Macbook pro T9300 Vista 64 low cpu marks

[iatropoul]

I have a MacBook pro and I benchmarked my cpu under Vista 64. Surprisingly marks are way too low. Practically I get almost the half score compared to what a T9300 cpu should give! HELP!!! Is this an Apple EFI problem? Or is it a bootcamp problem? I installed vista 64 using bootcamp! I don't run vista under fusion! Please help! My Vista 64 cpu subscore is 5.4!

[David (PassMark)]

It would be good if you could post all the CPU results.

Check you are using the latest 64bit version of PerformanceTest
Check the edit preferences window to see if the number of processes is at least 2
Check that the machine is idle (without background activity) when you run the tests.

[iatropoul]

I did all that you said and here are my results!
PassMark(TM) PerformanceTest 6.1 (http://www.passmark.com)
Results generated on: Παρασκευή, 15 Αυγούστου 2008


Benchmark Results

Test Name: This Computer
CPU - Integer Math: 348.8
CPU - Floating Point Math: 540.9
CPU - Find Prime Numbers: 345.0
CPU - SSE: 2976.5
CPU - Compression: 3304.4
CPU - Encryption: 16.9
CPU - Image Rotation: 1120.1
CPU - String Sorting: 2063.5
CPU Mark: 959.9
PassMark Rating: 259.2

System information: This Computer
CPU Manufacturer: GenuineIntel
Number of CPU: 1
(2 Core(s)/CPU, 1 Logical(s)/Core)
CPU Type: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU T9300 @ 2.50GHz
CPU Speed: 1197.0 MHz
Cache size: 6144KB
O/S: Windows Vista (WIN64)
Total RAM: 2027.7 MB.
Available RAM: 1175.9 MB.
Video settings: 1440x900x32
Video driver:
DESCRIPTION: GeForce 8600M GT
MANUFACTURER: NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT
BIOS: Version 60.84.49.03.00
DATE: 02/16/08
Drive Letter: C
Total Disk Space: 80.7 GBytes
Cluster Size: 4.0 KBytes
File system: NTFS

Do you think these results are normal?
Because it seems to me that they are way too low for the T9300 cpu! Please help! Do I need to contact Apple?

[David (PassMark)]

You said you CPU result was 5.4 in your first post. In your 2nd post it is 959.9. Which is a bit of a difference.

But the result of 959.9 is still a bit low for a T9300.

The CPU speed being reported is only 1200Mhz. So my guess is that your PC is running at half speed. Maybe becuase you are running in power save mode. (e.g. on battery power, not mains power).

[iatropoul]

5.4 is Vista's performance score for my cpu! I don't use my battery (my battery is disconnected and I use my powercord) and 1200 MHz is the single core speed which is normal! Omg something is seriously wrong here! Apple's hardware test doesn't give me any faults! My settings (vista and mac os) is for high performance instead of high battery life! CPU-Z and sisoft sandra show that voltages are normal and they identify my cpu correctly. Any ideas?

[David (PassMark)]

1200 MHz is the single core speed which is normal!

It is normal only when the CPU is throttled down (which is a common thing for laptops). Overheating and running on batteries are the common reasons for a laptop CPU to be throttled down.

[iatropoul]

If it happens for you to know how I can set my normal cpu speed on a mbp pls tell me!

[programatix]

Hi,

I'm having the same problem. I owned a Dell XPS M1530 (T9300) and the result is half of the baseline result of the same machine.

I've already check the BIOS and is sure that everything is set properly. I'm also running on power adapter. It would be great someone posts on the detail done (step by step) before the benchmark is taken for the baseline.

Here's my result.

PassMark(TM) PerformanceTest 6.1 (http://www.passmark.com)
Results generated on: Sunday, 24 August, 2008


Benchmark Results

Test Name: This Computer
CPU - Integer Math: 231.0
CPU - Floating Point Math: 831.7
CPU - Find Prime Numbers: 772.4
CPU - SSE/3DNow!: 4708.6
CPU - Compression: 5719.0
CPU - Encryption: 33.1
CPU - Image Rotation: 968.9
CPU - String Sorting: 3531.9
CPU Mark: 1410.6
PassMark Rating: 380.9

System information: This Computer
CPU Manufacturer: GenuineIntel
Number of CPU: 1
(2 Core(s)/CPU, 1 Logical(s)/Core)
CPU Type: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU T9300 @ 2.50GHz
CPU Speed: 1994.5 MHz
Cache size: 6144KB
O/S: Windows Vista (WIN32)
Total RAM: 3581.1 MB.
Available RAM: 1896.0 MB.
Video settings: 1680x1050x32
Video driver:
DESCRIPTION: GeForce 8600M GT
MANUFACTURER: NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT
BIOS:
DATE: 06/22/07
Drive Letter: C
Total Disk Space: 183.3 GBytes
Cluster Size: 4.0 KBytes
File system: NTFS

[David (PassMark)]

The average T9300 result was 1691, so you aren't too far from that result with 1410. (about 16% below).

But the measured CPU clock speed was 1995Mhz which is below the rated 2500Mhz (about 20% below). As already stated, overheating and running on batteries are the common reasons for a laptop CPU to be throttled down. If these aren't the reasons in your case, then we can't really say why your CPU isn't running at its maximum speed.

[programatix]

There are hugh differences in the individual module. Why is this so? Is it caused by different version of Vista (32bits and 64bits)? Is the baseline benchmark done by PassMark? If it is so, what are the pre-benchmark preparation done to the system?

Thanks.

[David (PassMark)]

There are hugh differences in the individual module

I don't know what you are refering here by, "individual module".

Is the baseline benchmark done by PassMark?

Most of the 12,000+ baselines are done by our users. Maybe only a few dozen are done by us.

what are the pre-benchmark preparation done to the system

The best it to use a clean Windows install.

Otherwise,
- Defag the disk
- Turn off programs that do real time scanning of files as you read them
(e.g. Antivirus programs)
- As much as possible turn of anything else that using up CPU cycles /
RAM in the background
- Make sure you E-Mail program isn't going to check for E-mail in the
middle of the test (and similar periodic tasks)
- After booting wait a few minutes for the machine to settle down before
running a test
- Make sure you have the correct and up to date device drivers for your
hardwrae
- Use the 64bit version of PerformanceTest on 64bit O/S's.
- Use a CD with a small number of large files on it for the CD test

See also these forum posts.

Common reasons for a PC running slowly
http://www.passmark.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1057

How do I push my PC to the bleeding edge?
http://www.passmark.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1071