Can anyone recomend a good cheap cpu heatsink and fan for overclocking a e8400 or q6600? There is just so much out there I dont know what to do.

When it comes to overclocking, the words "good" and "cheap" never go hand in hand. The best air cooler, IMO, is the Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme. Combine that with a decent 120mm fan and you should be set.

Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme

My Amiga 500 Rocks!!!

"When it comes to overclocking, the words "good" and "cheap" never go hand in hand"

True enough, but you sure don't have to spend $50+ for a HSF. The stock Intel unit is fine for moderate overclocking but if you feel you need something better, there are plenty of decent coolers on the market for less than $25. I will say that the Ultra-120 is one of the best if not THE best. This chart shows the testing results of numerous HSF's...notice where the Ultra-120 is on the list:

http://www.frostytech.com/articlevi...

Lot's of choices here:

http://www.svc.com/775-cpu-cooler.html

The ultra 120 looks nice but it also looks HUGE! I only have a mid tower I am not sure it will fit.

As jam indicated, the stock hsf can cope with moderate overclocks, exactly how much did you want to push it?

My Amiga 500 Rocks!!!

Hey check out this xigmatek cooler it rated #1 and is only $27 at newegg

http://www.frostytech.com/articlevi...

I am not that good at OCing so I really just want to get the most I can safely. This is a new system build and I still havent deceided if I want to go with the e8400 or the q6600. I had my mind set on the 8400 but they became scarce all of a sudden. I was hoping to push the 8400 to at least 3.5, if I go with the q6600 I would like to at least get to 3.0

Go with the Q6600 it's quad core. The E8400 is nice, but it's still dual core. I mean, for only 30 dollars more, the Q6600 gets you two extra cores. You can push the Q6600 to 3ghz without a problem.

It's well worth the extra 30 dollars.

If you can get your hands on the -- 1333MHz 45nm Wolfdale -- E8400 .... go for it. But do make sure your motherboard does support the CPU before you fork over money for it.

While you're at it, you might as well get yourself that aftermarket HSF, since you plan on aggressively pushing the CPU. The main kicker to all this: you get to pay a premium for this upgrade project due to a scarcity of the CPU & the additional cost of the aftermarket cooling package. To me, that's a big turnoff, but don't let that discourage you from buying the components or enjoying your overclock.

Good luck!

thats my problem see to responses one vote for the q6600 one for the e8400. I know the 6600 has 4 cores but they have to be used by the software and is there that much out that uses all 4 cores? How big of a differance is the 45nm over the 65nm?

http://www.tomshardware.com/2008/02...

http://www23.tomshardware.com/cpu_2...

You can probably understand why I'd go with the E8400 ;-)

But trhen you got programs like these that really make the 4 cores shine.

http://www23.tomshardware.com/cpu_2...

It all depends. If you're doing a lot of audio and a lot of video editing, the obv choice is a Quad Core. There aren't many mainstream programs that support Quad Core yet, but when they do there will be a nice advantage over having a Dual Core.

I'm getting a Quad Core soon based on the stuff I do mostly on my pc, which is what I explained above, but as for games and regular programs, Quad Core won't be in the mainstream picture for another couple years.

Yeah thanks very much guys, I do more gaming than anything so I think I am going to go with the wolfdale, and then upgrade to the quad when things go a little more mainstream.
Do you think I could OC an 8400 to 3.5 or 3.6 on stock cooling?

Depends on the chip itself, if you get one with a really low VID that doesn't require much in terms of a vcore increase, then you may get away with it. However, many of the aftermarket coolers require the mobo to be out in order to install them, so have a think about what you want in terms of cooling before you start building.

My Amiga 500 Rocks!!!