Tom's Hardware > Forum > CPU & Components > CPUs > [Solved] Gaming: Should I upgrade my Q6600 to Q9xxx?

[Solved] Gaming: Should I upgrade my Q6600 to Q9xxx?

Forum CPU & Components : CPUs - [Solved] Gaming: Should I upgrade my Q6600 to Q9xxx?

Tom's Hardware: Over 1.4 million members in 6 different countries available to answer all your high-tech questions. Sign up now! Its free!
Ask the community Add a reply

Best answer from DeeTee_uk.

Word :    Username :           
 
netspiderz   09-20-2009 at 07:40:19 PM

Just for gaming...

I know that core i7 would give me more performance than any Qxxxx CPU. But I don't feel spending so much money to buy new CPU, MOBO, and RAM.

What about upgrading my Q6600 to a Q9550 or Q9650 ? Is this worth the upgrade? Am I going to notice any difference? Is the Q9xxx going to scale better with SLI video cards? or should I wait for i7 prices to drop?


Message edited by netspiderz on 09-20-2009 at 07:41:51 PM
------------------------------ Q6600/BFG 680i SLi
8800GT SLi
PC-6400 4GB OCZ
X-Fi Gamer/1000w PSU
Add a reply
Best answer from DeeTee_uk
I'm in the same position, and I'm holding fire. I've overclocked to a stable 3.2, and will make the entire move to i7 or equivalent in the new year. I can't justify dropping the price of a new processor on what is, essentially, just a stopgap. If you're feeling a bit slow at the moment, I'd suggest maybe upgrading the GPU. That way you can take the GPU with you to a new build.
The Radeon 4870 and GTX 260 are both about the £100 mark at the moment. Both would be an upgrade from where you are, and both would do well when moved over to a new system with a 2nd card for SLI/Crossfire.
At least, that's my plan. I will probably get a rush of blood to the head in the new year and spend a month's wages on a new uber rig. Because I'm a consumer whore.
Sponsored Links
Register or log in to remove.
obsidian86   09-20-2009 at 08:48:51 PM

overclock your q6600 they clock quite well

Message quoted 1 times
------------------------------ I took a step back to look at the bigger picture and realized i needed better glasses
 Reply to obsidian86
emyyhh   09-20-2009 at 09:36:13 PM

The best gaming upgrade for you would be to OC the Q6600 to 3.2Ghz+ and buy a graphics card with more vram. I had the same setup except with a 9800gx2 (2 underclocked 8800gts's) and getting a graphics card with more vram made a huge difference.

The Q6600 (oc'd) will be plenty for SLI cards, and the Q9xxx series are not worth the upgrade now. You wouldn't notice any difference.

I did find that the 680i boards are pretty bad for overclocking quads on. The max I could get was 3.2Ghz stable. Going to an x48 board allowed 4.1Ghz with the same chip (Q6600).

Reply to emyyhh
4745454b   09-20-2009 at 09:52:22 PM

Depending on your board, the 9xxxs might not even be an option. If you decide to buy a Q9xxx, make sure your board supports it. i5/i7 is only great for gaming if you using a multi GPU setup at high resolutions. At 16x10, there isn't much of a difference.

Message quoted 2 times
------------------------------ The voice of REASON
Do NOT feed the TROLLS!
Always a DEMON!
 Reply to 4745454b
jimishtar   09-21-2009 at 12:32:56 AM

of course you should not.

------------------------------ "Never underestimate the bandwidth of a station wagon full of tapes hurtling down the highway" —Tanenbaum,(1996) Computer Networks.
 Reply to jimishtar
mousemonkey   09-21-2009 at 01:19:04 AM

4745454b wrote :

Depending on your board, the 9xxxs might not even be an option. If you decide to buy a Q9xxx, make sure your board supports it. i5/i7 is only great for gaming if you using a multi GPU setup at high resolutions. At 16x10, there isn't much of a difference.


+1, Some 680i boards will not entertain the 45nm Quads, Duals yes but Quads no.

------------------------------ [:mousemonkey:1] http://img29.imageshack.us/img29/5041/vr2009champ.jpg
 Reply to mousemonkey
smithereen   09-21-2009 at 03:13:29 AM

OC it up.

