# Dual or Quad Core



## MRCL (Jun 4, 2008)

Hey there

I'm planning on upgrading some of my hardware, such as CPU, mobo, RAM and Graphics Card.
Now at first I was thinking about getting a Quad Core CPU, but a) my PSU (Thermaltake Toughpower 750) seems to support only Dual Core and b) I read that the balance between CPU and GPU is more important than pure speed.

Now should I settle for a Dual Core an get a kickass GPU, or should I in-the-future-looking-like get a Quad and a kickass GPU as well?

I'm kinda confused now since i read that article that Quad Core is not really the best choice for Gamer, thus I'm asking here if anyone has more experience in that... since I do not have all the money in the world^^


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## echo75 (Jun 4, 2008)

the statement that your 750watt thermaltake supports only dual core is bullshit (pardon my french) any PSU that is sufficient for any intel chip can carry a quad core.

Secondly, it is true that most Games do not utilize quad cores but if clocked the same the Dual core is not better than the Quad. Remember however that many Dual cores clock higher than Quads! So its a case of the higher the clock the better the game performance.

I will give you an example : my E6850 (dual core) clockes 3.8GHz stable hence better game performance than my quad Q6700 at 3.5Ghz stable. However many people cannot get their own E6850s above 3.4 Ghz stable, in those cases my Quad Q6700 beats em hands down at gaming.

Get it?


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## MRCL (Jun 4, 2008)

echo75 said:


> the statement that your 750watt thermaltake supports only dual core is bullshit (pardon my french) any PSU that is sufficient for any intel chip can carry a quad core.



Well ok, it was just indicated on the package and website, that it fits for Dual. And I saw on other PSUs that they are supporting Quad literally. So thats the point why I asked, but thanks, one thing clearer now.

With the CPUs: Oh I see now, makes sense. Thanks very much


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## echo75 (Jun 4, 2008)

you are welcome. 

(dont forget the "Thanks" button ")


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## MRCL (Jun 4, 2008)

What does that Thanks-Button do anyway^^ Do you get girls the more thanks you have or what 

(I clicked it nontheless^^)


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## echo75 (Jun 4, 2008)

yeah W1zzard sends a blond , sun tanned tall chick to your home each time you get thanked


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## p_o_s_pc (Jun 4, 2008)

echo75 said:


> yeah W1zzard sends a blond , sun tanned tall chick to your home each time you get thanked



well where are my 90 blond sun tanned tall chicks at?


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## erocker (Jun 4, 2008)

Funny.  I'm in the same position as you are, though I'm waiting for the new E8600's (dual-core) and the Q9650's (quad-core).  If you are a straight up gamer and have a limited budget, look no further than a dual-core.  Otherwise quad-core all the way.  And where are my 801 lovely ladies?  But lets keep things on topic...


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## newtekie1 (Jun 4, 2008)

I have the E6600 and the Q6600, the dual and quad versions of essentially the same chip.  In gaming, the dual core was more than enough, but how long until we see games that start using 4 cores?


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## MRCL (Jun 4, 2008)

newtekie1 said:


> but how long until we see games that start using 4 cores?



Thats what I'm sayin, I don't wanna throw away money just so that its out of date two months later... well upgrade is set for winter 08, and if my paycheck stays the same and my car stops breaking down, Quad won't be a problem. Guess its watching development from now on with eagle eyes to deciede...


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## farlex85 (Jun 4, 2008)

I think it will still be a pretty decent while until games are bottlenecked by two cores. Maybe they will utilize 4 cores before too long, but thats not gonna make a dual obsolete. Basically if you got the money, get the quad. 4 is better than 2. If you don't like the idea of spending that much more cause all you do is game, then the dual is the better choice.


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## calvary1980 (Jun 4, 2008)

only newer games will support multithreadding and it's not up to the developers that design the titles but the developers that design the engine. the most popular titles that ly in the future will use engines like Unreal Engine 3.0 (only supports dual and triple) however Unreal Engine 4.0 is rumored to support AMD 8 Core Processor. the Crytek Engine supports Quad Core but it is not optimized, the Moho Engine (Supreme Commander) supports Quad Core but realistically how many developers are going to license that engine? Valve's Source engine supports Quad Core but it's starting to show it's age.

think of Quad Core like a Harley, muscle. and think of Dual Core like a Sport Bike, speed.

I would stick with Dual Core. 

- Christine


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## MRCL (Jun 4, 2008)

Forgive me my n00bness, but if i buy now a dual core and new mobo... and it turns out a quad will de facto be better... can i simpy just put in (not literally of course^^) a new quad core cpu? does the mobo handle that or do I have to buy again a new one... like does a mobo support quad AND dual core? once again, Im relatively new to that kind of hardware things


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## farlex85 (Jun 4, 2008)

Yes it will support both, provided you get a recent decent intel board. A few lower end boards from a while back don't support quads, and some lower end ones from more recently don't support 45nm. You can get a decent mb for $70 that will support any core 2 though. p35 (if you have a single card), x38 (if you want crossfire), 750/780i (if you want sli) are the ones to go for.


