Intel Q6600 processor

Post by **Firebird** » 11 Apr 2009, 10:02

Gents,
I build my own PCs these days and a year ago I had to decide which motherboard etc to use. The CPU is invariably one of the most expensive items and its really a case of choosing a CPU and then choosing a motherboard that takes it.

The CPU I chose was the Intel Q6600 Quad Core. Why? At the time it was not the highest spec processor out there but it was really good value for money.
Firstly what is a Quad Core what it really means is that you have 4 CPUs on one slice of silicon. So although it comes clocked at 2.4Mhz, it really is 4 CPUs at that speed.
So does it mean that FS9 will run 4x as fast? No. Simply put FS9 is a single thread executable that one uses only one processor. Does this mean its useless for FS9 purposes? No, as FS9 will use all of one processor will other programs and tasks will use and share the others, e.g. Active Sky, OS etc.

Now the other attractive thing about the Q6600 is that the processors are made using smaller, thinner materials. This means that they use less power, which in turn means that they are cooler, which means less noisy fans (very nice) and it also means that you can overclock it easier.

That final point is the why made me decide to plump for it in the end. For the last year I have been quite happily running it at 2.4Mhz, but due to circumstances beyond my control (thanks Rocket) I became obsessed with OCing.
I had read originally that it was such a good chip that it could be overclocked to reach the same performance of the, then, vastly more expensive QX6750. I knew that it could be OC'd to 3.4-3.6Mhz, up to 50% jump in processing power, but I decided to be a bit conservative and go to 3.2Mhz, still a 33% increase.

It was easily done through he BIOS, and I still only use a air CPU cooler, the very decent Noctua NH-U12F if anybody is interested. The noise level is still non-existant and after 3 days of constant run time the CPU temp is still only 44degs C.

One last feature, it has G0 stepping, which means that if the CPU doesn't need to use full power it won't it drops automatically to 67%. Finally, it uses an LGA 775 CPU slot on a motherboard. If the board doesn't have one it won't fit.

So why I am saying this now when a year on there are even faster CPUs out there? Quite simply I am aware that in these times not everybody can afford to go for the turbo-nutter-bastard stuff so the prices of it now maybe very attractive. It may also give you a baseline to compare other chips against it.

I don't know if this is useful or not but there it is.

MIKE JG · Post by **MIKE JG** » 11 Apr 2009, 12:35

Good advice for those of us that are a little behind the times these days............

Ford Friendly · Post by **Ford Friendly** » 11 Apr 2009, 12:48

I don't know if this is useful or not but there it is.

That's got to be one of my favorite concepts/perspectives of all time.

Post by **campbeme** » 11 Apr 2009, 19:22

Hey Steve,

Im running a AMD Quad Phenom 9550 at 2.2ghz. My question is how do you find out the core temp. I ask this as my Three fans are breaking the sound barrier from start up. I know people that have OC this processors to 2.9ghz, but I am cautious to try this due to my current fan speeds.

Mark

Post by **Firebird** » 11 Apr 2009, 21:34

OK my board is an Abit one, which I have no problems with by the way.
There are two ways to check for me
1. In the BIOS it shows you real time temps and fan speeds.
2. Abit have a utility that you get with the board, uGuru, which allows you to OC and observe and change fan and temp settings.

What I would do is check the motherboard manufacturer to see if there is a download you can get to view this info, or maybe they supply it on a CD.
If there is no joy there there must be a freeware one out there http://www.almico.com/sfdownload.php seems to fit the bill but you have to register to the forum to get it. Maybe try that.

With my motherboard it can control the fans according to the need. It maybe that yours are just running full pelt and are not being controlled by the system.

EDIT
Just found out that you can download the Speedfan prog from FileHippo http://www.filehippo.com/download_speedfan/4919/

Post by **Weescotty** » 03 May 2009, 13:26

To expand a wee bit -

Multi core on FS9 - Nope, only ever uses one, no multiple thread support.
Multi core on FSX - Yes, will use more than one core.

Although FS9 will only use one core it should be a different core to the OS, so you should see a improvement.

Post by **Firebird** » 05 May 2009, 17:10

campbeme wrote:Hey Steve,

Im running a AMD Quad Phenom 9550 at 2.2ghz. My question is how do you find out the core temp. I ask this as my Three fans are breaking the sound barrier from start up. I know people that have OC this processors to 2.9ghz, but I am cautious to try this due to my current fan speeds.

Mark

Mark, this maybe a bit later than most but one thing that I have learned is that AMD chips can generally be overclocked better than Intel ones. HOWEVER, they also generally run hotter than Intel ones. I would suggest that if you are going to OC an AMD you must make sure that your cooling is up to spec. It may mean reading up and getting the best cooling fan for that chip/motherboard combo.
With OC'ing I would re-iterate the IT mantra 'When in doubt, fail safe'.