thanks to the improved Z77, Z75 and H77 chipsets.  There will also be Q77, Q75 and B75 to make sure you get a more alphabet soup to deal with.  The new GPU inside is something Intel is rather proud of, a claimed 33% improvement is impressive and signals that Intel really is taking the iGPU portion of their chips seriously.  That focus is confirmed if you read through the minimal improvements to the CPU side, not a bad thing at all, simply confirmation that Intel is concerned more with power efficiency and graphics performance instead of just pumping up the megahertz.

"Five years ago Intel announced its ambitious tick-tock release cadence. We were doubtful that Intel could pull off such an aggressive schedule but with the exception of missing a few months here or there tick-tock has been a success. On years marked by a tick Intel introduces a new manufacturing process, while tock years keep manufacturing process the same and introduce a new microprocessor architecture. To date we've had three tocks (Conroe, Nehalem, Sandy Bridge) and two ticks (Penryn, Westmere). Sampling by the end of this year and shipping in the first half of next year will be Intel's third tick: Ivy Bridge."

Here are some more Processor articles from around the web:

Processors

• Intel Core i5 2400S @ Phoronix
• All Core i7 Models @ Hardware Secrets
• All Core i5 Models @ Hardware Secrets
• All Core i3 Models @ Hardware Secrets
• Mobile CPU Comparison Guide @ TechARP
• Workstation & Server CPU Comparison Guide @ TechARP
• Interactive AMD Phenom product ID guide @ OC Inside

Podcast #170 - AMD Bulldozer developments, the Windows 8 Developer Preview, News from IDF and more!

Subject: General Tech | September 15, 2011 - 07:23 PM | Ken Addison
Tagged: sandy bridge, podcast, Ivy Bridge, idf 2011, idf, gpu, cpu, bulldozer, amd

PC Perspective Podcast #170 - 9/15/2011

Join us this week as we discuss AMD Bulldozer developments, the Windows 8 Developer Preview, News from IDF and more!

You can subscribe to us through iTunes and you can still access it directly through the RSS page HERE.

The URL for the podcast is: http://pcper.com/podcast - Share with your friends!

• iTunes - Subscribe to the podcast directly through the iTunes Store
• RSS - Subscribe through your regular RSS reader
• MP3 - Direct download link to the MP3 file

Hosts: Ryan Shrout, Josh Walrath, Jeremy Hellstrom, Allyn Malventano

This Podcast is brought to you by MSI Computer, and their all new Sandy Bridge Motherboards!

Sorry about audio problems due to Skype and Ryan having little bandwidth on the road

Program length: 45:26

Program Schedule:

1. 0:00:40 Introduction
2. 1-888-38-PCPER or podcast@pcper.com
3. http://pcper.com/podcast
4. http://twitter.com/ryanshrout and http://twitter.com/pcper
5. Stay Tuned for a contest!!
6. 0:01:30 ECS HDC-I Fusion Mini ITX Motherboard Review
7. 0:02:36 Bulldozer First Release and the State of 32nm AMD Parts
8. 0:10:15 AMD Bulldozer Processor hits 8.429 GHz - New World Record!
9. 0:13:50 Oh joy the BIOS level trojan is finally here
10. 0:17:50 Windows 8 Developer Preview Build Sees Public Release At BUILD Conference
11. 0:23:45 This Podcast is brought to you by MSI Computer, and their all new Sandy Bridge Motherboards!
12. 0:24:37 IDF 2011: Intel Haswell Architecture Offers 20x Lower Standby Power
13. 0:27:08 IDF 2011: Intels Shows a PC Running on Solar Power
14. 0:30:10 IDF 2011: New Ivy Bridge Details from Mooly Eden Keynote
15. 0:35:27 SSD Update: 710 series
16. 0:38:31 IDF 2011: ASUS UX21 Ultrabook Still Sexy, I Still Want It
17. 0:39:34 Win a Free Drobo Storage Device at PC Perspective!!
18. 0:40:00 Hardware / Software Pick of the Week
    1. Ryan: Ultrabooks - I wants them
    2. Jeremy: Stop ruining many of the fond memories I have of my teenage years!
    3. Josh: gettin closer to that $1 per GB:  http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227552
    4. Allyn: mumble
19. 1-888-38-PCPER or podcast@pcper.com
20. http://pcper.com/podcast   
21. http://twitter.com/ryanshrout and http://twitter.com/pcper
22. Closing