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## MRCL (Jun 4, 2008)

farlex85 said:


> Yes it will support both, provided you get a recent decent intel board. A few lower end boards from a while back don't support quads, and some lower end ones from more recently don't support 45nm. You can get a decent mb for $70 that will support any core 2 though.



Thats good to hear, upgrading rocks! Well since my update is planned in winter, I think there will be plenty of mobos supporting both. Graphic depends on current technology then, but I think I'll settle with not-so-highest-end-cost-more-than-a-middle-class-car-cards^^


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## farlex85 (Jun 4, 2008)

MRCL said:


> Thats good to hear, upgrading rocks! Well since my update is planned in winter, I think there will be plenty of mobos supporting both.



Well you know, come winter-time intel's next generation nahalem procs will be out and about, which will run on completely different mb's. If your upgrading then, you may want to go quad anyway as that will be what the bulk of nahalem's are. And if you'll be looking to get a system you can build around in the future, that would likely be the route you'll want to take.


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## MRCL (Jun 4, 2008)

Oookay guess its not the time yet to think about such things... damn technology wanders too fast to new levels^^


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## farlex85 (Jun 4, 2008)

MRCL said:


> Oookay guess its not the time yet to think about such things... damn technology wanders too fast to new levels^^



Indeed it does. It's always good to brush up on as much tech know-how you can before the purchase though, so you won't get it and see you made a mistake afterwards. There's so much out there right now, good research get the best for your money.


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## Darren (Jun 4, 2008)

MRCL said:


> Hey there
> 
> I read that the balance between CPU and GPU is more important than pure speed.



Not strictly true these days games are more GPU dependent, I've got a processor which would be considered low end but I'm able to play all the latest games at high without lag/frame rate drops only because my graphics card is quiet powerful. To be honest your better off with a *lowend or midrange CPU and a highend* graphics card than a l*ow end graphics card and a high end CPU* as far as gaming. 

e.g. an Intel E4500 series or a AMD 5000 BE processor with a 8800GT/9600 GT graphics card opposed to a E8500 or Q6700 series processor with a 8600GT graphics card.





MRCL said:


> Hey there
> 
> my PSU (Thermaltake Toughpower 750) seems to support only Dual Core



Very untrue a 750 watt PSU is more than enough for powering up a quad core. 





MRCL said:


> Hey there
> 
> I'm kinda confused now since i read that article that Quad Core is not really the best choice for Gamer, thus I'm asking here if anyone has more experience in that... since I do not have all the money in the world^^



Depends on your budget in terms of performance in gaming it will depend on which dual core and which quad core model in which are comparing. If your budget extends to a quad core say a Q6600 or Q6700 you are definitely more future proofed than your dual core peers which means one less upgrade. 

In my opinion if you can't get a quad core focus on a budget Intel CPU such as the E4500 series and put the rest of your budget in a graphics card and extra ram. 



newtekie1 said:


> I have the E6600 and the Q6600, the dual and quad versions of essentially the same chip.  In gaming, the dual core was more than enough, but how long until we see games that start using 4 cores?



The next generation of games are certainly going to be multi threaded such as Alan Wake and Farcry 2 perhaps.



MRCL said:


> can i simpy just put in (not literally of course^^) a new quad core cpu? does the mobo handle that or do I have to buy again a new one... like does a mobo support quad AND dual core?



Most new motherboards are both dual core and quad core compliant, but it's best to double check the manufactures website. Tell us the model number of the motherboard and we can find out for you.





echo75 said:


> my E6850 (dual core) clockes 3.8GHz stable hence better game performance than my quad Q6700 at 3.5Ghz stable.
> Get it?



With a ASUS Blitz Extreme 775 motherboard you're almost guaranteed your Q6600 @ 3.6 Ghz which should be faster than a E6850 @ 3.8 Ghz - Suppose it depends how over clockable your motherboard/ram is as well


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## MRCL (Jun 4, 2008)

Darren said:


> Very untrue a 750 watt PSU is more than enough for powering up a quad core.



Didnt know that until now, as said I was kinda confused with the labels on the PSUs...



Darren said:


> Most new motherboards are both dual core and quad core compliant, but it's best to double check the manufactures website. Tell us the model number of the motherboard and we can find out for you.



Thanks, but as said (again^^^), I wont upgrade till a few months from now. Thus i don't have a particular Board in mind. And I always doublecheck all the things I buy^^ Should have done that before buying a preassembled discounter computer with few upgrade possibilities and an almost melting cpu (almost 85° or 190F)... well, but that was then^^


Anyway, many thanks again to all of you, that helped a lot!


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