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New macpro's owners : is our motherboard a prototype ?

sweedigel

sweedigel

macrumors member
Original poster
Oct 6, 2007
96
0
france
Hi !
I received my mac pro today (the standard model with one CPU). Everything works great and fast but I noticed something weird in CPU-Z (windows' system info software, dunno if you ever heard of it).

Look at the board's model : "Proto1". Could it mean that's it's a prototype model ?
What do u think ? :confused:
 
sweedigel said:
Hi !
I received my mac pro today (the standard model with one CPU). Everything works great and fast but I noticed something weird in CPU-Z (windows' system info software, dunno if you ever heard of it).

Look at the board's model : "Proto1". Could it mean that's it's a prototype model ?
What do u think ? :confused:
Click to expand...

I do not believe that this is what it means.

I think I remember having seen something like this before.
 
Looks fine to me. I'd just wait for the next version CPU-Z to include more hardware ID support. I'm sure they might appreciate you informing them of this.
 
Not sure if Proto1 means anything or not. I have a MacPro1,1 developers board (M43ADP1,1) that says MLB model Mac-F4208DC8 PVT vs your Mac-F42C88C8 Proto1, so who knows what it means. In the past prototype Motherboards had green ( or VERY rarely red ) solder mask, mine is blue solder mask which is the same as production units.
 
The million dollar question.... can you add another CPU? Is there a socket? Is there a heat sink?
 
ackzot said:
The million dollar question.... can you add another CPU? Is there a socket? Is there a heat sink?
Click to expand...
Eheh :)
YES there is a 2nd socket ;). But there is no heatsink on it.

So, another mac pro 3,1 owner could launch cpuz and report the board's name ? I'm curious, and I don't want an unstable machine.
 
Proto1 = Pro Tower 1?

Or is it simply that the software doesn't reecognize the board... it could be a custom Intel board for Apple.
 
Why is CPU-Z reporting your core clock as ~2400 MHz and the multiplier as 6. for a 2.8 CPU it should be ~2800 MHz with a multipiler of 7.
 
newtech said:
Why is CPU-Z reporting your core clock as ~2400 MHz and the multiplier as 6. for a 2.8 CPU it should be ~2800 MHz with a multipiler of 7.
Click to expand...
I think it's the EIST who downgrade the multiplier when the cpu is idle, or something like that.
 
I verified with sisoft Sandra and it says "Version : Proto1". So it's the version of the board. IMO it means "prototype"... what else :/
 
sweedigel said:
I think it's the EIST who downgrade the multiplier when the cpu is idle, or something like that.
Click to expand...

No, Xeons are clock locked ( multiplier factory set and unchangeable ), reduced power mode is via bus slewing ( slowing the FSB ). For an E5462 the multiplier is ALWAYS exactly 7X FSB, the FSB ( FSB is quad pumped ) can be stepped down to 333.333 or 266.666.
 
newtech said:
No, Xeons are clock locked ( multiplier factory set and unchangeable ), reduced power mode is via bus slewing ( slowing the FSB ). For an E5462 the multiplier is ALWAYS exactly 7X FSB, the FSB ( FSB is quad pumped ) can be stepped down to 333.333 or 266.666.
Click to expand...
I will verify that in a few. I'm going to reinstall xp-64 instead that crappy vista.
 
Not sure if it would be a prototype. Unless Apple couldn't run 1 processor on a brand new powerful board, so they made another one or something? Doubtful though. Wonder if it says Proto1 with 2 processors? Wish I could check.
 
Maybe the pawn off the junk prototype boards left over in the stockroom to the people who buy single cpu models. :)
 
hugodrax said:
Maybe the pawn off the junk prototype boards left over in the stockroom to the people who buy single cpu models. :)
Click to expand...
That's what I'm wondering. Or maybe just for all the firsts models... We'll see. For the moment I'm curious about what it say for the 8 cores models buyers.
 
ziwi said:
Now we just need a site to add a CPU and get the theory verified.
Click to expand...

I don't have a site, but I'll see what I can do. My plan has been to just get a single Quad, rip out the processor, sell it and put two 3.0 Harpertowns in there :D

Between the low cost on doing that myself and RAM, I'm probably going to save a mint.
 
newtech said:
No, Xeons are clock locked ( multiplier factory set and unchangeable ), reduced power mode is via bus slewing ( slowing the FSB ). For an E5462 the multiplier is ALWAYS exactly 7X FSB, the FSB ( FSB is quad pumped ) can be stepped down to 333.333 or 266.666.
Click to expand...

Are.. you sure? I find that hard to believe. Intel CPUs are usually clock... capped, but not locked. My 1.6 GHz Pentium M laptop throttles between 6-12x multipliers.... with intervals of 1x in between. I can get it down to 400 MHz by running it at 100 MHz FSB speeds...


Incidentally, has anyone tried undervolting these Xeons?
 
Firefly2002 said:
Are.. you sure? I find that hard to believe. Intel CPUs are usually clock... capped, but not locked. My 1.6 GHz Pentium M laptop throttles between 6-12x multipliers.... with intervals of 1x in between. I can get it down to 400 MHz by running it at 100 MHz FSB speeds...


Incidentally, has anyone tried undervolting these Xeons?
Click to expand...

Quite certain, check the intel literature. Core 2 Extreme such as Q6600 and Q6850 are not clock locked, but ALL 5000 sequence Xeons are locked.

Speed throttling via changing the FSB is a different animal than changing the FSB to core multiplier.
 
newtech : I don't know if it's the EIST, but under win xp, when the cpu is idle the multiplier change to 6 > 2.4GHz. When it's in charge (tested it with Super pi), the multiplier is back to 7 > 2.8GHz.
 
sweedigel said:
Eheh :)
YES there is a 2nd socket ;). But there is no heatsink on it.

So, another mac pro 3,1 owner could launch cpuz and report the board's name ? I'm curious, and I don't want an unstable machine.
Click to expand...

mines unstable anyway lets face it they're computers.
 
newtech said:
Quite certain, check the intel literature. Core 2 Extreme such as Q6600 and Q6850 are not clock locked, but ALL 5000 sequence Xeons are locked.

Speed throttling via changing the FSB is a different animal than changing the FSB to core multiplier.
Click to expand...

we should have computer races...Gentlemen start your computers!
 
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