processor upgrade worth it?

[delirium330]

building a machine with a dual core E5200 @ $73. is it worth the performance gains stepping up to a core 2 duo?

E8400 @ $164 ($91 increase)
E7400 @ $119 ($46 increase)

not a gaming rig, mostly general multitasking, some amateur video editing. am i going to notice a big difference say if i stepped up to the E7400? i wont be overclocking. otherwise will be running 4gb of DDR2 on 64 bit vista.

 

[Yami]

E7400 is definitely worth it, if it's not a gaming rig the E7400 will do you fine.

 

[Nukem]

Multi-Core Dual-Core Dual-Core
Name Pentium E5200 Core 2 Duo E7400
Operating Frequency 2.5GHz 2.8GHz
FSB 800MHz 1066MHz
L2 Cache 2MB 3MB


you'd get some better performance out of it, but will your mobo handle the FSB?

 

[Evolv]

I think the E7400 would be worth it. Here is a little test comparing a E7300, which is a little slower, to a E5200:
Two New Cut-Offs: Core 2 Duo E7300 and Pentium Dual-Core E5200 Processors (page 5) - X-bit labs

 

[delirium330]

great link, thanks. seems about 10-20 percent gains across the different benchmarks, probably worth the $46, but not the $91 to the E8400.

im buying the mobo with the processor new. any mobo suggestions that are a solid value, good brand, etc. that will match well with the E7400?

 

[Evolv]

Go for a P45 chipset. Brands like Biostar, Gigabyte and Asus are all good.

 

[Nukem]

I'm a Gigabyte or ASUS man myself... even MSI isn't bad

 

[delirium330]

cool, i was looking at a UD3P or UD3R for this build...

also, i read some review on the E7400 that the stock fan and heatsync are not that good but they work fine. should be okay for this build as i wont be overclocking, but someone mentioned it didn't come with any thermal grease? should i pick some up to go with the stock heatsync? or should it come with some stock grease? i think i read that Tuniq Tx-2 or something is the best out there?

 

[Evolv]

If you're not overclocking, then the stock heat sink should be fine. They come with thermal pads already applied. But I usually use another kind like TX-2, which is the best.

 

[delirium330]

yea i figure for $5 i might as well. i can probably find some guides out there or in the directions on how to apply it. is it okay to apply on top of whatever thermal pads are already on it? sorry im a noob.