Intel makes Quad Core Processors available to the masses. Now everyone can have a piece of Intel's Quad Core processing power in your rigs.  

INTRODUCTION

I'm not going to bore you with information about Intel. By now you should all know what Intel is all about. If you're a new comer or a beginner, you can visit Intel's homepage ... for more information.

Right, I'm going to dive straight in. We receieved a review sample of Intel's Quad Core processor the other day ... the Core 2 Quad Q6600. We wasted no time, and installed it straight away on our recently reviewed motherboard, the Asus P5K Deluxe. Along with the processor, we also used a pair of OCZ DDR2 PC2-8500 SLI-Ready 2Gb Kit. After some inital tests, I can tell you ... it was a joy to get the chance to play with this processor.

      

You're probably asking what are the REAL differences between the Core 2 Duo and the Core 2 Quad. Well, to put it simply, the Core 2 Quad is basically a Core 2 Duo with four physical processing cores. It uses the same socket 775 LGA design and still uses the same 65nm technology as the Core 2 Duo. The Core 2 Quad Q6600 processor which we will be looking at operates on a FSB of 1066MHz, has a multiplier of x9, a total of 8Mb L2 cache memory (2Mb x 4) and should be compatible with most socket 775 LGA motherboards. 

     

Remember our previous Intel review ... we looked at the E6700 and the X6800 processors. Both processors were based on the Conroe core and used Intel's 65nm technology. This time however, we got the Q6600. It's based on the newer Kentsfield core, which features 4 physical processing cores, and again it uses the same 65nm technology. It also features a larger L2 cache ... a massive 8Mb, 2Mb for each core.

Earlier this year, Intel released their Core 2 Extreme (Quad versions) ... the QX6700 and QX6800 processor. It was the first ever desktop processor to feature Quad Cores. Four physical processing cores in one single chip. With this release ... it basically wiped AMD out, and dominated the market for desktop processors. AMD, having recently acquired ATI, have been busy restructuring the newly formed company at the expense of developing new products ... this was a BIG mistake. Experts predict that it will be quite some time before AMD could recover ... oh dear. In the meantime, Intel is dominating the desktop processor market from every corner.

Looking at the roadmap for this Q2, 2007, you can see new Conroe processors with 1333FSB being released by Intel real soon. It will be interesting to see what the performance will be like. I can see the prices of Intel processors across the entire range to drop over the next few months. Especially when Intel have plans to introduce their new processors (codenamed Yorkfield) using 45nm technology by the end of this year.

For performance, I think the Q6600 would do very well ... and as for as overclocking, I'm expecting the Q6600 to be a winner. With a decent motherboard and good DDR2 ram for overclocking ... I'm hoping to achieve 3.6GHz or higher.

OK, Let's not waste any more time and take a closer look at the specifications, and see what the Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 is all about ...