My motherboard died and I am looking to upgrade and replace it and the
CPU. I want to use a quad core cpu and don't really understand the
difference between the "Core 2 Quad Q6600 G0 Stepping (2.4GHz
1066MHz)" and the lower power version "Core 2 Quad Q6600 Energy
Efficient 95W edition Socket 775 (2.40GHz)"? Does the reduced TDP of
95W vs 105W for the energy efficient version mean it is less stable at
high overclock rates ? Or is it just lower power at the same
overclock rates ?
Also, I am trying to understand the differences between the Gigabyte
GA-X48-DQ6 and GA-X48-DS5 motherboards. As far as I can tell the only
difference is that the DQ6 has 2 extra eSATA ports over the DS5, can
anyone tell me whether this is correct ? (I don't really need eSATA
ports at all so meh if true).
Finally, can anyone tell me what RAM is best for these boards ? I
will eventually want to run with 8GB so would prefer to buy 2GB
modules. This seems to restrict my choices in respect of memory speeds
and I wondered whether the advantages of PC2-8500 are significant wrt
PC2-6400 memory with this mobo/cpu combo ?
Mike wrote:
> Hi,
>
> My motherboard died and I am looking to upgrade and replace it and the
> CPU. I want to use a quad core cpu and don't really understand the
> difference between the "Core 2 Quad Q6600 G0 Stepping (2.4GHz
> 1066MHz)" and the lower power version "Core 2 Quad Q6600 Energy
> Efficient 95W edition Socket 775 (2.40GHz)"? Does the reduced TDP of
> 95W vs 105W for the energy efficient version mean it is less stable at
> high overclock rates ? Or is it just lower power at the same
> overclock rates ?
>
> Also, I am trying to understand the differences between the Gigabyte
> GA-X48-DQ6 and GA-X48-DS5 motherboards. As far as I can tell the only
> difference is that the DQ6 has 2 extra eSATA ports over the DS5, can
> anyone tell me whether this is correct ? (I don't really need eSATA
> ports at all so meh if true).
>
> Finally, can anyone tell me what RAM is best for these boards ? I
> will eventually want to run with 8GB so would prefer to buy 2GB
> modules. This seems to restrict my choices in respect of memory speeds
> and I wondered whether the advantages of PC2-8500 are significant wrt
> PC2-6400 memory with this mobo/cpu combo ?
>
> Many thanks,
>
> Mike
DQ6 has "quad BIOS". There are probably not four BIOS chips, but rather
four BIOS images stored somehow on the board.
Looking at the pictures of the boards, I notice the DQ6 has all one brand
of caps (red ones). The DS5 is mixed red and blue ones. Maybe some
enthusiast site can tell you what brand the red ones are, and how
that makes a difference.
There are two steppings of Q6600. The G0 and the B3. The G0 would be
a newer stepping, and it may overclock a bit ****her. I don't think
"energy efficient" is a term that Intel uses to describe these. To
Intel, it is just a new stepping.
Gigabyte has a memory list for their board. But the list doesn't
look that practical. I think I'd want to find an X48 review
article, to see what FSB/DDR2 clock combinations are supported.
> > I want to use a quad core cpu and don't really understand the
> > difference between the "Core 2 Quad Q6600 G0 Stepping (2.4GHz
> > 1066MHz)" and the lower power version "Core 2 Quad Q6600 Energy
> > Efficient 95W edition Socket 775 (2.40GHz)"? Does the reduced TDP of
> > 95W vs 105W for the energy efficient version mean it is less stable at
> > high overclock rates ? Or is it just lower power at the same
> > overclock rates ?
>
> There are two steppings of Q6600. The G0 and the B3. The G0 would be
> a newer stepping, and it may overclock a bit ****her. I don't think
> "energy efficient" is a term that Intel uses to describe these. To
> Intel, it is just a new stepping.
There are 2 versions of the G0 stepping a 95W TDP one and a 105W TDP
one. My question is : which is the best for overclocking ? If you
don't know then don't answer. Sorry to sound grumpy but...
