Which Is best CPU for FSX??

[roofer]

Hi All what is the best Cpu for FSX

I am thinking of getting a "Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 G0 CPU 2X4Mb 2.40G"

or the

Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 CPU 2X2Mb; Dual Core EMT64T 3.0Ghz 1333Mhz "

which is best? Toms hardware shows Quat twice as fast as duo

Cheers

[Relax]

The best CPU for FSX is E6850 over clocked @ > 3.6 GHz. Higher clock is better than more cores.

[paulavny]

Hi, Can you please provide more info.I'm about to purchase a new CPU and was thinking about the Quad 6850,but now -not sure.
Paul

[Relax]

Hi Paul,

There is no Quad 6850, we are comparing E6850 with Q6600 for use in FSX, are we?

- INTEL Core 2 Duo "Conroe" E6850, 2 x 3.0 GHz, 4 MB L2 Cache, FSB 1333, 65 nm, 65 W, Intel 64 (64Bit)

- INTEL Core 2 Quad Q6600 "Kentsfield", 4 x 2.40 GHz, 4 x 2.4 GHz, 2 x 4 MB (8 MB) L2 Cache, FSB 1066, 65 nm, 105 W

FSX was developed for single core CPUs. Later the Service Package 1 was developed for content fixes and increased performance. Only then some limited multi core capabilities were implemented in FSX. Hence it is more useful to work with a higher clock speed than with more cores.

1. The E6850 with 2 cores running with stock speed of 2 x 3.0 GHz creates more FPS than the Q6600 with four cores with stock speed of 4 x 2.4 GHz.

2. The E6850 can be easily over clocked to a clock frequency of ~ 3.6 GHz (~ 20%). The Q6600 is more difficult to over clock by 20 %, because 4 cores create more heat.

3. The Q6600 dissipates about 40 Watt more power. This results in higher CPU temperatures, higher fan RPM for cooling and higher acoustical noise of the system. Also energy cost are higher.

These are the reasons why I recommend the E6850 for FSX.

[jdk2]

There is a quad 6850, affectionately know as the QX6850 Kentsfield. But at an $800USD premium over the Conroe version, it's hard to justify the price. It runs considerable hotter and until FSX utilizes all four cores in other than texture loading, it's really overkill.

[font size="2" color="2491FF"]Regards,
Jim Karn[/font]
[link:vatsim.net|http://vatsim.net/3_bf128.gif]

[JoeD]

I recently went from a C2D6600 to a Q6600 (GO stepping) as I had a buyer for my C2D6600. The heat heat difference between the two was only about 2-3c.
They both have a lot of overclocking headroom with the stock voltage before you have to raise it. Rasing the stock voltage is the only thing that will raise the heat a bit beyond that.

I'm currently runing it at about 2.7 gigs with default voltage. Most say it will do 3 gigs (or more) easily on stock voltage or with just a slight bump in the voltage.
I'm just wating for it to "burn in" a bit more before I ty it.

Anyway, I do have good cooling.

Which CPU is better for FSX?
The Q6600 runs FSX much smoother if only a few FPS higher.
Don't under estimate the value of faster/better texture loading,etc with FSX! :)
Also, the Q6600 is better for some other apps including upcoming DX10 games if that is important you.

Finally, don't forget that the FSX SP2/DX10 patch is commiming up soon and it's still anyones guess exactly how a Q core will benifit it.

Multi core is definately the future.

[paulavny]

Thanks all,
Currently I have the E6600 with excellent performance.If $ is not the main "issue"-what cpu will you choose to upgrade your system?
That is my question.
Regards
paul

[Relax]

As an intermediate step you can modestly over clock your E6600 to ~ 3.2 GHZ.

End of year you buy the new Penryn Dual Core top model "Wolfdale" E8500 with 3,16 GHz and 6 MB L2-Cache with a TDP of 65 Watt and you over clock it to 3.6 to 4.0 GHz.

At the same time the MOBO, RAM and graphic card should be of an adequate level. What components do you have here?

[JoeD]

>Thanks all,
> Currently I have the E6600 with excellent performance.If $ is
>not the main "issue"-what cpu will you choose to
>upgrade your system?
> That is my question.
> Regards
> paul

Money is not the main issue with me also. However, I do not like to throw money away either.

I upgraded to the Q6600 simply because I had a buyer for my C2D6600.
Also, I'm into "gaming" in addition to my passion for flight simming.
I'm not interested in the "penryn" right now as I'm wating for the chipsets/motherbords and CPU/steppings to mature before I upgrade to that.

If you are satified with the performance of your C2D6600 with FSX and it is your main app, IMO I see no reason to upgade at this point.
Wait and see what the new year brings. :)

[jdk2]

If money were no concern, you'd want the fastest processor you can get. The QX6850 fits the bill perfectly and will certainly future-proof your system.

That said, some very good advise has been given here. Save some money, overclock your processor moderately and wait for the next generation of processors and chipsets to see what they have to offer.

[font size="2" color="2491FF"]Regards,
Jim Karn[/font]
[link:vatsim.net|http://vatsim.net/3_bf128.gif]