Hardware / CPUs

Intel Pentium Pro

discussed in 148 posts, 1995-1999 · overall tone positive

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Key threads

Pentium Pro, Pentium or Cyrix for Grand Prix 2 1996-09-17 · 24 posts
A buyer asked which 200MHz-class CPU would run GP2 best. One poster argued that GP2 was 16-bit code that would favour the Cyrix or Pentium, but owners reported that the Pentium Pro clearly ran GP2 faster. Others explained that DOS4GW runs code in 32-bit protected mode. Video card choice and FASTVID were also discussed.
Are GP2's hardware demands reasonable? 1996-06-10 · 30 posts
Koen van Bree argued that GP2's reportedly low SVGA frame rates on fast Pentiums were the price of its graphical detail. Others debated whether it was written in assembly or used DOS4GW, how a Pentium Pro would perform, and how VGA and SVGA differ. John Wallace said a full install would take 60 MB. Some posters suggested a PlayStation with Psygnosis's F1 as a cheaper alternative, and the thread later drifted into requests for NASCAR setups.
Do Pentium Pro CPUs help DOS racing and flight sims? 1996-02-16 · 24 posts
Posters discussed whether the Pentium Pro would speed up demanding sims such as IndyCar Racing II. Most said its gains appear mainly in 32-bit code, and benchmarks showed 16-bit code running poorly. The thread also covered Windows 95 versus OS/2 and NT, early 3D cards such as the 3D Blaster and PowerVR, and Microsoft's OEM licensing.
IndyCar Racing II on Windows 95 and 32-bit code 1995-08-13 · 24 posts
Users asked whether IndyCar Racing II would be a native Windows 95 product and run full screen. Rick Genter of Papyrus explained that IndyCar and NASCAR already used the 32-bit DOS/4GW extender, that the WinG version would take over the screen at 640x480, and joked that the OS/2 market was too small. Bryon La's claims about 16-bit code drew corrections, and OS/2 supporters argued for a port.
486/120 or Pentium upgrade for Papyrus sims, and GP2 speed fears 1996-01-06 · 42 posts
A user asked whether an AMD 486/120 or a Pentium 75/100 would better run ICR II and NASCAR; most recommended a Pentium for its PCI bus and upgrade path. Rick Genter of Papyrus confirmed ICR II's graphics engine was Pentium-optimised and said a GP2 demo he saw ran at 140-150% processor occupancy in VGA on a P90. This prompted extrapolated fears about GP2 performance, which others criticised as based on an old show demo and possibly biased; Genter said his observation was personal.
Pentium 200 versus Pentium Pro 200 for Papyrus sims 1996-05-26 · 29 posts
Posters debated whether a Pentium Pro would beat a Pentium 200 for ICR2 and NASCAR, given Windows 95's 16-bit code. Rick Genter of Papyrus said the DOS version makes no operating-system calls while driving and that Windows NT was not a target platform for ICR2, adding that the team was two weeks from shipping. Brian Wong reported that a Pentium Pro 200 was faster in ICR2.
Analysis of GP2's banked SVGA video code 1996-07-27 · 24 posts
A poster explained that GP2 used slow banked SVGA rather than VESA 2.0 linear framebuffer mode, which most users' cards could support, and criticised its frame rate and timing approach. Others noted text in the executable mentioning linear buffering and wondered if it was disabled. The thread also clarified the 12-lap qualifying limit messages.
Standardising Grand Prix 2 video benchmarks with CBench 1996-08-04 · 22 posts
Michael Carver proposed that posters report Chris's 3D benchmark (CBench) results instead of GP2 log scores so hardware could be compared consistently. Many users posted VGA and SVGA scores for their CPU and video card combinations. JEB showed that FASTVID with write combining greatly improved SVGA results on a Pentium Pro, and the ATI Mach64 was singled out as slow under DOS.