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AMD FX 8350 Black Edition CPU and Wraith Cooler Review - PAGE 1
Marvin Purdy - Thursday, May 12th, 2016 Like ShareApril proved to be a fun-filled month with AMD allowing me to review two of its newest entries in processors. As you may recall, the Athlon X4 880K and A10-7890K were both released back in March to expand their lineup of socket FM2+ based processors with the faster base speed offerings of 4.0 and 4.1 GHz, respectively, for their class. The boxed retail releases for these new processors also include new heatsink/fan combinations (like the Wraith cooler) that support up to 125W of thermal dissipation.
At the end of April, AMD also provided an updated slide presentation for their FX processor lineup. One of these was titled “HOW DO AMD FX CPUs GIVE YOU MORE?”, as shown in the first image below. This slide depicts AMD's breakdown of the 8000/9000, 6000, and 4000 series processors and how they offer more cores and cache per CPU against equivalent Intel offerings, as long as a helpful reminder about how all of the FX processors are multiplier-unlocked for enthusiasts to overclock as desired.
Along with this updated slide, AMD also provided new details on an old favorite, the FX 8350 CPU that was first introduced in October, 2012. As shown in the second image below, the updated AMD FX 8350 is positioned to directly compete with the Intel Core i5-6500. The difference is the FX 8350 CPU is now packaged with the newly released Wraith heatsink for more effective processor cooling potential out of the box.
Speaking of the Wraith, the third slide below provides more info on this new cooler that can come packaged with the new A10-7890K and the FX 8350, as well as the FX 8370 (similarly repackaged in February with the announcement of the Wraith) and FX 6350 processors. The slide confirms the Wraith cooler will not be available as a standalone product. The larger Wraith cooler also warrants new packaging for the aforementioned processors.
*Based on NewEgg pricing as of March 23, 2016
Packaging:
The FX 8350 processor we're reviewing today comes with the new Wraith cooler in an updated packaging that's matte black all around. Processor details are listed in orange portions on the front and over the top panel of the package. On the right side is a small opening that offers a preview of the processor itself in the packaging.
The back and side panels offers additional details about the processor and various other models from AMD.
The first thing you'll see when opening the FX 8350 packaging is the inner cardboard packaging for the Wraith cooler, and below that is the box that holds the CPU and specification/warranty guides.
The AMD Certificate of Authenticity, three-year warranty information and installation instructions come on a single folded sheet.
The FX 8350 processor comes in a protective package with a bonus emblem badge to affix on your system case or monitor.
Specifications:
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CPU Socket Thermal Solution Number of CPU Cores Base Clock Speed Turbo Core Speed Total L1 Cache
Total L2 Cache Total 3 cache Unlocked Memory Interface Memory Channels Memory Speed Thermal Design Performance Warranty |
FX 8350 AM3+ Wraith Cooler 8 4.0 GHz 4..2 GHz 4 x 64 KB 2-way set associative shared instruction caches 8 x 16 KB 4-way set associative data caches 4 x 2 MB 16-way set associative shared exclusive caches 8 MB 64-way set associative shared cache Yes DDR3 2 1866 MHz 125 W 3 years |
Information courtesy of AMD http://www.amd.com/en-us/products/processors/desktop/fx
Closer Look:
As indicated in the next image, the AMD Wraith cooler can operate at a quiet 39dbA using a 90mm fan that pushes 34% more air flow than the chipmaker's previous stock cooler. The Wraith still fits within the footprint of the older cooler version as well, despite featuring 24% more cooling fin surface area to provide 125W of thermal cooling power. The cooler's AMD logo and shroud even feature backlit illumination, allowing users to show off the FX 8350 processor in style from a case window.
The next four photos showcase the Wraith cooler's shroud, standard AMD mounting clip, and the pre-applied thermal paste that you can easily remove in case you wish to use your preferred solution instead.
Below is a shot of the FX 8350 CPU and Wraith cooler installed in our test rig, all powered up and showing off the illuminated AMD logo.
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The 8350 is produced on a 32nm process whilst the 6500 is 14nm thus allowing it to run cooler and consume significantly less power.
Sure the AMD chip is a decent performer at it's price and can seem quite good if you overclock it to within an inch of it's life but you won't be OCing much with this cooler and if you do crank the speed significantly then you increase the power load to match.
The 8350 was launched in 2012 after all and hasn't magically gotten any faster since then.
Also the smaller process doesn't mean it will run cooler. I only means that one can fit more transistors on a die. The issue changes from total heat to how to dissipate the heat from tiny a source. The easiest way to do that, is to use less energy. Exactly what Intel has done.