IMPATIENT -- E6400, E6420 or E6600 (POLL Added)

GamingDaemon

Senior member
Apr 28, 2006
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This may be less of a hardware question, and more of a "should I believe what I read" question.

So, a funny thing happened on the way to newegg. I finally had decided on a mobo suitable for my new rig, the Asus P5B-E. I was planning to buy an E6400 when loe and behold, I read that the E6420 will be coming out in a few weeks (sweet 4MB L2 cache) and I should look forward to some decent price drops. In other words, an E6600 will be as much s an E6400 is now! YES!

Well, I am building a Vista rig, with an nVidia 8800 GTX card. I will be gaming, doing development, and running some virtual PCs. I would also like to OC to 400FSB to get a nice 3.2 clock speed with DDR2-800 memory and air cool.

So should I wait and buy a E6600? Or wait and buy an E6420?? Or just buy the damn E6400 now because I am an impatient man that doesn't mind spending the extra $$$.

Help me please :)

TIA
 

judasmachine

Diamond Member
Sep 15, 2002
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I bit the bullet a couple of weeks ago on the bottom end, and only partially regret it. As for the +2MB of cache, I'll refer you to this thread.
 

GamingDaemon

Senior member
Apr 28, 2006
474
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Originally posted by: judasmachine
I bit the bullet a couple of weeks ago on the bottom end, and only partially regret it. As for the +2MB of cache, I'll refer you to this thread.

Hmmm, so it doesn't make much difference, at least not for gaming. But I could wait and get an E6600 with a higher multiplier for the price of an E6400, provided they actually lower their prices.
 

GamingDaemon

Senior member
Apr 28, 2006
474
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76

Well so far, the choice to wait till sometime in mid-April to buy an E6600 has a slight lead.

Can anyone confirm that the prices will, in fact, drop as much as they are speculating?
 

Boyo

Golden Member
Feb 23, 2006
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Best to wait and get the exact CPU that you really want.
 

bigsnyder

Golden Member
Nov 4, 2004
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One thing to consider if your overclocking, the extra L2 cache could be a limiting to factor
regardless if you are looking at the e6420 or e6600. Again, they might be even better than
the current core 2s. Just one of those deals that we will just have to wait and see. I went
ahead and upgraded this past Dec. I have no regrets, since I am still waiting on a video card
upgrade which will net the most performance gain for games anyway.
 

GamingDaemon

Senior member
Apr 28, 2006
474
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Originally posted by: bigsnyder
One thing to consider if your overclocking, the extra L2 cache could be a limiting to factor
regardless if you are looking at the e6420 or e6600. Again, they might be even better than
the current core 2s. Just one of those deals that we will just have to wait and see. I went
ahead and upgraded this past Dec. I have no regrets, since I am still waiting on a video card
upgrade which will net the most performance gain for games anyway.

Couple of Questions:
1) Why would the extra L2 cache memory impede OC?
2) Why might be the newer cores be any better? I thought the E6420 was exactly the same as an E6400 but with more L2 cache?

Thanks in advance...
 

WT

Diamond Member
Sep 21, 2000
4,816
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I'm waiting on the 6600 as well ... whats going to bug me is the vendors will not have enough stock for the rush as everyone is aware of the price drops. I'm trying to be patient for this C2D build, as I've jumped the purchasing gun in past years and found better deals only a week later.
 

Squyd

Member
Jul 22, 2005
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Usually I upgrade every two years and budget well, but this time I just plunged for an E6300.

The parts I'm ordering are P5B Deluxe, 8800GTS and Patriot memory that I hope to go above 500FSB. I basically decided I am going to get the most OC from the 6300, and not to worry too much about the extra 2MB. If the CPUS prices come down, I only lose ~ 20 bucks.

That said, the market can be a bit capricious.
 

eojinlim

Senior member
Dec 3, 2006
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Quite honestly. the extra multiplier won't really matter because you will be FSB mobo-limited anyhow.

Bite the bullet and get the e6600 NOW! lol.
 

GamingDaemon

Senior member
Apr 28, 2006
474
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Originally posted by: eojinlim
Quite honestly. the extra multiplier won't really matter because you will be FSB mobo-limited anyhow.

Bite the bullet and get the e6600 NOW! lol.

Why will I my mobo limit my FSB? I'm planning to get the Gigabyte DS3 with a 1066 FSB. That should let me do a 400 MHz FSB, with a 3.2 GHz clock speed on a E6400 and 3.6 GHz on the E6600. That's all I need.

Also, are you using the 100.65 drivers for the 8800 under Vista? Any problems? I will be bying an 8800 GTX for this rig as well.
 

bigsnyder

Golden Member
Nov 4, 2004
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Originally posted by: GamingDaemon
Couple of Questions:
1) Why would the extra L2 cache memory impede OC?
2) Why might be the newer cores be any better? I thought the E6420 was exactly the same as an E6400 but with more L2 cache?

Thanks in advance...

1. L2 cache runs at the speed as the rest of the processor. Thats that many more transistors
that have to have some headroom for overclocking.

2. Different yields and batches as a result of the fab being refined always have an impact
on overclocking. If the yields are really good for the e6420s, then they stand a good chance
of being really good. Likewise, if the yields are lower, overclocking headroom might also
suffer.

