Core 2 Or Quad?

[darrensen]

Hi all,

I'm getting fed up lugging my Macpro to gaming nights. The thing weighs in at over 20kgs, so building a small'ish pc.

Should i go with the Core 2 Duo 2.66 or go Quad 2.4? I know not many games are developed for quad yet, but i play flight sim X and i think i recall seeing that it is developed for quad?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Darren

[RichieLee]

I'm not an expert at all on this but personally I'd go for a core duo, actually I'm in the process of building a rig too and I'm chucking an E6750 2.66 in there! Although the quad is more "future proof" if you like I think you could overclock the core 2 to be quicker anyway. I've heard the quads aren't so overclockable because they're more prone to overheating?

[Blitzen]

If i was building today it would be a C2D.
If i was building in 6 months it would be a Quad.

C2D are exceptionally good value for their power at the moment and the Quads, all bar the lowest end one, aren't.

Give it 6 months and a mid range Quad will be around £100-£120. Get a 6750 or something and in 6 months flog it and go Quad when they are value for money.

[Rishi]

I think you could overclock the core 2 to be quicker anyway. I've heard the quads aren't so overclockable because they're more prone to overheating?

G0 Stepping Q6600 will overclock very nicely! I have the E6600 C2D - its a great chip, works well. But the Q6600 is where its at right now.

Its quite cheap for what you get and some basic tinkering can push it a great deal.

Not sure if others agree?

[staffsMike]

Not sure if others agree?

Absolutely.

Q6600 can be pushed easily to around 3.4GHz, and over 4 cores that's awesome power.

I have an E6600 and it's good but the quad is better.

Of course saving money now leaves money to upgrade later but that upgrade could require, mobo, RAM and CPU so if would probably go the best you can get right now, which is the q6600 by far.

[shaithis]

Its a trade-off between small and powerful....

I personally wouldn't feel to confident with an overclocked Quad if the case was too small. Small case may limit the type of cooler you can use, further causing heat issues.

The Quads pump out a fair amount of heat, might be worth talking to any LAN partyers that have done a Quad box, or maybe even seeing what the like of shuttle say about Quads.

But if the heal won't be a problem, I'd go Quad

[darrensen]

This is only going to be a gaming machine. My work horse video/photo processing is going to be done by my Mac. Not a lot will beat that when the 6gb arrives.

Maybe i should go with the cheaper option for now and think about changing if needed later next year. A lot of my gaming is being done on the 360, and it's only my gaming nights (Battlefield 2142, Counter Strike, World in Conflict and Fm 2008) which i'll use the pc for.

[dancingmatt]

Absolutely.

Q6600 can be pushed easily to around 3.4GHz, and over 4 cores that's awesome power.

I have an E6600 and it's good but the quad is better.

Of course saving money now leaves money to upgrade later but that upgrade could require, mobo, RAM and CPU so if would probably go the best you can get right now, which is the q6600 by far.

I think I've missed something - why would using a Quad in place of a C2Duo need a new mobo and RAM?

DM

[darrensen]

I think I've missed something - why would using a Quad in place of a C2Duo need a new mobo and RAM?

DM

Err yes same here????

Unless he means, moving to DDR3 RAM, that would require a new Mobo.

[pompalomp]

Seriously, listen to staffs mike, he knows what he is talking about. He persuaded me to get one, and i have not yet been disappointed. pushed mine to 3.5Ghz!
EDIT: Make sure you get the Q6600 Go stepping Computer hardware and software at amazing prices, available online from Scan Computers UK

[acrobat]

Get a Q6600 GO, for sure.

[staffsMike]

Yes i mean DDR3 upgrade..and who say next gen quads work in current mobo's? What's the point in doing 2 upgrades and wasting money on the dual core if you eventually want a quad anyway.

The quad will last a hell of a lot longer and it's only £50 more.

[themaidenmaniac]

Im currently trying to find the cheapest price on the q6600, probably looking at a 2nd hand USA import though at best!?

[ElCapitan]

Quad core is the way, especially with Crysis on the way. Q6600 G0 is just shy of £170 at Scan, and if you're overclocking the Artic Freezer 7 Pro will push it up to 3.6Ghz

[aidanjt]

Shuttles were handling Prescott energy (110W iirc) output long time before the Q6600 G0 (95W) came about. It'll easily handle it.

[Fraz]

You'd be very foolish indeed not to opt for a Q6600 + overclock in my opinion. Although obviously it depends how small you want the case. A ThermalTake Ultima 90 for instance would allow you to keep the size down and the overclock fairly high