Are the 939 Athlon 64s SSE or SSE2 or neither?

[Caveman]

Downloading specific version of FFSDshow... Is SSE/SSE2 Intel only or for AMD 64 as well? If yes, what version?

 

[NarcoticHobo]

Originally posted by: Caveman
Downloading specific version of FFSDshow... Is SSE/SSE2 Intel only or for AMD 64 as well? If yes, what version?

Athlon 64's support SSE and SSE2

 

[JustAnAverageGuy]

Both

 

[magomago]

and probably by next year there will be another revision that adds SSE3 support...but I wouldn't expect to see that for quite a long time (not to mention the fact I haven't heard it being utlizied too much...correct me if i'm wrong though)

 

[NarcoticHobo]

Originally posted by: magomago
and probably by next year there will be another revision that adds SSE3 support...but I wouldn't expect to see that for quite a long time (not to mention the fact I haven't heard it being utlizied too much...correct me if i'm wrong though)

That revision is scheduled for January/February actually.

 

[ViRGE]

Originally posted by: magomago
and probably by next year there will be another revision that adds SSE3 support...but I wouldn't expect to see that for quite a long time (not to mention the fact I haven't heard it being utlizied too much...correct me if i'm wrong though)

Can the A64's ever completely support SSE3 though? IIRC, it includes some instructions dealing with HyperThreading, which the A64 lacks, so it could never "officially" support SSE3, right?

 

[Twsmit]

SSE, SSE2, SSE3 are all instructions that help speed up multimedia functions etc..... they are an instruction that is hard coded into the CPU.

HT is just using a second virtual CPU in addition to the main.


Therrefore i do not believe SSE3 needs HT. HT might inscrease speed in general and help speed up SSE3 instructions, but there is no requirement.

 

[ViRGE]

Thanks, but I don't think you quite get what I'm saying. SSE3 includes 2 instructions for thread syncronization designed to help with HyperThreading. Since AMD doesn't have HyperThreading, can they still make/call their chips SSE3 compliant, if two of the instructions wouldn't be available on AMD's chips?

 

[Sunner]

Originally posted by: ViRGE
Thanks, but I don't think you quite get what I'm saying. SSE3 includes 2 instructions for thread syncronization designed to help with HyperThreading. Since AMD doesn't have HyperThreading, can they still make/call their chips SSE3 compliant, if two of the instructions wouldn't be available on AMD's chips?

I'm by no means an expert, but I don't think it would be very hard to just include those instructions, and simply discard them(or whatever would make the most sense)?

 

[DaveSimmons]

Threads and thread synchronization existed long before HyperThreading.

The thread synchronization instructions might improve HT performance but that doesn't mean A64 can't implement them. It just means they might have no effect on A64 performance or could even harm it slightly.

I haven't looked up the instructions (and haven't done assembly coding in years) but even if these instructions are meant to reduce collisions between virtual processors in HT the A64 could simply implement them as no-ops (e.g. "wait for HT CPU B to finish its lock" becomes "no wait needed since we know CPU B doesn't exist")