What is the best and most cost effective Core 2 Quad processor?

EquineHero · Dec 12, 2016

I have an old PC that I picked out of a dumpster. When I first got it, it had:

No HDDs
6GB of DDR2-800 RAM
300W PSU
Core 2 Duo E7500
No GPU
No side panel

Now, after some decent work and some care, I've managed to make it quite a powerful rig. It now has:

1 250GB SanDisk SSD, 1 500GB 7200RPM Seagate Momentus, and 1 160GB WD Caviar Blue 7200RPM, plus an ODD
6GB RAM, but soon to be 8 or 16
700W PSU
Core 2 Quad Q9400 @2.66Ghz
nVidia GTX 460 (I love it)
Custom side panel

However, the core 2 quad is a bit slow. When I got the GTX 460 I saw an improvement in all of my games, but Fallout 4 had the least improvement and I blame the processor.

My question, then, to you, is:
What is the best and most cost effective core 2 quad processor? I saw a Q9650 for around $80, which is totally doable, but I guess I'm looking for a list of benchmark scores and current price. I use Passmark, for anyone who cares. I'm looking for something better than what I currently have, and I do not care about single thread rating.

jaslion · Dec 12, 2016

EquineHero :

Overclock what you have and don't spend any more money on it. It's not worth that. The q9400 and gtx 460 are a really good match and shouldn't hold each other back. Btw fallout 4 will be hold back by the gpu not the cpu.

Ecky · Dec 12, 2016

$80 on socket 775 is silly. Don't spend more than $30 on a CPU, and don't buy more RAM for it. The Q9550 and 9450 are more reasonable options but I'd still think twice before spending even that little on a platform discontinued almost 10 years ago.

MrN1ce9uy · Dec 12, 2016

Yeah I was going to say Q9400. Much more and you could have an 2nd-gen i5.

EquineHero · Dec 12, 2016

I got the Q9400 for $25, so I am still quite surprised to see the prices of things like the QX9770 upwards of $1K. I can't overclock my current processor because my BIOS doesn't support it and neither does my board, unless there's a desktop application that can change the multiplier.
I do most of my shopping on Amazon, however a few of the prices are elevated but for the most part items ship safely and quickly. I do need more RAM, I'm on Windows 7 and idle at about 1.05GB. Fallout 4 uses well over 4GB sometimes and I also use Chrome (RAM hog). Having FO4 and the CK 2.0 open at the same time can utilize over 8GB of RAM. 6GB isn't enough for a mid-tier gaming machine like this.

Also, my girlfriend has a similar rig (in terms of socket types and I/O) like mine, it's got 4GB DDR2, a Core 2 Duo E5400, and no video card so I was going to get a new processor and stick the Q9400 into her machine along with my old GPU (nVidia GT 710 SC) along with my old RAM.

Basically I'm looking for an inexpensive upgrade, if I'm buying might as well be an upgrade instead of another Q9400. My Q9400 gets a 3716 on the Passmark tests, I'm looking for something that gets at least 4000, which the Q9650SE passes. It's the cheapest Core 2 Quad I could find that was better than mine, but the forums always know better so I asked. The Q9550 might work, thanks whoever suggested that.

I also suppose I'd get the Q9650 or the QX9650. Which is better in my scenario? Can I overclock the QX9650 without BIOS support?

Ecky · Dec 12, 2016

The reason I suggest not dumping any more money into your system is that for some games, there are no socket 775 CPUs that even meet their minimum requirements. At some point, you're better off buying a new motherboard. DDR4 is cheaper than DDR3 and DDR2 at this point, and you can get a decent 1151 board for under $50. The Skylake i3 6100 is something silly like 2.5-3x faster in games than the best 775 CPU.

EquineHero · Dec 12, 2016

I don't play any stupid games like Overwatch. The latest game I play is Fallout 4, and I doubt I'd play anything else. I think that the limit for tech these days is around 10 years, give or take. Smartphones are still usable for 5-6 years, and TVs maybe 10-15. I don't really plan on blowing another 500-600 on another PC any time soon, so I might as well keep what I have. The i3 you mentioned is still a $150 CPU. I'd be spending $50 for the MB, another $150 on the CPU and $50 on RAM...I don't have that much right now. We'll see how things change around Christmas (I'll have around $250, which should be fine) but I'm considering everything until I make a decision, including a core 2 quad system. I'll probably play GTA 5, and that's it.

