Low End Mac
Search LEM 
Donate · Amazon.com · MacResQ · Advertise
Other Cobweb sites: Low End Living · Reformed.net
Quicklinks: · Power Macs · 'Books · Early Macs · Week's Best Deals · Best Buys · OS Downloads

Low End Mac's Online Tech Journal

QuadServer: 605 vs. 650

Low End Mac Reader Specials

Memory To Go Special: MacPro 8 Core Memory 4GB kit $192 / 2GB kit $109. MacBook Pro / MacMini / iMac Intel Core2 DUO 2GB $44 1GB $23--Free shipping available.

Download Typestyler, still the Ultimate Styling Tool for Internet, Print and Video Graphics. Works great in Classic with a Native OS X Version on the way. Free Tryout: www.typestyler.com

LA Computer Company: LA Computer Company: Specials on AppleCare, Apple Displays, MacBooks, iMac's, MacBook Pros, Laptop and iPod accessories and more. Apple A/C Adapters for laptops starting at $25.00 Call 1-800-941-7654 or Click Here.

OtherWorld Computing: NewerTech miniStack FW400+USB2 up to 750GB + Built in Hubs. Ultimate in performance storage + saves space with built in FW/USB2 Powered Hubs - all in convenient & sleek 6.5" x 6.5" x 1.5" profile. SPECIALS: 500GB now $219.99; 250GB now $139.99!

Mac users can finally play Party Poker for Mac. Not only that, they can also learn how to play PokerStars for Mac.

Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.

Compare products like desktop computers, laptops, and LCD TVs side by side! All the information and reviews to make the best purchasing decision for a new cell phone GPS products or MP3 players. The Ciao network makes searching products easy for you.

Memory For New Intel Core2 DUO MacBooks, MacBook Pro, MacMini & iMacs" 4GB Kit $80, 3GB Kit $60, 2GB Kit $40, 1GB $20. Click to Maximize your Macs...

Dan Knight - 2000.11.28

Which is the better server for my home network, the Quadra 650 I've been using or the smaller Quadra 605?

The 605 has a couple strikes against it: a slower CPU (25 MHz vs. 33 MHz) and a narrower bus to the ethernet card (16-bit vs. motherboard ethernet on the 650). Of course, we've using 10Base-T ethernet, so even a 16 MHz 16-bit bus should be able to handle data more quickly than the network can handle.

Both machines are comparably equipped with 32-36 MB of memory, and I moved the same hard drive between the units when running my tests. Both systems were running Mac OS 8.1 with the disk cache alternately set to 128K and 1 MB. I used file sharing and connected from my Umax SuperMac S900. I was the only one on the network.

Throughput was measured with TimeDrive 1.3. Results are the average of four runs.

computer  cache  write  read
Q650      128K   291K   266K
Q650      1 MB   342K   247K
Q605      128K   241K   193K
Q605      1 MB   274K   150K

The Quadra 605 clearly loses the throughput sweepstakes, probably due to the 16-bit ethernet card. It ran at 83% of Q650 speed on writes with a 128K cache, but only 80% as fast with the larger 1 MB cache. Read results were even worse, with the Q605 reaching only 73% of the 650's throughput on reads with a 128K cache and just 61% with the larger 1 MB cache. (For the record, the theoretical maximum throughput of 10 Mbps network is 1250K, a level with neither of these Macs approached.)

So why would I even consider the Quadra 605 as a file server? Well, the first reason was power consumption. The 605 has a small 30W power supply, while the heftier 650 has a 230W power supply. When you're running a computer around the clock, that difference is the equivalent of leaving two 100 watt light bulbs burning. (The monstrous Quadra 950 has a huge 303W power supply - ten times the power of the Quadra 605.) Thanks to the 30W power supply, the 605 should also run a lot longer on a UPS than the 650 with it's higher power consumption.

Other advantages of using the 605 as a file server are its small size and the greater expandability of the 650, which a server doesn't need. However, I do want those NuBus slots in the 650 for testing video cards, Rockets, and other NuBus cards.

Fortunately network throughput isn't the biggest factor on a small home network. We mostly use the server to shuttle small files between computers and rarely have two computers connected at the same time.

