Grocs Posted June 15, 2008 Share Posted June 15, 2008 Hey all, I know this has been asked before but if you would indulge me a little - I am currently running and AMD Dual Core 4400+ with DDR 4Gb 400Mhz RAM. I have a decent video card (8800gt 512mb) so I was looking at upgrading to Q6600 or Q9300 Quad Core Intel. Which one would be the go? I was looking at a Gigabyte motherboard too. Require a bit of advice on RAM. I guess the final question would be - will a Quad Core with DDR2 ram etc run quite well than my current setup? In large, populated areas (like Sydney for example) my frame rate drops to about 7-14fps in single player. I noticed tonight when I had my first VFR flight using VATSIM and FSInn that in not so heavily populated areas that I usually get 20fps on I was dipping to 11-12fps when I was playing multiplayer. I've enjoyed the experience so much I want to upgrade to improve this. Recommendations would be fantastic. Cheers. Grocs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgruschow Posted June 15, 2008 Share Posted June 15, 2008 Hey all, I know this has been asked before but if you would indulge me a little - I am currently running and AMD Dual Core 4400+ with DDR 4Gb 400Mhz RAM. I have a decent video card (8800gt 512mb) so I was looking at upgrading to Q6600 or Q9300 Quad Core Intel. Which one would be the go? I was looking at a Gigabyte motherboard too. Require a bit of advice on RAM. I guess the final question would be - will a Quad Core with DDR2 ram etc run quite well than my current setup? In large, populated areas (like Sydney for example) my frame rate drops to about 7-14fps in single player. I noticed tonight when I had my first VFR flight using VATSIM and FSInn that in not so heavily populated areas that I usually get 20fps on I was dipping to 11-12fps when I was playing multiplayer. I've enjoyed the experience so much I want to upgrade to improve this. Recommendations would be fantastic. Cheers. Grocs. How much are you prepared to spend? Have a look at Intel Core 2 Extreme Quad QX9650 3.0 GHz, 1333MHz FSB, Socket 775 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grocs Posted June 15, 2008 Author Share Posted June 15, 2008 Yeah I should have mentioned the budget before - I guess that is why I termed it best bang for buck - I was hoping to pay around $700 for the cpu / mb / ram upgrade to be honest. The extreme is a bit beyond what I want to spend. Thanks for the suggestion though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butch Posted June 15, 2008 Share Posted June 15, 2008 I run a Q6600, Gigabyte MB and 4gigs of Corsair ram and, I have OC'd my Q6600 to 3.35mhz stable. If you are comfortable with OC'ing then the Q6600 is the fastest processor you get for the money. Butch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grocs Posted June 16, 2008 Author Share Posted June 16, 2008 That sounds like a good plan Butch - what model of Gigabyte motherboard do you have mate? Is your Q6600 one of the older ones or the newer ones? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butch Posted June 16, 2008 Share Posted June 16, 2008 I got the cheapest good quality MB I could find, you need quality MB to be able to OC properly but one that doesn't have all the bells and whistles you'll probably never use. = GA-P35-DS3L Q6600 GO - dont bother with getting anything faster because once you OC this thing it will zip passed anything else on the market. Of course with OC'ing your mileage may vary but 3.2 is about guaranteed. I did try and shoot for 3.4 but I get BSOD's after about 20 minutes. Then invest in a good HSF, thermalright 120 ultra is simply the best money can buy, $75.00AUD Good luck! Butch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grocs Posted June 16, 2008 Author Share Posted June 16, 2008 Hey Butch - just thought I'd let you know that I got the Q6600 with an ASUS P35 5se mb and 2x2 gb Zepher Ram. I haven't overclocked yet - it runs really well stock atm. Makes a hell of difference having the Quad cores in FSX (with MaskAffinity and +fullproc. settings). I was flying around Sydney with my dual core 4400+ x2 AMD with 4gb DDR400 ram and getting about 7-12fps. I've turned up autogen to dense and scenery to very dense and I'm getting 20fps (locked) now. For anyone who is deciding if the quad core is worth it - my oath it is. On another note - my Saitek Pro Flight yoke and throttle arrived yesterday too - I haven't even had a chance to try it yet because I was upgrading my rig. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TMcIver Posted June 16, 2008 Share Posted June 16, 2008 Just wanted to add my nod to the q6600. I've just upgraded from an e6750 which I had overclocked to 3.8. There's a lot of discussion on here about raw CPU speed being more important than having a quad, and that does seem to be true for raw FPS, but my FSX and FTX experience is 10 times better with a q6600 at 3.6. Textures are loaded faster, everything's more crisp and it all just works better. My motherboard is the Asus P5K-e, overclocks really well and itn't too expensive. I just built a system for someone on the Gigabyte EP35-DS3P and had no end of trouble, though it is now working. I reckon you can't go past a q6600 (i'd go second hand and get a guaranteed overclocker) and a P5K-e. