Is there a big difference between the E6300 and the E6400?

[AFurryReptile]

In terms of gaming performance, is a E6400 Conroe going to perform a lot better than the E6300?

 

[n7]

No.

Games are primary GPU-limited, so you'd be much better off upgrading video card than CPU.

 

[Kromis]

Well...OC ability (1 higher multiplier)

 

[Conky]

Yes, an additional multiplier always helps with overclocking. And it's faster at stock too... can't forget that. 😛

 

[AFurryReptile]

Thanks guys, I think I probably will upgrade to the 6400. It's not that much more expensive, and I was going to look into some overclocking also.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Originally posted by: AFurryReptile
Thanks guys, I think I probably will upgrade to the 6400. It's not that much more expensive, and I was going to look into some overclocking also.

Yes. with an E6400 you don't need really good memory to get a good overclock. With a 8x multy you can run 400Mhz FSB and DDR2-800 memory (which can be bought rather reasonably) and get 3.2Ghz. With 7x Multi on the E6300 you need to run 425Mhz on the FSB which means your slowest memory speed (1:1) is DDR2-850 which is overclocking a DDR2-800 stick to get the same CPU speed.

Although if you do happen to buy a 680i you don't have the FSB/memory "limitation" so you have a little more room.

 

[SpeedZealot369]

I would tell you to save money and go with the e6300.

 

[AndrewL]

Originally posted by: SpeedZealot369
I would tell you to save money and go with the e6300.

And end up spending more because you need faster memory to keep up with the core if you want a good overclock? I know not all people want to overclock, but why not extract free value.

 

[deadseasquirrel]

Originally posted by: cmdrdredd
Although if you do happen to buy a 680i you don't have the FSB/memory "limitation" so you have a little more room.

Can you explain this some more? And is this feature tied only to the 680i specifically or the whole 600i family (including the 650i ultra)?

 

[Cheex]

How limited an OC will i have if i use my DDR2-533 memory with one of these processors?

 

[n7]

Originally posted by: Cheex
How limited an OC will i have if i use my DDR2-533 memory with one of these processors?

Unless that's using D9 chips, very limited.

You won't likely even get to 800 unless it's good RAM.
Granted, OCing is luck of the draw to an extent.

E6400 needs DDR2-800 speeds to run 3200 MHz.
E6300 needs DDR2-916 speeds to run 3206 MHz.