Best Value 775 LGA Upgrade: Dual vs Quad?

[Red Hawk]

I'm looking to upgrade from a C2D E6600 on a motherboard with a 775 LGA socket. My price range is no higher than $175, preferably around $150. The processor will be primarily used for gaming, will be paired with a Geforce 9800 GT for the time being, and will operate Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit. I have a few questions, if you don't mind me asking.

1. How expensive do I have to go in order to get my money's worth for upgrading from a E6600?

2. Dual-Core or Quad-Core? Two processors I'm eying are the E8400 and the Q8400, both priced at $169.99 on Newegg. The differences are that the E8400 runs at 3 GHz and has 6 MB of L2 cache, while the Q8400 runs at 2.66 GHz and has 4 MB of L2 cache. Which would be more worth my money? Which would last longer? Which would have better performance running games?

3. Would both work with a 375 watt power supply? Or would they require a PSU upgrade as well?

4. Any other recommendations for processors I may have overlooked?

 

[zagood]

What motherboard? Early 775 motherboards are not compatible with later Core 2 Duo/Quad CPUs...this includes the e5xxx, e7xxx, e/q8xxx and q9xxx.

Your best bet is to buy used. You can usually find an e8400 for under $100. You would get much more (gaming-wise) out of a fast dual core than a slow, limited cache quad.

If you can find a used q9500 in your price range, and it's compatible with your motherboard, that's the best one to aim for.

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

whatever quad's they sell in your local MC is the way I would go.
Q9300, Q9400, Q9550's were going for ~$150-180.
Q8xxx I recall were on sale for ~$100-120

 

[Termie]

e6600 to e8400 is not a worthwhile upgrade. I did it myself, and didn't think it made much difference. You want to go quad to actually open up new gaming opportunities, because games that will play on an e8400 will probably play on a e6600, but the same cannot be said of games that will play on quads. I'd actually go for a q6600 if I were you - it's almost guaranteed to work in your system, and you can probably find one used for cheap.

But list your system specs (especially motherboard model) and we can give you more advice.

Between the two cards you listed, I'd go with the q8400. But not until I knew your motherboard was compatible.

If you need proof, it's as simple as clicking here: http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/display/cpu-benchmark-mainstream_6.html#sect0. The "lowly" q8400 beats the e8400 in every single game, sometimes by a wide margin.

 

[gregoryvg]

Your best bet is to buy used. You can usually find an e8400 for under $100. You would get much more (gaming-wise) out of a fast dual core than a slow, limited cache quad.

I would not recommend a dual-core over a quad at this point in time - for gaming or otherwise.

 

[GundamF91]

get a used Q9550, or a cheaper 9450 if you can find it. For LGA775 upgrades, the only way to go to fully utilize this platform is to get a Quad, otherwise it's obsolete. Or you might as well wait a few months until they sort out 1155 and get a Sandybridge.

 

[Red Hawk]

According to PC Wizard my mobo is a Dell 0WG855. I'm a little antsy about getting a used processor -- what would be a trustworthy source for buying one?

My full current system specs are:
C2D E6600 2.4 GHz, LGA 775 socket.
Geforce 9800 GT 512 MB (on a PCI-E 1.0 slot)
4 GB DDR2 RAM
Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit
375 Watt power supply
Mainboard: Dell 0WG855

 

[OCGuy]

Make sure your board supports 45nm, it might not, or it might need a BIOS flash.

A good source for buying a used chip is here @ Anandtech's FS&T forum. Just make sure the seller has good Heat feedback and you should be good to go.

 

[Termie]

According to PC Wizard my mobo is a Dell 0WG855. I'm a little antsy about getting a used processor -- what would be a trustworthy source for buying one?

My full current system specs are:
C2D E6600 2.4 GHz, LGA 775 socket.
Geforce 9800 GT 512 MB (on a PCI-E 1.0 slot)
4 GB DDR2 RAM
Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit
375 Watt power supply
Mainboard: Dell 0WG855

Sounds like you're using a Dell XPS410. Honestly, CPU upgrades in pre-built systems are not something I'd want to experiment with. The Bios updates on those systems occur infrequently, and would never be done specifically to allow upgrades to newer processors. I'd limit myself to whatever CPUs Dell was equipping these machines with at the time you bought it.

This old forum thread suggests the only chips you can use are q6600/q6700: http://forums.anandtech.com/archive/index.php/t-2079710.html. Those you'd almost definitely have to buy used. If it's going to cost more than $100, I'd skip it - too much risk in my opinion, both of getting a bad processor and of having incompatibility problems with your motherboard.

 

[Red Hawk]

On the front of my computer it says Dimension 9200, and in DXDiag the system model is listed as DXP061.

 

[Termie]

On the front of my computer it says Dimension 9200, and in DXDiag the system model is listed as DXP061.

Dimension 9200 was another name for the XPS410. Here's a post about quad-core upgrades on it: http://en.community.dell.com/support-forums/desktop/f/3514/t/19321375.aspx

Like I said, q6600/q6700 are your only options.

Here's a place that apparently is selling the q6600 new for $167: http://www.orbitmicro.com/global/hh80562ph0568m-p-7656.html?ref=base

 

[Red Hawk]

Ah, I see. Would it be more worth my money to simply save until I can get build a new PC myself?

 

[zagood]

I would not recommend a dual-core over a quad at this point in time - for gaming or otherwise.

