Intel Core 2 Duo X6800 and E6700 Review

This is a basic preview of this product intended for readers who just want a quick look at the new product. If you are interested in the full review, with all the technical data and benchmarks that you are used to seeing on PC Perspective, please click on this link to get to that article.

The wait is nearly over. If you are reading this, then the NDA on the Conroe processor (known throughout the world now as the Intel Core 2 Duo) has lifted and the world is on fire with performance numbers and evaluations. Even though we have had Conroe here at PC Perspective for some time, and we have had the chance to play with it on NIVIDIA Nforce boards, 975X boards and 965 boards, I am still excited to present the information here in this review today.

If you would like even more details, diagrams and information on the Core Architecture technology, you should definitely check out my article from IDF that covered this in much greater detail than we have here.

Intel's Core 2 Duo processor use the same LGA775 packaging that the previous Pentium D and Pentium XE processors used and should be familiar to most of our readers. In fact, the motherboard we used for our tests was the Intel 975XBX motherboard provided by Intel.

Intel Core 2 Duo X6800 on the left; Intel Core 2 Duo E6700 on the right

Unfortunately, this does not mean that your current, or currently available LGA775 motherboard, is capable of running a Conroe processor. Due to a couple of changes in voltage regulation to the Core 2 Duo core, nearly all the motherboards that have already been sold will NOT support these processors. That means you'll need to look at a new motherboard if you want Intel's Core 2 Duo in your system. The Intel 975XBX motherboard we tested with was a new revision that had the appropriate fixes made.

The pricing of the E6700 and E6600 parts are what most impresses me -- at less than half of the cost of the X6800, these CPUs are going to be the sweet spot for enthusiasts and overclockers; I'd bet money on that. We'll touch more on it after we look at the performance numbers.

Performance on the X6800 and E6700 Core 2 Duo products was stellar. In nearly every single benchmark we saw here in our review at PC Perspective, both the X6800 and the E6700 came out ahead of the Athlon FX-62 processor. While the $999 X6800 CPU beating the $1000 FX-62 CPU isn't a big story on its own, the $530 E6700 processor beating it is. The X2 4800+ CPU obviously couldn't keep up with the E6700 either, and that is the most price competitive part AMD has for it. AMD is going to be in more than a bit of trouble come the end of July if they don't have an answer to Intel's Core 2 Duo product line. The E6700 sample we tested with here was able to trounce the FX-62 in many cases, and came out the leader in nearly every test we threw at it.

What about pricing? Well, the E6700 we tested here, that bests the FX-62 that is has a predicted price of $530; nearly half the price!! If Intel sticks with that price, and AMD doesn't drastically lower theirs, the Core 2 Duo line up is going to tear AMD apart. The Core 2 Duo X6800 part is set to be priced at $999 and isn't a bargain by any stretch; though compared to the FX-62 CPU from AMD, its obvious the X6800 holds the edge you are willing to spend $1K for the top processor.