Prescott or Northwood

Music Manic · Post by **Music Manic** » Thu Mar 01, 2007 7:11 pm

Hi guys I want a new CPU for my ASUS p800se Mobo.

I think the Prescott has 1Meg L2 cache but I can't remember which was the better.I heard one got too hot.Was it the Northwood or the Prescott?

Could you tell me what you have and your experiences?

Thanks

hifiboom · Post by **hifiboom** » Thu Mar 01, 2007 7:56 pm

Core 2 Duo is the way to go these days....

or do you wanna upgrade an existing system?

Post by **garyb** » Thu Mar 01, 2007 8:57 pm

a northwood(512k cache) is preferred. it is cooler and performs better, even though the spec on the prescott is better. both will work very well, so if you can only find one or the other, it's not the end of the world, and yes, core2(conroe) is the best current choice, but will require a new motherboard and memory.

Music Manic · Post by **Music Manic** » Fri Mar 02, 2007 7:48 am

Yes upgrading old system.

Will get Core2 Intel later Gary.

Just to ask,how is Core2 with Cubase SX?

Thanks

hifiboom · Post by **hifiboom** » Fri Mar 02, 2007 8:38 am

Core 2 is the fastest CPU at the moment...

+ its a dual core cpu
few applictaions including Cubase SX have dual core support.

So you will get a huge performance boost., while upgrading.
Not only through the fact that it is dual core cpu, but also that a single core on core2duo has much more power than a single core on the old generation cpus (Prescott, AMD Hammer,....)

= double double boost

hifiboom · Post by **hifiboom** » Fri Mar 02, 2007 8:45 am

FYI

ftp://ftp.steinberg.net/Download/Genera ... h_Info.pdf

there is a chart further down....

the dual core P4 seems to have a 1/3 performance boost over the single core P4.
You have to take in mind that the Core2Duo is way faster than a P4 DualCore

So if you upgrade from P4 to a core2duo , I wouldn`t be surprised if you get performance around 200 % or more ( compared to a previous system)depending on the project...

Post by **garyb** » Fri Mar 02, 2007 12:50 pm

sx and scope are very happy with core2.

dawman · Post by **dawman** » Sun Mar 04, 2007 5:37 am

My Core 2 Duo DAW is awesome. Cubase 4 / GVI really gets a boost, It's more like 50 to 60% the way I'm set-up. I use hardware FX, and convolution reverbs with a 1.5 to 1.6 increase in instances uesd. If the apps are multithreaded like Sonar, Cubase, etc. you will notice the performance increase. Scope just goes along 4 the ride w/ the E series CPU's.

I was using the E6700 @ first, and have swapped it out 4 the E6400. It has only 2MB of L2 cache, and it's speed is slower. But my performance ratio / % estimates were made by comparing the 3.0 GHz P4 Northwood, to the E6400. 4 the simple reason that it is 1GHz slower than the Northwood, and still has all this extra boost, is a testament in itself.

DSP ADD!CT · Post by **DSP ADD!CT** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 12:40 am

the extra cpu power im getting from my new core2duo e6600 processor is insane compared to my old p4 3.0.

please dont waste your time and get 1 of those beasts!

cheers

DSP ADD!CT

dawman · Post by **dawman** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 6:12 am

Agreed.
However, the P4 is a perfect solution for a Scope only DAW . For even Gigastudio 3 is now dependant on the IPS of a CPU.