How big a performance hit will I take running CPU heavy programs in 32-bit WOW emulation?

December 15, 2006 2:33 PM

How much of a performance hit will I take if I install the 64-bit version of Vista and run, for instance, my Digital Audio Workstation in 32-bit WOW emulation rather than running it in native 32-bit?

I have a Pentium D processor that is 64-bit, and when Vista comes out I am planning to install the 64-bit version for both the increased memory allocation as well as the increased security, but I also run DAW programs that will have to run in WOW emulation because the programs won't be ported to 64-bit for some time. Obviously performance is a huge issue any time you're dealing with these kinds of programs.

posted by adi to Computers & Internet (5 answers total)

no idea on your question, but be sure that all your hardware drivers are available for 64-bit Vista before taking the 64-bit plunge....
posted by jacobsee at 3:35 PM on December 15, 2006

please stick to the question. thanks.
posted by adi at 3:42 PM on December 15, 2006

WoW is performed on-chip, so it should be very near realtime speeds.
posted by Jairus at 5:34 PM on December 15, 2006

I've been running Windows XP 64 bit for months, with a good selection of 32 bit apps, on a Pentium D processor. Generally, 32 bit apps running in WOW act and feel the same as they do in 32 bit Windows, with respect to speed and responsiveness. My system is actually faster in 64 bit mode, for functions like opening an application, searching, saving, and any I/O intensive work, since its disk subsystem can take advantage of Storport in 64 bit Windows, but falls back to SCSIport in 32 bit Windows.
posted by paulsc at 7:31 PM on December 15, 2006

What Jairus said: My experience on 64-bit AMD CPU with Linux is that 32-bit executables run at the same speed whether the OS is 32 or 64 bits.
posted by jepler at 6:13 AM on December 16, 2006