'Mike' wrote:
> My motherboard died and I am looking to upgrade and replace it and the
> CPU. I want to use a quad core cpu and don't really understand the
> difference between the "Core 2 Quad Q6600 G0 Stepping (2.4GHz
> 1066MHz)" and the lower power version "Core 2 Quad Q6600 Energy
> Efficient 95W edition Socket 775 (2.40GHz)"? Does the reduced TDP of
> 95W vs 105W for the energy efficient version mean it is less stable at
> high overclock rates ? Or is it just lower power at the same
> overclock rates ?
>
> Also, I am trying to understand the differences between the Gigabyte
> GA-X48-DQ6 and GA-X48-DS5 motherboards. As far as I can tell the only
> difference is that the DQ6 has 2 extra eSATA ports over the DS5, can
> anyone tell me whether this is correct ? (I don't really need eSATA
> ports at all so meh if true).
>
> Finally, can anyone tell me what RAM is best for these boards ? I
> will eventually want to run with 8GB so would prefer to buy 2GB
> modules. This seems to restrict my choices in respect of memory speeds
> and I wondered whether the advantages of PC2-8500 are significant wrt
> PC2-6400 memory with this mobo/cpu combo ?
_____
Going for a > $300 US motherboard along with a plan to expand to 8 GBytes
DDR2 memory might not be the best choices at this point in the Intel
'tick-tock' roadmap ('Nehalem' in fourth quarter 2008.) Clearly you need a
motherboard replacement NOW, but perhaps now is also the time to recycle as
much of your present system as possible.
As for the questions you DID ask:
DDR2 RAM (and CPU Clock : Memory Clock ratios) are described differently by
different motherboard manufacturers. Partially because there was no
standard for DDR2 RAM faster than DDR2 800 in the beginning - and there
still isn't. Thus 'SLI memory', a term that has nothing to do with SLI, but
rather is a term for memory with extended SPD information with timing and
voltage setups for greater than DDR2 800 (DDR2 1066 / PC-8500 for example.)
Early on, with FSB speeds of 1066 MHz or higher, There was no DDR2 1066
memory, so the CPU Clock : Memory Clock could NOT be set to a 1:1 ratio
(unfortunately, SOME motherboard manufacturers used 1:1, some 1:2 to mean
the same thing.) If, for example, you purchase DDR2 800 memory, some
motherboards require a ratio of 1:2 to run DDR2 800 memory @ DDR2 800 with,
for example, a 1600 MHz FSB. Other motherboards might require a 1:2 setting
for the EXACT SAME RESULTS! This is certainly confusing, and, I think, is
caused by a memory marketing plan to push buyers toward higher speed DDR2
memory purchases. For the system you ask about the performance difference
will depend on the application mix (how efficiently the software uses the L2
cache), buy in no case will the performance difference between DDR2 800 and
DDR2 1066 be more than a few percent. On the other hand, at least for 1
GByte DDR2 modules, DDR 800 and DDR2 1066 are dirt cheap (especially
compared to what I paid for 2 X 1 GByte DDR2 1066 just a year ago; $230 US.)
You do realize that you can't use physical memory above 2 GBytes completely
with a Windows 32-bit operating system, nor any physical memory at all above
4 GBytes with a Windows 32-bit operating system?
And have you found a source for both motherboards you mention?
'Quad BIOS'? We don't need no stinking 'Quad BIOS'. As the phrase 'Quad
BIOS' never appears in the GA-X48 DQ6 manual, I'd bet it is a marketing
phrase, signifying nothing that isn't available on any other reasonably good
modern motherboard.
I suggest you look through posts from the last year or so by 'Ed Medlin' on
his progress from an E6600 to a nicely overclocked and water cooled Q6600.
A second suggestion is to pick a motherboard that appears often in this
newsgroup so that there is a wealth of support material already available.
Phil Weldon
"Mike" <mikedavies621@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:082c5e92-eed6-42e0-9bb2-6f6c25d879f0@i36g2000prf.googlegroups.com...
