How much better is the QX6800 vs the Q6600 (these are my only options

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hsit_wizurd

hsit_wizurd

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Oct 4, 2012
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I have a Dell XPS 720

Currently has:
4GB RAM
EVGA GTX 470
Intel Core 2 Duo 6400 2.13 GHz
1.3 TB HDD RAID

Obvious observation: my GPU bottlenecks very badly, yet it still plays games quite impressively (obviously not the best, but still impressively).

I want to alleviate the bottlenecking (which I know I won't fully be able to do with a quad), but as much as possible

The 720 is a BTX case, so if I wanted to upgrade the mobo and get an i7 I'd practically be rebuilding an entirely new system. Case, PSU, CPU, Mobo, RAM, etc it's just not worth it right now to sink that $400+ (unless you can tell me something I don't know?)

So my options right now seem to be CPU, I can get the QX6800 (which is $220 on eBay) or the QX6700 which is $129, or the Q6600 which is $64 shipped. I obviously don't want to spend $220 on a CPU (might as well rebuild the system then), but want to know just how staggering of a difference the QX6800 2.9 GHz provides over the Q6600 2.4 GHz?

Anyway, thanks in advanced
 
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NoUserBar

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.. Save up money specifically for upgrading and buying a new computer? That way you don't have to worry about the money since you set it aside just for this scenario.

Upgrading to more a powerful computer altogether would be beneficial. But if you don't need to, you don't need to. So..

Otherwise I can't tell you the difference personally without looking up the specs and/or reviews (I haven't looked up those processors at all)which you could do yourself easily.. No experience with those cpu's myself :/

Only thing I could find on google searching QX6800 2.9 GHz vs Q6600 2.4 GHz lol: http://youtu.be/1HfmBknDgrY

Here is a thread I found in toms hardware about your cpu: http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/272947-29-p5g41t-q6600-9ghz

Other than that I found this: http://hothardware.com/Reviews/Intel-Core-2-Extreme-QX6800/

A review of the qx6800, you can compare that to what you have and see if it is ever so much better.
 
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hsit_wizurd

hsit_wizurd

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I don't game enough to warrant saving for something like that, just looking for a quick upgrade and overclock to keep things smoother.

I'm not sure how CPUs affect gaming (would be playing FFXIV, I'm pretty sure it utilized 4 cores) or how GHz affects frame rate and with what GPU

Also, that's a Q6600 2.4 stock vs. Q6600 overclocked to 2.9, but thank you for the effort

EDIT: Well, the first link
 
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$hawn

$hawn

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Taking a very quick look at ark intel, i'm sure that all 3 chips are the same, just the clock speed difference and higher TDP's for the extreme edition chips:)
http://ark.intel.com/products/29765/Intel-Core2-Quad-Processor-Q6600-8M-Cache-2_40-GHz-1066-MHz-FSB
http://ark.intel.com/products/30720/Intel-Core2-Extreme-Processor-QX6800-8M-Cache-2_93-GHz-1066-MHz-FSB

Overclocking a q6600 to 3GHz will give you the same performance as the qx6800, if not better due to the higher FSB speeds while overclocking!! :D

If u want my opinion, try to hold your current rig for as long as you can , then sell it off, and buy a new one.

However, if your need for upgrading in the short term is indeed very pressing, the go for the q6600 at max, and OC the heck out of it. Selling your dual core for $25 may also help make the upgrade less painfull on the wallet, BUT, you'll need better cooling, and please do make sure that your motherboard supports the quad core chips (both BIOS support and power draw requirements).

All the best :)

 
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hsit_wizurd

hsit_wizurd

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Yeah, I don't think the unlocked multiplier warrants spending $220 on it, I mean might as well then get a cheap used case and buy a mobo+i7 for $300~

My concern then is when OCing the Q6600 to 3.0 GHz (doing some research that seems to be a safe area also), what kinda of additional cooling would I need? I have a few fans laying around.. however the 720 has a HUGE heatsink/fan combo already attached and two other heavy duty fans, it's also a huge case. If I took everything out I could probably crawl into it and hide

EDIT: Also thank you all very much for the help :)
 
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cjl

cjl

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Most OEM systems don't allow overclocking, and it may or may not be doable without a new cooler even if yours does allow it (some of the XPS systems did, so it is possible). That having been said, I'm not sure it's worth it in any case. Are you having problems running some programs with your E6600?
 