In the end, I'm going to use the Quadra 605 as our family file server unless I can find a better low cost, low power draw solution.  LEM

Recent Online Tech Journal Columns

Recent Content on Low End Mac

  • Leopard is the way to go, even on most old G4 Macs, Carl Nygren, My Turn, 05.14. The useful and just cool features in Mac OS X 10.5 make this the biggest step forward in the history of the Mac OS.
  • Mac OS 9 still nice, anticipating Odysseus, PowerBook 1400 upgrades, and more, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 05.14. Also rebuilding PowerBook batteries, FastMac vs. NuPower replacement batteries, and only one G4 upgrade left for WallStreet PowerBooks.
  • Windows on Macs: Three paths for integration, Jason Packer, Macs in the Enterprise, 05.14. Mac users have three routes for running Windows apps: Run Windows using Boot Camp or virtualization, or use a compatibility layer such as WINE.
  • Up-to-date or low-end, we need technology in our schools, John Hatchett, Recycled Computing, 05.14. Modern computers are great educational tools, but sometimes less distracting options (like no Internet) make more sense.
  • Best iMac G4 deals, Low End Mac Deals, 05.14. Used 15" 800 MHz Combo, $320; SuperDrive, $380; 1 GHz Combo, $400; SD, $485; 17" 1.25 GHz, $459; 20", $750.
  • Best Mac OS X 10.0-10.3 deals, Low End Mac Deals, 05.14. Mac OS X 10.0.3, $40; 10.1, $49; 10.2, $60; 10.3 DVD, $50; CD, $100; 10.1 Server, unlimited users, $109; 10.3 Server, $130.
  • Best MacBook Air deals, Low End Mac Deals, 05.14. 1.6 GHz, 80 GB, $1,694 after rebate; 1.8 GHz, $1,994 a/r; 1.6 GHz, 64 GB SSD, $2,689 a/r; 1.8 GHz, $2,950 a/r; SuperDrive, $99.
  • Mac of the Day: Quadra 700, Oct. 1991 - The successor to the Mac IIci ran a 'wicked fast' 25 MHz 68040 processor.
  • List of the Day: NewtonList supports Newton users.
  • May 15 in LEM history: 00: Advantages of a small Mac market - 01: Just different - Restoring after reformatting your hard drive - Mac as religion in the UK - The CRT isn't dead yet - 02: Xserve G4 - Why laptops need docks - 03: Don't break up Apple, build it up - Upgrades for slot-loading iMacs - 06: Old Macs still fun to use, productive tools - Is Mac OS 9 still a player? - David G. Wood's Mac legacy - 07: 13" 2.16 GHz MacBook - 8 free apps every Mac user should know
  • 10 cult Macs adored by collectors, Tamara Keel, Digital Fossils, 05.13. Macs are not only noted for their longevity, but also by the passion which collectors have for some of the most interesting models ever made.
  • Low End Mac's Compleat Guide to the Lombard PowerBook G3, Charles W. Moore, 'Book Value, 05.13. With the Lombard PowerBook, Apple abandoned the legacy ADB and serial ports for USB, trimmed 20% from WallStreet's weight, and hit 400 MHz.
  • Best PowerBook G3 deals, Low End Mac Deals, 05.13. Used 14" WallStreet G3/266 MHz, $90; Lombard G3/400 MHz, $200; Pismo G3/400 MHz, $300; 500 MHz, $350.
  • Best Apple TV deals, Low End Mac Deals, 05.13. Refurb 40 GB Apple TV, $199; new, $210; refurb 160 GB, $279; new, $319.
  • Best Xserve deals, Low End Mac Deals, 05.13. Used 1 GHz dual G4, $1,399; close-out 2.0 dual-core Xeon, $1,999; refurb 2.66, $2,799; 3.0, $3,499; new 2.8 GHz quad, $2,888; 8-core, $3,299; 3.0, $4,059.
  • More links in our archive.

Go to the Online Tech Journal index.


Have a question?
Ask an expert!

Low End Living

Amazon.com

Navigation

Used Mac Dealers
Apple History
Best Used Macs
Video Cards
Email Lists
InfoMac's Low
End Mac Forum

Favorite Sites

MacSurfer
MacMinute
MacInTouch
MyAppleMenu
InfoMac
Macs Only!
The Mac Observer
Accelerate Your Mac
RetroMacCast
PB Central
MacWindows
The Vintage Mac
   Museum

DealMac
DealsOnTheWeb
Mac2Sell
ramseeker
Mac Driver Museum
JAG's House
System 6 Heaven
System 7 Today
the pickle's Low-End
   Mac FAQ

Abandonware
   Petition

Mac vs. PC Info

Affiliates

The Apple Store
Mac Connection
MacMall
TechRestore
MacResQ
ExperCom
Crucial Memory
batteries.com

Advertise

Open Link