AMD Phenom II X4 B97

The AMD Phenom II X4 B97 is a desktop processor from the K10 architecture, codename Deneb, with four cores and four threads. It runs at a 3.20 GHz base clock with no boost clock, carries a 95 W TDP, and uses the AMD Socket AM3. Fabricated on a 45 nm process at GlobalFoundries, the die contains 758 million transistors on a 258 mm² surface. The cache layout is 128 KB of L1 per core, 512 KB of L2 per core, and 6 MB of shared L3 cache. The memory controller supports dual-channel DDR3 at 21.3 GB/s, ECC memory is enabled, and PCIe Gen 2 is the available interconnect generation. The aggregate benchmark score is 741, placing the B97 at the 19th percentile of all CPUs in the database.

Who Should Consider It

The B97 is best understood as a four-thread part with a modest single-thread ceiling. The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 2154, the R20 multicore score of 904, and the R15 multicore score of 216 all show that the chip can produce meaningful throughput when software uses all four cores. The R23 single-core score of 304 and the R20 single-core score of 127, by contrast, show that workloads depending on one strong thread will not see a high performance ceiling. Users running multithreaded rendering or batch workloads that scale to four threads will get closer to the full capability of the B97 than users running lightly threaded applications.

Gaming is the clearest example of a workload that will be limited by the single-core results. Many game engines assign primary simulation work to a small number of threads, and the B97's single-core figures are low relative to its own multicore figures. The 19th percentile aggregate position reinforces that this is not a part for high-refresh-rate gaming or for pushing heavily threaded game scenes. The 4-core/4-thread configuration provides no extra logical threads, so software that expects more than four threads will not see a virtualization boost.

Content creation workloads that scale well across cores can make use of the 4-thread design and the 6 MB shared L3 cache. The Cinebench scores in R15, R20, and R23 all scale upward as the workload engages all cores. The lack of a boost clock means the 3.20 GHz base frequency is the maximum operating frequency in both single-threaded and multithreaded tasks. Users with an existing AM3/DDR3 platform and applications that can utilize four cores are the realistic audience. Office workloads that are mostly single-threaded will be constrained by the low single-core scores, while office tasks that are heavily parallel will encounter the 4-thread limit. ECC memory support is an advantage for data-integrity-sensitive use, but the aggregate position suggests that the B97 should be chosen for platform compatibility or legacy workload support rather than for top-tier performance.

Power and Thermals

The B97 is rated for a 95 W TDP, which places it in a mainstream desktop power class. With no boost clock, the 3.20 GHz base frequency sets the sustained operating point for all loads. A capable air cooler is sufficient for this thermal envelope; no exotic cooling is implied by the 95 W TDP. The 45 nm process and 258 mm² die with 758 million transistors are consistent with a conventional thermal profile. The die area is large enough that the 95 W heat load is spread over a sizeable surface. The locked multiplier means the user cannot raise the multiplier to increase frequency, so the thermal design is essentially fixed around the 95 W rating. The production status is end-of-life, and the benchmark data does not include separate power or thermal measurements, but the TDP class and process node provide a clear cooling requirement.

Platform and Compatibility

The B97 uses the AMD Socket AM3. It supports dual-channel DDR3 memory with a 21.3 GB/s memory bus, and the ECC flag indicates that ECC memory is supported. This makes the platform suitable for setups that require memory error detection. The CPU itself does not include integrated graphics; display output is available on certain motherboards as a chipset feature. PCIe Gen 2 is the provided PCIe generation. The multiplier is locked, so overclocking through the multiplier is not available. The cache hierarchy consists of 128 KB L1 per core, 512 KB L2 per core, and 6 MB shared L3, all visible to AM3 firmware.

The part was released on 2010-05-10 and is end-of-life. The market segment is Desktop, and the part number is HDXB97WFK4DGM. Because the platform uses DDR3 memory and Socket AM3, the compatibility envelope is defined by those two elements. The B97's memory bandwidth of 21.3 GB/s is the figure the memory controller can address with dual-channel DDR3. PCIe Gen 2 connectivity is older than newer generations, but the fact pack does not list lane counts, so a full connectivity comparison is not possible from the data. The production status means the B97 is not an active new platform choice; it belongs to a mature AM3/DDR3 era.

How It Compares

Against the Intel Xeon E5520, the B97 has an average score of 741 versus the E5520's 741, with a deltaPct of 0.1. The B97 holds a negligible aggregate advantage, and the two parts are effectively tied in the data.

Against the Intel Core i3-5010U, the B97 trails by 0.1%. The average score is 741 versus the rival's 742. This is a statistical tie within the nearest-rival grouping, despite the different platform positions of the two parts.

Against the Intel Core i5-750, the B97 sits 0.2% behind. The average score is 741 versus the rival's 743. The i5-750 holds the higher aggregate score in the cluster, but the margin is still very small.

Against the Intel Xeon L5530, the B97 leads by 0.5%. The average score is 741 versus the rival's 737. This is the largest delta in the nearest-rival set, but it remains a narrow performance edge.

Benchmark Performance

The B97 has an average benchmark score of 741 and ranks at the 19th percentile of all CPUs tested. The nearest-rival cluster spans from 737 to 743, placing the B97 almost exactly in the middle of a tight performance band. The exact deltas are 0.5% above the Intel Xeon L5530, 0.1% above the Intel Xeon E5520, 0.1% below the Intel Core i3-5010U, and 0.2% below the Intel Core i5-750. These figures show that the B97 is not meaningfully separated from any of its nearest rivals.

The Cinebench results are internally consistent. In Cinebench R23, the multicore score is 2154 and the single-core score is 304. In Cinebench R20, the multicore score is 904 and the single-core score is 127. In Cinebench R15, the multicore score is 216. The R23 multicore score is the highest absolute number in the B97's benchmark set, while the R20 single-core score of 127 is the lowest. This gap between single-core and multicore results is the defining characteristic of the performance profile.

The nearest-rival deltas are all between -0.2% and 0.5%, which means that any real-world difference among these CPUs will be influenced more by platform features, memory support, and thermals than by raw benchmark throughput. The 741 average benchmark score and the 19th percentile ranking are the summary measures for the B97's position. In the aggregate, the B97 does not distinguish itself from the Xeon E5520, the Core i3-5010U, the Core i5-750, or the Xeon L5530. The largest gap in the group is only 0.5 percentage points, so the B97 should be regarded as performance-equivalent to this entire cluster of rivals.