G5 Xserve opinion

[Cox Orange]

powermi, let me sort it out for you one more. The Dual 2,3GHz is available with DDR-400 RAM and in another version as Dual 2,3GHz with DD2-533 RAM. (the Dual 2GHz is 3x versions with DDR-400 and 1x version DDR2-533).

Both, that have DDR2-533 where available at the exact same time. So if, it has DDR2-533MHz, then it is just different in CPU (processor) speed.

If you get pictures of a Mac you want to buy, look at the back/rear. The models with PCIe, DDR2-533 etc. have two Gigabit Ethernet ports at the very top above all other ports (like USB, Firewire, Audio out...). The one you now have (and perhaps do not want) has two Audio-ports (jacks) at the very top of the ports-assembly.

If you see a picture of the inside of the Mac: if it has 1x G5 on the silver thing, that hides the CPUs, it is the "better" model. If it has 2x "G5" on the silver board it is the model you have now. (You can have a look at what I mean, if you go to the back of your Mac. There is a "lock"-symbol. You can pull that thing out and up. Then you can open the Door at the side and are looking at a silver board saying "G5" and under that a second "G5").

The models with DDR2 and PCIe are also called "late 2005" model. Your's is btw an early 2005 model. (So of the 4 Generations of the 2GHz version, you got the third. There were two in 2004, too).

 

[powermi]

powermi, let me sort it out for you one more. The Dual 2,3GHz is available with DDR-400 RAM and in another version as Dual 2,3GHz with DD2-533 RAM. (the Dual 2GHz is 3x versions with DDR-400 and 1x version DDR2-533).

Both, that have DDR2-533 where available at the exact same time. So if, it has DDR2-533MHz, then it is just different in CPU (processor) speed.

If you get pictures of a Mac you want to buy, look at the back/rear. The models with PCIe, DDR2-533 etc. have two Gigabit Ethernet ports at the very top above all other ports (like USB, Firewire, Audio out...). The one you now have (and perhaps do not want) has two Audio-ports (jacks) at the very top of the ports-assembly.

If you see a picture of the inside of the Mac: if it has 1x G5 on the silver thing, that hides the CPUs, it is the "better" model. If it has 2x "G5" on the silver board it is the model you have now. (You can have a look at what I mean, if you go to the back of your Mac. There is a "lock"-symbol. You can pull that thing out and up. Then you can open the Door at the side and are looking at a silver board saying "G5" and under that a second "G5").

The models with DDR2 and PCIe are also called "late 2005" model. Your's is btw an early 2005 model. (So of the 4 Generations of the 2GHz version, you got the third. There were two in 2004, too).

Thank you so much for the information! its great to have all the details of each model.. at firs i would like to purchase the late model of the 2,3 Ghz cause is the more reliable ans have enough power for my task.

should be a lot of difference between ddr 1 and ddr 2 models?

thanks again.

 

[Cox Orange]

Well, I can't tell you from first hand, since I never compared those two (didn't ever have these models at the same time together) in RAM intensive tasks.

What we find on the internet are benchmarks. I more and more doubt benchmarks, since in real life people do other tasks and even copying a file from one Hard Drive to another results in two different numbers (I stopped the time for several different sized files and on a PowerMac G4 via SATA-PCI, the max was 37MB/s. Benchmark Test tell you for the same Mac, that your drive copies a virtual file (of the benchmark test) with 80MB/s speed).

I think RAM does not make that much of a difference. If I remember right the connection to the FSB is different on both and that might make the difference (only if you use both cores, which not all applications do). But someone has to talk about that, who has more technical knowledge.

This test measures the time to complete the same tasks on different Macs. "Dual Core" are the "late" models. Dual-processor is the earlier model.
Here you see two 2,3GHz, early and late
http://www.macworld.com/article/1047649/dualcorebenchmarks.html

(the 2x2,7GHz you see was available the same time the early 2,3GHz was available. The 2x2,7GHz is watercooled, same is the Quad 2,5GHz and the 2x2,5GHz. Many of these watercooling systems leaked, but there are also different pump systems used in the models and I say, if it is ok until now, it will perhaps be ok a bit longer, but people have differing opinions on watercooling of the PowerMacs. The other PowerMacs are not watercooled!).

Although the tasks completion differs by a few second only, I would more concentrate on the late model. If you want to connect additional SATA drives via a PCIe card you get cheaper cards and faster.

here are the complete specs http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/powermac_g5/specs/powermac_g5_dual_2.3.html http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/powermac_g5/specs/powermac_g5_2.3_dp.html

There is another benchmark, that I am searching, but I can't find it at the moment.

 

[powermi]

i have the chance of buying a dual 2 Ghz late 2005 model, for 140 shipped, could be a good expend of money? but i dont know if they are as reliable as the 2,3 ghz model.

 

[Cox Orange]

You are talking about a PowerMac G5, not an XServe, right?

For what money do the 2x2,3GHz late models usually go in your area?

 

[powermi]

yes, G5 powermacs. Here in Spain a 2x2,3 could go aver 200 eur.