Intels

[Brucifer]

Yep, I know, it's an AMD team, however...

Some questions. I see there is an E6700, and an E6750, both run at 2.66, fsb and all. the 6750 is about a hundred bux cheaper. So what's the diff in them?

Looking at the Q6600. Where is the overhead handled? Does one process cover the overhead for all, or is it shared? Going the hard core performance route, is one better with the Q6600 or running 2 E6600's?

For those of you running the quads, what motherboards you running, and what are you doing for memory?

[CarcinogenX]

I can answer the first question. The 6750 has a higher fsb - 1333 as opposed to 1066.

For the second question; I'd be safe and just get two Q6600's

[mitchellds]

I run p5b deluxe boards now with 1gb of ddr800 memory. These can easily be oc'd to 3ghz with a q6600.

For my next batch, I prob go with the new p5k board that will allow faster ddr1066 memory and 1333 fsb speeds, and the new q6600 cpu that uses the newer 1333 fsb and the cooler stepping 95 watt power rating.

Why even consider a dual when you can have a quad for a small bit more? These cpu's rock! Dont believe me? Then see what Poorboy is doing with em these days.

[Brucifer]

what o/s you running?

[vaughan]

Windows Vista Home Premium
Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 (1066fsb)
Sparkle 8800GTS 320MB GPU
2GB Geil DDR2 Ultra 800MHz dual channel
Seagate SATA2 500GB 16MB cache
Q6600

Windows XP Pro SP2
Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 (1066fsb)
Inno3D 8800GTS 640MB o/c GPU
2GB Geil DDR2 Ultra 800MHz dual channel
5x Seagate SATA2 320GB 16MB cache (2 in Vantec3 external boxes)
1x 74GB Western Digital Raptor (C: drive)
Q6600

Building this weekend:
o/s - not sure yet but probably Linux Xubuntu 64bit
Shuttle SD37P2v2
XpertVision 8500GT 256MB GPU
2GB Corsair DDR2 800MHz dual channel CM2X1024-6400C4 G 4-4-4-12
Seagate SATA2 320GB 16MB cache
Q6600

[AMDave]

Heads up on the 64-bit support.

Sun, still has not released the 64 bit JVM (Java Virtual Machine). It seems it is still slated for next year's release 1.7.0, with no guarantee on that.

Why? Well a lot of people have been asking Sun the same question. I have trawled their corporate blogs and no-one is admitting or committing to anything. There was even a register where people added their names and pleas to Sun to get on with it. So many were stunned when 1.6.0 came out and the 64-bit JVM was nowhere to be seen. The absurdity was that they were pushing 64-bit Solaris, and their own o/s has no 64-bit JVM. Of course that off-sided many Java developers according to what they have posted on related websites.

In the mean time we wait until 2008.

What this means is that your o/s may run in 64-bit mode but you have to run a 32-bit browser version to install and use the JVM, if you only want to use the latest Java version on your o/s install of choice.

Unless, in linux, you go back to Java 1.4.2 and use the Blackdown 64-bit version as I did. A compromise perhaps. But I was able to use the Blackdown 1.4.2 64-bit JVM in the browser and also have the 1.5.0 JDK installed for everything else. I later updated it to 1.6.0 JDK which also has no 64-bit JVM. Well that should get you around that issue and make browsing the 64-bit way possible.

I also managed to give the AMD/ATI 64-bit GPU driver a spin for my X1650pro. But I ran into troubles and rolled it back. That is where I left it, so I can't add anything useful except to say the installer still does not work properly for some distro's and it is high time they put the "o/s versions" into the gui and made the thing simpler to use. On the up-side....Hey there's an ATI 64-bit driver for linux!

I can't compare these issues to 64-bit Vista, because I no longer have it. I bought an OEM box from a reputable company. They failed to pass on any discs (not even any drivers). So when Vista crashed 30 minutes after being turned on, it was unrecoverable as it would not go forwards without the CDs as requested and decayed into a blue-screen (well black actually). The mobo is wierd, manufactured in china specially for that vendor. After translating some pages I located 32-bit win2K drivers and I was off and running again. Not a great rep for Vista or the vendor though. And so I admit, when in windows I'm in 32 bit and when I'm in linux it's glorious 64 and yes you can feel the difference.

