Old PC CPU Upgrade

[MrPotatoHead]

I wouldnt spend anything on it.

Depends how long he is going to hang on to it 8gb is pretty much a minimum for win 10 these days as is a ssd, both of which are upgrades to older system that yield noticeable results the cpu and gpu not so much in this case but each to his own

 

[lexluthermiester]

I Looked at a q9650 and couldn't justify the £35 cost for the age of the platform, I got a q9450 for £12 which was a much easier pill to swallow and not too far off the performance of a q9650

That's actually a fair point. A Q9550 would be a good middle-ground and would still provide a solid boost in performance over the Q6600.

C2D/Q has ran its course.

While that's not untrue, the OP came here looking for help upgrading. So let's focus on helping them get the most out of their existing system.

 

[Valantar]

I was quite (surprisingly?) happy with my Q9450 until my Ryzen upgrade in 2017, I can't think the OP wouldn't be the same today seeing how their expectations/wants/needs seem to be quite a lot lower. As such I'd go for something like a 9450 if it's as cheap as was mentioned above - mine clocked to 3.52GHz with a Hyper 212 Evo and didn't even really run all that hot. That was on an X48 board, but even a lower end board should do 3.3 or so with a decent chip.

That being said, an SSD is a must, and will deliver a far bigger improvement in perceived performance than any LGA775 CPU upgrade.

 

[agent_x007]

You would need to modify your motherboard, your BIOS, and make a few pin modifications. You can’t just plug them in. It’s not that simple. Save your money!

If that picture in link is correct, he actually only has to update BIOS with Xeon uCode.
CPU got cut (to fit into non-moded LGA 775 boards), and has LGA 771 adapter pre applied.

You should see a difference between 2x6MB 45nm and 2x4MB 65nm.
8GB RAM and SSD are pretty much a must for ANY modern-ish use cases.
I would hunt for Xeon 12MB with 8 or higher multiplier (Q9450+), the higher max. multi = the better.

You need more RAM and SSD before CPU upgrade.

 

[Valantar]

If that picture in link is correct, he actually only has to update BIOS with Xeon uCode.
CPU got cut (to fit into non-moded LGA 775 boards), and has LGA 771 adapter pre applied.

You should see a difference between 2x6MB 45nm and 2x4MB 65nm.
8GB RAM and SSD are pretty much a must for ANY modern-ish use cases.
I would hunt for Xeon 12MB with 8 or higher multiplier (Q9450+), the higher max. multi = the better.

You need more RAM and SSD before CPU upgrade.

Agreed on the last point, I would never ever have been able to live with my Q9450 as long as I did without an SSD and 8GB of RAM. One of the things that triggered the upgrade was actually one of my DIMMs dying, leaving me with only 6GB. That was still workable, but noticeably low when I pushed it. Some 2GB sticks of DDR2 shouldn't cost too much on ebay. And any SATA SSD will work wonderfully, and can carry over into a new PC later or be used as a fast external drive if/when this PC gets scrapped - so no need to skimp on the capacity. 480/500GB is cheap these days.

 

[Chrispy_]

Ebay!

£12 - Used Q9450 + free shipping
£8 - 2x2GB Samsung DDR2 800 (reliable brand pulled from a working PC) + free shipping
£13 - 120GB Kingston SATA SSD + £1.90 shipping

My HTPC used to be a Q9550 with a Radeon HD7850 and it was happy playing AAA titles from 2013/2014. It seems like little has changed since then:
Core 2 tested in 2019 - Rainbox Six Siege, GTA V, CS:GO, PUBG

Yeah, Core2 is dated and old. But it's not worthless. Spending under £35 to make it nicer to use for a couple more years is well worth the effort, IMO - especially if there's not the budget to replace it altogether. CPU and RAM are 90-second upgrades. Cloning or reinstalling Windows to the SSD is a bit more effort but time well spent.

If it were me I'd do a clean Win10 1903 install on the SSD and use the W7 key to activate it. I believe that's still a thing that works - maybe someone can correct me if that's no longer the case!

 

[xu^]

Thanks for the links Chrispy_ , definitely something to think about, what are the Q9450s like for OC ?

 

[Chrispy_]

Thanks for the links zig, definitely something to think about, what are the Q9450s like for OC ?

I never OC'd my Yorkfield. I think you're likely to hit 3.2GHz though (it's an 8x multiplier, so 8x 400FSB on 400MHz RAM at 1:1 and you're set)

With a 750Ti holding everything back, I'm fairly sure you're going to be GPU-bottlenecked in any game demanding enough to push the CPU though. Most of the benefits will be from the 12MB of L2 cache and the 333+ FSB. Certainly if you're running at 266 right now a 400MHz FSB would make a non-trivial difference.

 

[Valantar]

Thanks for the links Chrispy_ , definitely something to think about, what are the Q9450s like for OC ?

As I said above I hit 3.52GHz on my Q9450 relatively easily, 24/7 stable for several years on my X48 Rampage Formula with a Hyper 212 Evo cooler. I think that was a 440MHz FSB speed. Can't remember where, but I got my voltages and other info from an online overclocking guide specific to that chip.

