4Ghz Core 2 Duo vs M.A.M.E. 0.120 (benchmark results)

[holtzboy]

Sweet thanks for the tip it worked great. It's a whole new game playing it with the sounds right on cue. The cpu really struggles on track 3 because there's a lot more detail than track 1. If Mame came with netplay I wonder if Rush the Rock could see those settings and somehow work, I doubt it but I am just throwing out ideas.

[Havok]

Anyone with a high end system tried Firefox yet? It works on my AMD Sempron, but stutters a bit.

(Might be time to finally come back into the Intel fold, after a four year hiatus...)

[Tiger-Heli]

Sweet thanks for the tip it worked great. It's a whole new game playing it with the sounds right on cue. The cpu really struggles on track 3 because there's a lot more detail than track 1. If Mame came with netplay I wonder if Rush the Rock could see those settings and somehow work, I doubt it but I am just throwing out ideas.

There is a misunderstanding here - Netplay enables you to play MAME head-to-head on separate computers over a connected network.

Rush The Rock doesn't work b/c the computer that MAME is emulating doesn't have a network card or network connector emulated - not the same thing and enabling net play (i.e. Killerera) would have NO EFFECT.

[TAG]

Anyone with a high end system tried Firefox yet? It works on my AMD Sempron, but stutters a bit.

(Might be time to finally come back into the Intel fold, after a four year hiatus...)

I've tried it on my P4 3.0 GHz and it runs fine, although I had read somewhere else that it would take a dual core for MAME to run the laserdisc games well.

[u_rebelscum]

Anyone with a high end system tried Firefox yet? It works on my AMD Sempron, but stutters a bit.

(Might be time to finally come back into the Intel fold, after a four year hiatus...)

I've tried it on my P4 3.0 GHz and it runs fine, although I had read somewhere else that it would take a dual core for MAME to run the laserdisc games well.

Did you hear dual core, or Core 2^TM?  Huge difference between the two.

Not that it really matters; that must have been incorrectly deduced from Cube Quest benchmarks.  Cube Quest, the first laserdisk added to mame, is thought to be the most CPU intense laserdisk game, emulation-wise, and according to johnIV's benchmarks, a 3.0 GHz Core2^TM emulates it easy, and that the harddrive speed is a major factor.  Anyway, all other laserdisk games are thought to need less CPU power than Cube Quest, so trying to guess how much CPU they'll need from CQ numbers isn't well founded.  I'm not surprised that a 3 Ghz P4 can run firefox.

FWIW, what harddrive are you using?  7200 rpm?  (I'm checking if firefox is as HD limited as CQ.)

[TAG]

Anyone with a high end system tried Firefox yet? It works on my AMD Sempron, but stutters a bit.

(Might be time to finally come back into the Intel fold, after a four year hiatus...)

I've tried it on my P4 3.0 GHz and it runs fine, although I had read somewhere else that it would take a dual core for MAME to run the laserdisc games well.

Did you hear dual core, or Core 2^TM?  Huge difference between the two.

Not that it really matters; that must have been incorrectly deduced from Cube Quest benchmarks.  Cube Quest, the first laserdisk added to mame, is thought to be the most CPU intense laserdisk game, emulation-wise, and according to johnIV's benchmarks, a 3.0 GHz Core2^TM emulates it easy, and that the harddrive speed is a major factor.  Anyway, all other laserdisk games are thought to need less CPU power than Cube Quest, so trying to guess how much CPU they'll need from CQ numbers isn't well founded.  I'm not surprised that a 3 Ghz P4 can run firefox.

FWIW, what harddrive are you using?  7200 rpm?  (I'm checking if firefox is as HD limited as CQ.)

My harddrive is 7200 rpm, yes.  I'm just glad I took a shot at grabbing the CHD, even though I wasn't sure how it'd run on my system.  That would've been a lot of GBs to download only to find out it didn't run well.

[retrometro]

Anyone with a high end system tried Firefox yet? It works on my AMD Sempron, but stutters a bit.

I forget, does firefox runon .127 or does it require .128 or higher.  May attempt this week.

[TAG]

I forget, does firefox runon .127 or does it require .128 or higher.  May attempt this week.

It was added in one of the .127 updates (.127u4, I believe).

