upgrading my old cpu (E5400) to core 2 quad

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Karan Yadav

Karan Yadav

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Nov 26, 2014
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So I've considered upgrading my 10 YO CPU and I'm considering core 2 quad q9400 or q9550.

My current rigs consists of Intel Pentium dual core E5400, AMD Radeon R7 250X, Corsair VS 650 PSU and 6 Gigs of RAM.

My typical usage include moderate gaming (Mostly I play PES and FIFA and sometimes FPS like Battlefield 4), Surfing, running virtual machines and a little bit of programming.

The main motive behind my upgrade is my current CPU is pathetic, I mean even when I'm writing this post, chrome is consuming 50% CPU resources with just 7 tabs open most of which are of EBay so not that power hungry tabs. Also i feel that my GPU is being seriously bottle necked by my CPU (even games like PES and FIFA stutter at 1366x768).

Also I've a budget of just 30-50 Dollars, so i can't change the mobo along with the processor.
Here a screen shot of my CPU-
http://

And here's one of the mobo-
http://

Also please let me know if the above mentioned CPU's are compatible with my mobo or not.

Also i wanted to ask is it safe to buy CPU's from EBay as they are offering Q9400 for 16$ and Q9550 for 32$?

Thanks in advance
 
Solution
photonboy
1) You must find your EXACT motherboard name, then go to its support site and find the CPU SUPPORT list.

I'll attempt to do step #1 and #2.

2) Also, you must verify your BIOS version to see if its older than what the CPU requires (if so, just flash the BIOS to newest).

3) PASSMARK scores:
E5400:
single: 1091
Total: 1598

4) Q9550:
1200
4003

So the Q9550 is slightly faster per core but has FOUR cores, not two. You can also use less than one core for Windows background stuff so games that are well threaded might have up to 3x the processing power but it's hard to guess how this translates exactly, just that it's a lot better.

So..
will check to see about that motherboard if I can

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photonboy

photonboy

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Jun 20, 2006
21,567
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85,015
1) You must find your EXACT motherboard name, then go to its support site and find the CPU SUPPORT list.

I'll attempt to do step #1 and #2.

2) Also, you must verify your BIOS version to see if its older than what the CPU requires (if so, just flash the BIOS to newest).

3) PASSMARK scores:
E5400:
single: 1091
Total: 1598

4) Q9550:
1200
4003

So the Q9550 is slightly faster per core but has FOUR cores, not two. You can also use less than one core for Windows background stuff so games that are well threaded might have up to 3x the processing power but it's hard to guess how this translates exactly, just that it's a lot better.

So..
will check to see about that motherboard if I can

 
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Solution
photonboy

photonboy

Titan
Jun 20, 2006
21,567
13
85,015
Ebay safe?

Caveat Emptor

The best you can do is try to look at the SELLER HISTORY, but you have recourse through Paypal if you get ripped off. Also note the SHIPPING COST, and be certain they don't say "should work", or "may work" or anything other than "verified working" or similar.
 
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photonboy

photonboy

Titan
Jun 20, 2006
21,567
13
85,015
http://www.foxconnchannel.com/ProductDetail.aspx?T=motherboard&U=en-us0000483

If that's not your motherboard, find the one that is as there are SEVERAL G41 chipset variants. Having an impossible time getting a CPU SUPPORT list for any of these. Some may not support the Q9650 for example, or you may need BIOS update as I said.

Anyway, if you can find that info the Q9550 may be your best bet. Seems to be plenty including $40USD with free shipping.

FOXCONN: http://www.foxconnsupport.com/download.aspx?models=en-us0000465&category=C000000001&brand=en-us0000001&Series=en-us0000002&chipset=en-us0000138&keywords=&sort=

*Just change the "Models" choice then "Select" to see which one looks like your board.
 
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photonboy

photonboy

Titan
Jun 20, 2006
21,567
13
85,015
BTW, your CPU is just barely above the MINIMUM so having a Q9550 would make a HUGE difference.

If SCREEN TEARING is too bad you may want to try forcing Dynamic VSYNC on. Not sure if AMD's Crimson/Catalyst drivers have that but you can get it with RadeonPro.

If aiming for 60FPS then you would force Dynamic VSYNC which just turns VSYNC OFF below 60FPS (for 60Hz monitor). Since that's probably not possible, there's a "HALF REFRESH" version which caps at 30FPS. It's more sluggish than VSYNC OFF but you don't get screen tear when at 30FPS VSYNC ON.

You add on a per-game basis so you can experiment with that when/if you get the CPU and sort things out.
 
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