Which Processor should I buy for a computer I am building.?

Question

I'm full aware of everything about the socket type and all that good stuff, all i am simply asking is which of the two processors I should buy.


First theres the Core 2 Duo

Core Wolfdale
Multi-Core Dual-Core
Name Core 2 Duo E8400
Operating Frequency 3.0GHz
FSB 1333MHz
L2 Cache 6MB
Manufacturing Tech 45 nm
64 bit Support Yes
Hyper-Threading Support No
Virtualization Technology Support Yes
Multimedia Instruction MMX, SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSE4, EM64T
Voltage 0.85V – 1.3625V
Thermal Power 65W
Cooling Device Heatsink and Fan included


Then theres the core 2 quad

Core Yorkfield
Multi-Core Quad-Core
Name Core 2 Quad Q9550
Operating Frequency 2.83GHz
FSB 1333MHz
L2 Cache 12MB
Manufacturing Tech 45 nm
64 bit Support Yes
Virtualization Technology Support Yes
Multimedia Instruction MMX, SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSE4, EM64T
Voltage 0.85V – 1.3625V
Thermal Power 95W
Cooling Device Heatsink and Fan included

Thank you for your help.

Answer 1

Just a quick look at the specs...

You aren't going to get much more game performance out of the dual core (if any) since the clock speed difference is negligible.

Answer 2

Isn't the Q9550 $100 more than the E8400? You are kind of comparing apples and oranges here as one CPU is of slightly higher "quality" than another. It would be more accurate to compare the E8600 with the Q9550 in which case I would get the E8600, which is the same price as the Q9550. At 3.33GHZ it will run MOST applications and games better than the Q9550 UNLESS said applications and/or games have been written specifically to use all 4 cores of the CPU.



Either way, the Q9550 and the E8600 are both very fast processors and neither will disappoint.



If you insist on choosing between the Q9550 or the E8400 and price is not an issue, then go for the Q9550, it is slightly more "future proof" and the difference in performance for applications/games that do not take advantage of the additional cores is very small.

Answer 3

If money isnt a problem go with the Quad core, but they are both really good CPU's. If your a gamer go with teh Quad core, if your just a basic user who plays casual games and doesnt want to spend alot of money go with the Dual core.





Take care

Answer 4

Well if you think your going for gaming get the core 2 duo because most games are based on that processors format. But if your into media/editing it or multitasking go for the quad core.

Answer 5

If it were me, I'd go with the quad. A *lot* more performance.

Answer 6

The quad, its faster and better graphics. much better performance. i have one. its great.