E8400 vs Q6600

[Juked07]

Does one result in significantly better performance than the other if I don't overclock either? The Q6600 is on sale at a microcenter near where I live (190), and I'm not sure if I should buy it (the E8400 is 175).

 

[taltamir]

the Q6600 will consume more power, so over time it will cost a little more due to electricity costs.
Single and dual threaded apps will run a little faster on the E8400, multi tasking and running quad enabled tasks will be much much faster on the quad.

generally it is:
E8400: 1-2 cores (depending on task) x 3ghz core speed + 0-50% more efficient (usually around 10-15%), depending on task, because the E8400 is newer generation part compared to Q6600 - inefficiency due to multithreading (task dependent, non existent in some).
Q6600: 1-4 cores (depending on task) x 2.4ghz core speed - inefficiency due to multithreading (task dependent, non existent in some).

However, generally speaking, tasks that tend to benefit a lot from improvements in the new gen will scale very well to 4 cores (aka, video editing) so the quad still wins by a little (or a lot) on those.

In many games the dual wins since they only use or or two cores (2x3ghz for the dual, and 2x2.4ghz on the quad, with the other 2 idling). In others all 4 are used well (rare, but there are some games like that, those games are generally more intensive so they actually NEED that extra power, compared to dual core games that can run comfortably on the quad). In other games neither matters since you will be GPU limited instead.

If you intend to not do video ENCODING (creation, that takes hours, not watching a movie), and you don't intend to game then go with an E7200 instead, almost the same speed for less then 100$ when it comes to daily tasks (word processing, web browsing, etc).
What DO you intend to use it for?
I ordered a Q6600 to replace my E8400, should arrive soon. Others swear by the E8400. It really all depends on what tasks you perform.

 

[firewolfsm]

If you overclock, the E8400 might be a better performer overall as they can clock very high and the better dual core performance in every app outweighs the better quad performance. If you don't want to overclock, then their speeds are close enough that I'd recommend the quad. If you care about heat go for the E8400 as it uses about half the power of a Q6600 (45nm and only two cores)

 

[Juked07]

Most of the things I do will not challenge either of these CPUs--websurfing and the like. My old CPU was limited when I was playing poker though. I guess I'm a midstakes reg and have been multitabling about 4 tables + poker tracker/HUD + some other software for table selection, and my computer was having trouble handling more tables. I think I could probably run 8 tables if my computer can deal with it all smoothly.

That's pretty much the only intensive thing I do. I dabble in newer games sometimes but I'm definitely not a hardcore gamer.

Edit: Was looking at the E7200, and it's only $50 dollars cheaper. The E8400 is 175 on Newegg, and the E7200 is 125. Should I still consider the downgrade?

 

[DSF]

I recommend that you fire up your current computer and load it up with tables until it starts to slow down, and then monitor your CPU usage via task manager. If you're not at 100% your problem is probably due to a shortage of RAM. If that's the case, a Q6600 isn't going to help at all. If your CPU usage is 100% then I'd research the program you're using to find out whether it can use multiple cores, or whether you could run multiple instances of the program. Again, if you can't, the Q6600 isn't going to help you.

 

[taltamir]

Originally posted by: firewolfsm
If you overclock, the E8400 might be a better performer overall as they can clock very high and the better dual core performance in every app outweighs the better quad performance. If you don't want to overclock, then their speeds are close enough that I'd recommend the quad. If you care about heat go for the E8400 as it uses about half the power of a Q6600 (45nm and only two cores)

the SLACR stepping of Q6600 oces very well, and overclocking actually diminshes the difference in performance between quad and dual.