CPU core question

AndyWest

AndyWest

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I have a 2.66 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo iMac and was just wondering if it is 2.66 GHz per core or 2.66GHz shared between the 2 core's?

Ta
 
According to intels website

"Dual-Core Processing, combines two independent processor cores in one physical package. Processors run at the same frequency and share up to 6MB of L2 cache and up to 1333 MHZ Front Side Bus for truly parallel computing"

so it sounds like its 2 x 2.66
 
i would be surprised if it was 2.66 shared as they were up to 3 at least before the dual core came out. 2.66 each sound bout right
 
I am pretty sure its a 2.66Ghz processor combined not each core in turn. Would mean you were running a 5.32GHZ Processor which is increadily fast and unachievable without the use of Liquid nitrogen coolong systems, i have a Quad core running at 4.3GHZ watercooled
 
ah ok you all sure? So i am running 4.3Ghz each core then?
 
I don't think it is a direct multiple of the core number x speed, however it is close.
 
It's per core. However, 2 cores running at 2 GHz does not equal one 4GHz processor. With the right operating system and well deigned programs though you can get close.
 
Thanks peeps! I'm happy now!! he he!
 
yep the cpu speed is per core so mine is running 4.3ghz for both core's however, this does not mean you have a 8.6ghz cpu because it is splitting the workload, some work goes to one core some goes to the other and both pieces get processed at 4.3ghz

hope that helps
 
a quad core works the same just means you have 4 x 4.3ghz pathways to process data provided the OS can make use of 4 cores, because the OS and applications have to know the extra cores are there to use.
 
bradleysmith said:
It's per core. However, 2 cores running at 2 GHz does not equal one 4GHz processor. With the right operating system and well deigned programs though you can get close.
Click to expand...

so not microsoft products??!!?:lol:
 
It's a measure of speed - not of quantity. If you have multi-cores running at 2.66Ghz then they are each and severally running at that speed.

Two cars running side by side along a motorway at 70 mph do not add up to 140 mph.
 
It's basically two lots of processors squeezed into one chip. Doesn't mean it's twice as powerful as a singe core (eg: 2.6 Ghz duo being the equivalent of 5.2 ghz), but can carry out two lots of calculations simultaneously (one core can do video encoding while the other core can handle opening windows and applications, that kind of thing - provided the operating system is programmed to let a duo core do just that). It's a bit like having two little computers built in one PC.
Think of a train with two medium sized engines at each end rather than as a train being hauled by one engine that is twice the size of that medium sized engine.
A quad core processor is four lots of computers built into one chip so it can spread the load even more efficiently.
 
so doing single tasks it was a backwards step from whatever it was before dualcore, but when doing several things it was faster?:thinking:
 
2blue4u said:
Two cars running side by side along a motorway at 70 mph do not add up to 140 mph.
Click to expand...


True, but those two cars can transport twice as many people at 70mph in the same way that the two cores can carry out more instructions
 
fletch5 said:
so doing single tasks it was a backwards step from whatever it was before dualcore, but when doing several things it was faster?:thinking:
Click to expand...

short answer, not really, because you've got other things such as cache to consider
 
the performance difference between Single CPU and Dual/Quad core is highly dependant on what you are using it for..
an awful lot of programs around will only use a single core no matter what you do..But it will still likely increase performance as it can dedicate a single core entirely to that process alone,running the OS tasks etc on a seperate cpu.
With multi-threaded applications the difference REALLY shows.
(Especially when also running a 64bit OS and programs.)
Not sure if this still applies-but it used to be true...Watch for AMD processors "stated" speed...As this is not the "true" core speed,but merely an indicator of performance. (Not important to some...but...meh-Bothers me ;))
 
A bit of reading for you

You do not have 2 processors as such, you still have the one....the processing is done core 1 - core 2 - core 1 and so on...while the data from the opposite core is being sent to memory etc!

This is my understanding of it anyway....it gives the appearance of 2 processors.

That is going back 5 years to A-level computing :lol:
 
While you dont have two (or four) physical "CPU's" the effect is pretty much the same.
Each of those Cores can perform independantly of each other,or on the same process. (where multi-threading permits)
The only thing that makes a true Single Core CPU "appear" as 2 processors is Hyperthreading. (single CPU core able to process two "threads" simultaneously)
 
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