[Paul Olson]

Well, I finally got a new motherboard for my cab computer, an ep45 ds3l, and I have an e8400. I am stable at 4ghz for about 9 minutes in orthos, then orthos crashes. My temp is at 67c, which seems high since I am using a zalman 9700. If I lower the overclock, orthos doesn't crash, but it just stops at around the same time, I think around 9:30 or so. In the log for one test, it read bye bye. How do you get it to stay running? I still have a lot of tweaking to try, and I am waiting on some ram. I had one stick die (from another comp, not related to the oc) and 1gig is a bit light. Should my temps be lower than this with this cooler at 4ghz?

I am trying to decide which OS to use. I would like to use xp64 for the extra speed (using soft-15khz, so I can't use Vista64), but it is a big tradeoff. I use the U-HID on my cab, and I can't program the encoder in 64bit. I need to take it out and program it from another computer, so that is not very good. If I can get this stable at 4ghz, what games would I actually lose by sticking with 32bit? I know there is a difference, but what games would be unplayable at full speed in 32bit, but are full speed in 64? If no games that I really care about are going to be affected, I will just stick with 32.

I am still learning this stuff, so I really don't know the answer to this. The ram I ordered today is 1066. Is it better to keep the multiplier lower and run the ram full rated speed, or is it better to run the multiplier higher?

Thanks,
Paul

[taz-nz]

It's 2AM here right now, so I keep the answers short.

Install gigabyte easy tune 6, a try bumping the CPU PLL voltage just a bit to say 1.54v (1.5v is stock), it helps stablity often rasing the PLL voltage often let you get the same overclock with less Core Voltage. (if your only running DDR2-800 ram it will be overclocked to DDR2-900 and may not be stable unless you apply more voltage to it)

67c is high in my book, my CPU is running in the 45-55c at full load (and running way more voltage than you should be), sorry to say but the Zalman 9700 is way overrated, your better off with a 2x 120mm fans &  tower type heatsink with 4 or more hear pipes.

 Vista 64bit is the safer bet in the long run (though Windows 7 64bit is look good so far, I'm testing the beta currently ) XP64 isn't well supported, try looking a EnTech PowerStrip for running 15Khz , the lastest version runs under Vista 64bit, and while it may not be as simple to use as soft-15Khz I think you'll find it will let you run windows on your arcade monitor.

Higher FSB and lower Multiplier will give you greater FSB bandwidth and better preformance, catch is the high FSB will often needs more chipset voltage to get stable and thus your chipset will run hotter. with ddr2-1066 I'd run 500mhz FSB and, 8x CPU multiplier, 2x memory multiplier, if you can get it stable with out jacking the north bridge voltage to much.

 

[Paul Olson]

Thanks for the reply. I need to cool it down some; what is the best cooler at the moment? It is stable but hot right now. I ran orthos for an hour but stopped it because I didn't want to run it that hot for too long. It was actually at 72c. I don't mind buying a new cooler, but I don't want to buy another mediocre one.

I had xp64 on my cab before the upgrade because my wireless card doesn't have vista64 drivers. The biggest issue for me is the encoder; I need to be able to switch the inputs for different control types on the fly.

[taz-nz]

Thanks for the reply. I need to cool it down some; what is the best cooler at the moment? It is stable but hot right now. I ran orthos for an hour but stopped it because I didn't want to run it that hot for too long. It was actually at 72c. I don't mind buying a new cooler, but I don't want to buy another mediocre one.

For AIR cooling it's still hard to beat a Thermalright Ultra-120 eXtreme, but I suggest you get the newer version the Thermalright True Black 120 which comes with two sets of wire fan clips so you can pair of fans in a push pull setup.

For the fans I suggest you get a two Scythe S-FLEX SFF21F 120x120x25mm 1600rpm Fans, they have good air flow, low noise and the Fluid Dynamic Bearing means they just keep going and going and going.

This is not a cheap solution but it is one of the best, also Crazy PC that I linked to about offers a Lapping service on many of the heatsinks they sell, which may not be a bad idea to get done too.

If you go this route make sure you do the penny mod, basically you place a thin coin on top of the heat sink block under the mounting bracket, which increases the mounting force and noticable improves the heatsinks preformance.