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Webb Posted June 17, 2008 Share Posted June 17, 2008 It seems to be once you get to the 3ghz or more range, then a quad is much better than a dual. I think the trap some people might be getting into is having a strict budget for a CPU. So you're either going to buy a 2.4 Quad or a 3.0 Duo, which are around the same price. If you're not going to overclock, you might be better off getting the duo, since it gives FSX a higher speed for the main FSX process. But then again, with a quad, you can move processes of the fsx.exe core to the other cores, freeing up resources for the main fsx.exe process. Whether a full .6 (3.0 minus 2.4) mhz is moved off is anyone's guess. I'm no expert, btw. Cheers, Matt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grocs Posted June 17, 2008 Author Share Posted June 17, 2008 I think from what I've seen having the extra cores will help - particular when using FSInn and VATSIM connection on the same machine (which I've started doing). I haven't overclocked yet but I will be testing that over next few days. I doubt I'll get it to 3.6 (that is basically maxed out 9x 400fsb) but will be happy with a 9x333fsb which should put it around the 3Ghz mark. Will keep everyone in the loop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Webb Posted June 17, 2008 Share Posted June 17, 2008 Thanks for the info. I'll be upgrading from my Pentium-D in the next month or so. Keep us informed. Cheers, Matt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butch Posted June 17, 2008 Share Posted June 17, 2008 Hey Grocs, Welcome to the quadside I just looked at an online store I get most of my stuff and a Q6600 is going for $248. Beside it is a QX9770 clocked at 3.2gig is $1732, even if you burned up 4 Q6600's you'll still be ahead! About this time next year (perhaps a bit later) entry level Nahalem's will probably be at the same price Q6600's are now, then I think the price / bang equation will shift again. Of course there is still the probability that more 'true' multi core optimised programs will come online in the next 12 to 16 months, then Q6600's we have may finally be utilised at 100% which will extend their usefull life even further...who knows. Cheers, Butch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canaderyn Posted June 17, 2008 Share Posted June 17, 2008 Good Day This takes you to a free programme written by Darren Yates of PC user Australia. Quote from PC USE web site "PC User PerfectPC squishes our buying criteria into a bunch of complex algorithms so that by selecting your desired application, your favourite CPU and sliding the budget slider across, the software automatically generates a suggested system. It handles any budget between $500 and $3000 and has a built-in database of PC components from CPUs to motherboards to hard drives to monitors. This program is updated with the latest gear and pricings each month." http://www.gmat.unsw.edu.au/int/pcuser/200805/tutorials/tut_featured%201.htm For the best prices I use Pricespy.com.au Grahame Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grocs Posted June 17, 2008 Author Share Posted June 17, 2008 That's a pretty nifty website if you are looking at building a complete system. Just as an update - Q6600 overclocked to 3Ghz (from 2.4Ghz) no problem with stock cooler. Have yet to do proper benchmarks - it was more a test to see how easy it was to do - and in that regard it was very easy (just had to change the fsb to 333 from 266). Worked straight away and has been running FSX and my machine fine for 24 hours. Did notice an improvement in fps in FSX but will do proper benchmarking using Crysis or something of that nature. Did try bumping it up to 400fsb but that didn't work - so their will be a happy medium in there - even if I was to leave it at 3Ghz that is still a 600Mhz gain by changing the fsb so that is pretty damn good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butch Posted June 18, 2008 Share Posted June 18, 2008 Hey Grocs, Dont let the fsb stop you! Its probably failed at 400fsb because the ram cant take it rather than the CPU. The next step is to change the divider for the ram, its like a fsb for ram. If your MB will supports this (and most new ones do) you can increase the ram divider so in effect you are slowing it down. This counteracts the speed up to dialed in when you ramped up the FSB. I am running my divider at 4:5. Confusing? CPU external speed = FSB x Multiplier RAM speed = Divider x FSB Its like the relationship of torque and propeller speed, more torque and the prop goes faster, too fast and the prop flies apart. You need to slow the prop down (but not necessarily decrease power) so you increase the prop pitch. Once you get past say 3.0 or so mhz that's when it gets interesting, you may need to up the voltage. A word of warning, this is the no1 cause of dead cpu's. Excessive voltage will kill your cpu faster than overheating and overclocking. However provided you are sensible your voltage tweak you CPU will run on slightly more juice than Andy Grove intendend it to for years without a problem. Have a read of this post: http://www.overclock.net/intel-cpus/1567-intel-overclocking-guide.html Last but not least, don't get hung up on benchmarks... they don't mean anything. What matters is how your PC is now able to provide you with the illusion of flight by providing you with as complex an environment as can be currently represented in a fluid sim. Cheers Butch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grocs Posted June 20, 2008 Author Share Posted June 20, 2008 Cheers Butch for the info - appreciate it. I'm running it at 3.2Ghz atm - 8 x 400fsb - seems to be running well. So I don't think I'll push it and muck around with the voltages - I don't want to shorten the life of the cpu at this early stage Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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