Which processor is currently king of the price/performance ratio?

[PaperclipGod]

Topic.

 

[lobbyone]

I would think so, either the E6300 or the E6600, both overclock are beastly fast!

 

[PaperclipGod]

Does one OC more than the other? Im guessing the 6300 would...?

 

[Fullmetal Chocobo]

If OCing was taken into consideration, I would say the 6400...

 

[BurnItDwn]

Assuming stock speeds ... not taking into consideration the cost of the motherboard or any of the other components, I'd say the E6300 is the current king.

Current prices ... on newegg ...

$165 ... AMD x2 4200+
$181 ... Conroe e6300
$220 ... Conroe e6400


The e6300 benchmarks between 0 and 20% faster than an AMD X2 4200+ ... it costs 10% more.
The e6400 is 15% faster than the 6300 ... it costs 20% more.

The price/performance ratio is better at stock speed with an e6300, however, the difference in price/performance is nearly negligable when compared to the AMD x2 4200+ price point and e6400 price point.

Factor in Overclocking, and the e6300 and/or the e6400 would both shine more here than the AMD X2 4200+.
Factor in the cost of motherboards, and the AMD x2 4200+ may have a slight advantage.


But, overall, I'm gonna say the e6300 is the best bang for the buck.

 

[PaperclipGod]

Thanks guys

 

[cheesehead]

Sempron 3200+. OC to 2.4ghz, and you have a decent CPU for $50.

 

[cparker]

It's an interesting question. If you look at a benchmark you get one value. But if you factor in that for many users most of the cpu power is wasted in that they only use their pcs for office aps/surfing, then a 50 dollar (solo) cpu (along with mother boards at bargain basement prices) is much more cost effective. The key here is what you mean by "performance". If it's for video editing or heavy duty photoshop, well then the Conroe would have it. But for most of "the rest of us", for pereceived "bang for the buck", it's probably an A64 (solo) or a high end Sempron.

 

[Smartazz]

Originally posted by: cparker
It's an interesting question. If you look at a benchmark you get one value. But if you factor in that for many users most of the cpu power is wasted in that they only use their pcs for office aps/surfing, then a 50 dollar (solo) cpu (along with mother boards at bargain basement prices) is much more cost effective. The key here is what you mean by "performance". If it's for video editing or heavy duty photoshop, well then the Conroe would have it. But for most of "the rest of us", for pereceived "bang for the buck", it's probably an A64 (solo) or a high end Sempron.

What about for gaming? I don't think a high end conroe is needed, were all gpu bottlenecked anyway.

 

[PaperclipGod]

Originally posted by: cparker
It's an interesting question. If you look at a benchmark you get one value. But if you factor in that for many users most of the cpu power is wasted in that they only use their pcs for office aps/surfing, then a 50 dollar (solo) cpu (along with mother boards at bargain basement prices) is much more cost effective. The key here is what you mean by "performance". If it's for video editing or heavy duty photoshop, well then the Conroe would have it. But for most of "the rest of us", for pereceived "bang for the buck", it's probably an A64 (solo) or a high end Sempron.

Gaming.

 

[Roguestar]

Originally posted by: Smartazz
What about for gaming? I don't think a high end conroe is needed, were all gpu bottlenecked anyway.

Tell that to the 8800GTX .

 

[GetMedieval]

Overclocking? The lower 6300/6400 conroes.
Not OCing the best choice is the E6600 for bang/bank ratio.

 

[PaperclipGod]

How's the E6600 OC? The 4mb cache is attractive...

 

[Ruptga]

Originally posted by: PaperclipGod
How's the E6600 OC? The 4mb cache is attractive...

Here's a thread on what to expect on stock cooling and voltage with the various C2D flavors.

http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=28&threadid=1947961&enterthread=y

 

[PaperclipGod]

Thanks ADD, nice thread.

 

[alimoalem]

the e6600 goes higher than the e6300 and e6400. 3.0GHz is pretty common out of the 6600. 3.5GHz is possible but most systems are pushing it at that. if you have real good cooling and the stepping is good, i've seen some people get it at 4.0GHz (or very near). it isn't better than the 6300 or 6400 for price/performance, but for the upper end it is very competitive.

i think the 3800x2 might be a pretty good price/performance performer...better than the 4200 imo

 

[hurtstotalktoyou]

That depends on the price point.

$90.11 Sempron 64 2800+ & ASRock K8NF6G-VSTA
$146.99 ($136.99 AR) Opteron 144 & Biostar TForce6100-939
$217.11 Athlon 64 X2 3800+ (65w) & Biostar TForce 550
$277.12 Core 2 Duo E6300 & Gigabyte GA-945P-S3
$405.12 Core 2 Duo E6600 & Gigabyte GA-945P-S3

That's how I would rank them.