> Hi,
>
> My motherboard died and I am looking to upgrade and replace it and the
> CPU. I want to use a quad core cpu and don't really understand the
> difference between the "Core 2 Quad Q6600 G0 Stepping (2.4GHz
> 1066MHz)" and the lower power version "Core 2 Quad Q6600 Energy
> Efficient 95W edition Socket 775 (2.40GHz)"? Does the reduced TDP of
> 95W vs 105W for the energy efficient version mean it is less stable at
> high overclock rates ? Or is it just lower power at the same
> overclock rates ?
>
> Also, I am trying to understand the differences between the Gigabyte
> GA-X48-DQ6 and GA-X48-DS5 motherboards. As far as I can tell the only
> difference is that the DQ6 has 2 extra eSATA ports over the DS5, can
> anyone tell me whether this is correct ? (I don't really need eSATA
> ports at all so meh if true).
>
> Finally, can anyone tell me what RAM is best for these boards ? I
> will eventually want to run with 8GB so would prefer to buy 2GB
> modules. This seems to restrict my choices in respect of memory speeds
> and I wondered whether the advantages of PC2-8500 are significant wrt
> PC2-6400 memory with this mobo/cpu combo ?
>
> Many thanks,
>
> Mike
> Going for a > $300 US motherboard along with a plan to expand to 8 GBytes
> DDR2 memory might not be the best choices at this point in the Intel
> 'tick-tock' roadmap ('Nehalem' in fourth quarter 2008.)
Can you clarify for me what you think are the drawbacks with that in
your opinion ? I want a cheapish board and cpu with good performance
and that combo seems like the current sweet spot, or pretty near.
Nehalem doesn't look like a reasonable prospect for my desktop before
this time in 2009 and that's too far away to bother about as far as
I'm concerned. As you say, I really do need a PC now and you can
forever put off getting a decent one on the grounds that next years'
will be better.
> Clearly you need a
> motherboard replacement NOW, but perhaps now is also the time to recycle as
> much of your present system as possible.
Sadly the CPU I have is not worth spending money on to buy a
replacement board for and ditto the RAM. I was due for a new PC
anyway so...
....snip...
> For the system you ask about the performance difference
> will depend on the application mix (how efficiently the software uses the L2
> cache), buy in no case will the performance difference between DDR2 800 and
> DDR2 1066 be more than a few percent.
Thanks. I had no idea it meant so little to buy RAM with a higher
spec. I will surely go for the higher density RAM in that case
> You do realize that you can't use physical memory above 2 GBytes completely
> with a Windows 32-bit operating system, nor any physical memory at all above
> 4 GBytes with a Windows 32-bit operating system?
Yes, I intend to go for either XP/x64 or else Vista 64 bit in the
near future.
>
> And have you found a source for both motherboards you mention?
Yep, several in fact : Misco and tekheads do both of these. If the
only difference between the -DQ6 and -DS5 is the 2 extra eSATA ports
then I will go for the DS5 version for sure. Can anyone confirm
this ? It does seem to be what the manuals say but you know how
subtle these things can be.
> I suggest you look through posts from the last year or so by 'Ed Medlin' on
> his progress from an E6600 to a nicely overclocked and water cooled Q6600.
>
You wouldn't recollect the title of the posts would you ? I did look
but couldn't find the thread you refer to.
I still need to know which is the better of the 105W Q6600 and the 95W
Efficiency Edition of the same CPU in respect of overclocking if
anyone here knows the answer ?
'Mike' wrote, in part:
> Can you clarify for me what you think are the drawbacks with that in
> your opinion ? I want a cheapish board and cpu with good performance
> and that combo seems like the current sweet spot, or pretty near.
> Nehalem doesn't look like a reasonable prospect for my desktop before
> this time in 2009 and that's too far away to bother about as far as
> I'm concerned. As you say, I really do need a PC now and you can
> forever put off getting a decent one on the grounds that next years'
> will be better.