Nothing is a guarantee in terms of overclocking. Thats why I said we will just have to wait
to see how they turn out.

C Snyder
 

Markfw

Moderator Emeritus, Elite Member
May 16, 2002
26,691
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Originally posted by: tallman45
Wait, by then Vista will also have some bugs ironed out

Vista is a bug... I will never buy it.

Get the 6600 now if you have the money, otherwise wait.
 

nyker96

Diamond Member
Apr 19, 2005
5,630
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I think by all reports this extra 2mb cache not gonna make much more diff in actual performance. So if you can't wait then go right ahead, it doesn't sound like you waiting for price drops either. But if you don't need this stuff now, just wait that 6 weeks and get a bit more with your cash. Most games probably will appreciate extra cache a bit more.
 

Conky

Lifer
May 9, 2001
10,709
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0
Buy now. You might be dead in 6 weeks. :p

Seriously, what is 6 weeks of not having a decent cpu worth? I am totally happy with my E6400 and have been since last last August. I could've waited and save almost $100 by now and would've had a suck computer for 6 months instead of that $100. I think it was worth that $100. :beer:
 

n7

Elite Member
Jan 4, 2004
21,281
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Originally posted by: Markfw900
Originally posted by: tallman45
Wait, by then Vista will also have some bugs ironed out

Vista is a bug... I will never buy it.

Get the 6600 now if you have the money, otherwise wait.

:roll:

Vista isn't perfect, but for a new OS, it's a lot better than even i expected.

I too wouldn't suggest waiting.

Granted, you can save money, but unless you're really patient, might as well enjoy your new C2D ASAP :p
 

GamingDaemon

Senior member
Apr 28, 2006
474
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Originally posted by: Markfw900
Originally posted by: tallman45
Wait, by then Vista will also have some bugs ironed out

Vista is a bug... I will never buy it.

Get the 6600 now if you have the money, otherwise wait.

Hey I've been running Vista since November. It's a great OS, especially from a developer's perspective. :)
 

GamingDaemon

Senior member
Apr 28, 2006
474
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It's a tough one. I have an AMD X2 4200+ in a 939 socket with a eVGA 7900 KO so it's not like I'm hurting. And I do have the money now, but waiting a few weeks to save $100 is a good thing too. You can see why I am undecided...
 

aigomorla

CPU, Cases&Cooling Mod PC Gaming Mod Elite Member
Super Moderator
Sep 28, 2005
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TIA its me aigomorla.

Just wait your butt on that new system, and dont get too impatient.

Honestly, for almost everything i did, including some games, my AMD was more then enough.

AMD's are slower then the C2D, but not to the point where upgrading is absolutely necessary.

K8 -> C2D isnt as big of a jump from a P4->K8

So save the extra money, and drop it in watercooling like you originally wanted :D
 

GamingDaemon

Senior member
Apr 28, 2006
474
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Originally posted by: aigomorla
TIA its me aigomorla.

Just wait your butt on that new system, and dont get too impatient.

Honestly, for almost everything i did, including some games, my AMD was more then enough.

AMD's are slower then the C2D, but not to the point where upgrading is absolutely necessary.

K8 -> C2D isnt as big of a jump from a P4->K8

So save the extra money, and drop it in watercooling like you originally wanted :D

Says the guy with a QX6700 :) Yes, yes, you have 2 AMD machines too.

But as for what to do, I think I am going to buy the E6600. But rather than make a decision to buy it now or later, I am just going to cross that decision off my list. I have so many more to make, like what motherboard should I match it too? I have heard there are problems wit hthe 650i chipsets. The 975 BadAxe2 is too expensive, the DS3 has some problems...what to do there? Then there's the memory. I know I want DDR2-800 (with FSB set to 400 and the 9 multiplier from the 6600, I can do 3.6GHz air cooled). But which brand of memory. And then there's the case. I like Lian Li, but I also like the new Antec Mystique case.

Sigh. :confused: By the time I get that all figured out, it will probably be 6 weeks from now, and the price will have dropped some, or not. I just think that even if I spend $100 more now for the 6600, it will make me happy to have gotten what I want, and that's really cool.
 

AlgaeEater

Senior member
May 9, 2006
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I have a single core A64 3500+, so for me the upgrade is REALLY painful right now to wait. I can't even play the latest games anymore without some of them chugging down due to lack of dual core. (Supreme Commander comes to mind)

But I'm waiting for 6 weeks because when you honestly look at the time frame, it isn't too far off. When some people say "Wait 6 months" or "Wait 3 months", that's still quite a bit. But 6 weeks is easy, you'll be there in no time, so just be a little patient. Besides, that money you're going to save or allocate to a better processor is going to reduce the sting of quad core next year. :p
 

Midnight Rambler

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
4,200
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Let's see ...

A.) Wait at least 6 weeks and maybe save $50 on a 6600. And take the risk that RAM goes back up.

or

B.) Buy now and enjoy.


I'd choose B. Never know if the next rev OC's as well. Also, you can get the Bad Axe2 from MicroCenter right now for approx. $175.