INTEL Q6600 Quad Core Processor Review

[Capper]

One of the most asked questions on the HL forums over the past month has been "What processor should I buy?". It's a difficult question, but certainly a valid one. For those seeking the best VALUE, we'll usually recommend either Intel's E6850, featuring two cores operating at 3.0GHz on a 1333FSB, or Intel's Q6600, which offers four cores operating at 2.4GHz on a 1066FSB. Both the E6850 and Q6600 are available at most retailers in the $270-300 range, making them a great balance of performance and price.
Which one should you choose? That all depends on you, and how you plan to use your system.

HardwareLogic - INTEL Q6600 Quad Core Processor Review

[Yellowhello]

Very nice review! Too bad you guys didn't get a G0 stepping... I liked how the review was all on page and you could adjust the font size... you know, if Joker decided to read the review.

A question: Is the Corsair Nautilus500 a water cooler? I'm not familiar with it...

[Telexen]

Originally Posted by yellowhello

A question: Is the Corsair Nautilus500 a water cooler? I'm not familiar with it...

Yes. Most reviews say it's fairly good, but a lot of external kits lack a pump powerful enough to get through the amount and size of the tubing used.

[Capper]

Yeah, its a decent water cooling kit, maybe a bit better than a high end air cooled solution, but far from the best cooling solution you can get.

I use it on the test bench for its easy installation, it fits perfectly with the HSPC tech station. We'll be changing it out pretty soon, as its almost 2 years old, and really isn't meant for Quad Core processors.

[gvblake22]

Dang, those things run HOT! Thanks for the cool review Rich!

[halutzparilla]

wow...

ditto, i wish you guys got your hands on G0 Q6600...

very precise review Rich...

[RAID]

A fantastic review, Rich! This is an awesome chip for the price and should definitely be considered as the centerpiece for any future build whether you are planning to overclock or not.

[Capper]

Something i've noticed looking around the web today.....

1. Alot is made of the G0 stepping of the Q6600, but there are few instances of it overclocking further than what I was able to achieve, and none of the ones I see really verify their stability (I made ours pass 8 hours of two instances of Orthos). In fact looking around, our results seem more than the norm, regardless of the stepping than any sort of anomaly.

2. Someone posted in the comments that we should have mention the Xeon as an alternative, as there is another review on the web today that points out the Xeon 3210 as the best chip they've ever tested. the whole server chip as a desktop chip got to be a hot topic when AMD released the Opterons a year ago, and rightly so, they were cheap, overclocked extremely well, and featured twice the cash, basically making them an underclocked FX60.

The problem with this is that the 3210 really offers nothing different than the Q6600 than a lower clock default speed. The article doesn't go in depth into the stability, and no one really makes mention of the fact that the processor OCs about the same as the Q6600 we used. However, if you think back about two weeks, when I went on a rant about my experience with an INTEL processor, you'll remember that no overclocking results are guaranteed......

Then look at the fact that the X3210, clocked at 2.16GHz runs $279.00, while the Q6600, clocked at 2.4GHz, costs $279 as well.

Lastly, use "Processor Common Sense"...... haven't lower clocked processors always overclocked better? didn't the E6300 OC better than the E6400? Didn't the E6400 OC better than the E6600, and didn't the E6600 OC better than the E6700? I'm sure if you look, most of these processors top out at about the same overall clock speed. I'd be willing to bet, and you might just see this, that if Intel releases a lower speced Quad, mayber a Q6400, clocked at 2.16Ghz, based on the same stepping we're seeing on their processors now, that it would OC to about the same speeds we're seeing now.

I don't like bashing other people's work, and this article is very good....but i think it gives readers the wrong impression, and in the end will steer people toward a server CPU thats really no better than its desktop counterpart.

[[Dr. V]]

I got a G0 stepping (woo!) but I don't yet have a motherboard to run it (...).

In any case, this review only makes me HAPPIER about my new purchase (that I can't use yet)...:)

[Yellowhello]

Originally Posted by ST!X

I got a G0 stepping (woo!) but I don't yet have a motherboard to run it (...).

In any case, this review only makes me HAPPIER about my new purchase (that I can't use yet)...:)

ST!X, since you got a new quad-core and you are getting a new motherboard, a new sig is in order...