There are a number of cheaper heatsinks of the market with similar designs some come very closes in preformance overs are badly made rip off of the design. The Sunbeam (Tuniq) Core Contact Freezer is one of the best of cheap versions of this style of heatsinks, but it only supports one fan, so there is a bit of a trade off between fan noise and preformance, but it does offer great value for money.

[Paul Olson]

The True sounds great, but my budget doesn't like it much. I ordered the Core Contact Freezer from Newegg. They sell it for $39.99, but there is a $10 rebate and free shipping.

Hopefully it will be here by Saturday, and I can get this system back up and running. I decided to go back to XP64; my wireless card won't work with vista64.

Thanks

[Paul Olson]

I'm still waiting for the new cooler, but I couldn't wait to test. The difference between 3GHz and 4GHz in Gauntlet Legends is amazing. It crawled at 3, but is mostly full speed at 4. It still slows down when there are a lot of enemies on screen, but it may have done that some on the dedicated machines as well - I can't remember. I am hoping to push the speed up a bit with better cooling. It is stable without any tweaking at 1.37 core voltage, so I am hoping there is quite a bit of room left.

Has anyone tested the e7300 yet? Is there any chance it could outclock an e8400 since it has the 10x multiplier? I just put a PC together using one for my girlfriend which is not going to be overclocked, and I don't want the chip to go to waste if it is better. At the same time, I don't want her to complain about me tearing here computer apart if it won't do me any good. 

[taz-nz]

Has anyone tested the e7300 yet? Is there any chance it could outclock an e8400 since it has the 10x multiplier? I just put a PC together using one for my girlfriend which is not going to be overclocked, and I don't want the chip to go to waste if it is better. At the same time, I don't want her to complain about me tearing here computer apart if it won't do me any good. 

I wouldn't like to call that one Paul, clock for clock the E8400 is going to be faster than the E7300, but as to which one will overclock better is down to luck, one CPU might be from a great production batch and other a very average one, just comes down to how Intel was binning the dies the day the CPU were made.

Only real way to know for sure is try them both.

[nipsmg]

Has anyone done any testing with the Windows-7 64-bit beta?  By every account I've been able to find, Windows-7 is less resource intensive and faster than vista, and it seems the fastest emulation so far is using 64-bit vista.  So I'm wondering if the smaller OS footprint might translate to larger framerates in emulation?  I'm running it now and it's definitely faster on my machine than vista, but my processor isn't fast enough to do anything high-end with emulation, so it's not really worth me testing.

--Just wondering.

[taz-nz]

Has anyone done any testing with the Windows-7 64-bit beta?  By every account I've been able to find, Windows-7 is less resource intensive and faster than vista, and it seems the fastest emulation so far is using 64-bit vista.  So I'm wondering if the smaller OS footprint might translate to larger framerates in emulation?  I'm running it now and it's definitely faster on my machine than vista, but my processor isn't fast enough to do anything high-end with emulation, so it's not really worth me testing.

--Just wondering.

Windows 7 is a noticable improvement, It still uses a ton of hard disk (64bit more so than the 32bit version) but Memory usage is down, The UI is much snapper and very clean, everything has been tweaked to the new standards even MS Paint and the Calculater, UI doesn't feel like a rushed patch job like Vista did. 

I Benchmarked MAMEUI 64 0.129 in both Vista and Windows 7 the other day, Windows 7 scores were a bit mixed, faster for some slower for others, I'd put it down to the fact it's still a beta and the very broken beta Nvidia graphics drivers. I'll post the result later when I get a chance.

[bent98]

Are there any plans for an Intel i-7 mame compile? Curious to see benchmarks with new chip.

[taz-nz]

MAMEUI 64bit v0.129 on Windows 7 Beta 64bit benchmark results:        Core 2 Duo E8500 @ 4ghz

