Conclusion

The Yorkfield "core" packs a huge performance punch, but overclocking is both a strength and a weakness. The promise of 4.0 GHz air-cooled speeds did not translate to stellar gains with the addition of liquid cooling; we didn’t get anywhere near our planned 5.0 GHz final speed.

The Core 2 Extreme QX9770 let us sample the capabilities of near-term solutions, but we’re holding out hopes for a stepping revision that scales even better. Big spenders who’d like to repeat our efforts should find similar capabilities in the currently-available QX9650, while those who were waiting for Intel’s latest FSB-1600 must continue to wait a few weeks more.

Predictions about the need for an X48 chipset motherboard appear a little overstated, as several X38 and even a few P35 boards are able to configure FSB-1600 following a simple BIOS update. Some of us experienced a bit of déjà vu concerning the X38 versus X48 debate, as we remember that the same issue occurred in the FSB-800 supporting i850, and the FSB-1066 supporting i850E. In both situations, the "technology" that separates two versions of the same product is validation, and once again some older boards could have other limitations that prevent the new bus speed from working. Several manufacturers already claim FSB-1600 support for their X38 products, and those companies must stand behind such claims.

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