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Athlon XP/2600+: how we tested

The performance of the new processors was evaluated using the following benchmarks:Benchmark tests usedBenchmark typeBenchmark nameApplication-based testsZD Business Winstone 2001, ZD Content Creation Winstone 2002Encoding tests LSX MPEG Encoder 3.5, XMpeg 4.
Written by Kai Schmerer, Contributor
The performance of the new processors was evaluated using the following benchmarks:
Benchmark tests used
Benchmark type

Benchmark name

Application-based tests ZD Business Winstone 2001, ZD Content Creation Winstone 2002
Encoding tests LSX MPEG Encoder 3.5, XMpeg 4.5 (MPEG); Musicmatch Jukebox 7.0 (MP3)
Rendering tests Bryce 5.01, 3D Studio Max 4.26, 3D Studio Max 5, Cinebench, Lightwave 7b, Maya 4.0 Unlimited, Distributed Net RC5-64
Internet tests ZD i-Bench 3.0
Workstation tests SPEC Viewperf 7.0
Gaming tests 3DMark 2001 SE, Aquanox, Comanche 4 (DirectX 8); Quake, Vulpine GLmark 1.1p (OpenGL)

The benchmarks were run on the following equipment:
Test platforms
Component
Athlon XP
Pentium 4/DDR
Pentium 4/Rambus

Motherboard Gigabyte 7VRXP Asus P4B533-V Asus P4T533-C
Chipset VIA KT333 Intel 845G Intel 850E
Memory (MB) 256 256 256
Memory type DDR333 DDR333 PC800/PC1066

The rest of the test equipment is the same for all systems. A Promise Fastrak 100 drives two IBM DTLA 307030 hard disks configured as Raid-0. For our CPU tests, ZDNet is now using a GeForce4 Ti 4600, in combination with the Detonator 30.82 drivers. Therefore, the results from earlier CPU tests are no longer comparable with the following benchmarks. All tests are carried out under Windows XP Professional at 1,024 by 768 resolution and 32-bit colour depth.
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