AMD Spider Platform - Phenom, 790FX, RV670
PCMark Vantage (Continued)
We continue our test coverage with a few more modules from the comprehensive PCMark Vantage suite of benchmarks.
Vantage Music suite includes the following tests: 
Futuremark PCMark Vantage
Synthetic Benchmarks
Music 1 - Three simultaneous threads, Web page rendering – w/ music shop content, Audio transcoding: WAV -> WMA lossless, HDD: Adding music to Windows Media Player
Music 2 - Audio transcoding: WAV -> WMA lossless
Music 3 - Audio transcoding: MP3 -> WMA
Music 4 - Two simultaneous threads, Audio transcoding: WMA -> WMA, HDD: Adding music to Windows Media Player
The PCMark Vantage 'Music' test shows the new Phenom processors finishing well behind Intel's similarly clocked Q6600 and the higher clocked dual-core processors. Although parts of this test are multi-threaded, the quad-cores of Phenom aren't all put to use, hence the better performance from higher-clocked dual-core processors.
Vantage Communications suite includes the following tests: Communications 1 - Three simultaneous threads, Data encryption: CNG AES CBC, Data compression, Web page rendering: graphics content, 1024x768, windowed The results from Vantage's 'Communications' test mirror those of the music test above, and for the same reasons. Vantage Productivity suite includes the following tests: Productivity 1 - Two simultaneous threads, Text editing, HDD: application loading PCMark Vantage's Productivity test put the Phenom 9700 and Core 2 Quad Q6600 on roughly equal footing, with a slight edge going to Intel's offering. In comparison to the Athlon 64 X2's, however, Phenom's performance is very strong. The Vantage HDD suite includes the following tests: HDD 1 - HDD: Windows Defender All of the platforms we tested were equipped with identical 74GB Western Digital hard drives, hence the similar scores above. What's interesting to note, however, is that the platforms with the highest clocks and most memory bandwidth - the Q9770 and QuadFX FX-74 rigs - put up the best scores here.
Communications 2 - Three simultaneous threads. Web page rendering: open various news pages from IE 7 Favorites in separate tabs, close them one by one, Data decryption: CNG AES CBC, HDD: Windows Defender
Communications 3 - Windows Mail: Search
Communications 4 - Two simultaneous threads, Data encryption: CNG AES CBC, Audio transcoding: WMA -> WMA - to simulate VOIP 
Productivity 2 - Two simultaneous threads, Windows Contacts: search, HDD: Windows Defender
Productivity 3 - HDD: Windows Vista start-up
Productivity 4 - Three simultaneous threads, Windows Contacts: search, Windows Mail: Run Message Rules, Web page rendering: simultaneously open various pages from IE7 Favorites in separate tabs, close them one by one
HDD 2 - HDD: game HDD
HDD 3 - HDD: importing pictures
HDD 4 - HDD: Windows Vista start-up
HDD 5 - HDD: video editing
HDD 6 - HDD: Media Center
HDD 7 - HDD: Adding music to Windows Media Player
