Intel’s Core 2™ Extreme QX6700: Quad Core Performance Preview Page 2

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Test Systems Setup

The following processors were used for this article’s testing:

• Core 2 Extreme QX6700 (2.66 GHz)
• Core 2 Extreme X6800 (2.93 GHz)
• Core 2 Duo E6700 (2.67 GHz)

In addition, all three processors shared the following system components:

• Intel 975XBX2 motherboard
• 2 GB (2 x 1 GB) of Corsair DDR2/800 (4-4-4-15) memory
• ATI Radeon X1950 XTX (Catalyst 6.9)
• Western Digital Raptor 150GB hard drive
• Plextor PX-712S DVD drive
• Creative SoundBlaster X-Fi sound card
• Enermax 550 Watt ATX power supply unit

The test system was built using the latest chipset and add-in component drivers. Anti-aliasing, anisotropic filtering, and vsync were forced off in the graphics control panel during all game testing; moreover, Catalyst A.I. was left at its driver default setting of Standard. Windows XP Professional (SP2) was installed and configured to have automatic updates, system restore, and all unnecessary startup services disabled. And Fraps 2.7.4 was used to record performance scores for applications that do not produce their own results. Testing was conducted using the following software:

• Windows Media Encoder 9.0
• PCMark05 (v1.1.0)
• 3DMark06 (v1.0.2)
• Falcon 4.0: Allied Force (v1.0.7)
• Microsoft Flight Simulator X
• rFactor (v1150)
• A Company of Heroes (v1.2)
• Call of Duty 2 (v1.3)

SimHQ decided not to include any AMD Athlon 64 parts in our testing for this article so that we could focus more on whether or not Intel’s quad core is something our readers should give serious consideration to for purchasing compared to their Core 2 lineup. Moreover, we established the performance disparity between Intel’s Core 2 and AMD’s current A64 parts in our initial look at Core 2 Duo earlier this year, so we feel there’s no real need to belabor the point. If, however, we receive a 4×4 review kit from AMD, rest assured that both quad-core systems will be pitted directly against one another; yet for now, let’s look to see how the QX6700 fares against both the similarly clocked E6700 and the faster X6800.

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Related posts:

Core™ 2 the Extreme: Intel Retakes the Field Page 2 Intel’s Core™ 2 Extreme QX9770 Performance Preview Intel’s Core™ 2 Extreme QX9770 Performance Preview Page 6 Intel’s Core 2™ Extreme QX6700: Quad Core Performance Preview Intel’s Core 2™ Extreme QX6700: Quad Core Performance Preview Page 3 Intel’s Core 2™ Extreme QX6700: Quad Core Performance Preview Page 4 Intel’s Core 2™ Extreme QX6700: Quad Core Performance Preview Page 5 Intel’s Core 2™ Extreme QX6700: Quad Core Performance Preview Page 6