It is really noticeable when in Vista 64 (on other peoples machines, I don't have one now remember heh) how many applications are actually 32 bit. But in Linux 64 the OS and all of the applications are 64-bit compiled. If you really want to make sure, try Gentoo 32 and then Gentoo 64 and you can recompile the entire system before your very own eyes and you'll go all gooey over the differences.

[PoorBoy]

and the new q6600 cpu that uses the newer 1333 fsb

I don't believe theres a Q6600 out yet that uses the 1333 FSB, the new Q6600 GO is still @ 1066 FSB, the Wattage has been dropped to 95w from 105w though & from what I'm reading they OC a lot better. I've read some hints that when the Bearlake Chips from Intel are released there may be a Q6600 with a 1333 fsb included in the lineup, but it's just rumors right now so I don't know.

In order to get the 1333 FSB right now I think you have to go with the QX6700-QX6800-QX6850 Extreme Line of CPU's, or the new Core 2 Duo E-Series E6550-E6750 & E-6850. Personally I feel that anybody building a PC Right now would be foolish to go with anything less than a Quad Core CPU especially if your going to be running the BOINC or DC Projects.

[Brucifer]

The reasoning behind the comment regarding two duo's came from concern about output in the event of hardware failure of the quad system. They put out a lot, and then bingo, they don't put out a lot if they break, sorta like the old adage about all the eggs in one basket. But as everyone pointed out, at the prices now, you can't beat the quad for bang per buck.

So you have to go to DDR3 to get the 1333 fsb? I haven't made the leap yet, but I'm very seriously taking an awfully hard look at a quad just to give one a try. My major limitations are electrical loading and heat. I'm still running four xp2400's. The plan is to remove a couple of them and replace with a quad to see how they go.

IRT AMDave's 64 bit comments. Quite the question mark about SUN and the lack of the 64 java as the average man in the street would assume that any company making 64 bit o/s's would have that functionality added to their own software, specially language compilers, etc. But then maybe they hired away the mental midget from Brand X that did away with the Alpha chip. And of course that just ripples on down the road into most of the software out there in the world being 32-bit at least of the x86 instruction set world. With all the whining the sun folks have been doing about M$ and their .NET stuff, and the monopolistic practices and all, it's quite ridiculous of sun not to have an extremely active 64-bit java world going on......... if for nothing else than to be able to extract every bit of horsepower out of the cpu's that they can in comparison to the windows stuff.

As for windows, I am now down to two dual boot systems, they run in mepis-64 99.95% of the time, and the .05% is XP/XP-64 for very rare work related stuff the wife can only do in windows. Vista and also the M$ decision to quit selling XP after December has totally turned me off of windows not that I ever really thought much of it. The other major reason too is that all M$ seems to be able to do is put out an o/s, then spend 3 years or so trying to fix stuff to get it to work like it should have before they released it, then bring out a new version of the o/s, basically starting over again and on and on. Nothing but an exercise in money extraction of the common folk of the world. If MS would put as much effort into trying to fix their windows stuff as they do about trying to stuff it to linux, then they just might be able to build a product that would give linux a run. But it really isn't about building a superior product, it's just about money extraction.

[CarcinogenX]

I don't know what happened.....I must have been really drunk, but according to an email I received from Newegg, I recently ordered a Q6600.
I've been building systems for a decade or so and being as I always root for the underdog, I’ve always gone with AMD from the very start and never owned an Intel in my life but I guess that is all about to change. I considered the 6400+ for 10 bucks less but from what I have read about the new G0 stepping of the Q6600, you can easily overclock it to 3.0 with no voltage increase and low temps under load due to the lowered voltage and 65nm process. I just cannot look the other way anymore. I’m still waiting for the Phenom on September 10 and plan on buying one of those too unless they fall short of their expectations. Either way I’ll still crunch for AMD.

The cheapest and only quad core that I know of with a 1333 fsb is the QX6850 that is around $1500.

[PoorBoy]

The cheapest and only quad core that I know of with a 1333 fsb is the QX6850 that is around $1500.

You may be right about that CarcinogenX, I said the QX6700 & QX6800 had a 1333 FSB because I was going by what this Site http://www.digitalstormonline.com/customintelultra.asp was showing them as under Processors but after checking around they only have a 1066 FSB yet. Why that site lists them as a 1333 FSB I don't know ...