Test: Core 2 Duo duel - E6300 vs. E6600 vs. X6800

Konklusion

Vi begynder med det mindst interessante i testen, nemlig Core 2 Extreme X6800. Det er helt sikkert en god processor, men prisen på over 7000 kroner giver ingen mening. Havde den været den eneste Core-processor, man kunne få, ville det være en helt anden sag - så ville den være i en klasse for sig selv, og så kunne prisen forsvares, hvis man absolut ville have det bedste af det bedste. Men den er ikke alene. Til en tredjedel af prisen kan man få en E6600, hvis eneste forskel er en lidt lavere multiplier.

Core 2 Duo E6300 er den lille i familien, med forholdsvis lav clockfrekvens og kun 2 MB cache. Men selv ved standard hastighed er den omtrent lige så hurtig som Intel's tidligere topmodel, Pentium D 965 Extreme Edition (og med under det halve i strømforbrug). Og så kan den uden de store problemer overclockes sygt meget - det er bundkortene, der indtil videre sætter grænsen for dens hastighed.
Desuden er det ikke bare tal, når man overclocker den - ydelsen følger virkelig med, når clockfrekvensen stiger. Og så koster den under 1300 kroner, hvilket nok gør den til det bedste bud på bang-for-the-buck, vi har set i flere år!

Når nu E6300 er så god til prisen, kan det umiddelbart være svært at se, hvad man skal med de andre modeller - men helt så enkelt er det nu ikke. Core 2 Duo E6600 koster omkring 2300, altså en tusse mere end E6300 - men den er nu ikke noget dårligt køb alligevel. For det første har den dobbelt så meget cache, hvilket gør den hurtigere end E6300 ved samme hastighed. Den ekstra cache har en klar fordel i nogle programmer, og så gør mængden af cache også noget for, hvor hurtigt en processor reagerer.
For det andet er problemet med E6300, at man skal have et godt bundkort og gode RAM for at overclocke E6300 til samme hastighed som E6600. E6600 er som standard en del hurtigere end E6300, og den stiller dermed ikke de samme krav til bundkortet.

Men det korte af det lange er altså, at E6300 er det bedste køb - det er uden tvivl her, man får mest ydelse for pengene. Selv hvis man ikke overclocker, er ydelsen rigtig god. Og hvis man så vil have noget ekstra, og ikke vil gå på kompromis med noget som helst, så er det E6600, man skal købe. Men man skal tænke sig om, før man bruger de 1000 kroner ekstra, for i de fleste tilfælde vil E6300 være lige så god. E6600 er luksus på både godt og ondt.

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UK Conclusion

We'll start with the least interesting thing in the test, namely the Core 2 Extreme X6800. It is definitely a good processor, but the price of over 7000 Danish kroner doesn't make sense. If this was the only Core processor you could get, it would be another matter - then it would be in a league of its own, and then the price would be somewhat fair, if you wanted the best of the best. But it isn't alone. For a third of the price you can buy an E6600, whose only difference is a slightly lower multiplier.

Core 2 Duo E6300 is the little one in the family, with a fairly low frequency and only 2 MB of cache. But even at standard speed, its performance is equal to Intel's former top model, the Pentium D 965 Extreme Edition (and at less than half the power usage). And it can overclock ridiculously high with very little trouble - so far, the motherboards are holding it back.
Besides, it isn't just numbers when you overclock it - its performance really keeps up, when the frequency rises. And it costs less than 1300 Danish kroner, which probably makes it the best bang-for-the-buck we have seen in years!

When the E6300 is such a bargain, it can be difficult to see the relevance of the other models - but it's not quite that simple. Core 2 Duo E6600 costs around 2300 Danish kroner, which is 1000 more than E6300 - but that doesn't exactly make it a bad deal. First, it has twice the cache, which make it faster than E6300 in some programs. Furthermore, the amount of cache does something for the responsiveness of a processor.
Second, the trouble with the E6300 is that it requires a good motherboard and good RAM to overclock it to the same speed as an E6600. The E6600 is quite a bit faster than E6300 at standard speed, and thus it doesn't make the same demands for the motherboard.

But all in all, the E6300 is the best bargain - without a doubt, this gives you the most performance for your money. Even if you don't overclock, its performance is excellent. If you want something extra, and you don't want to compromise in any way, the E6600 is the way to go. But you better think carefully before spending the extra grand on an E6600, because in most cases, the E6300 will do just as well. E6600 is a luxury product, for better and for worse.