_____
#1. The drawbacks of your present plan: $300 US motherboards are NOT
cheapish. You certainly don't need the newest and greatest Intel Chipset
(X48) for a Q6600, and really gain nothing from it that a ~ $150 US
motherboard won't give you. ESPECIALLY if you have no need for dual display
adapter cards (which I assume you are not considering since the X48 chipset
will not handle SLI, and the AMD/ATI crossfire display adapters aren't
really competitive with nVidia SLI display adapters. An alternative would
be an ASUS motherboard based on the nVidia 750i chipset ( ASUS P5N-D NVIDIA
nForce 750i SLI Core 2 Quad Socket 775 1333MHz ATX Motherboard ) for less
than $140 US from zipzoomfly.com for example. I very seriously doubt that
the Intel X48 chipset motherboard will show a noticible difference in
performance compared to the nVidia 750i chipset motherboard given the other
components you are contemplating. System balance should be considered.
DDR2 800 memory is by no means 'bleeding edge', nor is a Q6600. But the X48
chipset more or less is 'bleeding edge', and is more than is needed to
balance the system. On the other hand, you seem set on 8 GBytes of main
memory. The question is, WHY? Especially if you run into a triple
expense - a more expensive motherboard that will handle 8 GBytes PLUS
expensive double density DDR2 RAM PLUS more RAM. Consider balance again.
Will 8 GBytes of main memory give much performance increase for the extra
money when running your chosen applications?
#2. Overclocking an Intel CPU depends on trading off operation safety
margins for higher clock speeds. Decreasing the operating temperature is
one change that is all good. Intel designs its CPUs to operate in worst
case senarios - inadequate case ventiliation, the system case stuck in a
cranny with little air circulation, dust bunnies in the heatsink fins, dried
out heatsink compound, poor quality power supply, marginal motherboard
design and execution... CPU case temperatures above the certified limit.
All to give a good customer experience and reduce returns. As the 'learning
curve' develops (more experience producing a certain line of CPUs) a larger
and larger percentage of the CPUs produced meet the standards for the higher
clock speeds - but marketing demands a range of clock speeds. Thus you are
more and more likely to get a lower clock CPU that is identical to a higher
clocked CPU except for the stock multipler speed locked in at the factory.
So, say you keep your overclock CPU temperature down around 45 C rather than
around 70 C; that alone will trade temperature for higher potential clock
speeds. With the Core 2 CPUs there is usually at LEAST a 50% overclock
margin for all but the top of the series with just reasonably ordinary air
cooling (perhaps just a somewhat better than stock heatsink/fan and decent
case ventilation.
#3. Finding the posts by 'Ed Medlin'. First of all, DO NOT USE GOOGLE
GROUPS TO ACCESS AND POST TO USENET NEWSGROUPS. Second of all, DO NOT USE
GOOGLE GROUPS TO ACCESS AND POST TO USENET NEWSGROUPS. The googlegroups
interface is a pain in the *** for you and tends to expose the user to
riducule in technical newsgroups. Use a newsreader (Microsoft Mail or
Outlook Express is a free newsreader in your MS operating system) to
subscribe to a newsgroup. Download the messages from the newsgroup. You
can then see entire threads, colapsed or expanded, sorted ascending or
descending by date posted, author, and or subject AND searched by date,
author, subject line, or post content.
Some newsgroup participants go so far as to ignore messages posted through
googlegroups. Googlegroup posts are blocked by some newsservers en mass
because so much spam and deliberate disruptive posts originate from google
groups.
My posts about overclocking Core 2 CPUs started on March 23, 2007 Subject:
E4300 and 650i overclocking
('Ed Medlin' began participating in that thread and in other threads about
overclocking an E6600 at that time.)
'Ed Medlin' began posting about overclocking a Q6600 on September 21, 2007
Subject: Experience with Q6600 OC
#4. A lower Total Power Dissipation figure indicates Intel expects such a
designated CPU to consume less electrical power; that translates directly
and exactly to the same lesser amount of heat produced, and, given the same
cooling arrangement, a lower operating temperature. And a lower operating
temperature is Good For Overclocking.
Finally, not knowing the applications you wish to run makes it difficult to
know what advice and facts to offer.
