Intel’s Core 2 Quad Q9300 better than Q6600?

If you are part of those that haven’t been keeping up with all the new processor launches the Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300 processor is one of the newest 45nm quad-core ‘Yorkfield’ processor. It is also the entry level 45nm quad-core processor, which means it has the lowest price tag.

The Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300 has some rather large shoes to fill, a replacement for their long-standing price to performance champ, the Core 2 Quad Q6600. The Q6600 was the first quad-core in Intel’s arsenal which was actually affordable, and even today, it remains one of the best values on the market, but it is extremely overclockable and provides a significant amount of computing power for rand.

Specifications:

sSpec Number

SLAWE

CPU Speed

2.50 GHz

PCG:

05A

Bus Speed

1333 MHz

Bus/Core Ratio

7.5

L2 Cache Size

6 MB

L2 Cache Speed

2.5 GHz

Package Type

LGA775

Manufacturing Technology

45 nm

Core Stepping

M1

CPUID String

10677h

Thermal Design Power

95W

Thermal Specification

71.4°C

VID Voltage Range

0.85V – 1.3625V

Box Order Code

BX80580Q9300
BXC80580Q9300

OEM Order Code

EU80580PJ0606M

The Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300 is an interesting beast, as it only has half the L2 cache per die of the more expensive quad core CPUs in Intel’s product line. For example, the Core 2 Quad Q9450, clocked at 2.66GHz, has 6MB of L2 cache per die, or 12MB total. Though the Q9450 is almost R1000 rands more expensive so the Q9300 is aimed at a more budget-minded audience who might desire quad-core performance.

The Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300 processor might be the entry-level 45nm quad-core processor, but the performance numbers sure doesn’t suggest that! Look at the following gaming test: Click Here

What is most impressive is that even when overclocked to 3.3 GHz, the power consumption of this processor is roughly at the same level as a Core 2 Quad Q6600 processor at a stock 2.4 GHz. Even with nearly a 1 GHz clock speed difference there is nearly no difference in power consumption, the use of more advanced manufacturing technology helped reduce power consumption and heat dissipation of the new processor, which is a testament to Intel’s Penryn microarchitecture and its advanced manufacturing prowess. Check out the Q9300 been overcloacked up to 3.5Ghz. Click Here

With more and more applications being coded with true multi-core support, along with the steep processing requirements of Windows Vista, there is no doubt that these chips will be popular like the Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300 to delivery a good balance between speed and performance.

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