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Ouch @Penryn pricing
- Thread starter dusanv
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The current 2.66GHz dual core that comes standard now in the MP is $690, so when they make the upgrade, the standard chip should be the quad core 2.83. Plus, the cache jumps from 4MB to 12 MB. That seems like a pretty significant jump for the same price.
I've been using this chart as a guideline. It looks like the 2.5 will be the bottom option. A good sized jump.
Here's the original post
Xeon chips are expensive. They're technically NO different to the Core2Duo and Core2Quad parts. By pitching the MP with Xeon parts it's a workstation not a desktop. The high end Xeon will always be $650-$1000.
Doug
Doug
What will be the significance of the 80 versus 120 watt ratings (if that is what TDP means) of the various offerings?
I can appreciate the value of the faster bus speed and the different clock speeds but I don't really understand what the different TDP ratings will mean for performance or heat or whatever.
I can appreciate the value of the faster bus speed and the different clock speeds but I don't really understand what the different TDP ratings will mean for performance or heat or whatever.
It doesn't mean anything for performance (not as long as an electrical outlet is nearby). But heat is the #1 enemy of electronics, so less heat is good - less heat means it's easier to cool and may have a higher life expectancy. Oh, and yes, there are those of us who believe that saving 33% energy (120 Watts down to 80 Watts) while otherwise delivering the same performance is a great thing for the utility bill and the environment.
That's why Intel can charge more for the E5472 (80W) than the X5472 (120W).
- Martin
Most people are expecting (based on what we know about pricing, etc), that the mid-range machine will go from 4-core to 8-core with a slight speed bump and better overall performance. So, yeah, 8 cores for the current price of 4.
It might be that the lineup will be all 8-core, but that's a pure guess. It depends on how many MPs are in the new range and how cheap they want to price the entry level machine.
Yes, since the current $2500 MP comes with the $690 2.66 dual core, the next $2500 MP should come with the $690 2.83 quad core. The current $2200 MP is a $315 2.0 dual core, so the next one should be the $316 2.5 quad core. So, it seems likely the whole lineup will be 8-core unless they want to offer a sub $2200 option, which could be a 4-core.
TDP stands for "Thermal design something". 80 Watt TDP or 120 Watt TDP tells the designer of the computer (in this case Apple) "you better make sure that your computer works fine if the processor in it draws 80 Watt / 120 Watt worth of electricity and turns it into heat, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year".
Apple could for example build an eight core machine with two 2.5 GHz chips. These two chips together would turn 160 Watt of electricity into heat - but only if your applications keep eight cores running at 100 percent. There will be people doing this, so Apple has to design the computer to allow for this. In practice, lots of the time even one of the cores is nowhere near busy.
As a side effect, if you put two 3.0 GHz chips with 120 TDP into a machine designed for 2x80 Watt TDP, your computer may overheat.
Wow!
I didn't release that! I can't think of a better reason to wait. That's what you call future-proofing. How the question then becomes how many current applications would use that many cores? It sounds like Leopard will but I don't know of much else.Very cool indeed.
Tdp
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Thermal Design Power (TDP) (sometimes called Thermal Design Point) represents the maximum amount of power the cooling system in a computer is required to dissipate. For example, a laptop's CPU cooling system may be designed for a 20 W TDP, which means that it can dissipate (either via an active cooling method such as a fan, a passive cooling method via natural convection, via heat radiation or all three modes of heat transfer) 20 watts of heat without exceeding the maximum junction temperature for the chip. The TDP is typically set not to be the most power the chip could ever draw (such as by a power virus), but rather the maximum power that it would draw when running real applications. This ensures the computer will be able to handle all applications without exceeding its thermal envelope, without requiring a cooling system for the maximum theoretical power, which would cost more and achieve no real benefit.
TDP can be defined in different ways by different manufacturers.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Thermal Design Power (TDP) (sometimes called Thermal Design Point) represents the maximum amount of power the cooling system in a computer is required to dissipate. For example, a laptop's CPU cooling system may be designed for a 20 W TDP, which means that it can dissipate (either via an active cooling method such as a fan, a passive cooling method via natural convection, via heat radiation or all three modes of heat transfer) 20 watts of heat without exceeding the maximum junction temperature for the chip. The TDP is typically set not to be the most power the chip could ever draw (such as by a power virus), but rather the maximum power that it would draw when running real applications. This ensures the computer will be able to handle all applications without exceeding its thermal envelope, without requiring a cooling system for the maximum theoretical power, which would cost more and achieve no real benefit.
TDP can be defined in different ways by different manufacturers.
Good jump for 1980s. I think AMD needs to get their game up.
Anybody else looking to replace the CPUs in their MP? Everyone seems to be talking about the next revision of the MP, which I don't really care about since I already have one.
Currently there is no indication on whether or not a Penryn based Xeon will even work in the current Mac Pro.
There are no indicators if you aren't paying attention. The 1333 FSB Penryn will work fine. Intel has been saying that for over a year, well before they even shipped a Penryn.
You're right, I'm not in a hurry at all actually. Just the geek in me I guess wants it. Looking at that pricing, I'll probably stick with it for some years still.
Ram Implications
Does anyone know if the new mac pro (assuming there is one) will need new ram - i have 8gb and really don't want to have to fork out for more.
Appreciate your thoughts
Steer
Does anyone know if the new mac pro (assuming there is one) will need new ram - i have 8gb and really don't want to have to fork out for more.
Appreciate your thoughts
Steer
If the new Mac Pro comes out with the 1600 FSB, you'll need new RAM. If they have a model with 1333 FSB, you'll be able to use the RAM with that machine (same FSB as current Mac Pro). But it's anyone's guess what they'll release. It might just happen that there are no 1333 FSB machines at all so your RAM would be worthless.
I think worthless is a bit harsh
It can still be sold for a reasonable amount, obviously memory prices have dropped quite a bit. Also I can't say with 100% certainty (especially when you add Apple in to the mix), but I would think 667MHz FB-DIMMs would still work on a Mac Pro using 1600MHz FSB processors.
those low end quad cores are pretty cheap! Score a used macpro, add the 2 quadcore chips, and you could build a decent rendering machine relatively cheap.