System Specs:

• AMD K6 233 MHz CPU
• FIC PA-2011 mainboard, 1 MB PB cache
• Seagate Cheetah SCSI hard disk
• DTP Ultra Wide SCSI controller with 32 MB EDO
• 64 MB SDRam Main memory
• Plextor 12x SCSI CD
• Matrox Millenium 4 MB
• Creative Labs AWE 64 sound board
• Logitech mouse
• Standard keyboard
• MAG DX 17 monitor
• Various HOTAS components

Some of the most exciting news in technology this year (1997) went all but unnoticed by sim fans. The K6 by AMD, the company that made 386 and 486 knockoffs some years ago, is poised to take the head off the giant: Intel.

What will this mean for virtual pilots and other power users? If you are ready to upgrade or are about to buy your first PC compatible, take notice! With a state of the art chip operating at a speed equal or higher than a Pentium MMX chip of the same clock speed at HALF the price, the K6 is ready to roar! PLUS, initial findings indicate that the K6 with its newer fabricating process and design than the older pentium technology, will be able to better stand overclocking. For technical specs check out AMD K6.

The K6 is the chip for the masses! In fact, the K6's principal advantage to manufacturers comes from its much lower-cost PC design and assembly. Where the Pentium Pro and its offspring are forcing costly new design changes to existing PC motherboards, the K6 processor is designed to slot into existing motherboards with a small modifications.

A note on the system itself: it came very nicely packaged, and on opening the box I was a bit surprised to see the neatness of the layout. Cables were nicely managed and clipped where they were too long. The box itself contains FOUR fans including the CPU cooler and the power supply, and its a tad noisy with all this airflow. The mainboard is the ATX design.

Fine and dandy, you says to yerself.... but will it run my flight sim at maximum warp? Is the FPU strong enough, or it is like past intel clone chips.. weak at the knees? I tried these sims on the system:

• Janes ATF
• Janes 688(I) Hunter/Killer
• Janes Longbow
• DiD EF2000 v.2.0
• Flying Corps
• imf16 beta

Have no fear, AMD is here! I'm happy to report that the only real problem I had initially was with the AWE 64 sound board. WIN95 didn't want to recognize it. I understand that Directsound may have some issues with the board, or the board with DirectSound... and this could be the complication. I also have a DSVD modem, and they don't always get along with other wavetable boards.

Janes ATF registers an average 8.5 fps with all graphics options to the max on my PPro 180 system. On this AMD K6 system I was around 10.5, roughly a 25% increase in frame rate. This is about what one would expect if all other things are equal.

However, happily, not all other things are quite that equal! Running DiD's SUPER EF2000 under WIN95 my frame rate went from an average 10 fps on the PPro 180 to about 14 on the AMD system. I suspect that larger cache and SDRam are the greatest influence here.

As a sixth generation chip comparisons to the P Pro or PII are appropriate. The K6 uses a larger level 1 cache than Intel: 32KB for data and 32KB for instructions, for a 64KB total. In comparison the P Pro uses twin 8KB caches, and the upcoming Pentium II processor will still have two 16KB caches for a total of only 32KB. Other advanced features may also influence the WIN95 performance, such as the latest branch prediction, speculative execution and out-of-order execution technologies.

SO... good news for sim fans! Since some of these more sophisticated simulations do make heavy use of the FPU, particularly for flight model execution, its great to see this kind of result with AMD. But this isn't the end of the good news either!

Some simulations make other kinds of tough demands on a system. Running 688(I) with all options maxed out, for example, is also a WIN95 bear. Now, I need to supply some context here. You have to realize that I am spoiled. I have great equipment. So when I have to wait ten seconds for a game to load, I am ready to complain. And if switching from one control station to another in a simulation takes too long, it spoils the flow for me.

When I go from the dock, command center and supply station in 688(I) to execute my mission, my PPro system takes about 12 seconds to get me to the conn. When I am switching from the briefing screen to the planning screen in the imf16 beta I have to wait about five seconds. My P Pro system uses a standard EIDE hard disk (Western Digital), an 8x Toshiba ATAPI CD, and 32 meg of EDO Ram and no caching controller.

Conversely, when I go from the dock and launch into the sim in 688(I) on the AMD system, it takes about two seconds. And when I switch from the briefing screen to the planning screen in imf16 it is virtually instant.

Ok, lets take another example. When I watch the 688(I) VERY COOL intro, from the satellite above the earth to the attack submarine launching on the Russian Grisha on my P Pro, the avi stutters and pauses frequently. Watching this same AVI on the AMD system is as smooth as silk. Obviously, the SCSI CD and the overall system memory and CPU are all impacting the playback.

One final comparison. I do a great deal of html maintenance these days! Loading the main page of Combat Simulations dead cold from Windows Explorer on my PPro system takes about twelve seconds. The same function on the AMD system took two seconds! No one would expect such a large difference by virtue of the increase in RAM alone. Obviously the system is highly optimized for Windows and the Seagate Cheetah SCSI is really showing its stuff here too. The Cheetah runs at 10,000 RPM for those who dont' know...

SUMMARY

This is a killer system, and I don't know anyone who wouldn't give their eye teeth for this setup. But you won't have to, because the AMD chip is much less pricey than the PII, and the K6 has licenced MMX technology within, same as the PII!

About the only disclaimer is regarding 3d hardware where triangle setup is handed off to the FPU. If the 3d chipset does not have a built in geometry engine, it must use that integrated into your mainboard processor. When I plugged in my Righteous 3d from my PPro 180 to my K6 system, I noticed about a 25% drop in frame rate in both EF2000 v.2.0 as well as Flying Corps. Two things to note in this regard. First, this is a comparison of the K6 to a Pentium Pro. If we compare the FPU on the K6 to the standard Pentium, it comes out almost equal. The FPU on the PPro comes out stronger. (This may not be a large consideration for sim fans since third generation 3d boards with on board geometry processing are arriving. For more info see our 3d Page).

Obviously, Intel has cause to worry. AMD has set themselves squarely in the path of success, and if I had some extra bucks I think I'd be buying shares! If you are in the market for an awesome gaming system this year, take a look at AMD. You can find them on the web at:

AMD Website

Take me to a chart that outlines the features of the K6 CPU:

K6 Features Chart

What is coming up next for AMD? Go to K6 3d!!

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Last Updated August 30th, 1997