General Overview:
The Q6600 Is a fantastic new chip by Intel. It provides the end user with an extremely powerful, cheap and multi-purpose chip. At one point this chip would cost you £500 alone. Now they have cut the price down to roughly £170 making it the perfect choice for enthusiasts ... Read review
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The best processor you can get
Advantages: Fast speeds, four cores, great overclocking potential, easy to install Disadvantages: Absolutely none!
General Overview:
The Q6600 Is a fantastic new chip by Intel. It provides the end user with an extremely powerful, cheap and multi-purpose chip. At one point this chip would cost you £500 alone. Now they have cut the price down to roughly £170 making it the perfect choice for enthusiasts and gamers alike. The Q6600 has four cores each running at 2.4Ghz with 8mb L2 cache which means it can do four times the work in the same amount of ... ...on a 1066Mhz FSB (FSB is the "Front Side Bus" this tells the processor how fast to run when combined with the processor's multiplier which is different depending on which CPU you buy. Increasing the FSB will increase the speed of the processor, known as "Overclocking", there is a section in this review on overclocking for those who are interested.)
The Q6600 Is a fantastic new chip by Intel. It provides the end user with an extremely powerful, cheap and multi-purpose chip. At one point this chip would cost you £500 alone. Now they have cut the price down to roughly £170 making it the perfect choice for enthusiasts and gamers alike. The Q6600 has four cores each running at 2.4Ghz with 8mb L2 cache which means it can do four times the work in the same amount of time compared to a single 2.4Ghz core. The Q6600 runs on a 1066Mhz FSB (FSB is the "Front Side Bus" this tells the processor how fast to run when combined with the processor's multiplier which is different depending on which CPU you buy. Increasing the FSB will increase the speed of the processor, known as "Overclocking", there is a section in this review on overclocking for those who are interested.)Overclocking:
Overclocking is the art of making your PC parts run faster than they are rated by the manufacturer. For overclocking the CPU this is usually done through the BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) which can be accessed by pressing a key that is stated on screen when you first turn on your computer. It is recommended for those who are looking into overclocking to thoroughly read some guides on the internet, or you may end up frying your chip completely. (and overclocking voids warranties so you won't get a refund either.) However if you are careful and know what you are doing you can increase the performance of your pc much more than it normally operates at. The Q6600 is based on the Core 2 archetecture (aka Conroe) which is much more effective than the old Pentium 4 netburst archetecture. Due to the better efficiency you can reach extreme overclocks on the Q6600, as much as 50% overclock on air (Usually stable at around 3.2Ghz with B3 stepping or 3.4Ghz with G0 stepping. See "Steppings" for more information) and around 100% on water (You can reach speeds faster than 4Ghz with watercooling! That's 16Ghz of power in total over all four cores!)
Installation:
The installation of the Q6600 or any Socket 775 CPU (See the "Socket Type" heading for more detail on what a socket is) is fairly simple. All you need to do is lift the small lever on the side of the base that the chip sits on which will release the clamps that hold the CPu in place, then place the cpu onto the slot(Socket 775 CPU's have no pins on the bottom, they are all on the motherboard now so it's quite hard to actually bend the pins, unlike on old processors where they could easily get bent and you'd either have to carefully bend them back perfectly or buy a whole new processor.) making sure the processor is the right way round, to find which way the processor goes there is a small black tab in one corner that shows you which way it goes. All you have to do after that is place the heatsink on top of the processor (Don't forget to add thermal paste if there isn't any already on the bottom of the heatsink, it usually looks like a gray paste. Your CPU may overheat if you don't have thermal paste) and twist the four locks into place to hold the heatsink onto the motherboard. After that you're all set to go and fire up all four cores!Steppings:
The Q6600 comes in two different steppings. Steppings are the different revisions of the chip's archetecture to further imrpove efficiency. Now about the two different steppings: the B3 stepping and the G0 stepping. What's the difference you ask? The B3 stepping has a TDP (Thermal Design Power, or how much power the CPU uses in watts) of 105w. The G0 stepping has a TDP of 95w which means lower temperatures, and obviously lower power consumption. This also means that the processor can be more easily overclocked.
Socket Type:
As explained before the Q6600 and many other chips are Socket 775 or less commonly known as Socket T. There are quite a few different sockets such as socket 478, socket AM2/AM2+ (for AMD chips.) Considering the Q6600 is Socket 775 we will focus on what that involves for now. Socket 775 is different from other sockets due to the fact it has a "Land Grid Array". What that means is the processor no longer has pins, all of the pins are spring loaded on the motherboard to make it much harder to accidently bend the pins and require a whole replacement of the CPU. (All older processors have the pins located directly on the chip.) The "775" refers to how many pins the socket has to make contact between the motherboard and the CPU. Due to Socket 775 having more pins that most other sockets it provides better power distribution to the processor, which means your system is more stable especially when overclocking.Performance:
When using multithreaded applications (Applications that can use more than one core at the same time) the Q6600 provides extremely fast calculations, but even if the program is not multithreaded it still provides extremely fast speeds. Even better performance than those of faster pentium 4 chips due to superior archetechture which maximizes the efficiency of transferring and calculating data. The Q6600 is the perfect chip for gamers and enthusiasts alike due to it's speed, large cache, four cores and great overclocking potential. Games will run at full speed with no hitches, feel like encoding that DVD you like so much so you can watch it on your PC? No problem. The Q6600 will do that faster than almost all other CPU's. The Q6600 really is one of the best performing chips you can get.
