Canterwood or Prescott?

[Cerridwen]

If you had a choice would you go for a 2.8GHz Canterwood or a 2.8GHz
Prescott? IOW, is 1MB cache better than HT?

 

[kony]

If you had a choice would you go for a 2.8GHz Canterwood or a 2.8GHz
Prescott? IOW, is 1MB cache better than HT?

Umm, Google search Canterwood.

1MB cache is more than offset by the longer pipelines of the Prescott, we
don't even have to consider HT.

The Prescott is slower per MHz and hotter running. It is a very poor buy
until it's ramped up to faster speeds, like > 3.4GHz.

 

[Cerridwen]

Umm, Google search Canterwood.

1MB cache is more than offset by the longer pipelines of the
Prescott, we don't even have to consider HT.

The Prescott is slower per MHz and hotter running. It is a very poor
buy until it's ramped up to faster speeds, like > 3.4GHz.

I think I meant Northwood, didn't I?! So what you're saying is Prescotts are
crap unless they're obscenely fast and I'd be better off sticking with a
'bog-standard' P4C?

Another question, purely for interest's sake: - considering to P4 chips of
identical clock speed, how much of a performance boost is gained with an
800FSB over 533 (if both are HT).

The reason I ask is that the system I'm using now is a Dell 8250 3.06 (533)
HT. It has some weird quirks ('heat hazy' display for one thing that I can
only ascribe to a dodgy AGP (the BIOS won't allow alteration of the AGP bus,
save enabling/disabling) or a dodgy PSU (something else I can't change as
the damned thing is riveted in!). Or, and this is a long shot, it's
something to do with the mains supply.

That and the fact it only takes RD-RAM. If I had a volt and/or multimeter I
could probably see if there was something up with the 12v rail (that's the
one, isn't it? I'm not too au fait when it comes to things like this and I
try to sound like I know more than I do!) but I don't.

When I said I wasn't a gamer, it's not strictly true - I play RTS,
adventures (not that any exist these days) and games like The Sims (and I
want something decent to play The Sims 2 on, whenever EA/Maxis get around to
releasing it - I've read six different dates so far).

Advise me then - on a budget of around £350-£450 I need a board/CPU/RAM/PSU
combo for the following

Photoshop
Illustrator
Publisher ---------- work stuff
PageMaker
InDesign
Office

Games (RTS/Management/The Sims/Adventuring)

Basic networking (can't afford to get clever with Wi-Fi)

Occasional video editing

Occasional online gaming (very occasional)

I'm a heavy multi-tasker (I often run PS/Illustrator/PM/Publisher
simultaneously)

Everything else I have (and I can drool over the new ATi chips all I like,
but I can't afford it and I don't need it!)

Cheers, Dave.

Cerri

 

[kony]

I think I meant Northwood, didn't I?! So what you're saying is Prescotts are
crap unless they're obscenely fast and I'd be better off sticking with a
'bog-standard' P4C?

Well "crap" might be an overly strong word, in the grand scheme of things
they're designed for higher clockspeed, and so compromises had to be made
which reduce their performance per MHz. It's not that they're a bad
choice, just that their predecessor is a better choice at same frequency.

Another question, purely for interest's sake: - considering to P4 chips of
identical clock speed, how much of a performance boost is gained with an
800FSB over 533 (if both are HT).

No easy answer there... a few percent, depending on how constrained the
specific application is by memory throughput. In general it's good to go
ahead and get the fastest FSB & Mem the budget will allow.

The reason I ask is that the system I'm using now is a Dell 8250 3.06 (533)
HT. It has some weird quirks ('heat hazy' display for one thing that I can
only ascribe to a dodgy AGP (the BIOS won't allow alteration of the AGP bus,
save enabling/disabling) or a dodgy PSU (something else I can't change as
the damned thing is riveted in!). Or, and this is a long shot, it's
something to do with the mains supply.

Heat hazy?
You're in a bad spot then, spending more $ for a lower speed CPU (the 2.4
or 2.8 you've mentioned).

If the power supply were a standard form-factor and pin-compatible you
could just drill out the rivets, though I suspect the power supply is fine
for the system as it was originally delivered, minor additions shouldn't
require a power supply swap.

That and the fact it only takes RD-RAM. If I had a volt and/or multimeter I
could probably see if there was something up with the 12v rail (that's the
one, isn't it? I'm not too au fait when it comes to things like this and I
try to sound like I know more than I do!) but I don't.

I doubt the 12V rail is causing display problems.

When I said I wasn't a gamer, it's not strictly true - I play RTS,
adventures (not that any exist these days) and games like The Sims (and I
want something decent to play The Sims 2 on, whenever EA/Maxis get around to
releasing it - I've read six different dates so far).

Advise me then - on a budget of around £350-£450 I need a board/CPU/RAM/PSU
combo for the following

Photoshop
Illustrator
Publisher ---------- work stuff
PageMaker
InDesign
Office

Games (RTS/Management/The Sims/Adventuring)

Basic networking (can't afford to get clever with Wi-Fi)

Occasional video editing

Occasional online gaming (very occasional)

I'm a heavy multi-tasker (I often run PS/Illustrator/PM/Publisher
simultaneously)

Everything else I have (and I can drool over the new ATi chips all I like,
but I can't afford it and I don't need it!)

Cheers, Dave.

Cerri

Mainly you'll want to be sure to get an ample amount of memory, say 1GB.
Beyond that someone in the UK could better advise what parts to get to
fill any particular budget. It does seem like a P4 is the CPU you'd want.

Then there's the question of what to do with the Dell... You might see
what you could get out of it used, then decide if you'd sell it or part it
out and reuse the CPU and other misc parts. Probably much better to sell
it whole, or buy a lower speed cpu and swap CPUs... depends on what the
buyer is looking for. If you can sell it then your proceeds may change
the budget for your upgrades.

 

[Last Boy Scout]

The Prescott does not emulate two CPUs. It uses too much power and
has to have more Cache Memory because the execution tunnels are
longer. However, it is estimated to be as much as 10% faster.

Suggest you read up on it at

www.tomshardware.com
www.anandtech.com

These sites have articles on things like processors and motherboards.

 

[Bubba]

Cerridwen's log on stardate 14 ožu 2004

If you had a choice would you go for a 2.8GHz Canterwood or a 2.8GHz
Prescott? IOW, is 1MB cache better than HT?

NW. Cooler and equaly efficient.