Rom      WIndows 7 (Beta)   Vista SP1

1942      4381.98%      4378.50%
airco22b   127.80%         133.86%
alpinerd   76.90%         77.74%
blitz      161.04%         164.82%
blitz2k      154.92%         157.25%
blitz99      152.37%         149.57%
calspeed   197.59%         210.20%
crusnusa   278.50%       275.58%
crusnwld   243.85%         242.59%
cybrcomm   121.74%         121.08%
cybrcycc   194.67%         193.05%
cyvern      806.02%       808.70%
daytona      200.34%         196.29%
gauntdl      165.54%         129.01%
gauntleg   201.65%         185.41%
gnbarich   1244.56%      999.89%
gradius4   129.10%       126.49%
harddriv   656.36%       1054.54%
hyprdriv   174.18%         174.83%
kinst2      677.53%         699.78%
mace      240.66%         237.60%
mk4      180.93%         182.16%
offroadc   356.25%       351.71%
propcycl   129.36%         128.29%
radikalb   156.69%       155.88%
raveracw   112.32%         107.36%
ridgerac   144.60%       138.69%
roadblst   1169.47%      1154.81%
rvschool   193.79%         190.96%
sfrush      189.34%         171.54%
sidebs2      148.04%         145.41%
soulclbr   189.26%         189.67%
speedup      159.92%         159.01%
starblad   134.86%       133.33%
stunrun      637.91%         634.48%
surfplnt   147.50%         148.21%
tekken2      301.35%         298.68%
tekken3      171.41%         170.69%
tenthdeg   88.44%         86.21%
timecris   210.43%         123.23%
vfkids      187.91%         186.71%
wargods      373.90%       367.71%
wg3dh      354.14%         341.51%
wrally      1415.24%      1477.20%
xevi3dg      318.59%         317.94%

Some of the results are a little random but that's to be expected with Windows 7 and the Nvidia graphics drivers still be a Beta.

Are there any plans for an Intel i-7 mame compile? Curious to see benchmarks with new chip.

Sure someone will do it in time, but currently the Price Premium on Core i7 CPUs & boards is to high for the additional preformance you see over a Core 2 Quad in MAME.

[u_rebelscum]

Are there any plans for an Intel i-7 mame compile? Curious to see benchmarks with new chip.

Someone did over at mameworld, and didn't get much improvement over core 2 (some faster, some slower):  link. 

Assuming the system tested wasn't bottlenecked somewhere else, looks like i7 not worth it ATM for mame.

[Paul Olson]

I'm still working on the e8400 overclock. It looks stable at 3.9GHz right now. I am testing it with Intelburntest. Have any of you tried it? It jacks the temp up 10c higher than Orthos does. I am still having a cooling problem. It was maxing out at 60c with Orthos, but it hit 70c once using IBT. It is mostly at 66-67, I just saw the 70 for a few seconds. I put the Core Contact Freezer on and it helped a bit, about 8c I think. I had to use the mount from my Zalman, so that probably didn't help much. The clip was hanging up on the NB heatsink on the EP45-DS3L. This mount isn't as tight as I would like, even after I shoved a washer in there. Has anyone else tried to use this cooler on this board?

[taz-nz]

I'm still working on the e8400 overclock. It looks stable at 3.9GHz right now. I am testing it with Intelburntest. Have any of you tried it? It jacks the temp up 10c higher than Orthos does. I am still having a cooling problem. It was maxing out at 60c with Orthos, but it hit 70c once using IBT. It is mostly at 66-67, I just saw the 70 for a few seconds. I put the Core Contact Freezer on and it helped a bit, about 8c I think. I had to use the mount from my Zalman, so that probably didn't help much. The clip was hanging up on the NB heatsink on the EP45-DS3L. This mount isn't as tight as I would like, even after I shoved a washer in there. Has anyone else tried to use this cooler on this board?

IntelBurntest is a evil peice of software, it's generally considered unsave to run it for extended periods on any overclocked CPU, my understand of how it works is make a huge number of direct command calls to the CPU it such a way to light up almost every transistor in the CPU simulateously, this is only possible because of Intels internal knowledge of their processor, in effect it runs the CPU at 120%, no normal set of operations or calculations will ever push the CPU close to what IntelBurntest does.

Mounting pressure is very important to the cooling on modern CPUs, so you really want to use the mounting clip that came with the core contact freezer.
I had a quick look at picture of the EP45-DS3L and the bracket on the CCF, I think you can gain the extra clearance required to fit the stock CCF bracket by simple turning the northbridge heatsink around on the motherboard, this will mean you can't use the first PCI-E 1x slot but there are three more on the board so I can't see it being an issue.



As you can see the heatsink fins on edge closest to the PCI-E slot is lower than the rest, so buy rotating the NB heatsink 180deg it should give you the clearance you need.

