Review of Giga Designs 1.25GHz CPU Upgrade

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Review: Giga Designs G4 1.25GHz CPU Upgrade
(7455B CPU, 2MB L3 SDR Cache)
Published: 10/10/2003

= Links to Review Topics Pages =

Intro | Benchmarks | Apps Tests | Game Tests | Installation | Specs/Design

Pros: This sample ran reliably at 1.467GHz during a week of heavy use in my Digital Audio G4 Tower w/o any voltage change and no wake from sleep issue at 1.467GHz. (Of course I can't guarantee that with another sample in another computer.) Compact, easily installed upgrade w/copper heatsink and attached fan. Adjustable speeds via jumpers (see specs page for notes and jumper settings). Good value compared to current offerings.

Cons: None seen.

Compatibility: PowerMac G4 Sawtooth, Gigabit, Digital Audio and Quicksilver Towers running OS 9.2.1 or later (including OS X). 3yr warranty and 30 day MBG.

Availability/Pricing: As of October 10th, 2003 (review date), OWC sells the Giga Designs 1.25GHz upgrade (tested to 1.33GHz) for $439 or a tested to 1.467GHz model for $469. Check OWC site specials page for current pricing after this review posting date, as prices usually drop over time.

Introduction

Giga Designs sent a review loaner of their latest CPU upgrade using the 7455B G4. Although rated as a 1.25GHz upgrade (and OWC notes tested at 1.33GHz), this one surprised me with the headroom it had in my Digital Audio G4. Since the setting for 1.26GHz is one of the ratios that does not report accurate speeds in Apple System Profiler, I used the 1.33GHz setting as the lowest speed tested and 1.467GHz as the highest speed tested. (For more info on speed settings, see the Specs/design page.) Every time I remove a fast CPU upgrade like this (to return it after a review) and revert back to the original Dual 533, the difference in OS X performance even in casual use is very noticeable.
Like their many previous models I have reviewed here, it comes with a pre-attached heatsink/fan which makes installation very simple and is adjustable for CPU speeds. Also included in this review are performance comparisons to several previous upgrades from Giga Designs and OWC (from 800MHz to 1.467GHz) tested in same DA Tower.
See the linked pages of this review for Benchmark, Apps and Game performance comparisons as well as an installation page and specs page (w/jumper settings info).
The Giga Design 1.25GHz SDR L3 upgrade has a 6:1 CPU to L3 cache bus ratio which helps avoid the wake from sleep issue seen with some previous CPU upgrades when overclocked beyond their rated speeds. (This was noted in previous reviews that had 5:1 ratio L3.) This sample would wake from sleep fine at 1.467GHz in my Digital Audio System. (If you have a wake from sleep problem with your original CPU, a CPU upgrade may also. Also not all PCI cards support deep sleep.) The L3 cache ratio is one reason why the OWC 1.33GHz upgrade (w/5:1 L3 ratio) scores a tiny bit faster (small %) in some tests than the Giga Designs set to 1.33GHz. This isn't a significant factor in real world performance but just a FYI to readers.

As far as fan noise, the Giga Designs upgrade fans I have used seemed to have less noise than my Digital Audio's (DP533) original CPU fan that was removed in the process. However that CPU fan is about 2 years old now, so perhaps it's noisier now than it was when new.

This review compares the performance of:

A Digital Audio (DA) G4/533 Dual CPU
The DA System w/Giga Designs 1.25GHz 2MB SDR L3 cache (at 1.33 and 1.467GHz speeds)
The DA System w/Giga Designs 1.4GHz 2MB DDR L3 cache
(at 1.4GHz and 1.467GHz speeds)
The DA system w/OWC Mercury Extreme 1.33GHz 2MB DDR L3 cache
(at 1.33 and 1.4GHz speed settings)
The DA system w/Giga Designs 1GHz w/2MB SDR L3 cache (original model)
The DA system w/Giga Designs G4/800 w/2MB SDR L3 cache,
For full details on the test system's hardware and software, see the system details listing below.
I no longer own any of the older G4 towers to use as test beds, but owners of older AGP towers can run tests described on the review pages to compare their performance to these upgrades.
To see what others thought of their CPU upgrades - you can search the Rate Your CPU upgrade database here for reader reports on most every CPU upgrade by brand and/or mac model. For other full reviews of G4 and G3 CPU upgrades, see the G4 reviews and G3 reviews pages.) OWC's product pages also link to their comparison tests of AGP CPU upgrades. (Note: that link may change over time.)

