AMD Athlon 1200 (C) socket: Socket 462

What the Athlon 1200 (C) is

The AMD Athlon 1200 (C) is a 1200 MHz single-core desktop processor from October 2000. It runs one K7 Thunderbird C core at 1200 MHz with no turbo, so 1 core gives 1 thread. Cache is 256 KB of full-speed on-die L2 with 128 KB of L1 on a 180 nm process. Power is rated at 66 W in a Socket A ceramic PGA package on a 266 MT/s EV6 bus with a 9x multiplier on a 133 MHz clock.

A clean 9x integer ratio closes the C line at the top with the fastest bus, which is why the 1200C suited buyers who want peak 266 MT/s clocks without leaving Socket A. AMD sold the 1200C in October 2000 with the 1000C and 1133. The chip supports MMX and Enhanced 3DNow.

Peak 266 MT/s clocks with a 66 W envelope suit late Socket A DDR towers with strong airflow. The 9x ratio is the highest integer C multiplier. That is why the 1200C shipped in flagship 266 MT/s systems.

Socket and motherboard compatibility

The 1200 (C) fits Socket A flagship DDR desktops with Thunderbird-C support. It needs a 462-pin board with a 266 MT/s bus and a BIOS that lists Athlon 1200C. The Socket vs chipset: what decides whether a CPU works guide covers pairing rules.

Flagship DDR towers are the natural match. Boards listing the 1200C accept the chip with a 66 W cooler.

Memory, PCIe and cooling

Memory is SDRAM and DDR through the board chipset, matched to the board sockets. The CPU has no memory controller. Flagship KT266 boards commonly run DDR200 pairs.

A 266 MT/s EV6 bus ties the CPU to the chipset, while AGP and PCI hang off the chipset. No PCIe lanes originate on the die. Cooling uses the Socket 462 lug clip with a 66 W cooler.

Upgrade paths

On the same socket, an Athlon 1200 (B) such as AMD Athlon 1200 (B) is the 200 MT/s twin at matching clocks and power for older boards. An Athlon 1133 drops 67 MHz at 63 W.

A move to Athlon XP Palomino keeps the 266 MT/s bus with SSE paths. The Socket 462 page lists the range for planning.