• Welcome to Overclockers Forums! Join us to reply in threads, receive reduced ads, and to customize your site experience!

Anyone ever do the Pepsi challenge between a G5 and Xeon rig?

Overclockers is supported by our readers. When you click a link to make a purchase, we may earn a commission. Learn More.

Vito

Member
Joined
Jun 28, 2003
Location
Iowa
A freind of mine is torn between the MACs and PCs on his next home set up.
Wifey wants the MAC so he's a bit puzzled......so.....

I was comparing specs between let's say a Power MAC G5 dual 2.0 and let's say a dual Xeon 2.8/ NCCH/ Raptors/FX6800.
Anyone ever do a side by side comparison in speed and overall use?
CAD apps, games, 3D stuff.
 
Vito said:
...
Anyone ever do a side by side comparison in speed and overall use?
CAD apps, games, 3D stuff.

There have been some dual G5 benchies that loosely compared them to a dual xeon of some sort. Course the benchmarks were never the same and there were countless arguments over them. :rolleyes:

The deciding factor should be software. If he just wants to browse the internet and get mail then he shouldnt be looking at a Xeon or G5 system in the first place. If he does CAD work for a job then chances are he should use whatever platform he does at work :shrug:

If hes a gamer neither are the best choice. An expensive single proc box will beat out Xeons and for atleast me the games I want to play arent available for OS-X (hl2, MTA).


edit-----------

Good thread for those who ask this question.

http://forums.2cpu.com/showthread.php?s=&postid=532243

Namely I_wolf's post.
 
A *very* rough way to get G5s onto the x86 scale is to compare them very roughly to Opterons at the same speed or a little less.

So 1.8-2.0GHz Opterons vs ~2.8GHz Xeons.

Although tbh it DOES depend on what he does.
 
most comaprisions are not fair nor accurate due to optimization of code for a specifi processor.

i think more so what is your budget? you can build a very nice dual operaton 2ghz / 1g OCZ 3200 reg | ecc / 75g raptor / 250g SATA II / Asus K8N Dl / 550w Antec PSU for $2000 US.
 
a G5? well, judging by their MRSP of $1999 for the WORLDS BEST SUPER COMPUTER, you can build a rockin PC system for that much, Including everything you need to get it up and running.

What's the application of it?

If you want to fit into the trendy crowd while sipping your $5 starbucks latte, go for the G5.
 
Pro*Banshee said:
If you want to fit into the trendy crowd while sipping your $5 starbucks latte, go for the G5.

Nice argument. :rolleyes:


My advice, ask Madskillzman. He's had both and will be honest to the strengths and weaknesses of each.
 
I'd say that you're not making a fair comparison if one will have a raptor and the other won't.

Both have their applications, but I must admit I've never been impressed with the performance of Macs. There's a huge difference between a G4 and a G5 in terms of perceived performance, but I still haven't found one I'd call fast.

I'd simply point out that for the 2k that the G5 will cost, you can get a dual Xeon or Opteron AND monitor(s). If his games play on OS X, that's great, but he'll still have to buy the OS X version of them.

My guess is that he's probably better served by x86 unless he already has a monitor and hasn't purchased his games. Then it's probably an even split.

Z
 
^^ good point - if u want a fancy $2000 apple LCD - or the same Dell one for $700 :D considering hey both use the same LCD panels :D nice to see what people pay for the Apple name.

i would go with the dual opteron / xeon set up - you will get power for your money as well as better compatibility with the rest of the world. and the option of real upgrade-ability - want to upgrade those dual G5 2.5ghz? OH u got to buy a whole new system!
 
Mr.Guvernment said:
^^ good point - if u want a fancy $2000 apple LCD - or the same Dell one for $700 :D considering hey both use the same LCD panels :D nice to see what people pay for the Apple name.

i would go with the dual opteron / xeon set up - you will get power for your money as well as better compatibility with the rest of the world. and the option of real upgrade-ability - want to upgrade those dual G5 2.5ghz? OH u got to buy a whole new system!