 

[Tatty_Two]

I went from a Q6600 (albeit with an 8200 briefly in between) to a Q9650 and they were leaps apart in performance, 25% at stock, when you factor in the improved overclocking headroom and 45nm v 65nm (I got mine past 4.5gig with some help in these forums) then potentially you could be talking 35% improvement but to do that you needed the right board and ram but on most half decent boards 4gig plus should be doable.... on air by the way, if the OP is dead set against any other upgrades I would go for it if really £35-45 quid.

Very old thread of mine (ohhh the nostalgia!)...……… post 109

Q9650 Overclocking And Feedback Thread

DRAM CLK Skew on Channel A1: Auto DRAM CLK Skew on Channel A2: Auto DRAM CLK Skew on Channel B1: Auto DRAM CLK Skew on Channel B2: Auto AI Transaction Booster: AUTO CPU GTL Voltage Reference (0/2): Auto CPU GTL Voltage Reference (1/3): Auto NB GTL Voltage: Auto SB Voltage: auto...

www.techpowerup.com

But is that level of improvement significant in 2019? No as some have already said.

 

[XL-R8R]

I wouldnt mess with S775 stuff in this day and age - for £50 you could snag something like this -> https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CPU-Moth...-4Gb-DDR3-Gigabyte-GA-H61M-USB3V/123896276148

Pop in another 4GB stick as required for a couple of £ more (as its dual slot/one stick populated) and the i3 will handly beat a Q9650 @ 3.6GHz.



Edit for another combo: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Asus-A88...903420?hash=item2ad35fe47c:g:4MUAAOSwr-ZdTvRK

 

[lexluthermiester]

what are the Q9450s like for OC ?

They OC as well as the Q9650, but on a 400mhz FSB they only hit 3200mhz because of the multiplier. You can push the FSB higher but then you'll be overclocking the ram and other components.

 

[Ripcord]

personally i would go the xeon route. i upgraded a system from a c2d earlier this yea and it was able to play far cry 5 with no problems, it had a p5qle motherboard which is worse than yours with the same p35 chipset. adding the xeon cpu codes to the bios is straightforward as this was a thing back in the day and someone made an app that dose it all for you.

 

[Hyderz]

whats the pc used for?
ryzen 3 1200 + a320m motherboard and 8gb ddr4 combo = Should be around $100 from ali express.
but the entire system is quite old, not even sure if psu can handle the new parts tbh

 

[lexluthermiester]

not even sure if psu can handle the new parts tbh

Rubbish. He would be going from a Q6600, a 105W TDP part, to a Q9450/Q9550/Q9650 which are all 95W parts. Unless the OP buys a super high wattage GPU, there will be very little extra strain on the PSU. Please do your research before you make comments like that.

Product Specifications

quick reference guide including specifications, features, pricing, compatibility, design documentation, ordering codes, spec codes and more.

ark.intel.com

Product Specifications

quick reference guide including specifications, features, pricing, compatibility, design documentation, ordering codes, spec codes and more.

ark.intel.com

Product Specifications

quick reference guide including specifications, features, pricing, compatibility, design documentation, ordering codes, spec codes and more.

ark.intel.com

Product Specifications

quick reference guide including specifications, features, pricing, compatibility, design documentation, ordering codes, spec codes and more.

ark.intel.com

People, the OP can do without all the disinformation.

 

[Tatty_Two]

My only comment about considering the Q9550 or Q9450 is (if my memory serves me correctly), unlike the Q9650 that has a 9x multiplier, the 9550 has 8.5 and the 9450 has an 8 multiplier, in order to get high overclocks (4gig to 4.5)you need a really good board capable of stabily delivering FSB speed overclocks in the region 0f 460 - 500 and there were even back then not all that many around that were reliable...….. 4gig+ should be doable on a Q9650 on most half decent boards but to get that with a 9450 with the 8 multi it's likely a very top end board would be required and whilst the OP certainly has a good one there is a little more risk involved.

 

[xu^]

a little update - Ordered and received the 4gb ram sticks Chrispy linked to above and all working fine with 8gb, altho I think overclocking may prove a little harder lol, but for £7.90 for another 4gb ram, I thought why not

Also ordered and hopefully receiving a Q9450 tested/working tomorrow

The settings I had for oc the cuurrentQ6600 are not working, no doubt due to the extra ram sticks, but hopefully I can get something out of it when the Q9450 arrives.

I know many of you think this is the wrong route to take, but for less than £20 I've got a small upgrade in ram+cpu which is all I wanted, not interested in having the fastest PC anymore and as long as it does what I want it to do, I'm happy. I may or may not go for a slightly better gfx card such as a gtx960/970 but again depends on the price ,thanks for all your help and suggestions , i may well be asking for some OC help with 4 sticks of ram, had a quick google and seemed its always been a bit of a tricky thing.

