The AMD Athlon 64 is an eighth-generation x86 microprocessor that implements the AMD64 instruction set, which were introduced with the Opteron processor .
For the first time in computing history, the x86 instruction set has not been expanded by Intel . In fact Intel has used this same set of instructions for its later processors, such as the Xeon Nocona. Intel calls its implementation Extended Memory Technology (EM64T), and it fully supports the AMD64 architecture. The AMD64 architecture looks like it will be the dominant computing architecture of the 64-bit generation, defeating alternatives such as Intel’s IA-64 architecture in this market .
The Athlon 64 features a memory controller on the microprocessor’s own integrated circuit and other architectural enhancements that give it better performance than previous Athlon and Athlon XP running at the same speed, even running legacy 32-bit code. AMD has chosen a megahertz-based processor performance measurement system at which a hypothetical Athlon Thunderbird would have to run to give the same performance as an Athlon 64, rather than indicating the megahertz it actually operates at.
There are two variants of the Athlon 64: The Athlon 64 and the Athlon 64 FX. The Athlon 64-FX is similar to the Opteron and more powerful than the normal Athlon 64. Both can run 16-bit, 32-bit code, and AMD’s own 64-bit assembler. GNU / Linux, OpenBSD, FreeBSD, and NetBSD currently support the 64-bit mode of Athlon 64, while Microsoft has released a version of Windows XP for 64-bit computers.
The Athlon 64 also features a processor speed reduction technology called Cool’n’Quiet, ‘Cold and Silent’. When the user is running applications that require little use of the processor, the speed of the processor and its voltage are reduced. This causes the consumption maximums to drop from 89 W to 22 W.
The Athlon 64 comes in three CPU sockets: One has 754 pins, another 939 pins, and the remaining 940. The lower-pinout supports a single memory channel. Socket 939 has memory support in Dual Channel configuration, of the DDR RAM type. In mid-2006, the 940-pin AM2 socket was introduced, leading to the implementation of DDR2 memories on Atlhon 64 platforms.
