Thread: Ensuring optimum performance from your PC

Originally Posted by Marmite the Dog

Originally Posted by Thetyim

I just bought a Cedar Mill 3.2 Ghz

WTF is that then?...

It's the single core version of the Presler.

I haven't got a f*cking clue what a Presler is, so don't ask.

Cedar Mill is the same as the Pentium 4 Prescott core with the core being shrunk from 90nm to 65nm (basically the transistors got shoved closer together....this allows for more production of CPUs from a single wafer and allows for less heat generation and power consumption). Presler is two Cedar Mill cores placed together to make a double core Pentium 4 (not a dual core since Presler is simply two Cedar Mill cores placed side by side....not a very efficient way of doing things).

What is Prescott? Any Pentium 4 with 1MB of cache (like the one I have).

The prior one was called Northwood (512k of L2 cache) and the original was called the Willamette (256k of L2 cache).

Originally Posted by surasak

and allows for less heat generation and power consumption

Heat generated is directly proportional to power consumption.
Reduced line width primarily allows for higher frequency while keeping the power consumption unaffected.

So don't expect Cedar Mill to run cooler , it will just run faster.

Uh, Cedar Mill lowers power consumption...so lower heat dissipation as well:

A Sneak Peak at Intel's 65 nm Pentium 4 | Tom's Hardware

...not to mention the fact that Prescott cores are next to impossible to overclock while there is good overclocking potential in Cedar Mill (with stock cooling fans no less).

The result of Cedar Mill compared to Prescott is lower power consumption, slower fan speeds, and less heat generation...the only difference between the two being the core size.

Compared at the same frequency, yes.
But Intel's major goal is not to reduce power consumption or heat, their goal it is to run the CPU faster.
And when they do that, they will be back at the same power consumption as before

Originally Posted by surasak

Uh, Cedar Mill lowers power consumption...so lower heat dissipation as well:

Well I can't answer that with a technical explaination but I can say that it is one of the things that I like about my computer.
It is almost silent. The fan stays on the lowest speed 99.99% of the time.

^ Yes, as I said that is an effect of running it on the same speed as before.

But the race between AMD and Intel is not about who can reduce heat and power consumption in order to build the most silent PC.

The race is about who makes the fastest CPU's within standard working environment (cooling fins and fans) limitations.
Intels line width reduction allows them to increase speed (main goal) while maintaining the same power consumption and heat as before.

The article Surasak linked to mentions the race as the "performance per watt game", and that is what it's all about.

Just for fun here's large database of CPUs and their thermal properties:

techPowerUp! :: CPU Database

^ That is a huge list but no Celeron Cedar Mills listed

List of Intel Celeron microprocessors