 

[Tatty_Two]

a little update - Ordered and received the 4gb ram sticks Chrispy linked to above and all working fine with 8gb, altho I think overclocking may prove a little harder lol, but for £7.90 for another 4gb ram, I thought why not

Also ordered and hopefully receiving a Q9450 tested/working tomorrow

The settings I had for oc the cuurrentQ6600 are not working, no doubt due to the extra ram sticks, but hopefully I can get something out of it when the Q9450 arrives.

I know many of you think this is the wrong route to take, but for less than £20 I've got a small upgrade in ram+cpu which is all I wanted, not interested in having the fastest PC anymore and as long as it does what I want it to do, I'm happy. I may or may not go for a slightly better gfx card such as a gtx960/970 but again depends on the price ,thanks for all your help and suggestions , i may well be asking for some OC help with 4 sticks of ram, had a quick google and seemed its always been a bit of a tricky thing.

That thread I linked from way back in my post #35 has loads of info around overclocking both CPU and RAM, although the thread is for the 9650, apart from your lower multi much of it will still be relevant, I think your board is in there too.

 

[FreedomEclipse]

I had an Asus P5Q Pro and a Q9550@3.9Ghz for a long time so if you have any questions - feel free to ask.

 

[Mussels]

for £20 its not so bad, its when you were spending £50+ that it was a bad investment

 

[Hyderz]

Rubbish. He would be going from a Q6600, a 105W TDP part, to a Q9450/Q9550/Q9650 which are all 95W parts. Unless the OP buys a super high wattage GPU, there will be very little extra strain on the PSU. Please do your research before you make comments like that.

Product Specifications

quick reference guide including specifications, features, pricing, compatibility, design documentation, ordering codes, spec codes and more.

ark.intel.com

Product Specifications

quick reference guide including specifications, features, pricing, compatibility, design documentation, ordering codes, spec codes and more.

ark.intel.com

Product Specifications

quick reference guide including specifications, features, pricing, compatibility, design documentation, ordering codes, spec codes and more.

ark.intel.com

Product Specifications

quick reference guide including specifications, features, pricing, compatibility, design documentation, ordering codes, spec codes and more.

ark.intel.com

People, the OP can do without all the disinformation.

so how old is the psu?

 

[johnny-r]

I had a Asus P5k-pl se motherboard with a Q9650 CPU, there were great back in 2011/12, now an entry level 6/7th gen CPU like the Pentium G4560 or the new G5400 will outperform that CPU in many ways, just look at the average cpu mark scores:

PassMark - Intel Pentium Gold G5400 @ 3.70GHz - Price performance comparison

it is long outdated now, go for new if you can afford otherwise look for a good 3rd of 4th generation Core i5 / i7, plenty bargains out there, example i5-4670 or i7-4770 or the K version. also lots of 6th gens going up for sale, lots of folks wants to upgrade to AMD Ryzen

good luck !

 

[Valantar]

a little update - Ordered and received the 4gb ram sticks Chrispy linked to above and all working fine with 8gb, altho I think overclocking may prove a little harder lol, but for £7.90 for another 4gb ram, I thought why not

Also ordered and hopefully receiving a Q9450 tested/working tomorrow

The settings I had for oc the cuurrentQ6600 are not working, no doubt due to the extra ram sticks, but hopefully I can get something out of it when the Q9450 arrives.

I know many of you think this is the wrong route to take, but for less than £20 I've got a small upgrade in ram+cpu which is all I wanted, not interested in having the fastest PC anymore and as long as it does what I want it to do, I'm happy. I may or may not go for a slightly better gfx card such as a gtx960/970 but again depends on the price ,thanks for all your help and suggestions , i may well be asking for some OC help with 4 sticks of ram, had a quick google and seemed its always been a bit of a tricky thing.

Sounds like a good deal I f you go looking for a new GPU, be wary of fake ones. There's an abundance of old Nvidia GPUs out there that have been modified/hacked to identify as more modern ones, usually selling for "amazing prices" on eBay and the like. From what I've seen they're mostly GTS 450s and similar, but are sold as GTX 960s, 1050s, or similar. If a GPU deal is too good to be true, it likely is.

 

[xu^]

yes had come across these already, eg a gtx 1050 for £60 ,i thought it sounded a bit iffy lol,did a little checking and found much the same, lots of fakes with modified bios, etc , might not even bother yet ,will see how it goes when i get the CPU up and running.
Did a ram test for 12 hours and no problems so is all good there. It's been 10 years since i did anything like this apart from replacing my original PSU and original gfx card (GTX 260) , Finding it quite fun again, unfortunately funds don't allow for anything more than a couple of very minor upgrades.

 

[Chrispy_]

The market for used graphics card isn't great. You'd probably need to spend at least £75 for an ex mining card (RX470 or RX570 4GB) with a few caveats.

1) You need to be careful when buying a used mining card. If it's been BIOS-flashed it could be difficult to get working properly and may have been abused.
2) Your motherboard's most up-to-date BIOS update is from 2008. I would not be surprised if the BIOS that old fails to recognise and boot with a more recent graphics card.
3) How confident are you in your PSU? A 750Ti is a very efficient 60W graphics card. If you dump a 165W GTX 970 or 150W RX570 in there, you will nearly double the PSU load.