Review Table of Contents:

Applications Performance: Tests with QT to MPEG4 conversion, iMovie3 quicktime movie export, iTunes4 MP3 encoding, Multitasking, and Photoshop 7.0 (50MB image/21 filter tests).

Games Performance: Tests with Jedi Knight II, UT2003 Demo, Unreal Tournament X, Return to Castle Wolfenstein and Quake3.

Benchmark Performance: CineBench 2003, Altivec Fractal (FPU) and Xbench test results.

Installation: Comments on installing the upgrade, photos of it etc.

Specs/Design: Details of the upgrade's CPU and Cache, jumper settings, etc..

System Compatibility:
These CPU upgrades are listed as compatible with the following Mac models:

Apple G4/AGP "Sawtooth"
Apple G4/AGP "GigaBit Ethernet"
Apple G4/AGP "Digital Audio"
Apple G4/AGP "Quicksilver"
Apple G4/AGP "Quicksilver 2002"

OS Requirements:
OS 9.2.1 or OS 9.2.2
OS X

Other Owner Experiences: For owner ratings of most every CPU upgrade for any upgradeable Mac, search the Rate Your CPU Upgrade database.
Test System Details:

Apple Digital Audio G4 Tower
Dual 533MHz G4 CPUs (7410) w/1MB SDR L2 cache per CPU
133MHz (SDR) bus w/1GB RAM
Western Digital WD120JB 120GB (20% free space) Hard Drive w/OS 9.2.2 and 10.2.6 installed
Onboard ATA/66 hard drive controller
Pioneer OEM DVR-103 Superdrive
Retail ATI 8500 AGP 64MB graphics card
Quicktime 6.2 (Pro)
Airport active for all tests

Display used was a Sony 19" F400. The hard drive was not optimized. For MP3/CD rip tests, a Lite-on 40125S (40x12x48x) CDRW in a Pyro Firewire case was used.

You can follow my preferred path through the review by continuing to the next page, or use the links below to jump to a specific page.

Index of Giga Designs 1.25GHz Review Pages
Intro | Benchmarks | Apps Tests | Game Tests | Installation | Specs/Design

- or -
Back to WWW.XLR8YOURMAC.COM

Copyright © 2003.

No part of this sites content or images are to be reproduced or distributed in any form without written permission.
All brand or product names mentioned here are properties of their respective companies.

Users of the web site must read and are bound by the terms and conditions of use.

