Dual 1.25 Ghz G4 Upgrade or Single 1.42 Ghz G4 Upgrade

tspencer83tspencer83
Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
Hi, I'm thinking of getting a processor upgrade card and was looking at the GigaDesigns Dual 1.25 Ghz G4 Card and the Sonnet 1.42 Ghz G4 Card. I just wanted to ask, will a faster single processor be faster on the whole than two slower processors? I do some moderate Photoshop work, web browsing, iTunes and Garageband. Also, does anyone have any experience with the aforementioned brands? Thanks

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 13
    altivec_2.0altivec_2.0 Posts: 995member
    I'd go for a dual no questions asked. Mac OS X takes advantage of dual processors, so does garageband, and photoshop,Safari will run fast on any G4 system. It'll also increase your resale value and life of the computer by at least 2 years. Plus it sounds better
  • Reply 2 of 13
    zapchudzapchud Posts: 844member
    Get the dual or regret it for the rest of the time you own that computer. The 1.42 GHz processor is just marginally better than one 1.25 GHz (you won't notice it), but when you gang up two against one ...
  • Reply 3 of 13
    auroraaurora Posts: 1,142member
    If it was about games i would say the 1.42 single since so many ports dont know what to do with the second cpu, but the iapps and photoshop etc will know what to do so i would go duals. G4 has run out of steam a while ago. I have ran my 1.42 at 1.26,1.33 & 1.47 and only saw a small improvement. iam using a 133 bus. tspencer83 should post what kind of machine he is putting it in. If its a 100 bus machine i dont think i would bother with the duals.
  • Reply 4 of 13
    zapchudzapchud Posts: 844member
    I wouldn't bother with the single under any condition, except with a severe price difference. Even if the games don't take advantage of the duals, you'd still have an advantage as the user could keep his apps running (many apps consumes CPU without doing anything) while playing games. But as time goes, games will take better advantage of duals in some way. UT2004 uses the second CPU for sound, Q3 uses both the CPUs well (often nearly doubling the FPS), and I'm sure Doom 3 will support duals in some form.



    But as tspencer83 isn't going to be using it for games, rather stuff that do take advantage of duals, there is no question, I'd say. :-)
  • Reply 5 of 13
    tspencer83tspencer83 Posts: 36member
    Thanks for the info. BTW, the machine I currently have is a Quicksilver 2001 867 MHz G4 if that helps. Thanks again.
  • Reply 6 of 13
    zapchudzapchud Posts: 844member
    133 MHz bus then. But you go, enjoy the dual 1.25. :-)
  • Reply 7 of 13
    semi-flysemi-fly Posts: 35member
    Yep, if money is not an issue get the dual - Mac hardware scales much better then x86 hardware with dual processor configurations and you'll feel the diffrence. I'd even opt for a dual 1 ghz setup over the 1.4 (though the 1.4 sonnet cards are rock solid).
  • Reply 8 of 13
    ionyzionyz Posts: 491member
    I grabbed a single 1.33GHz a year ago, needed something and didn't trust the duals on the market at that time. It was faster then my previous Dual 533MHz, but multi-tasking was molassas.



    In the next few months I'm going to purchase a Dual Giga design, sell back my 1.33 and Dual 533, and let it sit at that.
  • Reply 9 of 13
    semi-flysemi-fly Posts: 35member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by IonYz

    I grabbed a single 1.33GHz a year ago, needed something and didn't trust the duals on the market at that time. It was faster then my previous Dual 533MHz, but multi-tasking was molassas.





    Hmm, what brand 1.33 ghz did you purchase? I'm running a 1.4 sonnet with 1.5 gigs of ram and it multi-tasks better then any system I've owned - writting word docs, streaming audio, burning a DVD with Toast, rss'ing web sites, chating away on irc, using Gimp etc. Of corse, I'd rather have a high-end dual module, but that's way out of my price range...
  • Reply 10 of 13
    ionyzionyz Posts: 491member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by semi-fly

    Hmm, what brand 1.33 ghz did you purchase? I'm running a 1.4 sonnet with 1.5 gigs of ram and it multi-tasks better then any system I've owned - writting word docs, streaming audio, burning a DVD with Toast, rss'ing web sites, chating away on irc, using Gimp etc. Of corse, I'd rather have a high-end dual module, but that's way out of my price range...



    Giga Designs 7455x based chip, O/C to 1.33. Overall its faster but multi-tasking based on my 533 Dual lowered. Havent look at benches but its just the feeling. I'd never hit 100% or even close to it on Duals but with a single I hit it all too often and every slows.



    Between selling this and my old Dual a new one costs ~$250
  • Reply 11 of 13
    semi-flysemi-fly Posts: 35member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by IonYz

    Between selling this and my old Dual a new one costs ~$250 [/B]



    - go for it!
  • Reply 12 of 13
    ionyzionyz Posts: 491member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by semi-fly

    - go for it!



    No problem there



    Even though I'll probably build a PC by years end, and other Macs can always be on the horizon if this machine was born a dual it should die a dual. Getting a new car soon so no processor for a few months.



    Can't decided between grabbing an older Giga dual (single large fan) and undervolting the fan or going with the newer design (dual fans, smaller) and having them controlled by voltage.
  • Reply 13 of 13
    applebookapplebook Posts: 350member
    Definitely get the dual! I just switched from a Dual G5 to my 1.25GHz Dual MDD, and multi-tasking is almost neck and neck in Panther. A single G4 can never boast that, not even at 1.5GHz.
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