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Dual G4 Processor

quinterro

68020
After seeing how well dual processors helped with my Dell server, I decided to try it with my G4.

Some searching later and I have purchased a dual G4/450 processor with heatsink. I checked to make sure my G4 was compatible with dual processors first.

While a dual 500mhz processor would have been nice, they were out of my price range.

 
All G4 450s I've come across overclock to 500Mhz, give it a shot :)
JB
Not everyone is handy at the fine soldering required to move around the multiplier jumpers. You also need to be careful that you aren't trying to put dual processors designed for a 100mhz bus into a 133mhz bus machine as the overclock will be too high. You might be able to step down the multiplier and put a dual 450 or 500 into a Digital Audio but you still need to be handy at soldering to do it.

 
Plenty of people overclock, there are many CPU designs where you get a speed increase just from upping the FSB and keeping the actual Mhz about the same if slightly higher. Some CPUs run so cool that overclocking realy is not a short term problem.

 
I always think over clocking for the person that rolls in dough and doesn't mind if he screws it up.
Err no - quite the reverse. It's the poor man who wants to squeeze out every last drop of performance from their computer :D I'm surprised that so few 68KMLAers are adverse to Mac overclocking to be honest! Sure, some classic machines you wouldn't go near but when we're trying to attain the best performance we can from older components, it makes sense to me. Of course you need to have good soldering skills, and yes there are potential risks, but with practice it becomes quite straight forward.

I also enjoy overclocking older Macs, I've never killed one, and if I ever did parts can be replaced cheaply. A lot of Macs I've come across lately have been slower machines (eg. PB 550 when PB 667s were around, PB867 with PB1000s, etc), and all have overclocked to the next iteration of Mac clock speed, or above.

This is the best guide on how to overclock Dual G4 processor cards for a 100Mhz bus speed. As Quadraman noted, if running on a 133Mhz FSB Mac, you'll need to adjust the multiplier according to this speed - easy to work out.

http://power-mac-g4.com/g4clockup.html

If you need any more tips on how to remove the resistors etc, let me know.

JB

 
Just an FYI; if you bump it to dual 500MHz, it'll run Leopard great. Mine sure does :D
That's nice to know. At the moment I have no plans to upgrade as I'm OK with Tiger. That and I only have 512MB of RAM in it and a noisy 30GB hard disk.

 
Supposedly it was delivered to the house this afternoon. Only 3 more hours until I can get my grubby little hands on it.

I feel like a kid on Christmas. [:D] ]'>

I also have the base for a Thinkpad in my car's trunk to repair a computer and possibly a motherboard for a Dell laptop waiting for me at home. I think my week is cut out for me......

 
It's now in the Sawtooth and it runs more like my P3-733 than a 450. It's very responsive, something that hasn't happened in a while with the original processor.

 
I'd distinctly hope it's a bit faster than a dual PIII-733 actually :p That said though my Dual PIII-800 runs like a train - it almost matches a AthlonXP 2200+ (1.8GHz) for speed [:)] ]'> Running a proper OS that has a damn clue what SMP is always helps too [:D] ]'>

 
I'd distinctly hope it's a bit faster than a dual PIII-733 actually :p That said though my Dual PIII-800 runs like a train - it almost matches a AthlonXP 2200+ (1.8GHz) for speed [:)] ]'> Running a proper OS that has a damn clue what SMP is always helps too [:D] ]'>
It does feel faster but the PC isn't really set up to go full-tilt.

It's just a single P3-733 machine - now the only dual-processor system I have is the G4. I cleaned house after getting my Thinkpad and the 733 is the only PC desktop I have.

The G4 just seemed so sluggish when opening multiple tabs on Firefox when it had the single processor in it. Now it's almost instantaneous.

 
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