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2004 ZIF CPU Upgrade Roundup: G3/750GX 1.1GHz vs G4/550MHz, G4/800MHz and G4/1GHz CPU Upgrades Performance Tests in Yikes G4/PCI System By Nathan W. Published: 7/6/2004

Applications Performance Tests

Intro | Benchmarks  | Apps Tests | Game Tests | Installation | Specs/Photos/Summary

Applications and Game Performance

This page lists comparison test results with common Mac applications like iMovie 4, iTunes 4.6, iPhoto, iDVD, Garageband, Photoshop CS (50MB image/21 filter tests), the Finder archive function, boot time, Word 04, and QuickTime. (Logic Audio Users Note: Although I do not own/use Logic Audio, several readers in the past have reported Logic Audio issues (pops/noise) with G4 upgraded PCI Macs with pre-OS X versions of Logic.)

QuickTime to MPEG4 Conversion:

I used a smallish 26.7MB QuickTime movie (Cinepak, 320x240 Millions and IMA 4:1) and timed how long it took to export (convert) to MPEG4 using the default settings in latest version of QuickTime (6.5.1 Pro). G4s see a large advantage. Shorter bars are faster of course.

iMovie 4.01 DV to Quicktime Movie Export Tests

I used the same test Mike has used since iMovie was first released - stacking the 6 tutorial file clips end-to-end (no transitions) and timing how long it takes to export the movie using the standard "CDROM" settings. (By using the tutorial with no variables like transitions, it's something everyone can easily test with their own systems.) I used the latest version of iMovie 4 (4.0.1) with OS X 10.3.4. Again, G4s see a large advantage (Note OWC's Z600 at 600MHz would be a few seconds faster). (Shorter bars/lower times are faster.)

iDVD Create 2.11GB Archive

I do not have a DVD burner at home, so I used iDVD (4.0.1) to archive my project to a 2.11GB iDVD archive. G3s cannot run iDVD. Time seems to scale with clock speed. Shorter bars/times are faster. (Note: this test does no video encoding, so clock speed alone is the biggest factor in results using the same system/drive.)

iTunes Encoding Tests

I took a 171MB, 17 minute AIFF file (John William's Binary Sunset (Alternate) found on the Star Wars - A New Hope Special Edition Soundtrack) on my hard drive and converted it to Apple Lossless, AAC 128/320kbps, and MP3 192/320kbps. Higher bit rates see less encoding and consequently less time to convert. All conversions but the Apple Lossless are apparently AltiVec enhanced. Shorter bars/lower times are faster.

iPhoto Slideshow Export:

I used iPhoto 4.0.1 and exported my 926 photo library to a slideshow. This test is another hard drive/processor combination and seems to be limited by the hard drive as well. Shorter bars/times are faster

Word 2004 Scroll Test:

I used Word 2004 and a 118 page, single spaced document. I pressed the down arrow on the scroll bar and timed how it took to reach the bottom of the document. G3s have the advantage in this GUI tests. Shorter bars/times are faster.

GarageBand Real Instruments/Effects Test:

I used the latest version of Garageband (1.1.0) equipped with the Jam Pack (1.0.1). "Real Instruments" are effects put on audio or midi tracks giving them distortion, echo, etc. Garageband is FPU intensive so the G4 really shines - 2 effects for the G3s are very restrictive for any serious musician. The G3s perform very well with standard loops and midi files (as do the G4 upgrades). More effects/instruments is better.

PhotoShop CS (8.0) Tests:

I used the 50MB image file (advanced) version of the PSBench 21 filter action script. (PSBench was created as a cross-platform test years ago for Photoshop. Not an unknown/unspecified mix of filters as often seen in some reviews/marketing, which could be chosen to include filters that performed better on a specific processor or platform. PSBench is something you can actually download and try yourself.) Each filter is run 3 times; the avg. is displayed in the table below. PhotoShop's timing function is used, not a stopwatch. For all PSbench tests, I used a History setting of 1 (minimum) and unchecked create first snapshot. PhotoShop's "maximum" memory prefs setting was set to 50% of available ram (PhotoShop says ~ 250MB of ram on this 576MB system). Interesting enough, the G4s outperformed the G3s on the first 12 or so tests (rotations, Gaussian Blurs, Unsharp Masks, Despeckle, RGB to CMYK, Reductions, and Lighting Effects), but suffered on the latter tests (Lens Flare, Color Halftone, NTSC Colors, Accented Edges, Pointillize, Watercolor, Polar Coordinates Radial Blur). We'll see if I can get a table of times for each filter. Shorter bars/lower times are faster.

Time to Boot OS:

I measured the time to the login screen from a cold boot. This test is inconsistent, but generally all of the upgrades performed similarly. (Disk drive performance affected.) Shorter bars/lower times are faster.

Finder Archive of ~115MB Folder:

I used the Finder Archive function (conversion to a ZIP file) on a 115MB folder. This test combines hard drive read/write speed (seems to be the limiting factor with the G3s) with processor speed. I accidentally deleted the 115MB (which happened to contain about 2 years of XBench results) so there are no results for the stock G4 350MHz. Shorter bars/lower times are faster.

The next page covers Game Performance tests. Or you may use the links below to jump to a specific page.

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