P4 Northwood and Prescott Comparison at 4.1 GHz

The P4 Northwood Vs. The Prescott

Based on a 90-nm manufacturing process, the Prescott offers new architectural features compared to its predecessor, the Northwood. However, because of its higher leakage currents, the Prescott's thermal heat emission is disproportionately high. At 3.6 GHz, 3.8 GHz and 4 GHz, the Prescott's TDP (thermal design power) will far surpass the 100-watt mark. But what about the processor's performance at these clock speeds?

We benchmarked and compared the Prescott at these higher clock rates to the Northwood's performance. Will the 90-nm processor equipped with a 1 MB L2 cache and longer pipelines live up to Intel's performance claims?

Cooling With VapoChill LS

VapoChill LS only makes sense when combined with a suitable case from Lian Li. This model, adapted for compressor cooling systems, has an opening on the bottom that allows the cooling line to be fed into the case and fixed to the processor.

You need more expensive cooling methods in order for the two processors to reach speeds beyond 4 GHz. At thermal powers of up to 150 watts, any water-cooling system is not enough-a compressor cooling system is required.