I have to say that after over a year of tests with most of the G3 CPU Cards on the market I was expecting to see problems running the 50MHz bus speed required for a 400MHz card. I'm very pleased to say I saw literally plug and play in both systems I tested, one which has a history of being picky about G3 cards and bus speeds. XLR8 obviously has a improved design that should make 50MHz bus speeds and 400MHz CPU speeds possible in many Macs. I know I breathed a sign of relief when it booted right up and ran flawlessly in both test systems. There were no errors of any kind during any of the tests (however the Retrospect SCSI Manager Disable tip was used for compatibility reasons). I defragmented the Cheetah Wide SCSI disk with the XLR8/400 card installed without problems. [Update: - The new v1.2 Cache Control Panel released in Jan. 99 is reported to solved the Retrospect/Adaptec SCSI compatibility issues according to reader reports and MacGurus.]

After loading the Genesis with RAM, a Cheetah boot disk, 4 drive RAID array and dual SCSI cards the only thing missing from this 'Ultimate Mac' was a record breaking CPU card. At this moment in time this card is the one to beat and really rounds out that machine. The XLR8 G3/400 delivered the best performance I've seen at the date of this review (Oct 98) in every application I tested.

Price/Performance: 400MHz G3's are the fastest G3 CPU available and have just started to ship in any quantity and that means they are expensive. Prices change often, and although the SRP at the time of this review (Oct 98) was $1899 [Update: as of March 26th, 1999 MacGurus currently has this card listed for $1049.99 and prices may have been lowered at Bottom Line and Other World Computing as well.]

Prices change *very* often so always shop around before buying.

I remember that 300/300/1MB cards were $1500 or so not long ago and last year a 250/250/1MB cost over $2500. To be honest with the 6 PCI slot Genesis it's awfully tempting. It would be the icing on the cake and result a faster and more capable Mac than anything else available anywhere. For those not needing the fastest Mac possible the 220/110 G3 cards currently are the best bang for the buck values. The XLR8/400 card was my personal Christmas present this year and is currently the CPU card in my Ultimate Mac Genesis machine.

Genesis owners take note - Daystar offers a upgrade program where they check out your entire system to verify the complete configuration, including motherboard revisions, SCSI and memory functioning, returning your Genesis with 400MHz CPU card installed and certified for troublefree operation.

Summary of Ratings:

• Benchmarks: 10
• Appl. Tests: 9
• SW/Controls: 9
• Documentation: 9
• Features/Specs: 9
• Price/Performance: 8
  ---------------------
  Total: 54 (of a possible 60)

Based on these scores, you can apply your own weighting of each category to determine if this card is right for your needs. For those who make a living from their Mac, or just want the fastest Mac money can buy, the XLR8 G3/400 deserves serious consideration. If you're a Mach 5 system owner (8600/250-300, 9600/300-350) looking for a 400MHz G3, as of Dec 98 the XLR8/400 was the only card that I've heard that is compatible at least at 400MHz speeds. (Both PowerLogix and Newer Tech 400MHz cards have reported issues in Mach 5 systems.

The OS X Issue: I know many of you (and I) are wondering about the issue of OS X (coming next year) running on non-Apple G3 Macs. Many people wonder if they should invest in a G3 CPU card upgrade vs. the safer bet of getting an Apple G3 system. In some cases that's not an option, for instance those that need more than 3 PCI slots or have a large investment in their existing Mac of hardware that does not fit or work in the Apple G3. [Update: I've gotten an insider report that OS X beta did run on a G3 Upgraded mac, but until the final release is available and more tests are done you should not count on compatibility.]

OS X support for older Macs is uncertain, but with only one of my Macs being an Apple G3 I certainly hope Apple does not abandon the millions of existing owners of pre-G3 systems. Also keep in mind OS 8.x will be supported by software vendors for many years to come, as that will be the the largest segment of the Mac market for some time to come. I still get mail from companies running OS 7.5 and 7.6.

Availability/Pricing:

XLR8's web site has the 400 listed in their Price List for direct orders and dealers like Bottom Line, MacGurus and Other World carry XLR8 products and may have these barn-burners in stock at prices below suggested retail. MacGurus current price is $1699.99 for instance.

As regular readers of my daily news page know Bottom Line and MacGurus often offer my readers discounts and special offers. You may also order direct from XLR8 by calling 1-888-957-8867. The product comes with a 30-day money back guarantee from XLR8 and a 2 year warranty. [Note: according to the latest info I have, XLR8 does warranty the card regardless of the speeds run, but verify this personally before assuming that is still true. Overclocking is risky of course and I can't recommend it to the general public.

I hope this review has provided you with sufficient information of all aspects of the product, but if you have any further questions or comments you may contact me by email at: news@xlr8yourmac.com.

For reviews of other CPU cards at this site, see my CPU Cards page. The home page (www.xlr8yourmac.com) has links to reviews of Systems, SCSI controllers, Video cards (incl. 3Dfx), Game related articles and some of the most useful daily news on the net (updated 7 days a week). Thanks for stopping by!