(see PM for detailed steps)

[Paul Olson]

Great idea, and thanks for the advice! I am at 4GHz at the moment, and it seems stable. I would like to get the temps down, so I will definitely try your solution. I ran IBT for about 15 minutes and the temp topped out at 73c. I have been running Orthos for around 20 minutes after that, and it has only reached 62c. I will try to mount the CCF with the correct bracket, then I will run Orthos for the night. Hopefully it will still be running in the morning. My vcore is at 3.38 (I think), but it drooped all the way down to 1.296 while running IBT. CPU-z is showing 1.312 while running Orthos.

[Neverending Project]

MAMEUI 64bit v0.129 on Windows 7 Beta 64bit benchmark results:        Core 2 Duo E8500 @ 4ghz

Rom      WIndows 7 (Beta)   Vista SP1

...

Can anyone run these tests with one of the new Atom 330 processors? I am more curious how they compare to a standard Core 2 Duo than a massively overclocked one, but any comparison would be great to see.

[taz-nz]

Can anyone run these tests with one of the new Atom 330 processors? I am more curious how they compare to a standard Core 2 Duo than a massively overclocked one, but any comparison would be great to see.

I don't have a Atom 330 Processor to benchmark, but from it's specs and based on other benchmarks on the web of the 330, I can tell you a Atom 330 will get thumped in MAME by even a E4300 at stock clock speeds. The Atom is a great little CPU, but it's designed for power saving and not preformace. 

[Charles4400]

This might be a dumb question but when you buy a case aby itself, does it come with the screws needed to mount the MB or do you have to get that separately?

Also Taz is the case really important in the OC pursuits? I don't care what they look like since it will be put in the cab, but BECAUSE it is being put in the cab is there a preferred one to use in consideration of the air flow etc...?

[drventure]

Usually, no, you don't get mounting screws with the mobo, you often get them with a new case, though.

Of course, once you've been doing this a while, you end up with boxes and boxes of those screws, standoffs, nuts and whatnot

[taz-nz]

This might be a dumb question but when you buy a case aby itself, does it come with the screws needed to mount the MB or do you have to get that separately?

As drventure said, the screws and motherboard risers you need to fit your motherboard are almost always include with the case. Case manufactures generally give you more risers than you need to mount you motherboard, but they also have an annoying habit of include risers with two different internal threads, some risers accept the finer thread CD-Rom type screws, while most accept the standard HDD and Case screw thread.

Also Taz is the case really important in the OC pursuits? I don't care what they look like since it will be put in the cab, but BECAUSE it is being put in the cab is there a preferred one to use in consideration of the air flow etc...?

Short answer yes, keeping your system cool is key to stable overclocking, a computer case has a relatively small internal volume for the amount of heat pumped into it from you CPU and other harware.
A good case design allows for plenty of air flow through the case, allowing the hot air inside to be rapidly exchanged with cooler air from outside the case, thus keeping the internal tempature as close to that of the air in the room around it as possible.
The easiest way to do this is with good front to back airflow, cases with open mesh fronts and large rear exhaust fans work best, too many fans pointed in random direction will actual hurt airflow, they tend to just swirl the hot air around inside the case.

That said if your going to put the system in a cabinet and don't intended to use it for anything else, I'd forget the case and just mount the motherboard directly to the inside of the cabinet, the case is just there to protect the computer hardware from physical damage and to sheild it from EMI, and to shield other devices from any EMI the PC might give off.
Having no case means more air volume around the computer hardware, which in term means the air will be cooler, but I do suggest that you make sure you cabinet is well vented at the top so heat can escape, and has vents near the bottom to allow it to draw in cool air.

[Charles4400]

Great thanks alot guys appreciate the help!

The project will be coming up soon, just thinking of waiting untill the e8700 becomes available for the price drop of the e8600 or even getting the e8700 to OC that chip!

btw saw this on ebay and was wondering how this guy got a e8500 to 4.24! I'm not getting this auction but do you think its stable and will have a 'long' life?
http://cgi.ebay.com/Overclocked-Core-2-duo-4-24GHz-Gaming-PC-w-HD-4870-1GB_W0QQitemZ280310121412QQcmdZViewItemQQptZDesktop_PCs?hash=item280310121412&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1205%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318%7C301%3A1%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A50

Once again appreciate the help and advice!

