Power of four

Evgenie Rudometov

authors@rudometov.com

At autumn Forum IDF 2006 considerable attention has been given chetyrehjadernym to the processors of Intel which have personified all advanced achievements of multinuclear architectures

For two with decade of development of the architecture of personal computers regular upgrade of processor bars became small already habitual. Their semiconducting crystals step-by-step became complicated, clock rates increased and, as consequence, productivity step-by-step grew. And it is finite, the kernel in processors was one as differently and could not be.

However progress in solid-state technologies has allowed to make qualitative races in area protsessorostroenija release of two-nuclear models became which result. Their success in the market was so high, that for the first couple of months has been sold more than five millions pieces. Really new nuclear microarchitecture has provided polutorakratnoe (and in some tasks and above) productivity increase at the same lowering energopotreblenija. However engineers of Intel did not begin to rest on laurels and have released a new product — chetyrehjadernyj the processor.

On the past recently autumn IDF 2006 the considerable attention has been paid to the given development. Not being limited to theoretical performances and demonstrating of separate copies chetyrehjadernyh models, organizers of the Forum have created some benches on which each participant of the given action could to estimate by means of a set of the installed dynamic games power of computers with new processors. And as it has appeared, from interested persons there was no release.

Professionals also have not been forgotten. Considering a high technological level of the Russian delegation, engineers of Intel have given possibility ottestirovat chetyrehjadernyj the processor, having compared it with the two-nuclear predecessor.

However before to pass to received numerical to estimations, it is necessary to remind some features of the new processor which has received the name of Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 (code name Kentsfield). The given model is taken up a position by Intel company as the processor for game PCs. However, as has shown the held testing, this processor shows high results not only in games, but also in applications of three-dimensional modelling, rendering, processing of video-and audiodata.

From the constructive point of view of Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 represents two dvuhjadernyh a semiconducting crystal of processor Conroe, combined in one processor tank. Not pressing in a detailed estimation positive and negative sides of this solution, it is necessary to mark, that it has allowed not only to accelerate an output chetyrehjadernoj models on the market, but also it is essential to lower its cost price, and, therefore, and the finite price. It is necessary to mark, that the given approach has allowed to reduce energopotreblenie chetyrehjadernyh processors at the expense of appropriate selection of two-nuclear chips.

Short technical characteristics given for testing chetyrehjadernogo the processor the following. The processor of Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 (Kentsfield) has clock rate of 2,66 GHz, the plug — LGA775, a supply voltage — 1,238 In, frequency of the bus — 1066 MHz, total size of the cache memory of the second level (L2) makes 8 Mb (2Ч4 Mb).

For support of the processor of Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 Intel company recommends to use solutions with Intel chip set 975X. Here it is necessary to make specification: not each motherboard created on the basis of the specified chip set and supporting processors of Intel Core 2 Duo, is capable to work with the new processor. Not only corresponding BIOS, but also performance of certain requirements to the built in converters of power supply for this purpose is required. Besides, in system the power supply unit of Intel Core raised in comparison with systems 2 Duo is necessary also for electrical power.

All necessary requirements have been fulfilled in the used test complex which system unit is resulted in a Fig. 1. As a basis the motherboard of Intel BadAxe 2 D975XBX2 Rev has served. 303.

Fig. 1. The System unit and power supply unit marking

As the measurement standard for chetyrehjadernogo Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 have been selected the processor of Intel Core 2 Extreme X6800 (kernel Conroe). The given choice speaks that fact, that before appearance chetyrehjadernogo Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700, Intel Core 2 Extreme X6800 was the most efficient processor for desktop systems.

Short technical characteristics of these processors are resulted in table 1.

Results of comparative testing are presented in table 2 and in a Fig. 2.

Table 1. Short technical characteristics of upper models of 4 and 2-nuclear processors

Table 2. Results of comparative testing of upper models of 4 and 2-nuclear processors

Fig. 2. Results of performance of the test 3DMark06

The cited data testify to advantage of the four-nuclear processor of Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 over the predecessor of Intel Core 2 Extrem X6800. And as two-nuclear Intel Core 2 Extremе X6800 in tests overtook competing processors, it is possible to draw output that the processor of Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 is now the most powerful in the world the processor for desktop computers.

In summary it is necessary to add, that in 2007 the bar of four-nuclear processors will essentially be enlarged by models of Intel Core 2 Quad.