TMPGEnc Xpress 3.0 is the latest revision to this popular MPEG encoder, and a program that not only provides real-world MPEG performance results, but also includes a host of specialized CPU support options. The program supports virtually all CPU multimedia features such as MMX/MMX-2, SSE/SSE2/SSE3, 3DNow!, and even support for dual core and Hyper-Threading technologies.
For the following test, we've taken a high-end, 3-minute AVI file, and then encoded it to MPEG-1 using TMPGEnc. The test results are expressed in the form of time elapsed (minutes: seconds) and unlike our other benchmarks, a smaller bar denotes less time taken, and therefore higher performance.
MPEG-1 encoding is an area that the Athlon 64 X2 shows an incredible aptitude for, and even the debut of the Pentium EE 955 has no effect on the top performers. It is still the fastest Intel processor by a good margin, but both the Athlon 64 X2 4800+ and 4600+ 2.4 GHz models are just a bit faster in the MPEG-1 encoding arena. The newest Extreme Edition model remains very competitive, and can still outperform the Athlon 64 X2 4400+.
For the next test, we've taken the same high-end, 3-minute AVI file, and encoded it to MPEG-2 using TMPGEnc Express 3.0. This is more stressful on the system than our previous MPEG-1 encoding, and is the standard for DVD authoring. The performance results are expressed in the form of time elapsed (minutes: seconds) and as with the MPEG-1 results, a smaller bar denotes less time taken, and therefore higher performance.
MPEG-2 encoding is much a tougher test for our dual core processors, and here we see the advantages of a hybrid dual core/Hyper-Threading design in action. The Pentium EE 955 is well in the lead, and only the similarly-equipped Pentium EE 840 is even in the same ballpark. These are also serious encoding differentials between the Pentium EE models and the other dual core processors, especially when you consider these represent only 3-minutes of high-end video processing.
We have also added in a few different media encoding tests, starting with XMPEG and its DivX encoding benchmark test. The same 3 minute video file is used, and the time to encode the first 5K+ frames is displayed in the chart below. As with the previous encoding tests, these are time-based and a smaller bar denotes higher performance. We have also upgraded to the latest DivX 6.1 codec, which features new optimizations for dual processor (SMP), dual core, and Hyper-Threading-enabled systems.
The XMPEG DivX encoding times provide us with another tight battle, and overall, the encoding times are all very competitive. Although the Pentium Extreme Edition 955 does post a very good time, it's still not enough to outpace the Athlon 64 X2 4800+ and 4600+. In this case, the presence of Hyper-Threading seems to hold back the Pentium EE 955 a bit, as shown by the discrepancy between the 3.2 GHz Pentium EE 840 and Pentium D 840.
Our last multimedia test measures basic Windows Media Encoder performance using the 3-minute DivX file we produced above, and using the Windows Media Encoder 9 to convert it into .wmv format. WME 9 offers support for multi-threading and CPU optimizations, which makes it another great media encoding test for our high-end processors.
Windows Media Encoder 9 benchmark testing is another very tight race between the AMD and Intel dual core processors, and although the Pentium EE 955 does offer a slight improvement for Intel encoding times, it's still AMD in the lead. The newest Extreme Edition processor is certainly a speed demon, and does take it to the 2.4 GHz Athlon 64 X2 4600+, but the 2x1-MB core of the Athlon 64 X2 4800+ seems to be the current "sweet spot" for Windows Media Encoder 9 performance.
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