XP Gaming Build - Single or Dual Core CPU

[Richard Webster]

Hey folks I'm planning a "retro" XP build, and while I haven't settled on whether I want to use components of the era, or low end modern gear yet (if anyone has any thoughts feel free to suggest), I can't decide which type of CPU to go for.

 

Most XP era games, and even some later ones, really only need a fast single core CPU. However would I be shooting myself in the foot if I don't get a strong dual core one instead? I don't really plan on playing Crysis on this thing, probably only the following kind of titles:

 

Strategy (AoE, Empire Earth, Civ)

RPGs (Oblivion, KotoR)

Far Cry / Doom 3 / Half Life 1 & 2

[Spotty]

Quad core. Old quad core Xeons and Q6600s are $10 on eBay. Grab whatever is compatible with the motherboard you're planning on using.

[191x7]

Consider an older quad core, like a core 2 quad or a phenom. Some of the games you mentioned are from the dual core era (oblivion).

[Pasi123]

I would recommend a Core2 Duo because it has better single-core speed than most single-core CPU's. Core2 Duo E8400 3.0GHz would be pretty easy to find and it was one of the best CPU's for gaming in 2008.

 

For graphics card I'd recommend something from around the same time. Oblivion is pretty heavy for both CPU and GPU.

[NelizMastr]

The Core 2 Duo E8400, 8500 and 8600 are the kings of the XP era. High IPC, high clock speeds. The C2Q Q6600 is slower in games.

[NelizMastr]

2 minutes ago, Pasi123 said:

For graphics card I'd recommend something from around the same time. Oblivion is pretty heavy for both CPU and GPU.

I'd wager the HD4870, HD4890 and GTX275/280 are probably the best options. They're cheap too.

[Richard Webster]

7 minutes ago, NelizMastr said:

The Core 2 Duo E8400, 8500 and 8600 are the kings of the XP era. High IPC, high clock speeds. The C2Q Q6600 is slower in games.

I'm kind of interested in the E8600 now. Benchmarks really well. I can get one off eBay now for less than £10 + delivery. Should I jump in?

[NelizMastr]

2 minutes ago, Richard Webster said:

I'm kind of interested in the E8600 now. Benchmarks really well. I can get one off eBay now for less than £10 + delivery. Should I jump in?

Yup. They also OC rather well   4GHz is ezpz

[Richard Webster]

@campy great post mate, I was thinking an ATI card of the era...

 

Edit - 4870 is too powerful for what I want. I've been cheeky on the CPU, but want to get a card from 2005/2006 era I think.

Edited January 24, 2019 by Richard Webster

[Trevor87]

Normally I find with older Games 98 up I can run on windows 10 I use a no CD patch and patching it to the latest version. It the 32 bit games that I have problem with witch is not much games.

I was going to do a guide on how to do it with the files you need but of course you will need the original game. But with most site you get shot down before you even start   

[Guest]

21 minutes ago, Trevor87 said:

Normally I find with older Games 98 up I can run on windows 10 I use a no CD patch and patching it to the latest version. It the 32 bit games that I have problem with witch is not much games.

I was going to do a guide on how to do it with the files you need but of course you will need the original game. But with most site you get shot down before you even start   

xp machining in this time is just sort of ludicriss hobby … though i shouldn't talk much because atm i'm playing star general, a game from '96.. with good old dosbox, this is ofcourse on my supersleak 6 core 

[Richard Webster]

Update: regarding the GPU I've taken the plunge and gone for a Radeon X1900 XTX 512 Mb. Late gen XP card.

[ApolloX75]

Athlon XPs paired with an FX series or X series card is where it's at for peak XP era hardware. I love Core2s but I consider them too new for an XP build. My setup runs Oblivion flawlessly.

[Richard Webster]

10 minutes ago, ApolloX75 said:

Athlon XPs paired with an FX series or X series card is where it's at for peak XP era hardware. I love Core2s but I consider them too new for an XP build. My setup runs Oblivion flawlessly.

Hmm... maybe I shouldn't have cheated and instead gone for an AMD Athlon 64 FX-60 or something.

[Pasi123]

15 minutes ago, ApolloX75 said:

Athlon XPs paired with an FX series or X series card is where it's at for peak XP era hardware. I love Core2s but I consider them too new for an XP build. My setup runs Oblivion flawlessly.

How about first Core2 Duo's (Conroe) that were released before Vista? Many Core2 Duo computers came with Windows XP installed from the factory and many people used WinXP on custom built Core2 Duo PC's back in the day.

 

My XP gaming systems:

Spoiler

 

AMD Athlon XP 2400+, MSI KT4V, 1.5GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce4 MX440, 40gb HDD

 

Intel Pentium 4 HT 3.0GHz, Gigabyte mobo, 2GB RAM, ATI Radeon 9800 Pro, 2x 40GB HDD's

 

Intel Core2 Duo E6300 @ 2.33GHz, Asus P5B, 2GB RAM, NVIDIA Quadro FX 380 (I'm planning to upgrade it to a GeForce 8800 series card)

 

 

[Richard Webster]

Ok thinking about it I made the right call with the C2D E8600. I was XP right up to 7, so for my build its about right. Plus I still have a bunch of DDR2 RAM lying around.