Overclocking: 875 = 7205 + X

Conclusion: Intel 7205 Nearly Identical To Intel 875

The Granite Bay chipset together with P4 3.0 GHz and FSB 800.

Our tests show that the old Intel 7205 chipset runs stably with a new P4 processor at an FSB clock of 200 MHz. This raises the question of what advantages the new high-end 875 chipset really has over the old 7205. Moreover, in the benchmarks, the two chipsets give about the same results.

This makes the PAT technology, highly acclaimed by Intel for its fast memory transfer, seem questionable. In the measurements, we also threw in the Abit IC7-G with the Intel 875 chipset as an example, which performed even more poorly than the overclocked test board with the 7205 chipset.

Ultimately, we have this to say to all Granite Bay owners: it's not necessary for you to go out and buy a new board, since the old chipset supports all the features of the 875. If you need FSB 800, then simply increase the clock and use the appropriate CPU, including fast DDR 400 memory. In any case, the Northbridge remains cold, so that you don't even need a fan.