AMD claims CPU overclocking record

 

Gallery

By Nicole Kobie

Posted on 13 Sep 2011 at 15:01

AMD has claimed a Guinness World Record for "Highest Frequency of a Computer Processor" using its new Bulldozer architecture.

The chip maker pushed an AMD FX processor to 8.429GHz, topping the 8.309GHz clocked by the prior record, which was set using a single-core Intel Celeron D 352.

The feat was achieved with extreme cooling, with AMD first using liquid nitrogen to drop temperatures below -180°C before overclocking the processor, from its upcoming Bulldozer lineup.

"We could find no cold bug, the bane of overclockers, which often stops modern processors from functioning in extremely cold conditions," senior manager Simon Solotko said in a blog post. "The question, which we have answered once before, was whether the AMD FX processor would continue to scale, to achieve higher frequencies, if we dropped the temperature further below this unbelievably cold threshold."

"Would the extreme cold of the liquid helium, a substance only a few degrees higher than absolute zero, break this processor, or by improving conductivity and decreasing temperatures, allow it to run even faster?" It would seem the answer is the latter, as - on the third try - AMD managed to blast past the record.

The test is an extreme one: AMD warned customers not to try to achieve similar on their own. "Overclocking and extreme cooling will void your hardware warranties and could cause serious damage to your PC hardware. We destroy motherboards, processors, and graphics cards at an alarming rate doing it," AMD warned.

The award comes on the opening day of Intel's Developer Forum, the rival chipmaker's big annual show.