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DJDeCiBeL

DJDeCiBeL

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Yeah, this pretty much says all you need to know, OP. http://en.community.dell.com/support-forums/desktop/f/3514/p/18946514/19069500.aspx

You can OC, but not much. That thread does mention pinmodding, though, to get a Q6600 to 3.0 with the 720.
 
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hsit_wizurd

hsit_wizurd

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In the BIOS there's an option that says, "OVERCLOCKING ON/OFF" though I have never used it. It said something along the lines off, "Allow software to overclock system settings" or some odd. It's the XPS 720, there are videos on YouTube of people overclocking it, but it seems to be done through a program? So I'm not sure (I've never overclocked before).


It's a E6400 and yes, it bottlenecks my graphics card (GTX 470), just trying to alleviate it a little. And some games (FFXIV) make use of 4 cores specifically.


And no, the stock cooler is just large

 
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DJDeCiBeL

DJDeCiBeL

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Yeah, it looks like it's software only, and even then, you can apparently only adjust the FSB, not voltage or anything else (according to that thread).
 
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NoUserBar

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Would msi afterburning and the like help, after you turn OCing on I guess? You might want to take this to the overclocker forums if that is what you want to do, for sure. To get more advice on that specifically.
 
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hsit_wizurd

hsit_wizurd

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I went through that thread, don't think I really want to mess around with the pins, so 2.6 will have to suffice for now, it doesn't seem like such a big loss.., unless I'm underestimating .4 GHz? It's mostly the additional cores I'm after; which doesn't seem like such a bad upgrade for $64

EDIT: Yeah, nTune I think I'll be using and you're right, I think I've settled on the CPU so now it's just the overclock I'll have to deal with. Thanks again for all your help, you've been invaluable
 
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cjl

cjl

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Honestly, if you're bottlenecking with an E6600, I'm not sure a Q6600 (or even a QX6800) will help you all that much. A lot of games still depend on single thread performance, and by modern standards, you don't have wonderful single thread capability (and the Q6600 wouldn't help with that). I'd say save your money for now, personally, and if you absolutely insist on upgrading, get the 6600 - the extreme editions are not worth that price premium.
 
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sarinaide

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If it hasn't been said already, forget about throwing money into a dead socket, even a QX chip is grossly antiquated by now and not really worth throwing resources at, considering todays budget spectrum offers fantastic options from both platforms.
 
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G

Guest

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lets look at some testing, eh?
Test: What about your Intel Core 2 Quad? - Gaming Performance HD 7970
Conclusion

As you can see from those results, the Intel Core2Quad is still up to date if you compare it to the FX-4170/FX-8150 from AMD. Okay in some games like Call of Duty, Skyrim and StarCraft II, the AMD FXs are 10 % faster than the Core2Quad but that's all. Everywhere else those processors are scoring almost the same at +/- 1% in both games and synthetic benchmarks. Talking about games only and throwing away synthetic benchmarks away from the calculation, the AMD FXs processors are only 3 % faster in average. Which is not bad at all since the Q6600 is five and a half years old, has only four cores clocked at 3.0 GHz (for this test, stock frequency is 2.4 GHz) and powered by DDR2 Memory.

Now if you compare the Q6600 to the i7 3770K you see a serious gap performancewise going from almost nothing up to twice the performance. But hey, this is another league.
Click to expand...
 
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cjl

cjl

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It will make some difference, sure (especially since for some reason I misread it and thought he had an E6600@2.4, not a 6400@2.1), I just question the value of throwing more money at LGA775, even $70 or so.
 
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baxtex

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Unless you are an overclocker extreme probably you should go for a newer architecture that is better supported.

Having said the above the QX6800 Stepping B, Rev. G0, was a LEGENDARY cpu. The best overclocker cpu that has ever been built by Intel by far.

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/attachment.php?s=b99b61edf905e2de2604fe8eafef3815&attachmentid=62340&d=1185830807

It has been brought up to 5Ghz stable (obvioulsy out of case and with water cooling) and is still today performing similar to more recent generation CPU and outperforming even some of the modern low and mid range processors.

If you can get one at a bargain price get it!

 
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C

cuong

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I wouldn't touch the QX6800. Its faster but not worth the big price difference.

Look for a Q6600 with the G0 stepping and put the difference towards your new system.
 
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