Core 2 Quad up close

Intel’s latest addition to the Core family is the Core 2 Quad series. This series uses two Conroe cores on a single package, that’s a total of four cores.



The layout of the CPU under the Integrated Heat Spreader or IHS as it’s known as. The Core 2 Quad is designed around the same setup that Intel originally used to create the Pentium D CPU’s. There are two separate dies on a single package. The two separate cores are actually two Core 2 Duo E6700’s with 4MB cache each – which is two cores in Die 1 and the last two dies on Die 2. The separate dies communicate with each other through the Front Side Bus. This is where Intel’s weakness shows. Connecting the dies through the FSB requires all die to die communication to go back to the Northbridge and into the system memory.



The Core 2 Quad die itself under the X-Ray isn’t that different from the Core 2 Duo, as it simply uses two of them on the same package.



Our CPU from Intel looks like any other Socket 775 CPU on the market. Our one is an engineering sample so there are only the Intel Confidential markings on the top of the CPU, no model numbers or whatnot.



While Intel did provide us with the Bad Axe 2 motherboard that is supposed to support Overclocking but this time we decided to go a different route. Gigabyte’s P965-DQ6 board has proven to be an extreme overclocking powerhouse, and with the latest F6 BIOS added to the mix this board supports the Core 2 Quad without any problems. To this end we have elected to use this board and review the Bad Axe 2 later on.