Quad Core 2.4Ghz vs Core 2 Duo 3.0Ghz?
Answers:
Crysis, Alan Wake and other new games are supposed to fully support quad-cores due to their multi-threading code.
So, get a quad-core with a P35 motherboard unless you want to replace your processor in a few months after all the new games come out that bog-down a 3.0ghz dual Core2.
Go for the Core 2 Duo 3.0Ghz since nothing is really taking advantage of the Quad Core, unless you want this PC to last you for a very long time.
The choice between the Q6600 and the E6850 has been discussed at length in tech forums. here's just a few links to discussions held by system builders and what they think.
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/241132...
http://www.neowin.net/forum/index.php?sh...
http://forum.pcstats.com/showthread.php?...
I've also included a Benchmark from Anandtech on Intel CPUs (including the two in question). I linked directly to the gaming benches, but you can backtrack to the others (3D rendering, Sysmark, Workbench6, etc) if you want to see them.
http://anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc...
Basically, the consensus seems to be:
If you are not going to upgrade for some time (a few years) get the Quad. It will serve you better in more apps OTHER than games (i.e. you'll be able to multitask more efficiently, and run multi-threaded applications faster, like encoding media files) The Quad will also future proof your system (as much as any system CAN be future proofed, which is not much with technology changing as fast as it is) for when games start making use of 4 cores. The first one of these is supposed to be Alan Wake (no firm release date yet) and Crysis (November). for right now most games are optimized for 1 or 2 cores.
Reasons for getting the E6850:
It runs cooler, and if you want to overclock your CPU, this could be a big consideration if you're not using liquid cooling.
You're upgrading your system in a year or so.
If you are going to upgrade again soon, I would go fot the E6850 as it has superior gaming performance for the games that are already out.
The only reason to upgrade in a year would be the Penryn chips.
This Christmas will bring Intel's 45 nano meter Penryn CPUs, which will replace the current 65 nano meter Core 2 CPUs.
http://techreport.com/onearticle.x/12127...
This new architecture will allow Intel to place more transistors on the die resulting in better performance, and the chips will have lower power consumption. Basically, a more efficient chip. Will it be faster? or, at least faster to justify spending the $ on another upgrade? We have to wait for the benchmarks.
So, it's your call. If you're keeping your build for a few years. I'd go with the more future ready Quad.
If your going to upgrade again next year, I'd go for the E6850 which will give you the most gaming bang for the buck right now and into 2008.
Also, keep in mind that the most important components in gaming are STILL your video card and RAM. Either CPU should be fine for gaming.
By the way, if you ARE planning on Penryn, make sure to get a mobo that will support it: a P35 or the soon to be released X38. Also Nvidia says the 680i boards will be compatible with a Bios update.
And, if opinons count at all, I would go with the Quad. As I said both are fine for gaming, and unless you're a major overclocker, the Quad will stay cool enough with a good heatsink (Zalman, ThermalRight, Tuniq) and fan.
Have fun
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