What CPU for GA-73PVM-S2H?

[SlugForAButt]

My mate has an e4600 in a Gigabyte GA-73PVM-S2H and his system could obviously do with a shot in the arm.
He has squared a budget of about £80 with his missus for a CPU.
He's not a major gameplayer, but he has Diable 3 on pre-order.
Bearing in mind his board isn't a good clocker, I'm torn between recommending him a Q6600 or a Q9450 (for literally a couple of quid over budget).

Any thoughts, better ideas or problems with this?

BTW, budget isn't negotiable so no i5 2500k suggestions please.

 

[beejjacobs]

See what you can find on the members market
I'm sure the Q6600 would be fine for most things tbh. Don't wanna be investing too much just for extra clocks

 

[spirits247]

I have that board in a HTPC and can offer some useful advice.

A Q6600 will not overlock past about 2.8Ghz on that board regardless of voltage. Should do 2.8Ghz on default voltage however. The vDroop is bad. I'd imagine a Q9450 will be similar - don't expect to get it much past default.

An E8400 will get to 3150 on default voltage, about 3.4Ghz if you are willing to play with the voltage. I had the board up to about 375FSB with dual core, but it gets flaky towards 400 as no voltage adjustments whatsoever except for CPU.

I mention default voltage, as if you change the voltage from the default auto setting (obtained from the CPU VID) to another set value (higher or lower), it will not clock down the voltage when idle using up more power if that matters. I'd rather have it clock down the voltage when idle, as it's a HTPC so I always overclock this board at default voltage.

Good news is it's a nVidia chipset, so you can unlink the RAM and run it locked at 800 as you raise the FSB meaning ram voltage isn't an issue. In fact, according to mebenchmarks I ran, unlinked RAM has lower latency than normal FSB straps/dividers. Also, it will run most decent ram at CAS 4 at 800, as it's single channel only. You can access the hidden RAM timings by hitting Ctrl+F1 in bios.

On to graphics cards just in case he wants to update that sometime. You may be interested to know that this board is PCI-E 1.0 and the official bios on Gigabytes page will not run PCI-E 2.1 cards (think AMD 5 series and newer). I placed a 5670 in there and it took FOREVER to post and reset, plus it ran flakey.

However, Gigabytes support is pretty darn good, emailed them and within 5 days I got a beta bios that had PCI-E 2.1 compatibility built in. Runs my 5670 like a champ with no issues or performance hit. Here is my thread, beta bios attached:

http://forum.giga-byte.co.uk/index.php/topic,6608.msg51689.html#msg51689

There you go! Hope you find all that useful in helping him out!

 

[spirits247]

Hi SlugForAButt, did you decide in the end what to get?

Just interested what the Q9450 performed like if you went for one, and if you tried to overclock it.

 

[SlugForAButt]

TBH, I think I'm going to steer him away from Intel as he's now talking about another MB to go with a Q9450/Q9550 and I can't help but think he'd be better off with an AMD 955 & mobo in that case?
Second hand Q9xxx & mobo is more expensive and performance is on a par I think (both o'c to 4Ghz)?

I would be happy to be put right or given advice.

 

[spirits247]

I agree completely - AMD quad cores are really good value, motherboards well priced and the same speed as core2 quads. Plus that 775 board will probably sell for £30 to £40, or more with the CPU included.

Could even get a x6 in the future too, depending on the board.

 

[SlugForAButt]

Was thinking the same, a potential upgrade to a hex core in a year or two if needed.

Just need reassurance that I'm pushing him the right way. It's soooo much easier when it's my own money.

 

[spirits247]

I know what you mean - just do the maths and give him option A and option B and let him decide.

Only problem is if he asks you to sell his old stuff as well as fit his new stuff - may work out more work for you! Especially as a new board and CPU may mean OS troubles and a reinstall.

 

[SlugForAButt]

TBH mate, I will end up selling his old gear, and helping him fit the new stuff. I told him where to plug things in on his last build to try and enpower him.
Definitely an OS reinstall too with a new board. More work for me is absolutely fine, it's a pleasure to help him, he's my mate.

Just wanted to make sure I wasn't sending him the wrong way based on my personal preferences.
I'm reckoning a 955 + half decent mobo will see him right for a couple of years (Diablo 3 & light use) for a lot less than a Q9450/Q9550 & mobo.

 

[spirits247]

You're a good friend! I know what it's like to be the person everyone comes running to for computer needs - very hard to get others to do it themselves if they aren't interested. Luckily for them I see it as a hobby. Well, most the time. Sometimes it gets annoying.

Sounds like a sensible plan. 775 is at a dead end and any quad core better than a Q6600 are mighty expensive - might as well use the funds towards a new platform.