Ecky · Dec 12, 2016

Technically, no 775 CPU meets the minimum requirements for Fallout 4. Even a heavily overclocked Q9xxx CPU is unlikely to perform as well as a stock i5 2300, which is the game's recommended minimum CPU. And, from here on out, CPU requirements for games are only going to go up. Chances are good Fallout 5 (or whatever the successor will be) will not run on whatever CPU you replace it with. Good money after bad, I just don't see the value in it.

FWIW The i3 tends to run $110-120 USD, and motherboards can be found for as little as $46 right now. 8GB of DDR4 starts at $42, totaling $200-210 in total. I know that's a lot, but considering how very much faster it would be than your proposed $80 Q9650 and eBay special DDR2 without warranty - did I mention, a modern i3 also draws a tiny fraction of the power of these old CPUs? It's very possible to run an i3 and a power discrete card like a GTX 1060 (not that I'm suggesting it) on a unit as small as 200-250w. If you leave your PC on 24/7, as I did for years, the idle power consumption difference between a modern Skylake and older Kentsfield or Yorkfield CPU comes out to about $200 per year, at my local electricity prices. Even if it's only on 8 hours per day, you're looking at the CPU buying itself in a year after selling your old parts.

Even the $42 Celeron G3900 would be a significant upgrade over any 775 chip.

So, in direct answer to your question, the most cost effective Core 2 Quad CPU is the one you put up on eBay and sell to someone else. My 2 cents.

EquineHero · Dec 13, 2016

Ecky :

Technically, no 775 CPU meets the minimum requirements for Fallout 4. Even a heavily overclocked Q9xxx CPU is unlikely to perform as well as a stock i5 2300, which is the game's recommended minimum CPU. And, from here on out, CPU requirements for games are only going to go up. Chances are good Fallout 5 (or whatever the successor will be) will not run on whatever CPU you replace it with. Good money after bad, I just don't see the value in it.

FWIW The i3 tends to run $110-120 USD, and motherboards can be found for as little as $46 right now. 8GB of DDR4 starts at $42, totaling $200-210 in total. I know that's a lot, but considering how very much faster it would be than your proposed $80 Q9650 and eBay special DDR2 without warranty - did I mention, a modern i3 also draws a tiny fraction of the power of these old CPUs? It's very possible to run an i3 and a power discrete card like a GTX 1060 (not that I'm suggesting it) on a unit as small as 200-250w. If you leave your PC on 24/7, as I did for years, the idle power consumption difference between a modern Skylake and older Kentsfield or Yorkfield CPU comes out to about $200 per year, at my local electricity prices. Even if it's only on 8 hours per day, you're looking at the CPU buying itself in a year after selling your old parts.

Even the $42 Celeron G3900 would be a significant upgrade over any 775 chip.

So, in direct answer to your question, the most cost effective Core 2 Quad CPU is the one you put up on eBay and sell to someone else. My 2 cents.

That last line was kinda funny.
In relation to Fallout 4, my Q9400 outperforms the recommended AMD Phenom II X4 945 by 4 points on Passmark. My recent scores haven't been as good but the Q9650 actually does meet minimum requirements.

Anyway, thanks for helping. Didn't really get the answer I was looking for,

jaslion · Dec 13, 2016

EquineHero :

I'd really advice to do what Ecky says. Also passmark is a synthetic benchmark and in real world performance the phenom beats the c2q by about 5-10%. Just save up the money and get the new i3 + ddr4 and motherboard combo that will be around 220$. You can just google around and immediatly see the difference between what you have now and the i3. With the q9650 you might get another 2-3 fps more but the i3 will allow for a lot more and not be a waste of money. I personally don't get any c2q thats more than 25$ if I decide to upgrade an older system as I know that it's a big waste of money.

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