So confused. q9400, 9450, or 9550?

[Bobik]

Okay been trying to order my comp this week but can't decide on the CPU.

I was going to get the 6600, but then was told by a friend the 9400 is much better and easier to OC.

Now been reading at how great the e9450 and 9550 are, now i'm not sure if I should be getting.

Is the 9400 much better than 9450? Is the 9550 worth the extra $100 over the 6600? I would like to OC at least to 3.5 on air, and that seems tough on the 6600.

I also planned on getting the Asus P5E X38 board. If I shell out the extra $50 for the ASUS RAMPAGE x48, would I see any significant performance gains over the x38 board?

Some other specs OCZ Reaper HPC Edition 4GB DDR2 800, Corsair 750w cpu, 4870x2 graphics card.

Thanks.

 

[dirtmountain]

the Q9550 is pretty much the sweet spot right now for price/performance

 

[Bobik]

Any real difference if I combine the 9550 with the x48 or x38 chipset?

I don't want to overpay on a mobo if the performance increase isn't significant.

 

[epsilon84]

Actually the Q6600 is still the best choice if you want to OC, it has a 9x multi as opposed to 8x on the Q9400/Q9450 and 8.5x on the Q9550. Its also about $80 cheaper than the Q9400 and $150 cheaper than the Q9550, for price/performance it can't be beat.

There are only superficial differences between X38 and X48, maybe slightly higher FSB overclocking but probably not worth a $50 difference IMO.

 

[dirtmountain]

These benchmark reviews might help.
Complete crossfire chipset comparison
http://www.legionhardware.com/document.php?id=761
CPU scaling with the HD4870x2
http://www.legionhardware.com/document.php?id=770
CPU scaling with the GTX280
http://www.legionhardware.com/document.php?id=775

 

[knotknut]

Here's Tom's CPU review:
http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/desktop-cpu-charts-q3-2008/3DMark-Vantage-CPU,817.html
You decide

 

[dragonsprayer]

if your not overclocking then go with a high speed cpu

if your mobo is low fsb then you need a high multiplier

if you want max speed then get a high multiplier for overclocking


the q9650 is a great cpu, the q9550 with new stepping is a much better deal

 

[Bobik]

Thanks for the replies all.

I ordered my computer last night, along with the Q9550 and the P5e X38 mobo, and of course 4870x2.