[Bigtymer781]

I run my E8500 at 4250 MHz  (8.5 x 500) with 1.38 vcore, I hear they are safe up to 1.45 vcore for everyday use.  At this speed I've tested orthos, prime95, and memtest for over 2 hours each. I can even run at 4500 MHz but it starts to run hot in orthos. I'm using a Zalman 8700 NT heatsink, which is probably holding me back a little.

That auction on ebay, if you dont care about a fancy case or a bleeding edge video card, or a 1TB hard drive, you could probably put that same system together for like $700.

[Charles4400]

Man OCing seems the way to go...I mean WOW if you can supe it up that much I'm really anxious to see how far the e8700 will go....

But wondering still, is it a good idea to OC that much if the computer gets left on for possibly 6-7+ hours a day?

Since its going in the cab, sometimes that gets left on if nobody remembers to turn it off which happens more often than not...Well I suppose even if it does get burn out before its average life span (hopefully will survive for more than 3 years!?) it still might be worth it!

[jombee]

This is a great post, thanks for all the info!

I am going to upgrade the computer in my cabinet (P4 3.0ghz), and I would like to be able to play most of the MAME CHD games.  I am currently running about 30 emulators (including MAME) and my OS is Windows XP (32).  In the earlier posts the frame rates for WinXP32 appear playable and I really would prefer to stay with WinXP 32 if possible.  If I need to go to 64bit, I would really like to use WinXP64 instead of Vista64.

Here are my questions:

1.  A Core2Quad Q8300 and a Core2Duo E8500 are currently the same price.  Which would be my best choice assuming I will be Over Clocking it to 4 ghz?

2.  Will either of these processors give me nice playable speeds for most CHD games with WinXP32?

3.  If not, is the Core2Quad/Duo compatible with WindowsXP 64?  If I need to go to a 64bit OS I would strongly prefer XP but It does not list those processors as supported as far as I can see.

4.  A bunch of CPU coolers are mentioned in this post, which one do you currently think would be my best choice?

Any help would be greatly appreciated, Thanks!

[taz-nz]

1.  A Core2Quad Q8300 and a Core2Duo E8500 are currently the same price.  Which would be my best choice assuming I will be Over Clocking it to 4 ghz?

The E0 stepping E8500 is easy overclock to 4ghz and will hit 4.5ghz with the right setup, on the other hand the your pushing it to get Q8300 to 4ghz due to low 7.5x multiplier and it's low binning.

2.  Will either of these processors give me nice playable speeds for most CHD games with WinXP32?

You are lossing a lot of preformance running 32bit MAME in WinXP 32bit, on the order of 20% compaired with 64bit, I suggest trying a 64bit OS before you exclude the idea, compatiblity is not really an issue unless the software your running is only 16bit (in which case it will not work), lack of lightgun support is the only real drawback to 64bit OS.

3.  If not, is the Core2Quad/Duo compatible with WindowsXP 64?  If I need to go to a 64bit OS I would strongly prefer XP but It does not list those processors as supported as far as I can see.

You will have no issue running WinXP 64bit on any of the Core2 family. XP 64bit pre-dates the Core2Duo release, thus they are not listed.
I will warn you though that Windows XP 64bit has atiny install base and thus it's well supported, Vista 64bit on the other hand is getting more and more popular, and is very well supported now.

4.  A bunch of CPU coolers are mentioned in this post, which one do you currently think would be my best choice?

The Sunbeam Core Contact Freezer offers great value for money, but if you want to go all out get a Thermalright True Black 120 and a couple of Scythe SFF21F 1600rpm fans.

[Todd H]

Well, my cab is now finished with the exception of the PC. Anybody got any CPU/motherboard reccomendations? Like jombee above, I'm looking at the E8500 CPU. What's a good mother board to go with this processor? I'm planning on overclocking to 4Ghz or higher. I'm also going to need a good video card that will let me play modern PC games like the upcoming Street Fighter IV. The motherboard will be mounted inside the cabinet instead of a case. What about a beefy power supply? Any particular model?

I've been out of the PC building scene for a while since I started using Mac's. The last time I built a PC was during the Pentium 3 years. So any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[jombee]

1.  A Core2Quad Q8300 and a Core2Duo E8500 are currently the same price.  Which would be my best choice assuming I will be Over Clocking it to 4 ghz?

