Have an E6400, which upgrade for encoding videos?

[Mdobbs30]

My mobo is the ole gigabyte 965p-ds3 1.0. Their website says I can slap a Q6600 in there with no problem. That's around $175.

Q9450 won't work in my gigabyte board. So that's a new motherboard, another $200 probably. Pretty sure my ddr2-800 memory is still good(I hope).

So, for video encoding, what would you recommend?

 

[Idontcare]

What specific app do you use to encode?

Do you intend to overclock?

Is power consumption a factor in your decision?

 

[Mdobbs30]

I like to use Ipodme, Videora, Nero Recode, etc. Most of the time, I'm shrinking down dvd's and other .avi's for my Ipod touch. Yes, I will o/c and power consumption is not a factor.

 

[Denithor]

The 965P-DS3 rev1 may hold you back in overclocking. I got that exact board and an e6400 the first week of the C2D launch and was able to push my chip to 2.66GHz with a moderate boost in volts (1.38). Any further took lots more volts to remain stable and temps went above the "comfort zone" for me.

I upgraded about a year later to an IP35E and with the same chip & RAM was able to run 3.0GHz on stock volts (1.325) with lower temps.

What processor do you have currently? Have you overclocked it? You might consider getting a newer motherboard first and overclock your current chip to see how much difference it can make in your apps before buying a quad. Keep in mind with a Q6600 if you plan to OC at all you're going to want a good aftermarket cooler so factor that cost into your price before you make a decision. The 45nm quads run considerably cooler and are faster at the same clockspeed.

I suggest you read this article over at xbitlabs before spending any money. They compare a variety of chips (Q9300 & Q9400, Q6600, E8600, X4 9950) at stock performance in a bunch of applications. Power consumption and overclocking results are also included. Well worth twenty minutes of your time.

 

[Mdobbs30]

I have an E6400 in it now. Was a major pita to find a good overclock, which was 4x801 mhz in the end. Bought a q9450 and evga 780i for $450+tax in the end. The q6600 was $180. I couldn't help but think the motherboard was going to hold me back sooner or later, if not already.

Thanks for the article link. Very informative.

 

[Idontcare]

Originally posted by: Mdobbs30
I like to use Ipodme, Videora, Nero Recode, etc. Most of the time, I'm shrinking down dvd's and other .avi's for my Ipod touch. Yes, I will o/c and power consumption is not a factor.

It is hard to recommend a new mobo purchase for LGA775 given the EOL (end of life) the socket is having with the new i7 (LGA1366) release.

Sure a Q9450 is gonna give you faster encode times and consume less power doing it, but an overclocked Q6600 (figure 3.2-3.4GHz if your HSF is good) is going to be a substantially cheaper upgrade. Ideally you'd save your mobo upgrade dollars for a switch to i7/LGA1366 of Deneb/AM2+.

Here's a bench result for nero recode done at tomshardware guide. The Q9450 and Q6600 are at stock here, so you have to scale the results to get an idea for the relative performance delta.

 

[flxnimprtmscl]

I'm in almost the same position as you. I ended up picking up a Q6600 off Ebay for $160 ($120 after cashback). That will tide me over for 6months-1year until the i7 products are firmly in place and have dropped in price a little.

Dropping money on a new board to buy a processor that's almost double the price and will only going to give you a few extra FPS seems like kind of a waste to me. You'll end up spending at least $200 more between board and chip for what is a negligible speed advantage imo. But, if you have to have the Q9450, you could probably pick up a really cheap IP35-E off the FS/FT forums here. Great overclocking board, 45nm support, high fsb capable, and rock stable. Providing you don't need E-Sata, firewire, raid, etc.

 

[California Roll]

+1 to what Idontcare said.

I had enough money to buy a high end x48 mobo and Q9450+ quad core now but I decided to "downgrade" due to what's coming down the pipe. I didn't have the time to wait tho and needed a new computer rightnowthisminute. I couldn't be more happy and will have saved some money for an i7 upgrade in about 2 years or so.

 

[Roy2001]

Originally posted by: Denithor
The 965P-DS3 rev1 may hold you back in overclocking. I got that exact board and an e6400 the first week of the C2D launch and was able to push my chip to 2.66GHz with a moderate boost in volts (1.38). Any further took lots more volts to remain stable and temps went above the "comfort zone" for me...

I can not believe that. I also have E6400 happilly running 3.2Ghz with v1.0 965P DS3.

That's said, you can hardly OC a Q6600 with this MB. If you are short of cash, a Q6600 would be a worthy upgrade for you. Otherwise, a Penryn system is not that expensive.