
Athlon II X4 600e

Phenom II X3 B75
Athlon II X4 600e vs Phenom II X3 B75 Performance Spectrum
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.
Athlon II X4 600e vs Phenom II X3 B75 FPS Benchmarks
Predicted gaming performance across popular games. Tested paired with GeForce RTX 5090 to isolate CPU performance.
Search any supported game below to compare 1080p FPS for both components.

Path of Exile 2

Counter-Strike 2

League of Legends

Valorant

Among Us

Apex Legends

ARC Raiders

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6

Civilization VI
Athlon II X4 600e vs Phenom II X3 B75: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict
See where each CPU makes more sense in practice: gaming, heavier work, platform cost, power draw, and upgrade path.
Athlon II X4 600e
2009Why buy it
- ✅Better for gaming: +4.0% higher average FPS across 38 shared CPU benchmark tests.
- ✅Draws 45W instead of 95W, a 50W reduction.
- ✅100+% more PCIe lanes (16 vs 0) for storage and expansion-heavy builds.
- ✅Includes a boxed cooler (Yes), unlike Phenom II X3 B75.
Trade-offs
- ❌Launch MSRP is still $100 MSRP, while Phenom II X3 B75 mostly shows up through inconsistent older-market listings.
Phenom II X3 B75
2009Why buy it
Trade-offs
- ❌Worse for gaming: lower average FPS than Athlon II X4 600e across 38 shared CPU benchmark tests.
- ❌Lower PassMark (1,783 vs 1,795).
- ❌111.1% higher power demand at 95W vs 45W.
- ❌No boxed cooler included, unlike Athlon II X4 600e.
Quick Answers
So, is Athlon II X4 600e better than Phenom II X3 B75?
Which one is better for gaming?
Which one is better for streaming, content creation, and heavy multitasking?
Which one is the smarter buy today, not just the cheaper CPU?
Which one is more future-proof for 2026 and beyond?
Athlon II X4 600e vs Phenom II X3 B75 Technical Specifications
Side-by-side specs, architecture details, clocks, memory, power, and platform differences.

Athlon II X4 600e
The Athlon II X4 600e is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 20 October 2009 (16 years ago). It is based on the Propus (2009−2011) architecture. It features 4 cores and 4 threads. Base frequency is 2.2 GHz, with boost up to 2.2 GHz. L3 cache: 0 kB. L2 cache: 512 kB (per core). Built on 45 nm process technology. Socket: AM3. Thermal design power (TDP): 45 Watt. Memory support: DDR3. Passmark benchmark score: 1,795 points. Launch price was $130.

Phenom II X3 B75
The Phenom II X3 B75 is manufactured by AMD. It was released in 2009-01-01. It is based on the Heka (2009−2010) architecture. It features 3 cores and 3 threads. Base frequency is 3 GHz, with boost up to 3 GHz. L3 cache: 6 MB (total). L2 cache: 512 kB (per core). Built on 45 nm process technology. Socket: AM3. Thermal design power (TDP): 95 Watt. Memory support: DDR3. Passmark benchmark score: 1,783 points. Launch price was $149.
Processing Power
The Athlon II X4 600e packs 4 cores / 4 threads, while the Phenom II X3 B75 offers 3 cores / 3 threads — the Athlon II X4 600e has 1 more core. Boost clocks reach 2.2 GHz on the Athlon II X4 600e versus 3 GHz on the Phenom II X3 B75 — a 30.8% clock advantage for the Phenom II X3 B75 (base: 2.2 GHz vs 3 GHz). The Athlon II X4 600e uses the Propus (2009−2011) architecture (45 nm), while the Phenom II X3 B75 uses Heka (2009−2010) (45 nm). In PassMark, the Athlon II X4 600e scores 1,795 against the Phenom II X3 B75's 1,783 — a 0.7% lead for the Athlon II X4 600e. L3 cache: 0 kB on the Athlon II X4 600e vs 6 MB (total) on the Phenom II X3 B75.
| Feature | Athlon II X4 600e | Phenom II X3 B75 |
|---|---|---|
| Cores / Threads | 4 / 4+33% | 3 / 3 |
| Boost Clock | 2.2 GHz | 3 GHz+36% |
| Base Clock | 2.2 GHz | 3 GHz+36% |
| L3 Cache | 0 kB | 6 MB (total) |
| L2 Cache | 512 kB (per core) | 512 kB (per core) |
| Process | 45 nm | 45 nm |
| Architecture | Propus (2009−2011) | Heka (2009−2010) |
| PassMark | 1,795 | 1,783 |
Memory & Platform
Both processors use the AM3 socket with PCIe 2.0.
| Feature | Athlon II X4 600e | Phenom II X3 B75 |
|---|---|---|
| Socket | AM3 | AM3 |
| PCIe Generation | PCIe 2.0 | PCIe 2.0 |
| Max RAM Speed | DDR3-1333 | — |
| Max RAM Capacity | 16 GB | — |
| RAM Channels | 2 | — |
| ECC Support | No | — |
| PCIe Lanes | 16 | — |
Advanced Features
Virtualization: AMD-V (Athlon II X4 600e) / not specified (Phenom II X3 B75).
| Feature | Athlon II X4 600e | Phenom II X3 B75 |
|---|---|---|
| Integrated GPU | No | — |
| Unlocked | No | — |
| AVX-512 | No | — |
| Virtualization | AMD-V | — |
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