Conclusion:
In conclusion the Q6600 has to be the best chip you could possibly buy. It's cheap, fast and provides more potential than first meets the eye for those who wish to unlock it's true power. A must have for anybody who wants the most out of their PC.
I hope this review has helped you get a better insight on this fantastic CPU!
Advantages: Intelligent Power Capability Disadvantages: none
These new processors deliver amazing performance and power efficiency.With four execution cores, the Intel® Core™2 Quad processor blows through processor-intensive tasks in demanding multitasking environments and makes the most of highly threaded applications. Graphics Video works Just SUPER.Keep it cool, and you should be able to do some over clocking. I turned my ASUS auto overclocking off since I really dont need to over clock (& void the ...
owais997 23.07.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 / 2.4 GHz processor
...with the recent announcement from intel that 6 core cpus are just around the corner the price of quad core chips will drop even more making them an even more attractive and great value purchase.
I would also not purchasing the faster quad core chips unless you have money to spare, as this chip while running at 2.4ghz straight from the box can easily be overclocked with very little effort, and for minimal expenditure for a aftermarket cooling solution ...
Digital_Friend 27.02.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 / 2.4 GHz processor
Advantages: Quick, runs cool, easy to overclock Disadvantages: None
I bought the G0 stepping version of this processor from ebuyer.com for just over £150 back in august 2007. It came boxed with a cpu fan which already had some heatsink paste already applied, an instruction manual and a guarentee certificate. It was simple to install, and I'm currently using it on a EVGA 680i motherboard. The processor is outstanding and can run anything you put to it very very quickly. A lot of applications don't yet use more than ... ...you play games like Crysis however, which are multi-threaded, the game makes use of all the cores and thus will help the game run at much higher settings.
The processors also handles things like enocoding or rendering videos very well - compared to most processors I've used the time taken is a lot shorter. I recommend getting the G0 stepping version, simply because it is far better at overclocking and you will be able to get greater speeds with ...
Eazy_Rider 08.02.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 / 2.4 GHz processor
Advantages: 4 cores. New G0 stepping Q6600 runs cooler and is easy to overclock Disadvantages: Software doesn't take advantage of all 4 cores.
I bought this a while ago for £160 even at that price it is a bargain and now you can get it £140 a no brainer in my opinion. An extremely powerful processor 2.4Ghz per core adding up to a total of 9.6Ghz.
The best thing about this processor for me though is its potential for overclocking, if you get the new G0 stepping which is a must this processor can easily be overclocked to 3.3Ghz just by using a good cooler such as a Scythe Infinity and would ... ...default cooler.
This processor will do it all if you want to encode a video no problem I have encoded a full 90minute film in less than 30minutes and while I was doing that I was also playing a top end game without any lag. Coupled with 2Gb of fast DDR2 memory and a good graphics card such as a 8800GTX your new rig will easily be able run new games and future games for many a year.
The easy installation of the LGA775 socket makes it a breeze to ...
appollo2006 19.04.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 / 2.4 GHz processor
Advantages: Price, very cool running (G0 stepping), high overclockability Disadvantages: None as I'm aware
**** DESIGN ****
Right now this is the best value for money CPU one can buy. Don't be fooled by thinking its slow if it's only 2.40GHz for each core. The Core 2 architecture is all singing all dancing compared to Intel's previous Netburst so even at 2.40GHz, it would take a Netburst CPU (if such quare core existed) running at ~4.4GHz to rival it in performance. This due to the latter, amongst other vital signs, being a much deeper pipeline design. ... ...fortunate enough to buy yourself a G0 stepping, you can a good chance of getting it to 3.6GHz 9x400 on a decent stable motherboard and good air cooling. You can locate a G0 Q6600 buy searching for the SLACR S-spec while ordering. Worth keeping in mind is that the retail boxed version have a 3 year warranty while the OEM version whatever the merchant providers, i.e. 1 year. For best overclocking you'll want one with the lowest Voltage ID, known as ...
AdamHonek 05.11.2007 (11.11.2007)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 / 2.4 GHz processor
Speed
Ease of Installation
Manufacturer Support
Instruction manual
Value For Money
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Advantages: Very stylish, reliable high specification PC Disadvantages: HP software not really needed.
The hp dc7800 is a brilliant consumer product,
i currently work for a computer firm and we have had quite a few HP deskyop PCs brought in and installed for our clients.
The Hp desktops are very reliable and speedy machines, they tend to come complete with manufacturer software such as:-
- Roxio CD/DVD creator
- HP system software manager
- HP protest tools security software
The hp software is not really needed but the roxio cd/dvd creatpr is very useful.
This PC will be perfect for business use, and possibly a decent gaming machine.
Samll review on the installed hardware
PROCESSOR
- Core2QuadQ6600 / 2.4GHz
very speedy processor, reliable and fast, perfect for multifunction tasks.
MOTHERBOARD
- IntelQ35 Express
very fast and reliable motherboard, with a bus speed of 1066Mhz this mainboard would be ...
Product Information for "Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 / 2.4 GHz processor" »
Manufacturer's product description
The Intel Core 2 Quad processor is the latest in cutting edge processor technology for the desktop PC. Based on the Intel Core microarchitecture, the Intel Core 2 Quad processor delivers four complete execution cores within a single processor, delivering unprecedented performance and responsiveness in multi-threaded and multi-tasking business and home use environments. The Intel Core 2 Quad processor is at the center of today's most interactive and content rich software experiences. The evolving set of threaded multi-media applications, including digital content creation, will shine as users are able to complete tasks faster. Game play can achieve even greater visualization and realism as tasks such as artificial intelligence (AI), physics, and rendering can be distributed across each of the four complete execution cores and run in parallel.
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