Testbed Configuration and Testing Methodology

We tested all three above described Core i3 processors from the 3000-series. They will be competing against previous generation Core i3 CPUs on Sandy Bridge microarchitecture as well as a few other products. To complete the picture we also included the junior Core i5 models. I am sure that many of you are wondering whether the new generation top Core i3 processors will be able to compete successfully against older quad-core Sandy Bridge based products.

Core i3 processors fall into a very attractive price range. This segment is also heavily populated by products from AMD – the company that has been focusing on affordable and entry-level processors lately. Therefore, we also included AMD FX-6200 and AMD FX-4170 processors with similar price tags. AMD Lynx platform may also fall into the same price range, so the AMD A8-3870K processor will also be one of the testing participants this time.

As a result, we put together test platforms with the following hardware and software components:

• Processors:
  • AMD A8-3870K (Llano, 4 cores, 3.0 GHz, 4 MB L2, Radeon HD 6550D);
  • AMD FX-6200 (Zambezi, 6 cores, 3.8-4.1 GHz, 8 MB L3);
  • AMD FX-4170 (Zambezi, 4 cores, 4.2-4.3 GHz, 8 MB L3);
  • Core i3-2125 (Sandy Bridge, 2 cores + HT, 3.3 GHz, 3 MB L3, HD Graphics 3000);
  • Core i3-2130 (Sandy Bridge, 2 cores + HT, 3.4 GHz, 3 MB L3, HD Graphics 2000);
  • Core i3-3240 (Ivy Bridge, 2 cores + HT, 3.4 GHz, 3 MB L3, HD Graphics 2500);
  • Core i3-3225 (Ivy Bridge, 2 cores + HT, 3.3 GHz, 3 MB L3, HD Graphics 4000);
  • Core i3-3220 (Ivy Bridge, 2 cores + HT, 3.3 GHz, 3 MB L3, HD Graphics 2500);
  • Core i5-2320 (Sandy Bridge, 4 cores, 3.0-3.3 GHz, 6 MB L3, HD Graphics 2000);
  • Core i5-3330 (Ivy Bridge, 4 cores, 3.0-3.2 GHz, 6 MB L3, HD Graphics 2500).
• CPU cooler: NZXT Havik 140;
• Mainboards:
  • ASUS Crosshair V Formula (Socket AM3+, AMD 990FX + SB950);
  • ASUS P8Z77-V Deluxe (LGA1155, Intel Z77 Express);
  • Gigabyte GA-A75-UD4H (Socket FM1, AMD A75).
• Memory: 2 x 4 GB, DDR3-1866 SDRAM, 9-11-9-27 (Kingston KHX1866C9D3K2/8GX).
• Graphics card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 (2 GB/256-bit GDDR5, 1006/6008 MHz).
• System disk: Intel SSD 520 240 GB (SSDSC2CW240A3K5).
• Power supply unit: Corsair AX1200i (80 Plus Platinum, 1200 W).
• Operating system: Microsoft Windows 7 SP1 Ultimate x64.
• Drivers:
  • AMD Catalyst 12.8 Driver;
  • AMD Chipset Driver 12.8;
  • Intel Chipset Driver 9.3.0.1019;
  • Intel Graphics Media Accelerator Driver 15.​26.​12.​2761;
  • Intel Management Engine Driver 8.​1.​0.​1248;
  • Intel Rapid Storage Technology 11.​2.​0.​1006;
  • NVIDIA GeForce 301.42 Driver.

For our tests of the AMD FX-6200 and AMD FX-4170 based systems we installed KB2645594 and KB2646060 OS patches.

Intel Core i3-3225 processor didn’t participate in the tests performed in a system with a discrete graphics card, because its computational performance is identical to that of the Intel Core i3-3220 working at the same clock frequencies.