IDF 2011: New Ivy Bridge Details from Mooly Eden Keynote

Subject: Editorial, General Tech, Processors, Shows and Expos | September 14, 2011 - 01:25 PM | Ryan Shrout
Tagged: mooly eden, Ivy Bridge, idf 2011, idf

Today is day 2 at the Intel Developer Forum and with the first keynote out of the way, we can share a few short details about Ivy Bridge that we didn't know before.  First, the transistor count is 1.48 billion - a hefty jump over Sandy Bridge that had less than 1 billion.

There was also mention of a new power management feature that will allow interrupts from other hardware devices to go to other cores than Core0, which it had ALWAYS done in the past. This means that it can route it to a core that is already awake and doing some work and not wake up a sleeping core unless necessary.

We also saw the Ivy Bridge processor running the HAWX 2 benchmark, now with support for DX11.

If you look at the die image at the top of this post, you will also notice that it appears more of the die has been assigned to graphics performance than was allocated to it on Sandy Bridge.  Remember that on AMD's Llano about 50% of the die dedicated to stream processors; it would appear that by adding support for DX11, nearly doubling performance and including required support for things like DirectCompute, Intel was forced to follow suit to some degree. 

Mooly laughed at press taking pictures of the die as he had purposely modified the image to hide some of the details or distort them to prevent precise measurements.  Still, it looks like about 33% of the new Ivy Bridge processor is dedicated to graphics and media.  This is good news for consumers, but potentially very bad news for the discrete GPU market in notebooks and low end PCs.

Finally, Mooly Eden ended with a brief look at future Ultrabooks that will be based on the Ivy Bridge processor.

If you thought the current generation of Ultrabooks was sexy (as I do) then you will really like what is coming up next.

IDF 2011: Intel Haswell Architecture Offers 20x Lower Standby Power

Subject: General Tech, Processors | September 13, 2011 - 01:05 PM | Ryan Shrout
Tagged: tri-gate, sandy bridge, Ivy Bridge, idf 2011, idf, haswell

The first keynote of the Intel Developer Forum is complete and it started with Paul Otellini discussing the high level direction for Intel in the future.  One of the more interesting points made was not about Ivy Bridge, which we will all see very soon, but about Haswell, Intel's next microarchitecture meant to replace the Sandy Bridge designs sometime in late 2012 or early 2013.  Expected to focus on having 8 processing cores, much improved graphics and the new AVX2 extenstion set, Haswell will also be built on the 3D tri-gate transistors announced over the summer.

Otellini describes Haswell's performance in two important metrics.  First, it will use 30% less power than Sandy Bridge at the same performance levels.  This is a significant step and could be the result of higher IPC as well as better efficiency thanks to the 22nm process technology.  

Where Haswell really excels is apparently in the standby metric: as a platform it could use as much as 20x less power than current hardware.  Obviously Intel's engineers have put a focus on power consumption more than performance and the results are beginning to show.  The goals are simple but seemingly impossible to realize: REAL all-day power and more than 10 days of stand by time.

Intel steps out of line to show off 3D transistors

Subject: General Tech | August 19, 2011 - 11:40 AM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: Intel, transistor, tri-gate, Ivy Bridge

Back in May Intel released an interesting video showing off Tri-Gate technology, which brings a third dimension to transistors.  That will allow transitions to happen with much less voltage, reducing power requirements and heat generation and allowing for increases in transistor density.  Ivy Bridge was suggested as the likely suspect for Intel to first utilize Tri-Gates and over at SemiAccurate you can see the proof as well as the process.  Intel is claiming a 37% performance increase at low voltages or about half the power usage if you keep the same performance.  Read on to see the difference between FINFets that will be in the competitions chips and the Intel-only three dimensional transistors.

