Q6600 vs E8400 vs E8500

Molemanmus

Molemanmus

Molemanmus

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Which one of these cpu's is the best to get for browsing the internet, word processing and heavy gaming?

Is quad core really worth it?
 
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Hello Molemanmus, the only reason in my opinion to choose one of the Wolfdale Dual Core processors is if you aren't too keen on the heat and power consumption that the Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 outputs. Have a look at the graph below to compare the power consumption between the different processors that you are looking at purchasing:

PowerConsumption.jpg


A lot of people judge which processor to go for purely on the basis of it's stock speeds and the faster a processor runs, the better it is. Now, whilst their is some truth to this, it doesn't tell you the whole story. The Intel Core 2 Duo E8400/8500 Wolfdale at stock is clocked higher than a stock Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 and it will also probably reach a higher clock speed when overclocked. However, is the performance difference between say a Intel Core 2 Duo E8400/8500 Wolfdale running at 4GHz compared to a Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 running at 3.4 - 3.6GHz justify enough of a difference to warrant losing an extra 2 cores? In my opinion, no it isn't.

Take a look at the graphs below. It really shows that the Intel Core 2 Duo E8400/8500 Wolfdale may be clocked 600 - nearly 800MHz faster but the performance boost is minimal at best.

Crysis.jpg


WorldInConflict.jpg


Source - Intel Core 2 Duo E8500, E8400 and E8200 :)
 
E8400 would be the most sensible choice for your uses IMO.

My uses are pretty much the same as yours and I am going for the E8400 in my new build. It uses less energy, runs cooler, is cheaper and most can easily hit 4Ghz on air...
 
E8400 is a great chip, I've got one im my rig, overclocks easily on air. Definitely the choice here.
 
Games won't use the extra cores, it's all about the clock frequency(then cache) for those maximum frames per second just now. I'd get that E8400 and OC the bejesus out of her.
 
puppetworx said:
Games won't use the extra cores, it's all about the clock frequency(then cache) for those maximum frames per second just now. I'd get that E8400 and OC the bejesus out of her.
Click to expand...

I would disagree with that. The higher the clock speed is important but as already said, it does not tell you the whole story. You have to take into account does the extra speed of a dual core processor warrant enough of a performance jump to lose an extra two cores? By going by the graphs that I have already posted, it most certainly doesn't.

The only real reason to choose one of the Wolfdale dual core processors is if you aren't happy with the sort of heat and power consumption a quad core processor produces. :)
 
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[TW]Fox;12785848 said:
Or if you want the extra performance an E8500 can quite obviously give you :confused:
Click to expand...

Hello [TW]Fox, the extra performance that the Intel Core 2 Duo E8500 gives you does not justify losing the extra two cores you get by having a quad core processor as shown by the graphs. :)
 
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No point in paying for 2 extra cores if you are not going to use them. If you are a gamer in general it is better to get the most cost effective e8xxx series cpu. IMO, the one that fits that bill at the moment is the e8400.
 
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