* RF:
>> No matter how much cores you have a single CPU system (at least if it uses
>> intel processors) *always* is limited by the bus system (FSB). A dual
>> processor system has two independent FSBs, raising the FSB bottleneck by a
>> a noticeable amount.
>
> Ah yes, that's true. I hadn't thought of that. Be interested to see a
> benchmark between the two systems.
I can't remember any benchmarks on the web but at work we did several
application benchmarks between dual dual-core systems and single
quad-core systems. The dual dual-core system always performed better,
sometimes just a tad (<5%, so barely measureable and not noticeable),
often very noticeably (>20%).
> Would there actually be enough data
> going through the FSB to saturate it?
With two FSB1333 processors, yes. Definitely.
But even with a single CPU system the test is very interesting and shows
that (unlike for games) in the professional market there simply is not
the fastest gfx card for all purposes. ATI/AMD for example always was
strong in Maya, and if you do Maya you'd be stupid to spend the money
for a Quadro FX 5600 when a much cheaper FireGL brings you more
performance. I don't use Maya so I'm better of with the Quadro.
Benjamin
>> Stay informed about: FireGL V8650 Vs. NVIDIA QuadroFX 5600 Review