------------------------------ Phenom II X2 unlocked to four cores @ 3.8gHz,1.45V. 4GB DDR3-1600 Gigabyte 785g ATi Radeon HD4870 1GB
Run Folding@Home! Support Toms Hardware Guide, Team 40051!
CPU Buyer's Guide
 Reply to smithereen
netspiderz   09-21-2009 at 10:13:18 PM

4745454b wrote :

Depending on your board, the 9xxxs might not even be an option. If you decide to buy a Q9xxx, make sure your board supports it. i5/i7 is only great for gaming if you using a multi GPU setup at high resolutions. At 16x10, there isn't much of a difference.



Damn! I just checked, I have 2 boards 680i and none of them support the Q9xxx. So I have no other option than upgrade my Videocards or CPU/Mobo/RAM.

Thanks to your reply, otherwise I would have bought the Q9xxx today.

Reply to netspiderz
netspiderz   09-21-2009 at 10:14:59 PM

obsidian86 wrote :

overclock your q6600 they clock quite well



Unfortunately my Q6600 is B3 and it does not OC as well as the G0.

Reply to netspiderz
zipzoomflyhigh   09-21-2009 at 10:33:44 PM

It will still overclock. If you can get it to 3ghz your good, you don't need to upgrade for year or two. That chip is still a beast with its 8mb of cache.

I have the GO but it doesn't overclock that well either. She's been stable for 2 months at 3.15 @1.35v but she won't run 3.2 even at 1.4v.
I have an old P965 but it overclocked my dual core like you wouldn't believe. (1.86 @ 3.45 w/stock volts)
Temps are great. But she just wont run any faster. Tried 8x, 9x and 10x multiplier. Best I can do is 350x9 prime stable.


Message edited by zipzoomflyhigh on 09-21-2009 at 10:35:02 PM
Reply to zipzoomflyhigh
DeeTee_uk   09-21-2009 at 10:45:19 PM
Best answer

I'm in the same position, and I'm holding fire. I've overclocked to a stable 3.2, and will make the entire move to i7 or equivalent in the new year. I can't justify dropping the price of a new processor on what is, essentially, just a stopgap. If you're feeling a bit slow at the moment, I'd suggest maybe upgrading the GPU. That way you can take the GPU with you to a new build.
The Radeon 4870 and GTX 260 are both about the £100 mark at the moment. Both would be an upgrade from where you are, and both would do well when moved over to a new system with a 2nd card for SLI/Crossfire.
At least, that's my plan. I will probably get a rush of blood to the head in the new year and spend a month's wages on a new uber rig. Because I'm a consumer whore.

Reply to DeeTee_uk
zipzoomflyhigh   09-22-2009 at 12:13:22 PM

I seen no reason to go from 3ghz Q6600 to i7/i5/P2 unless your running multiple high end video cards.

Reply to zipzoomflyhigh
netspiderz   09-29-2009 at 12:41:58 PM


Thank you all,

I thought that my old Q6600 was already a crap CPU, but I guess that it is still good..

@DeeTee_uk

you are right, a GPU upgrade might be the best choice for now. Like you, I would want to wait for price to drop, before upgrading the whole system to X58/i7/DDR3.

Reply to netspiderz
Nawal_23d   09-29-2009 at 02:28:03 PM

crap ?

huh that thing is one of the best ever made...

dont evn think about it !

------------------------------ http://i493.photobucket.com/albums/rr299/nawal_23d/pc.jpg
 Reply to Nawal_23d
Ask the community Add a reply
Tom's Hardware > Forum > CPU & Components > CPUs > [Solved] Gaming: Should I upgrade my Q6600 to Q9xxx?
Go to:

There are 1241 identified and unidentified users. To see the list of identified users, Click here.

Forum map
Bestofmedia Forum ©
2000-2009 Bestofmedia Group
Page generated in 0.559 seconds
Sponsored links
  • Ask the community now
  • Publish
Ad
Related Topics
See all relatives topics
They won a badge
Join us in greeting them