So whats almost as good as the Q600

[carmat4]

Hi.
After reading some of builds here in the forum, I thought i was ready to order my parts to put a new rig together with some parts from my previous system.

I was going for this:

GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3L LGA 775 $89.99
CORSAIR XMS2 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 $124.00
ASUS V-60 92mm Vapo Bearing CPU Cooler $42.99
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Kentsfield 2.4GHz $275.00

With tax and shipping its about 532.00 a bit more that Im willing to espend at this time. I can totally afford it but would be a little irresponsible to splurge at this moment..
I was going keep the power supply from my current system, as well as my 8600GT 512mb DDR3.
I have read the reviews on the Q6600 and they are just amazing.

I guess my question is which intel CPU would currently be one step below this one, and give me similar performance for less money..

I do gaming, photo editing, web surfing...

Thanks..

 

[MarcVenice]

E8400. Will be better for gaming, and will give similar performance in photo-editing too, it should come for roughly 200$ at microcenter. And, where are you ordering ? That cooler isn't that great, for 45$ you can also get a Tuniq Tower 120.

 

[tynopik]

$90 2x2GB memory - http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820231122
$67 ABIT IP35-E - http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813127031
$259 Intel Xeon X3210 G0 - http://clubit.com/product_detail.cfm?itemno=CA1938012 (same as Q6600 but runs at 2.13GHz
stay with stock cooler so no aftermarket cooler needed

alternatively
$259 Q6600 - http://clubit.com/product_detail.cfm?itemno=CA1938460
and stay with external cooler

 

[jterrell]

I'd say use tyno's memory and mobo suggestion, get the e8400 from microcenter for 189.00 and run the stock cooler for now.

You won't need to overclock the e8400 for a good while.

That would save about 200 bucks and you'd see no real difference in performance and may actually see a little better performance in gaming especially.

 

[carmat4]

THanks all of you... Im looking for the E8400 but it seems to be out of stock most places like microcentere, newegg.

I also read that the stock HSF, is hard to put on...

 

[imported_wired247]

Originally posted by: carmat4
THanks all of you... Im looking for the E8400 but it seems to be out of stock most places like microcentere, newegg.

I also read that the stock HSF, is hard to put on...

not if you know what you're doing... with a steady hand, a good eye to line up the clips, and having watched a tutorial on youtube (search for lga775 installation) it really couldn't be easier...

 

[Roguestar]

Originally posted by: wired247

Originally posted by: carmat4
THanks all of you... Im looking for the E8400 but it seems to be out of stock most places like microcentere, newegg.

I also read that the stock HSF, is hard to put on...

not if you know what you're doing... with a steady hand, a good eye to line up the clips, and having watched a tutorial on youtube (search for lga775 installation) it really couldn't be easier...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFEOd7nQbuQ :thumbsup:

 

[jterrell]

Originally posted by: carmat4
THanks all of you... Im looking for the E8400 but it seems to be out of stock most places like microcentere, newegg.

I also read that the stock HSF, is hard to put on...

Thx for the note about stock, dang, that does stink. I'll stop linking microcenter for the e8400 for now.

It's a good performer for the price point. The Q600 is more future proof but that means what 6 more months, lol.

Bang for buck right now is still dual core.
I'd see if I could find a good deal on an available e8400.
If not maybe step down to the e4500/2150 add a good HSF and then overclock that puppy. they are known for overclocking goodness.

My AMD 3000+ was my first overclock and has been running for 3 years without any cpu issues.

The new intel chips overclock even farther.

 

[carmat4]

Thanks for the link to that video, looks easy enough.. Now to find an E8400... How much can i expect to Overclock on stock cooling...?

 

[jterrell]

That will depend on too many factors to offer an exact response.

I would expect you will be able to overclock quite successfully if you have use the right, minimal amount of AS5 on the stock cooler and have good case air flow.

The ram and mobo may also be limiting factors that wouldn't have anything to do with case temps. Just stay below 70C for safety.

But I am sure you can get that e4500 performing like a 250.00 cpu with next to no effort.