To be or not to be: 2.4 or 2.6C :-)

[ProfessorFate]

Which one's going to be the better Overclocker?

 

[Tetsuo]

I would say 2.4c from all the things I've heard around here

 

[SupermanCK]

about the same...
2.4c has 12x multipler
2.6c has 13x multipler

price range about the same per MHz

but if you over to the same FSB (ie 275fsb)

u will get more out of the 2.6C by getting higher MHz

 

[Tummy]

I went for the 2.6C just for that reason... can let you know how it goes once I get it (hopefully tomorrow)

 

[RandySavage]

well, you should base your decision on the ram you have... higher fsb's of the 2.4 require better ram to run at 5:4...

I think they will both overclock to similar points...

You might also have to worry about motherboard constraints and other factors running at a higher fsb...

2.6 costs more, but is also a safer bet...

 

[mrman3k]

Now I have a question, say the 2.4C can overclock more MHz over stock than the 2.6C or 2.8C, but is it true that all of these chips pretty much overclock to the same level in the end? It is like saying a 2.4C can OC to 3.4GHz which is a 800MHz increase, and the 2.8C can overclock also to 3.4GHz, just that it is a 600MHz increase?

Is this true, or can the 2.4C actually top off at a higher speed?

 

[ChampionAtTufshop]

Originally posted by: mrman3k
Now I have a question, say the 2.4C can overclock more MHz over stock than the 2.6C or 2.8C, but is it true that all of these chips pretty much overclock to the same level in the end? It is like saying a 2.4C can OC to 3.4GHz which is a 800MHz increase, and the 2.8C can overclock also to 3.4GHz, just that it is a 600MHz increase?

Is this true, or can the 2.4C actually top off at a higher speed?

if they top off at the same overall mhz, the 2.4c will win due to a higher fsb

 

[mrman3k]

Also, in general, will the 2.4C or 2.6C top off at different levels, and which one will be at a higher core speed? Say, will the 2.4 top off at 3.2 and the 2.6 top off at 3.3, or does it often occur that the 2.4 will go to 3.4 and the 2.6 go to 3.3?

 

[SupermanCK]

so far...they all seems to be hitting some limit anywhere from 260fsb to 290fsb...doesn't matter which chip...
ie...2.8 @ 292fsb over at HardOCP
another 2.4 @ 280+...so it's all relative...

 

[smahoney]

I think it is important to remember the impact on memory timings - You might end up with a 2.4C that you can't run as fast as you want without reducing your multiplier to 4:3 instead of 5:4.

 

[mrman3k]

Well what I am saying is not the limit necessarily by the FSB, but by the CPU itself. So typically, can the 2.4C go to a higher max speed than the 2.6C, or do both top out at about the same maximum speed?

 

[WigglePuppy]

What about the MOBO, I was thinking of the ASUS P4G8XDeluxe?
Thanks

 

[orion7144]

Googlegear just dropped the price for the 2.4C from $215 to $204 with Free 2nd day shipping.

 

[SupermanCK]

they all overclocked to about the same FSB...
so in other words...the higher the default speed is...the higher clock speed you will end up having...but that's all the luck of the draw again...no way to guarantee what you are going to get until you test it out urself...

 

[SupermanCK]

btw...Newegg finally has the 2.4C 800fsb chip on sale...$204 w/ free shipping...about time

and 2.6c = $258
2.8c = $311
3.0c = $440

 

[orion7144]

Newegg is up to $207 for the 2.4C

 

[TygGer]

Does anyone know the answer to the original question? "Which one's going to be the better Overclocker?" thx

 

[smahoney]

OK - The one the will be the better overclocker is the...... it depends. The 2.4C seems to be the sweet spot for the 3.2GHz target while the 2.6C has an edge at 3.5GHz. The 2.8C has a slight edge at the 4GHz extreme. It is still to be determined what the sweet speed spots will be from chips from different fabs. The price difference between the different CPU's is also offset somewhat by the price differences between DRR400, DDR433 and DDR466 memory.

My guess is that 'most' of the chips will top out at about the same GHz level. This means that the 2.4 will be running at a higher FSB than a 2.6 at the same GHz rating. The issue then becomes how does this affect your memory bandwidth. At any FSB over 220MHz you are going to start to have to look at using a memory divider of 5:4 or at extreme settings you will see 3:2 settings. At 3:2 settings you will need to be running 300MHz FSB to have DDR400 memory timings.

Examples at 3.2GHz - This should be a relatively easy to reach stock air cooling target

2.4C at 270MHz FSB runs at 3.24GHz with 5:4 memory running at 220MHz FSB at PC3520/DDR433 speeds
2.6C at 250MHz FSB runs at 3.25GHz with 5:4 memory running at 200MHz FSB at PC3200/DDR400 speeds
2.6C at 250MHz FSB runs at 3.25GHz with 1:1 memory running at 250MHz FSB at PC4000/DDR500 speeds
2.8C at 233MHz FSB runs at 3.26GHz with 1:1 memory running at 233MHz FSB at PC3700/DDR466 speeds

In this example all three are running at the same CPU speed but the 2.8 has higher memory bandwidth - and a higher price for the CPU and memory. The 2.6C does pretty well if you can find DDR500 memory.

Examples at 3.5GHz - Pretty aggressive, Third party Heatsink or water cooling, Most chips will probably not reach this speed.

2.4C at 292MHz FSB runs at 3.50GHz with 3:2 memory running at 195MHz FSB at PC3115/DDR389 speeds
2.6C at 270MHz FSB runs at 3.51GHz with 5:4 memory running at 216MHz FSB at PC3456/DDR432 speeds
2.8C at 250MHz FSB runs at 3.50GHz with 5:4 memory running at 200MHz FSB at PC3200/DDR400 speeds

This type of solution would probably be running water cooling but you can see the high FSB settings of the 2.4C as actually detrimental to how much memory bandwidth is available. The 2.6C is the better choice for the 3.5GHz target until DDR500 memory is available for the 2.8C.

Very Extreme - ~4GHz

2.4C at 333MHz FSB runs at 3.99GHz with 3:2 memory running at 222MHz FSB at PC3552/DDR444 speeds
2.6C at 308MHz FSB runs at 4.00GHz with 3:2 memory running at 205MHz FSB at PC3285/DDR411 speeds
2.8C at 286MHz FSB runs at 4.00GHz with 3:2 memory running at 191MHz FSB at PC3051/DDR381 speeds
2.8C at 286MHz FSB runs at 4.00GHz with 5:4 memory running at 229MHz FSB at PC3661/DDR458 speeds

At the extreme Vapochill/Prometia range of 4GHz you can see that the 2.8 with 5:4 memory times provides the best bandwidth at the highest price of course. The 2.4 is very close and is still $100 less.

 

[Tummy]

I said I'd post back after I got my chip so here I am. I got a 2.6C. It's running 3472 on my koolance right now, idle 32 load 41. Ram at 3:2 'cause I got crappy pc2700 (waiting for my kingston pc3500 to arrive). I can't tell if I've hit the limit of my cpu or if it's 'cause of my crappy ram, so I'll post back after my kingston arrives. Oh, 1.6vcore bios setting, 1.65mbm reading. I'm on a GA-8IK1100. Overall mhz wise it's a little lower than my 3.06 was (a whopping 20mhz!) but ram speeds are way up.

 

[ronnn]

smahoney, sorry i am new to overclocking, but would like to try.
So if I get the 2.4c, does that mean I need to get twin 3500 memory? Can i use 3200 and oc on a more modest scale? I can get the mushkin pc3200 2-2-2 where i intended to shop. thanks