Speed Up Your Mac Pro and Xserve with Overclocking Tool

Windows PCs can be modified to overclock in the BIOS set-up and run at higher clock rates than originally designated by their respective manufacturers. Since Macintosh computers lack a BIOS setup, ZDNet developed the overclocking tool called “ZDNet Clock.” The tool raises the frequency of the processor, FSB and memory.

According to ZDNet’s  Christoph H. Hochstaetter, “The improvement in performance is quite remarkable. For example, the cheapest Mac Pro in the current series with a 2.80 GHz processor runs significantly faster after overclocking than the most expensive at 3.20 GHz.”

Although ZDNet’s tool does not use any voltage increase for the CPU, Computerworld’s editor Seth Weintraub has asked users to, “proceed with caution” as he is “not responsible for imploding machines.”

Typical increase of speed ranges from 15 to 20 percent. To download freeware ZDNet Clock 1.0, click here. Simply select the desired CPU frequency. Most computers with a 2.8 GHz CPU can be overclockedto 3.2 GHz and up. Note: Version 1.0 currently supports Mac Pro (Quad-Core Intel Xeon “Harpertown” processors) and Xserve computers.