Athlon II P320 vs Phenom X4 9650
Athlon II P320
Phenom X4 9650
Performance Spectrum - CPU
About PassMark
PassMark CPU Mark evaluates processor speed through complex mathematical computations. It provides a reliable metric to compare multi-core performance, where higher scores indicate faster processing for multitasking, gaming, and heavy workloads.
Value Upgrade Path
This is the official ChipVERSUS Value Rating, comparing raw performance (PassMark) per dollar. Components placed above yours deliver better value for money. The Athlon II P320 is positioned at rank 622 and the Phenom X4 9650 is on rank 362, so the Phenom X4 9650 offers better cost-efficiency for playing games.
Avg price is the current average price collected from markets across the web.
Performance Per Dollar Athlon II P320
Performance Per Dollar Phenom X4 9650
Performance Comparison
About PassMark🏆 Chipversus Verdict
🚀 Performance Leadership
| Insight | Athlon II P320 | Phenom X4 9650 |
|---|---|---|
| Gaming | ❌ Lower gaming performance | ✅ Superior gaming performance |
| Workstation | ❌ Weaker in multi-core tasks | ✅ Better multi-core power |
| Price | ⚠️ Higher cost ($15) | ✅ More affordable ($0) |
| Longevity | 🛑 Legacy (Champlain (2010−2011) / 45 nm) | 🛑 Legacy (Agena (2007−2008) / 65 nm) |
💎 Value Proposition
| Insight | Athlon II P320 | Phenom X4 9650 |
|---|---|---|
| Cost Efficiency | ❌ Lower cost efficiency | ❌ Lower cost efficiency |
| Upfront Cost | ⚠️ Higher cost ($15) | ✅ More affordable ($0) |
Performance Check
To accurately isolate CPU performance, all benchmarks below use an NVIDIA RTX 4090 as the reference GPU. This eliminates GPU-side bottlenecks and highlights pure processing throughput differences between the CPUs.
Note: Real-world results may vary based on your actual GPU. CPU performance impact is more visible in processing-intensive titles and high-refresh-rate gaming scenarios.
Technical Specifications
Side-by-side comparison of Athlon II P320 and Phenom X4 9650
Athlon II P320
The Athlon II P320 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 2009-01-01. It is based on the Champlain (2010−2011) architecture. It features 2 cores and 2 threads. Max frequency: 2.1 GHz. L2 cache: 1 MB. Built on 45 nm process technology. Socket: S1g4. Thermal design power (TDP): 1 MB. Passmark benchmark score: 1,776 points. Launch price was $149.
Phenom X4 9650
The Phenom X4 9650 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 2009-01-01. It is based on the Agena (2007−2008) architecture. It features 4 cores and 4 threads. Max frequency: 2.3 GHz. L3 cache: 2 MB (total). L2 cache: 512 kB (per core). Built on 65 nm process technology. Socket: AM2+. Thermal design power (TDP): 95 Watt. Passmark benchmark score: 1,777 points. Launch price was $149.
Processing Power
The Athlon II P320 packs 2 cores / 2 threads, while the Phenom X4 9650 offers 4 cores / 4 threads — the Phenom X4 9650 has 2 more cores. Boost clocks reach 2.1 GHz on the Athlon II P320 versus 2.3 GHz on the Phenom X4 9650 — a 9.1% clock advantage for the Phenom X4 9650. The Athlon II P320 uses the Champlain (2010−2011) architecture (45 nm), while the Phenom X4 9650 uses Agena (2007−2008) (65 nm). In PassMark, the Athlon II P320 scores 1,776 against the Phenom X4 9650's 1,777 — a 0.1% lead for the Phenom X4 9650.
| Feature | Athlon II P320 | Phenom X4 9650 |
|---|---|---|
| Cores / Threads | 2 / 2 | 4 / 4+100% |
| Boost Clock | 2.1 GHz | 2.3 GHz+10% |
| L3 Cache | — | 2 MB (total) |
| L2 Cache | 1 MB+100% | 512 kB (per core) |
| Process | 45 nm-31% | 65 nm |
| Architecture | Champlain (2010−2011) | Agena (2007−2008) |
| PassMark | 1,776 | 1,777 |
| Geekbench 6 Single | 189 | — |
| Geekbench 6 Multi | 308 | — |
Memory & Platform
The Athlon II P320 uses the S1g4 socket (PCIe 2.0), while the Phenom X4 9650 uses AM2+ (PCIe 2.0) — making them incompatible on the same motherboard.
| Feature | Athlon II P320 | Phenom X4 9650 |
|---|---|---|
| Socket | S1g4 | AM2+ |
| PCIe Generation | PCIe 2.0 | PCIe 2.0 |
| Max RAM Speed | DDR3-1066 | — |
| Max RAM Capacity | 8 GB | — |
| RAM Channels | 2 | — |
| ECC Support | ❌ | — |
| PCIe Lanes | 0 | — |
Advanced Features
Virtualization: AMD-V (Athlon II P320) / not specified (Phenom X4 9650). Primary use case: Athlon II P320 targets Laptop. Direct competitor: Athlon II P320 rivals Pentium P6000.
| Feature | Athlon II P320 | Phenom X4 9650 |
|---|---|---|
| Integrated GPU | No | — |
| IGPU Model | None | — |
| Unlocked | No | — |
| AVX-512 | No | — |
| Virtualization | AMD-V | — |
| Target Use | Laptop | — |
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The most powerful cpus ranked by PassMark CPU Mark benchmark scores.
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