Depends on what he's playing. The stock Q8400 in multi-threaded apps will beat the stock E8400 across the board, but for gaming it's not quite as cut and dry. AT's own bench has different results for a few games than that xbit link:

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/89?vs=56

Anyway, it's a moot point. There weren't very many mobo manufacturers that were able to get the P965 chipset in OP's motherboard to work with 45nm anyway, and there's about a 1% chance that Dell actually put the effort into it. Here's the CPU list from 2007:

http://en.community.dell.com/support-forums/desktop/f/3514/p/18630117/18758369.aspx#18758369

Whatever. I'd get a Q6600 if you can find one for around $90 and overclock it. Otherwise put the $175 toward a new video card.

 

[Red Hawk]

The most taxing games I currently play are Mass Effect 2, Dragon Age, Empire: Total War, and I will probably end up with their upcoming sequels (Dragon Age II, Mass Effect 3, Shogun II: Total War). I also use a 1080p 21.5'' monitor.

 

[Termie]

Ah, I see. Would it be more worth my money to simply save until I can get build a new PC myself?

The most taxing games I currently play Mass Effect 2, Dragon Age, Empire: Total War, and will probably end up with their upcoming sequels (Dragon Age II, Mass Effect 3, Shogun II: Total War). I also use a 1080p 21.5'' monitor.

My advice would be to save up for a new system. Even a new video card would probably go to waste in that system. There are plenty of threads about upgrading to a brand new GPU and being disappointed in the outcome on older dual-core systems.

If you were willing to build your own, something like this would be a great starting point for $300 (cheap!):

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboB...t=Combo.591512

It has built-in video, but you could install your 9800gt in there without a problem, and then buy a new video card whenever you want to. Assuming you have a full license for Win7, you could just move that over to your new system. The only other thing you'd need would be a $17 DVD burner: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827118039

 

[Red Hawk]

Thanks for the advice and recommendations. I think I will hold off for a year or so on building a whole new computer. The E6600 is sufficient for my needs for now, and a Q6600/6700 doesn't look like it would extend the lifespan of the computer too significantly.

 

[Arkadrel]

Ah, I see. Would it be more worth my money to simply save until I can get build a new PC myself?

Honestly I think youd be better off doing new ram/new motherboard/new cpu.

 

[OBLAMA2009]

dont spend a cent on 775 at this point. you could get i5 for the amont youre planning to spend. youd just have to spend 80 on a motherboard, memory is cheap now

eg i3 550 ($99) and board ($80)=$180, virtually the same amount youre planning to spend but waaaay faster and much hipper!

 

[Termie]

Thanks for the advice and recommendations. I think I will hold off for a year or so on building a whole new computer. The E6600 is sufficient for my needs for now, and a Q6600/6700 doesn't look like it would extend the lifespan of the computer too significantly.

Sounds good. Just for your information, I found an even better deal at Newegg on a build-your-own system:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboB...-_-592734-LM2A

This has everything you need, including Athlon quad-core, 4GB ram, 1TB drive, case, PSU, motherboard, and DVD burner, for $280 after rebate.

Compared to spending $167 on a q6600, the value proposition is just exceptional. Even if you don't have the money/desire for this now, you should look for this kind of deal when you do choose to upgrade.

 

[PingSpike]

Where can you get an i3 550 for $99? I saw an OEM one $115, but no boxed with cooler.

 

[Termie]

Where can you get an i3 550 for $99? I saw an OEM one $115, but no boxed with cooler.

Here: http://www.microcenter.com/single_pr...uct_id=0350692

In-store only, so not really a hot deal for most people.

For gaming, an i3-550 is more or less equivalent to a Athlon II X4: http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/display/cpu-benchmark-mainstream_6.html#sect0. And everyone can get an X4 for $99.

 

[Red Hawk]

Hm, I'm looking on ebay, and there are several used Q6600s going for less than than $100 -- all Q6600s offered from "Top-rated sellers" are around $200, though. I'm not going to spend money on this myself, but it would make a nice birthday gift from someone else...I hope April gets here fast.

 

[bryanW1995]

Ah, I see. Would it be more worth my money to simply save until I can get build a new PC myself?

yes, do this. when you're ready to build (I'd wait for SB to get fixed and/or BD to launch) you can sell the old rig.

 

[OCGuy]

An SSD + Win7 would be a great temporary upgrade as far as the general "feel" of your computer goes.

People without a SSD kind of scare me, to be honest.

 

[gregoryvg]

Ah, I see. Would it be more worth my money to simply save until I can get build a new PC myself?

Probably. The reasons being that the Q6600 is pretty old and slow by today's standards. If you had a home-built PC you could get get the Q6600 and overclock it from 2.4 to 3.0+, and that would be worthwhile. But on the Dell you can't, and you'd be stuck at 2.4 Ghz. It would probably be best to save some money up and upgrade the whole (and build your own if you are up to it - that's what I'm doing for the first time). The only way I'd upgrade to the Q6600 is if I could find it really cheap (like $70 or so) from someplace I trusted.

P.S. I have a Dell Inspiron 530 that came with a Pentium e2160 (1.8Ghz). I picked up a Pentium e5700 (3.0Ghz) on Amazon and didn't notice that much of a performance jump, but had no problems with the upgrade. Windows detected it and it updated just fine. Of course, that CPU is now back with Amazon.