Is PowerLogix G4 Processor a good brand?

Hello! Here's your answer..the authority on such matters. Tom

http://www.xlr8yourmac.com/

I doubt if anyone on this forum is in a psotion to answer the question in the title field of your post.

I can, however, share my experience with Powerlogix and it was terrrible. A nightmare. And I was not alone. The situation was widely reported on the usual Mac news outlets like Macintouch, etc. I've heard that Other World Computing (macsales.com) has taken over all of Powerlogix's sales and customer service operations. Not a good sign, to me.

I tried a Gigadesigns unit in my old Sawtooth and although it didn't work well, at least THEY gave me my money back.

Now I have a 1.467 mhz unit from FastMac (same units that OWC sells as "Mercury Extreme") and it works like a dream. Absolutely trouble free, which is what I was going for.

That's just my experience. I have no doubt that others will chime in with their perspective.


1.467 G4 Sawtooth Mac OS X (10.4.2) Fastmac CPU, 1.5 Gb DRam PCI SATA card 250 GB Maxtor HD

Hello Again! I've been using Sonnet processors for 3-4 years with no problems whatsoever. I've used two 1.2 ghz models in G-4's, one in a G-3, and one in an old 7500. Tom

I'm not using the 1.4Ghz model, but I do have a year and half old 1.2Ghz model, and it works great. No hardware or software issues period.

I'm using that same unit- except I bought mine from Fastmac-- it's the same product.

Runs like a champ. The install could not have been any easier.

Runs as cool as the other side of the pillow.

I wasn't looking for blazing test bench speed. I wanted stability and totally transparent operation. I've upgraded the OS twice since then without a flinch.

I'm certain that the Sonnet units are OK as well. (My Sawtooth is too old for the dual CPU version.) Maybe this was a dumb reason but i went with the Fastmac unit because it includes a cooling fan (the Sonnet reuses the heat sink from the original processor)

Six months and it runs like a bear.

1.467 G4 Sawtooth (FastMac CPU) Mac OS X (10.4.2) 1.5 GB DRAM, Firmtek PCI SATA card with 250 GB Maxtor Int. HD, 160 GB FW Ext HD

I'm not sure it's an incompatibility problem as such but perhaps to do with the bus multiplier. The G4 processor has to run at a multiple (or .5 multiple) of the bus speed.

With the 1.467GHz card, on a system with a 133MHz bus, it's using x 11 (133.3 x 11 = 1467). On a system with a 100MHz bus, FastMac seem to be using x 14 for 1.4GHz and OWC x 15 for 1.5GHz. In real world performance there's probably little or no difference between them, as in both cases the processors are bottle necked by the 100MHz system bus.

Using .5 multiples above 7.5 can be problematic as the processor speed isn't reported correctly by the Apple System Profiler, which is perhaps why they avoid x 14.5

I'm sure the OWC 1.467-1.5GHz would be okay but I'm not sure I'd pay the extra 50 dollars for the 100MHz speed increase over the OWC 1.4GHz or the extra 60 dollars for the 100MHz speed increase over the FastMac 1.4GHz. It seems you'd be paying 17-21% more money for a 7% faster processor, which in real world performance terms probably wouldn't even be 7% faster.

That's just my two cents worth though and a Happy New Year to you too!

The L3 cache helps when it comes to the Bus speed and small L2 cach. The 7447A has a larger, faster 512k L2 cache, rather than slower 256k on the 7455A. The 7447A is also more engery efficient than the 7455, which means lower engery bills. The 1.8Ghz G4 will be more powerful in real world preformance, since its a newer chip made by Freescale rather than the older Motorola chip.

The 7455 (not 7557, there is no such G4 CPU at this time) is the high power requiring version of the G4 that was intended for desktops, but it is older and made by Motorola. The 7455 came out with the Quicksilver G4 back in 2002 with a L3 cache to help with bus speed issues and the small 256k L2 cache. Freescale, a break off of Motorola, makes the 7447A, a low power version (purfect for ibooks and Powerbooks, as well as for upgrading older Power Mac G4 with lower watage power supplies), with a 512k L2 and no L3 cache, with greater punch dispite this. The newest G4 CPU is the 7448A, but Apple choose not to use these chips (even though they run as high as 2.0Ghz) in the latest October update of the Powerbook most likely due to the Intel switch that is coming.

Hi,
The old 'what's the best' question...
I have had all three upgrades, my Powerlogix 7457's were fast but were power hungry, hot and problematic, it was not a happy experience. And, yes, Powerlogix still makes and sells a dual 7457 1.2GHz model at OWC;
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/add/7894/PLGPF57DQ12004M/

The 7455 was a happy experience, I still have two, a 1.25GHZ that is almost two years old, works great. The second is the 1.467GHz and it is very fast and reliable. They are both OWC Mercury Extreme's.

I have had two 7447 dual 1.7GHz. The first one broke, the second one is working very nicely in my Cube. The dual 7447's are very fast. It is a Powerlogix.

The 7447 and 7457 need extra firmware to be installed before the CPU install, this can be a source of problems. The Firmware is supplied by the CPU upgrade company with your new CPU. Most times it works just fine, other times it doesn't. I have had both situations.

My 7455's were, by far, the simplest to install. The 2MB of L3 cache makes it as fast as a 1.8 7447 in normal operations and even faster when doing complex stuff like video and DVD's.

The 7448 has not arrived on the scene yet. I'd like to have one.

And don't forget about your video card. The faster CPU will work much more efficiently with a better than stock Video card.

Lastly, in defense of Powerlogix's sometimes poor record in the past, they are improving. Since OWC took over sales and distribution the quality of the product has gotten better. Things are looking up.

Regards,
Dave