Should I O'clock my E6700?

sparky05084

sparky05084

sparky05084

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First off a big hello to all here. I'm new to this forum and very, very green when it comes to this sort of stuff so go easy one me :)

Ok, basically at present I'm running Win XP SP3 and have been since day one (comp is 5 years old). I haven't done a tap to my system and lately I went out and got myself a nice new copy of Win 7 Premium Home Edition.

Thought it was about time to make the jump and let’s be honest, Win XP is old hat.

Reason being is that I have Crysis 2 and yes it runs ok'ish but I feel I would benefit more in a 64bit environment and it would run better. Infact, I would say that my whole system would benefit from the change to Win 7.

I am currently going through the process of backing up all my data and files etc to an external drive and then I'm going to install Win 7.

Now, my Core 2 Duo has been running at stock speed of 2.67 GHz since day one and I haven't changed anything in the BIOS or even attempted to O’clock it. It is 64bit compliant but it has been running in 32 Win XP so I wonder if it's not been used to it's full potential for all those years. Poor CPU :(

I therefore have a few questions:

Considering that I only use my PC for normal everyday use such as general gaming (I'm no hardcore gamer by any means) and browsing the old tinterweb and watching movies etc would I really need to O'clock my Core 2 Duo?

Also, what are the risks of O'clocking? I've heard that it can dramatically reduce the working life of a CPU by up to a third and considering I've had it 5 years now is it too late?

I was considering getting rid of my Core 2 Duo and replacing it for a quad core as part of the upgrade with Win 7 but I was told that my current setup is more than adequate for what I need and because I'm not doing like heavy video editing or using powerful software programs, then using a quad core would be pointless. Would you agree?

I'm a bit puzzled as to what to do and let’s face it; the average enthusiast like me has literally hundreds of options. I mean O'clocking in my opinion is a hobby and a more "lets see what my CPU can do".

Do I actually need that extra boost?

Thanks
 
The risk are real.
But geting your cpu to run say 25% faster is deffently worth it and really isent that taxing.
quad core will give you a nice boost in crysis 2.
what mobo do you have ?
 
I will give you my system specs as that would help a little more:

Foxconn P9657AA-8KS2H chipset
Intel Core 2 Duo E6700 stock cooled
4Gb Corsair XMS 2 PC2-6400 DDR2 RAM 5-5-5-18 (only 3.25GB useable as in Win XP 32bit but going to Win 7 remember)
Leadtek Winfat P8800GTX stock
WDC 320Gb 3200JS
 
Does Crysis 2 already run on your system? what resolution monitor do you use?

It sounds like you may well have the money to upgrade immediately, but there cant be any harm in giving overclocking a go now, which will allowing you postpone a full system upgrade to some time in the future.

Good luck! I overclocked my CPU for the first time this weekend, having owned it for roughly 18months.
 
Currently I have an NEC Multisync LCD 21" monitor running at 1680 x 1050. Not the best and I would say Crysis 2 is running at about average.

I'm thinking of investing in a nice new Geforce GTX 460. I know the 500 series cards are boss but I don't want to start spending silly money hence why I'm thinking of going down the O'clock route rather than shell out.

I mean yeah I'm not being pig headed but if I wanted to tomorrow I could go out and get a new system but I'd rather utilise what I've got.

Regarding your over clock mate nice one. Hope that it works well. I will be around here for a while and I have some where to come if I need advice which is good.
 
A gtx 460 is a good upgrade and will overclock well, use msi afterburner. Overclock your cpu to at leat 3ghz which should be easy achieveable with a stock cooler.
 
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