Q6600, E8400 or Q9450

[DevilBoy916]

Hiya gang

I am on the verge of ordering my new build, but the CPU is causing me some problems!

I was set to get a Q6600 Quad, then the wolfdales came out and spoiled my party. And now the new 4nm Quads are due out very soon, which is proper messing my decision up!

I will be gaming, and am hoping to keep this PC for at least a year or 2.
I'll be getting a 8800GTX graphics card (or perhaps a 8800GTS if the processor is more pricey).
I'll also be doing the usual surfing and downloading and stuff, and I want the PC to do things quickly in normal apps. I will probably be running a few apps at once too...

My question is this. Which processor should I go for?
I plan to overclock to a comfortable level, so its not too hot, and the CPU cooler doesn't run too loud.

Any advice?
Cheers
DB

 

[DevilBoy916]

Wont the new 45nm quads overclock much better than the Q6600 though?
Meaning, if I spend an extra £40, I can have amuch cooler, higher mhz overclock?

 

[DevilBoy916]

So. My options are:

Get an E8400, overclock it to near 4ghz, and get an 8800GTX card.
I'll then upgrade to a nehelm and 9800 GPU in a year or two.

OR

Wait a week or two for the Q9450, get an 8800GT, and upgrade the card at the end of the year.

God this is hard work!

 

[DevilBoy916]

I dont really. I am a general user, no graphics packages really, no HD.
I have a 22" monitor, but i suppose the GPU is more important for this.

Just internet and gaming really!

So Dual it is?

 

[DevilBoy916]

It seems that a lot of people are saying, Get the E8500, it clocks to 4ghz.
The Quad will just sit there and never be used to its full potential.

Now, surely that is a reason to get the quad?!
I want a chip that isn't being used to its full potential, surely that means it'll last longer?!

And isn't the same true of the dual core? If you clock it to 4ghz, it wont need all that speed for a while yet, and its restricted by the GPU anyway, so whats the point!

Quite contradictory, some of your recomendations!

 

[DevilBoy916]

If I was going quad, i'd go for the Q9450, which should overclock better than a Q6600 (I think).

 

[DevilBoy916]

I dont understand why intel didnt put a higher multiplier on the Q9450.
It would rock if it could clock to 4ghz like the wolfies!

But no. i think they knew I was looking at building a PC, so they made it harder for me!

 

[DevilBoy916]

I am pretty sure i'm just going to go for the E4500 now.

I think the quad core will be better to get later in the year, or sometime next year.
by then, I will probably be noticing my system is naff compared to quad core PCs, and i'll need to upgrade.

Probably need to get a new Mobo and graphics card too, but hey, cant keep the same hardware forever!

 

[DevilBoy916]

The more I look into these new 45nm quads, the more I think that they just wont be as good.
They aren't going to overclock as good as the Q6600, unless you have a mega expensive motherboard.

With midrange mobo and ram, i'm plumping for the E8400.

However, I might wait another week, see what the benchmarks for the new quads look like. You never know, they could be beasts!

 

[DevilBoy916]

Well i've gone for the E8400 now.
Couldnt wait for the quads anymore.

I may upgrade the processor in 6 months or so if I need to.
But I figured, may as well go with what will give me the best FPS right now...