Quadcore prices stagnating?

[nyker96]

I bit on the i7 920 D0 at @$200 at Microcenter four months ago. Been very happy with my new rig ever since. Well, I was with my 4400+ X2, but now I'm 4x as happy .

I was just telling a friend this on the phone "happiness isn't proportional to how fast your cpu runs" when I saw your post. coincidence?

 

[MagickMan]

http://3btech.net/inco2quq92134.html

It hasn't arrived yet, but their feedback on reseller ratings seemed decent enough. They gave me a UPS tracking number the day I bought it and it's now showing in UPS's system, so they are probably legit.
I'll know more when I have it in my grubby little hands.
All Q9650s are guaranteed E0 stepping, so I figured the risk was small.

Post when you get it, I may jump on one of those too. That's a great deal.

 

[Painman]

i have a q6600 that runs very well oc'd.

would i see any worthwhile benefit going to a q9550 or q9650?

For the money, No. It'd cost me as much to buy Q9650 alone that it cost me for my Q6600, PLUS mobo, PLUS 8 GB of RAM after Corsair rebates 1 year ago. Almost exactly. I paid $185-190 for proc, $95-100 for mobo, and $40-50 total for the RAM.

Are you already @ 3.2 GHz or better? Q9650 *might* OC further, and it might not. For that price, Hell No.

Q9550 is $80 less, also *might* OC further, but will put more stress on the platform throughout the process.

It's looking a lot like the end of 939. Stick with what you have. By the time your Q6600 is well and truly outdated, abandon the platform. Economy of scale is kicking in for 775 already it seems.

 

[Zap]

the 159.99 for a q9550 was Microcenter B&M back in May. I cursed the sky because of it.

Why curse? If you didn't get one, go get one now! I think they're still at that price.

You can always RMA directly to Intel, so the 30-days thing doesn't bother me.

That is not true.

How to identify a boxed vs. an OEM Processor

Retail processors are sold in clearly marked individual boxes and typically carry a three year warranty directly from Intel.

Wholesale processors are not sold in retail boxes and are typically pre-installed by an OEM or reseller. Intel ships the processors to OEMs in trays so we refer to these types of processors as OEM/Tray processors.

Intel does not provide direct warranty support for wholesale processors. If your processor was sold through an OEM or reseller, you must contact your OEM or reseller for warranty support.

I added the bolding. Yes, there is a 1 year warranty on OEM/tray processors, however that warranty is only valid for the company which purchased that processor directly from Intel. The processor may have trickled through several distributors/resellers before landing on your doorstep, thus often an OEM processor only has a 30 day warranty because it is quite removed from the origin.

 

[TurtleCrusher]

It stomps a Q8200 and costs less.

Drinking tonight? Without a doubt the Athlon X4's are an incredible value, but it doesn't stomp the Q8200. Even a Phenom @ 2.6-7ghz loses out to a Q6600, which the Q8200 is mildly faster in comparison. Is the Athlon X4 faster than a Phenom 1 X4 clock for clock? Absolutely not.

In many previous threads I've compared stock and overclocked benchmarks to Phenom 2 X4 systems. At stock, a Phenom 2 X4 is mildly faster than the Q8200 is most tasks. Only in Cinebench does the Phenom seriously get a win. Overclock benches shows the same story. At 3ghz, the Q8200 is comparable to a 3.5-3.6ghz Phenom 2.

If I was building a PC right now, I'd most certainly but an Athlon X3 and a board to unlock. Just for the cheap price and AM3 support. The Q8200 still holds its value for routinely hitting $99 and $119 price points. I bought mine a year ago in a combo deal (Fry's, ECS G31T mATX motherboard) for $189. It overclocks ridiculously easy and has held it's value very well.

Simple fact: Athlon X4's are a great value, not great performers.

 

[thescreensavers]

How to identify a boxed vs. an OEM Processor

Intel sells processors through retail stores, such as Best Buy

Thats incorrect.

Just wanted to point it out