Help need advice (processor)

If this is your board http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c01... I suggest looking at an E8xxx Wolfdale CPU. Are you sure the CPU is failing it would be more likely the motherboard.

E8400 is a good cpu for your mobo.

I agree with Rolli59. It's not likely the processor is "failing". Processors generally work or don't work. Perhaps you could relate the symptoms that made you think it was failing... you may just need to clean the crap and registry errors your system has accumulated.

thanks guys. how would i do that @clutchc

i tried a intelcore duo Q6600 in my pc and it keeps crashing my pc after a little while   would this be cos i haven't put enough heatsink compound on or some other reason ?????

my board is PT890-8237A i tried a intel core duo Q6600 in, my pc keeps drashing after a little while with this cpu is it cos : not enought heatsink compound or something else ???

Try cleaning the PC with CCleaner. Do the Clean and Registry both. Defrag.
If it still crashes, it could be a graphics driver issue. Uninstall the existing video driver and then run Driver Sweeper from Safe Mode (F8 at bootup). Have it remove any remnants of Nvidia and AMD drivers it finds. Re-boot and install the latest driver for your card/ O.S.

CCleaner: http://www.piriform.com/ccleaner
Driver Sweeper: http://phyxion.net/item/driver-sweeper.html

Installing a Q6600 in place of your old processor may require a BIOS update. But if the board recognizes the processor at bootup, probably not. (I believe your board is a Foxconn OEM board. You may be able to search for a Foxconn PT 890-8237A BIOS online if you need one.) When you started Windows after installing the Q6600, did Windows say it was loading the driver for that processor and then ask to re-boot? If so, the O.S. probably is good with the change.

i put the q6600 in my board then booted it up it loaded fine said that i needed to restart my pc, which i did . then tried booting it back up, take a while but then i held in power button to switch off then switched it back on, then after maybe 5-10 mins it would freeze completely first time it done it i done a system restore from the start up, the pc then reinstalled it abd again the same happened. (thanks for all your advice so far   )

p.s. can't download ccleaner

I just tried it. It worked for me. Always does. Click on the download button, then on the piriform.com link. Wait for a few seconds and it should start to download.