No you don't. You can upgrade a G3 to a G5 with a daughterboard. I'll find one and post the link.

edit:eek:k the G5 upgrade is not out yet but here is ways to upgrade the PowerMac to a G3 or G4 and upgrade a G3 to a G4

http://www.sonnettech.com/product/cpu_upgrades.html
 
Last edited:
You're saying that you can get a duaghterboard that turns a G3 into a G5 or are you saying that the models from G3 on up are able to be upgraded? I won't disagree with the second, but I think I need proof of the first.

Z
 
The g5 upgrade isn't out yet, but when it is you can turn a G3 into a G5, just the FSB will be alot lower, but the multi will be higher.With one of those cards, you can turn a StarMacs into a G4 which in the PC world would be like turning a 486 into a P3.
 
Nice to see you can FINLLY upgrade after how many years :D - but once again - the price doesnt seem right since upgrading to a faster CPU you usually want better ram to go with it and you can also be limited by th FSB on the board if it does not let you change it. so you would be taking a nice performance hit.
 
Pro*Banshee said:
If you want to fit into the trendy crowd while sipping your $5 starbucks latte, go for the G5.



Sorry, but I just have to post a fatty LOL for that comment :p
 
Vito said:
A freind of mine is torn between the MACs and PCs on his next home set up.
Wifey wants the MAC so he's a bit puzzled......so.....

I was comparing specs between let's say a Power MAC G5 dual 2.0 and let's say a dual Xeon 2.8/ NCCH/ Raptors/FX6800.
Anyone ever do a side by side comparison in speed and overall use?
CAD apps, games, 3D stuff.


My question is,,Why compair the mac to anything less then a compairable PRICED pc ? I guess I could be wrong but if you set the PC up your self ya should be able to get a 3.2 or better Xeon rig for the cost of that G-5 ?

Xeon 3.2 800 FSD is about 650 a pair,Board is 225,Ram 100,6800GT 300,Power supply 100,case 75. $1450.00 Add drives to that . And heat sinks,. and for about 1700 or less ya have a box that will easily out perform the Mac at 2gigs. Just my 2 cents..

Edit; Or ya could grab 2.4 MO chips from ebay for around 300 a set,And set them to 16x200 and run 24/7 stable forever with a simple jumper setting.Ya can run faster but guranteed 3.2 is safe to say at the very least..hassle free
 
There is no contest. For the same budget you can build a better Opteron/Xeon than buy a G5. If you are buying both the gap diminishes.
So, if you are going to build it, I think there is no doubt the x86 will be a better performer. That said, there are some reasons that people prefer Macs and those people are justified. However, if you have the option of doing both, and you have no reason to choose one over the other, you should choose a dually (Opteron/Xeon)
Just my 2 cents.
 
Cough OS OS OS cough cough.

In the OS world, LINUX is best, OSX is next, and then there's winblows. (is there a viable 64 bit version of windblows YET?)

So the MAC gets you the secound best OS on the planet, that STILL lets you play more games than Linux.

GENERIC Intel setups = poor OS, no style, ugly, un cool. This is where most of the world is, uncool.

CUSTOM Intel setups, can have cool OS + gaming OS, wicked cool moded cases, and cheap. Cool and cheap, that's great.

MAC = cool OS, some games, not cheap, but way cooler than generic Intel.

Here's a test. Bring 10 dates home over the course of 10 months. (you can get 10 dates a year, right?). Have your current system set up, (go ahead and get that Dell LCD, it still doesn't look as cool) and show it to 5 of those dates. NOW, go buy the G5 with the top Apple monitor, and show that to the other 5 dates.

I bet you get a more impressed date, and higher % chance of getting lucky, with the apple system.

And yes, people DO care about the prestige / coolness factor of their system, go listen to the case modder forums for a little while. :)

See, there's a niche for everything, even a MAC.

<tounge firmly planted in cheek>
 
Back