Phil Weldon
"Mike" <mikedavies621@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:d1109a95-9dec-49e1-a643-55cbed1305cc@q10g2000prf.googlegroups.com...
>> Going for a > $300 US motherboard along with a plan to expand to 8 GBytes
>> DDR2 memory might not be the best choices at this point in the Intel
>> 'tick-tock' roadmap ('Nehalem' in fourth quarter 2008.)
>
> Can you clarify for me what you think are the drawbacks with that in
> your opinion ? I want a cheapish board and cpu with good performance
> and that combo seems like the current sweet spot, or pretty near.
> Nehalem doesn't look like a reasonable prospect for my desktop before
> this time in 2009 and that's too far away to bother about as far as
> I'm concerned. As you say, I really do need a PC now and you can
> forever put off getting a decent one on the grounds that next years'
> will be better.
>
>> Clearly you need a
>> motherboard replacement NOW, but perhaps now is also the time to recycle
>> as
>> much of your present system as possible.
>
> Sadly the CPU I have is not worth spending money on to buy a
> replacement board for and ditto the RAM. I was due for a new PC
> anyway so...
>
> ...snip...
>
>> For the system you ask about the performance difference
>> will depend on the application mix (how efficiently the software uses the
>> L2
>> cache), buy in no case will the performance difference between DDR2 800
>> and
>> DDR2 1066 be more than a few percent.
>
> Thanks. I had no idea it meant so little to buy RAM with a higher
> spec. I will surely go for the higher density RAM in that case
>
>> You do realize that you can't use physical memory above 2 GBytes
>> completely
>> with a Windows 32-bit operating system, nor any physical memory at all
>> above
>> 4 GBytes with a Windows 32-bit operating system?
>
> Yes, I intend to go for either XP/x64 or else Vista 64 bit in the
> near future.
>
>>
>> And have you found a source for both motherboards you mention?
>
> Yep, several in fact : Misco and tekheads do both of these. If the
> only difference between the -DQ6 and -DS5 is the 2 extra eSATA ports
> then I will go for the DS5 version for sure. Can anyone confirm
> this ? It does seem to be what the manuals say but you know how
> subtle these things can be.
>
>> I suggest you look through posts from the last year or so by 'Ed Medlin'
>> on
>> his progress from an E6600 to a nicely overclocked and water cooled
>> Q6600.
>>
>
> You wouldn't recollect the title of the posts would you ? I did look
> but couldn't find the thread you refer to.
>
>
> I still need to know which is the better of the 105W Q6600 and the 95W
> Efficiency Edition of the same CPU in respect of overclocking if
> anyone here knows the answer ?
>
>
> Thanks,
>
> Mike
Mike wrote:
> There are 2 versions of the G0 stepping a 95W TDP one and a 105W
> TDP one. My question is : which is the best for overclocking ? If you
> don't know then don't answer. Sorry to sound grumpy but...
All these new parts are hard to find because of Intel's limited release.
The caveat is that the 45 nM CPUs have lower multipliers for your dollar.
The only reasonably priced 45 nM parts currently available at Newegg
are Q9300 with a 7.5 multiplier and the X3320 with a 7 multiplier. Both
have the lesser amount of L2 cache, which is 6 MB as opposed to 12 MB.
The 65 nM parts have 8 MB. The Q9450 has an 8 multiplier, and the Q9550
has an 8.5 multiplier. One reviewer of the Q9300 said "...this processor
was NOT faster then a Q6600 at any other setting then stock."
But you probably knew all this and you really need something now. Just get
a bottom feeder dual core to tide you over. Seriously. I have a G0 stepping
Q6600 with a 9 multiplier. It doesn't like a high CPU clock, so I have it set for
333 x 9. It is power hungry, so I need to counter the vDroop with more voltage.
It runs hot as hell even with a gigantic cooler.
And 8GB of memory? You're planning to run a 64-bit operating system, I trust.
P35 works fine. Gigabyte DS3L if you don't need RAID and more SATA.
Otherwise DS3R. Cheap firewire card works fine for me.
System upgrade questions 
Linear Mode
