B&W G4-400mhz or 1Ghz?

[classic]

I have a B&W upgraded G4 which runs at 400Mhz/768MB RAM and an 8GB SSD running 9.2.2

I mainly use it for analog/digital conversion of video using a iXmicro capture card and an external firewire drive.

I bought a 1Ghz Sonnet upgrade (brand new/old stock)

Perhaps impulsively, as I read through B&W experiences of a 66Mhz bus slowdown.

So, my question is do I stick with what I have or should I upgrade?

Put it on the shelf and wait 10 years?

Or maybe find a Beige G3?

 

[Byrd]

Definately give it a shot - you'll get at least ~ 30% better performance using the 1Ghz G4, see these benchmarks:

http://www.xlr8yourmac.com/g3CARDS/G3_1.1GHz_vs_G4_1GHz_review/index.html

It is a strange bug in that the Sonnet upgrade downclocks the bus speed to 66Mhz, I'm not a huge fan of their accelerators as you can't "tweak" them unlike pretty much any other brand. But I begrudgingly admit Sonnet upgrades are always reliable, well built and the company is still around at least

JB

 

[theos911]

You could also look for a Powerlogix. They are very tweakable. I can run my rated @400 anywhere from 200-450 just using the supplied CPU multiplier switches on the upgrade. It needed a better heatsink and fan to run at 450, but it runs like a champ. Someday, I hope to find one of the 1.1 GHz ones.

 

[classic]

In terms of overall performance those powerlogix G3 upgrades look way preferable!

Only issue is I need altivec for mp4 conversion.

It is a strange bug in that the Sonnet upgrade downclocks the bus speed to 66Mhz

Its a strange notion that a CPU upgrade will slow a computer down and no tweaks!

Anywayz, if Sonnet can give 30% more on where its at, then its the next project on the burner, as soon as I get a moment away from child rearing!

Guess you must be well on your way there too.

Thanks for the link Byrd.