Understanding clock speeds

[psyko]

Take a CPU from 10 years ago, disable multi core and multi thread, only 1 core, running at 3.5GHz.

Then I take a CPU from today, disable the same stuff, also 3.5GHz.

When running CPU benchmarks, would they give the same performance?
Or will today's CPU outperform an old CPU?

Basically I want to take multi-core and multi-thread technologies out of the comparison.

 

[wtfh4x]

Nope not the same. Just look at Pentium D vs the first gen Core 2 Duo clock speeds and compare their benchmarks.

 

[psyko]

Thanks!



.

 

[haylui]

Take a CPU from 10 years ago, disable multi core and multi thread, only 1 core, running at 3.5GHz.

Then I take a CPU from today, disable the same stuff, also 3.5GHz.

When running CPU benchmarks, would they give the same performance?
Or will today's CPU outperform an old CPU?

Basically I want to take multi-core and multi-thread technologies out of the comparison.

that means IPC (since you fixed the frequency)
newer CPU design always has higher IPC except for AMD FX family that had a different approach on some computational units.

 

[Phen8210]

the architecture is different and the new ones are more efficient that's why even when both same clock speed but old one slower, new one faster.

 

[watzup_ken]

Clockspeed is only one aspect of the performance equation. One way to look at it is using an example of a fan where an 80mm fan spins at 3.5k RPM and a 120mm fan spinning at the same speed. The latter is almost confirm to generate more airflow. While the chip have not become bigger physically (in fact its the opposite) its more powerful even at the same clockspeed.

 

[Crooni]

the topic is very broad. but single thread performance at equivalent clock speed has doubled-tripled over the past 10 years

cpu frequency is simply the rate of which the state of the cpu can switch/cycle. what it does during each cycle is more important

it's difficult to communicate cpu performance to the general public, hence they used clock speed as marketing from the early days. also the cpus were much simpler then

as tech improves, cpus now have additional/different circuits; new instruction sets, cache prefetch, branch prediction, different pipeline arrangement/optimization

an instruction that used to take 4 cycles to complete may take only 1 now. also it may be scanning ahead for other instructions that it can fill other execution units not in use