the new mac pro's processor speed?

C

coolio2654

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I'm thinking about getting the new mac pro (the $2499 one) with the intel xeon 2.66Ghz quad-core Nehalem processor (lengthy name ^^). Easy question, would this processor be able to play a game requiring MORE Ghz, like 3.0 Ghz?
Since there's 4 cores isntead of one, would that add for more Ghz or something?
Forwarding my thanks to all those who answer.
 
Which game? There's can be a big difference between recommended, and required specs.
The nehalem-class processor has much more power than you think it does. Each processor core can be split into two virtual cores, running separate threads in each virtual core, for example. Running the right software, that makes the 'puny' quad-core have 8 virtual cores. And the powerful dual-quad, potentially would provide 16 cores.
Snow Leopard, more optimized for multi-core use, should really show what all those cores can do for you....

Which game?
 
I'm getting the Ati Radeon graphics card they allow you to buy with the mac pro. games like fear2 and crysis on max graphics
 
Great!
Strange mix of system requirements for crysis.
minimum is 2.8 GHz, but recommended as at least 2.2 GHz
I don't quite understand that, it seems backwards.
minimum does not specify number of cores, but the recommend says core2duo
I don't think a quad-core xeon will have any problems, do you?
 
Na, personally I think it would work. Little thought. Someone told me that getting more cores above a duo would ACTUALLY slow down the comp because one application isn't meant to be spread out on multiple cores at once. Does this apply to the nehalem I'm talking about, or can I safely say that more cores in a mac pro add to performance?
P.S. and would that Ati Radeon 4870 or something be good enought for crysis on max without lag?
one more thing, , , im gonna be playing crysis on Parallels XP/Vista. Would I still get no lag?
 
You won't be playing it in Parallels. It won't even run. You'll boot into Vista or XP directly, i.e. you'll have it installed via BootCamp. Parallels is okay for office work that doesn't require much from the graphics department, but for highend games, it's *NOT* the way to go.
 
Also, you have to rely on how the operating system uses multiple cores. The application (the game) has to be coded to use those processor cores effectively.
Snow Leopard is (supposed to be) optimized for multiple cores, and should be fairly effective with those cores, even if a game isn't specifically coded for multiple cores. If you would be using Windows 7, the most modern Windows, then it may help you, too. Windows hasn't been known for much optimization for multi-cores, (certainly not XP) but maybe that will be improved with Win7. Someone may chime in here, if they have that experience with the new Win7. Recent release games SHOULD be recognizing and optimized for multiple cores, with most all new computers having those multi-core systems. How much that effects the end performance depends on your own setup, I suppose.
 
one more question about multi-coring with games. I heard a dual-core with around
2.2Ghz-infinity is really good for gaming. Since the mac pro has ACTUALLY 2-cores-in-one would that apply as being a dual-core?
 
You're confusing things now. What you heard is that "dual core" is good for gaming. A Mac Pro has one or two quad core processors instead. You don't have to worry about whether that "qualifies as dual core" or anything. While a particular game might not specifically make good use of the power the computer may provide, it'll still at least make good use of at least two of the eight to sixteen cores the system sees.
 
fryke said:
You're confusing things now. What you heard is that "dual core" is good for gaming. A Mac Pro has one or two quad core processors instead. You don't have to worry about whether that "qualifies as dual core" or anything. While a particular game might not specifically make good use of the power the computer may provide, it'll still at least make good use of at least two of the eight to sixteen cores the system sees.
Click to expand...

ahh, so a game would recognize the extra virtual core and treat it as a dual-core?
 
No, the quad-core nehalem would generate as many as 8 virtual cores, not just dual-core. Each core can run up to two threads at once, hence the virtual cores. The nehalem is way beyond the dual-core requirements that you're looking for.
 
thats very good to hear, seeing as playing crysis on mac GPU is the stuff of nightmares for most comps ^^
I'll report if crysis works with booting into Windows7 using the mac pro
 
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