Benchmarking Microprocessors for High-End Signal Processing
Abstract
There are a number of general-purpose microprocessor architectures which, while not designed for high-end signal processing, might provide the processing performance required for complex radars, signal intelligence and other demanding applications. But how well does each really perform as a digital signal processor? To answer this question, some simple benchmarks were run on a 1GHz Freescale 7447 PowerPC, 1.8 GHz IBM 970 PowerPC, 1.8 GHz AMD Opteron and 800 MHz Broadcom MIPS-based 1250 chip. The bottom line of this set of benchmarks is that the PowerPC with AltiVec produces impressive computational performance compared to the other processors considered. Now that IBM is shipping its PowerPC 970 with AltiVec, there is a processor alternative that addresses the memory bandwidth limitations of the 7447. Yet, despite the strengths of AltiVec, the benchmarks revealed that the alternative processors offer some interesting capabilities for particular types of signal processing. For example, memory bandwidth may be more important than sheer speed, or where parts count is a limitation.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 01, 2005
- Accession Number
- ADA433158
Entities
People
- Stephen Paavola