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HotHardware Test Systems |
A New Processor
for a New Front Side Bus |
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ASUS
P4T533 i850E Motherboard
512MB RIMM 4200 RDRAM
ASUS P4T-E i850 Motherboard
512MB PC800 (PC1066)
RDRAM
MSI
845G Max i845G Motherboard
512MB Corsair PC2700
DDR SDRAM
MSI 645
Ultra SiS 645 Motherboard
512MB Corsair PC2700
DDR SDRAM
Common Hardware:
Intel Pentium 4 2.4GHz
NVIDIA GeForce4 Ti 4600
(Drivers - v.28.32)
IBM 30GB ATA-100
7200RPM Hard Drive
Sound Blaster Live!
Value |
A Few
Words About The Benchmarks:
In setting up our test machines, we install Windows XP
on a formatted, FAT32 hard drive. After installing
the relevant drivers (yes, this includes the latest IDE
and AGP drivers for the SiS board) we disable system
restore, all of the graphical enhancements in Windows
XP, and the Automatic Update feature. The desktop
on each test bed is set to 1024x768, 16-bit color and a
75Hz refresh rate. |
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Benchmarking with Sisoft Sandra 2002 |
Bandwidth Makes
the Difference |
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Although
the RIMM 4200 module only occupies one memory slot, it
serves the same purpose as two 16-bit PC1066 modules.
Needless to say, the P4T533 equipped with 512MB of RIMM 4200
scored within one percent of the ASUS P4T-E overclocked to
533MHz with PC1066. Running at its default frequency
of 400MHz, the P4T-E was able to transfer 2.5GB per second
using PC800 memory. Our SiS 645 system fared just as
well, sustaining 2.5GB per second with PC2700 DDR memory.
Intels recently released i845G placed last, transferring
less than 2GB per second.
As indicated by
the chart, disk performance increases substantially in an
IDE RAID environment. However, Sandra thoroughly
saturates the I/O subsystem, which is not really indicative
of normal usage. If you can afford the luxury of IDE
RAID, you can expect faster load times for applications,
that can similarly send these types of loads through the IDE
bus.
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Benchmarks
and
Comparisons |
The CPU Tests |
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SysMark 2002
Now that
weve established the bandwidth gains provided by PC1066
(more specifically, RIMM 4200), we can test the actual
performance gains using SysMark 2002. Despite
comparable bandwidth capabilities, the P4T533 is able to
outperform the PC1066 platform by more than two percent.
The 400MHz, PC800 machine takes third place with 249 points
six percent behind the RIMM 4200 platform we are
evaluating. Even though the SiS 645 runs very stably
at 533MHz and supports PC2700 DDR memory, horrendous disk
performance seemingly puts the board in last place, behind
Intels i845G.
Comanche 4
At high
resolutions, Comanche 4 makes a great video card benchmark
thanks to DirectX 8 support. Simulators also make good
processor benchmarks though, and at 640x480, Comanche serves
our purpose well. The P4T533 and overclocked P4T-E
perform on par with each other again, while the P4T-E takes
third place in its default form. The i845G takes
fourth and the SiS
645 brings up the rear.
PC
Mark 2002, 3D Mark 2001 SE and Quake III |