The Source for Mac Performance News and Reviews
Review: Giga Designs G4 1.25GHz CPU Upgrade (7455B CPU, 2MB L3 SDR Cache) Published: 10/10/2003
= Links to Review Topics Pages =
Intro \| Benchmarks \| Apps Tests \| Game Tests \| Installation \| Specs/Design
Pros: This sample ran reliably at 1.467GHz during a week of heavy use in my Digital Audio G4 Tower w/o any voltage change and no wake from sleep issue at 1.467GHz. (Of course I can't guarantee that with another sample in another computer.) Compact, easily installed upgrade w/copper heatsink and attached fan. Adjustable speeds via jumpers (see specs page for notes and jumper settings). Good value compared to current offerings. Cons: None seen. Compatibility: PowerMac G4 Sawtooth, Gigabit, Digital Audio and Quicksilver Towers running OS 9.2.1 or later (including OS X). 3yr warranty and 30 day MBG. Availability/Pricing: As of October 10th, 2003 (review date), OWC sells the Giga Designs 1.25GHz upgrade (tested to 1.33GHz) for $439 or a tested to 1.467GHz model for $469. Check OWC site specials page for current pricing after this review posting date, as prices usually drop over time.
Introduction
Giga Designs sent a review loaner of their latest CPU upgrade using the 7455B G4. Although rated as a 1.25GHz upgrade (and OWC notes tested at 1.33GHz), this one surprised me with the headroom it had in my Digital Audio G4. Since the setting for 1.26GHz is one of the ratios that does not report accurate speeds in Apple System Profiler, I used the 1.33GHz setting as the lowest speed tested and 1.467GHz as the highest speed tested. (For more info on speed settings, see the Specs/design page.) Every time I remove a fast CPU upgrade like this (to return it after a review) and revert back to the original Dual 533, the difference in OS X performance even in casual use is very noticeable. Like their many previous models I have reviewed here, it comes with a pre-attached heatsink/fan which makes installation very simple and is adjustable for CPU speeds. Also included in this review are performance comparisons to several previous upgrades from Giga Designs and OWC (from 800MHz to 1.467GHz) tested in same DA Tower. See the linked pages of this review for Benchmark, Apps and Game performance comparisons as well as an installation page and specs page (w/jumper settings info). The Giga Design 1.25GHz SDR L3 upgrade has a 6:1 CPU to L3 cache bus ratio which helps avoid the wake from sleep issue seen with some previous CPU upgrades when overclocked beyond their rated speeds. (This was noted in previous reviews that had 5:1 ratio L3.) This sample would wake from sleep fine at 1.467GHz in my Digital Audio System. (If you have a wake from sleep problem with your original CPU, a CPU upgrade may also. Also not all PCI cards support deep sleep.) The L3 cache ratio is one reason why the OWC 1.33GHz upgrade (w/5:1 L3 ratio) scores a tiny bit faster (small %) in some tests than the Giga Designs set to 1.33GHz. This isn't a significant factor in real world performance but just a FYI to readers. As far as fan noise, the Giga Designs upgrade fans I have used seemed to have less noise than my Digital Audio's (DP533) original CPU fan that was removed in the process. However that CPU fan is about 2 years old now, so perhaps it's noisier now than it was when new. This review compares the performance of: A Digital Audio (DA) G4/533 Dual CPU The DA System w/Giga Designs 1.25GHz 2MB SDR L3 cache (at 1.33 and 1.467GHz speeds) The DA System w/Giga Designs 1.4GHz 2MB DDR L3 cache (at 1.4GHz and 1.467GHz speeds) The DA system w/OWC Mercury Extreme 1.33GHz 2MB DDR L3 cache (at 1.33 and 1.4GHz speed settings) The DA system w/Giga Designs 1GHz w/2MB SDR L3 cache (original model) The DA system w/Giga Designs G4/800 w/2MB SDR L3 cache, For full details on the test system's hardware and software, see the system details listing below. I no longer own any of the older G4 towers to use as test beds, but owners of older AGP towers can run tests described on the review pages to compare their performance to these upgrades. To see what others thought of their CPU upgrades - you can search the Rate Your CPU upgrade database here for reader reports on most every CPU upgrade by brand and/or mac model. For other full reviews of G4 and G3 CPU upgrades, see the G4 reviews and G3 reviews pages.) OWC's product pages also link to their comparison tests of AGP CPU upgrades. (Note: that link may change over time.) Review Table of Contents: Applications Performance: Tests with QT to MPEG4 conversion, iMovie3 quicktime movie export, iTunes4 MP3 encoding, Multitasking, and Photoshop 7.0 (50MB image/21 filter tests). Games Performance: Tests with Jedi Knight II, UT2003 Demo, Unreal Tournament X, Return to Castle Wolfenstein and Quake3. Benchmark Performance: CineBench 2003, Altivec Fractal (FPU) and Xbench test results. Installation: Comments on installing the upgrade, photos of it etc. Specs/Design: Details of the upgrade's CPU and Cache, jumper settings, etc.. System Compatibility: These CPU upgrades are listed as compatible with the following Mac models: Apple G4/AGP "Sawtooth" Apple G4/AGP "GigaBit Ethernet" Apple G4/AGP "Digital Audio" Apple G4/AGP "Quicksilver" Apple G4/AGP "Quicksilver 2002" OS Requirements: OS 9.2.1 or OS 9.2.2 OS X Other Owner Experiences: For owner ratings of most every CPU upgrade for any upgradeable Mac, search the Rate Your CPU Upgrade database. Test System Details: Apple Digital Audio G4 Tower Dual 533MHz G4 CPUs (7410) w/1MB SDR L2 cache per CPU 133MHz (SDR) bus w/1GB RAM Western Digital WD120JB 120GB (20% free space) Hard Drive w/OS 9.2.2 and 10.2.6 installed Onboard ATA/66 hard drive controller Pioneer OEM DVR-103 Superdrive Retail ATI 8500 AGP 64MB graphics card Quicktime 6.2 (Pro) Airport active for all tests Display used was a Sony 19" F400. The hard drive was not optimized. For MP3/CD rip tests, a Lite-on 40125S (40x12x48x) CDRW in a Pyro Firewire case was used.

You can follow my preferred path through the review by continuing to the next page, or use the links below to jump to a specific page.

Index of Giga Designs 1.25GHz Review Pages Intro \| Benchmarks \| Apps Tests \| Game Tests \| Installation \| Specs/Design - or - Back to WWW.XLR8YOURMAC.COM
Copyright © 2003. No part of this sites content or images are to be reproduced or distributed in any form without written permission. All brand or product names mentioned here are properties of their respective companies. Users of the web site must read and are bound by the terms and conditions of use.