"Intel is set to become the first company to mass produce non-planar transistors with their upcoming 22nm process. Others are talking about FD-SOI, FINFets, and several related structures, but only Intel is set to produce anything in the near future.

There has been a lot of talk about what Intel is doing, and a lot of incomplete or incorrect information put forward from many different sources. What Intel is making is called Tri-Gate transistors, something that is a radical departure from planar ’2D’ transistors, and distinct from FINFets in a very important way."

Here is some more Tech News from around the web:

Tech Talk

• Major breakthrough in cognitive computing @ SemiAccurate
• New Research Cracks AES Keys 3-5x Faster @ Slashdot
• Google Highlights Trouble In Detecting Malware @ Slashdot
• Acer Ultrabook pushing for September launch, says paper @ DigiTimes
• Firefox 7 beta brings major cuts in memory usage @ The Inquirer
• Keep your G6; I'm in it for the P6 @ The Tech Report
• TRENDnet 450Mbps Concurrent Dual Band Wireless N Router (TEW-692GR) Review @ Madshrimps
• DIY Mosquito Repellent Diffuser Refill @ Make:Blog
• Tones Overclock Academy III - Benelux Edition @ Madshrimps
• LinuxCon North America 2011 @ Phoronix

IDF is coming soon

Subject: General Tech | August 2, 2011 - 03:07 PM | Jeremy Hellstrom
Tagged: idf, intel developers forum, Ivy Bridge, haswell

At last years Intel Developers Forum, the star of the show was Sandy Bridge as we had not yet seen the chip in action.  That seems longer than a year ago, but it was only last September which means that we are drawing close to the 2011 IDF.  According to DigiTimes this year they will be focusing on mobility products, as we know Intel is working on a new(ish) form factor which they are calling Ultrabook which will replace the CULV form factor that we have known previously.  There were not that many ultrabook branded Sandy Bridge products released this year and with the upcoming release of Ivy Bridge it seems that there won't be many in the future, as Ivy Bridge is intended to do everything Sandy could and use less power doing it.  The other focus that DigiTimes expects to see, as do we at PC Perspective, is more information on Haswell which will be the next generation of Intel chip architecture.  We don't expect to see working silicon until 2013, but you can expect a lot more information about the instruction sets it will use, which is only to be expected at a developers conference.

"CPU maker Intel is set to host its Intel Developer Forum (IDF) show in San Francisco from September 13-15 and its plans for ultrabook, upcoming Ivy Bridge- and Haswell-based processors as well, as its strategy for next-generation tablet PC processor, are all expected to become focuses at the show, according to sources from PC players.

Intel, was originally set to enter the Ivy Bridge-based CPU generation in the fourth quarter of 2011, but after considering the yield rate of the 22nm process and the market status worldwide, the company, in the end, decided to postpone the launch of the new-generation CPU to March of 2012, allowing a smooth transition between the two generation of CPU structures.

In addition to the Ivy Bridge structure, Intel is also set to reveal the detail specifications of its Haswell processor, which will appear in 2013, at IDF in September, the sources noted.

As for ultrabook, Intel will display several completed models from the first-tier notebook players including Asustek Computer, Hewlett-Packard (HP) and Lenovo, at the show with Intel is also expected to provide the detail of its ultrabook design concept as well as its three stages of execution plan for the device.

For tablet PCs, Intel has been cooperating with Google to pair up its Atom Z670 processor with Android 3.0, while will showcase its latest progress in MeeGo and AppUP Center at the show."

Here is some more Tech News from around the web:

Tech Talk

• Intel and Mobile Computing @ ThinkComputers
• In-Depth with Mac OS X Lion Server @ AnandTech
• HTML5 poses security risks @ The Inquirer
• Skype releases its Ipad app @ The Inquirer
• TechwareLabs Zotac Factory Tour in Dong Guan China
• Weekly Giveaway #9: Dirt 3 @ eTeknix