The E0 stepping E8500 is easy overclock to 4ghz and will hit 4.5ghz with the right setup, on the other hand the your pushing it to get Q8300 to 4ghz due to low 7.5x multiplier and it's low binning.

2.  Will either of these processors give me nice playable speeds for most CHD games with WinXP32?

You are lossing a lot of preformance running 32bit MAME in WinXP 32bit, on the order of 20% compaired with 64bit, I suggest trying a 64bit OS before you exclude the idea, compatiblity is not really an issue unless the software your running is only 16bit (in which case it will not work), lack of lightgun support is the only real drawback to 64bit OS.

3.  If not, is the Core2Quad/Duo compatible with WindowsXP 64?  If I need to go to a 64bit OS I would strongly prefer XP but It does not list those processors as supported as far as I can see.

You will have no issue running WinXP 64bit on any of the Core2 family. XP 64bit pre-dates the Core2Duo release, thus they are not listed.
I will warn you though that Windows XP 64bit has atiny install base and thus it's well supported, Vista 64bit on the other hand is getting more and more popular, and is very well supported now.

4.  A bunch of CPU coolers are mentioned in this post, which one do you currently think would be my best choice?

The Sunbeam Core Contact Freezer offers great value for money, but if you want to go all out get a Thermalright True Black 120 and a couple of Scythe SFF21F 1600rpm fans.

Thanks so much Taz-nz, your input is truly appreciated and answered all my questions!

Take care!

[jombee]

Well, my cab is now finished with the exception of the PC. Anybody got any CPU/motherboard reccomendations? Like jombee above, I'm looking at the E8500 CPU. What's a good mother board to go with this processor? I'm planning on overclocking to 4Ghz or higher. I'm also going to need a good video card that will let me play modern PC games like the upcoming Street Fighter IV. The motherboard will be mounted inside the cabinet instead of a case. What about a beefy power supply? Any particular model?

I've been out of the PC building scene for a while since I started using Mac's. The last time I built a PC was during the Pentium 3 years. So any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Todd, here is the motherboard that I am most likely going to buy.  I will be running a single ArcadeVGA2 PCIe card, so the single PCIe slot will not be a problem for me.

GIGABYTE GA-EP45C-UD3R intel p45 chipset ATX form factor 1xPCI-E(x16)/3xPCI-E(x1)/3xpci/4xddr2/2xddr3 w/sata2 raid,lan(gb),1394,usb 2.0 & audio (cpu type:intel - socket 775)

[taz-nz]

Well, my cab is now finished with the exception of the PC. Anybody got any CPU/motherboard reccomendations? Like jombee above, I'm looking at the E8500 CPU. What's a good mother board to go with this processor? I'm planning on overclocking to 4Ghz or higher. I'm also going to need a good video card that will let me play modern PC games like the upcoming Street Fighter IV. The motherboard will be mounted inside the cabinet instead of a case. What about a beefy power supply? Any particular model?

I've been out of the PC building scene for a while since I started using Mac's. The last time I built a PC was during the Pentium 3 years. So any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

To get most out of your E8500 i suggest a Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3R , I'm not a fan of the dual memory type GA-EP45C-UD3R that jombee suggested, the single memory type boards tend to be more stable,  my abvice is stick to DDR2 for a Core2 , leave DDR3 to the Core i7.

Graphics card wise it depends on what you want to spend, but currently for PC gaming I'd suggest either a ATI Radeon HD4870 or HD4870x2.

Power supply, it depends which graphics card you go with and what else you plan to have in the system, but a good brand name (Seasonic, Enermax or similar)600w for the HD4870 and at least a 750w for a system with a HD4870x2.

[Todd H]

Well, my cab is now finished with the exception of the PC. Anybody got any CPU/motherboard reccomendations? Like jombee above, I'm looking at the E8500 CPU. What's a good mother board to go with this processor? I'm planning on overclocking to 4Ghz or higher. I'm also going to need a good video card that will let me play modern PC games like the upcoming Street Fighter IV. The motherboard will be mounted inside the cabinet instead of a case. What about a beefy power supply? Any particular model?

I've been out of the PC building scene for a while since I started using Mac's. The last time I built a PC was during the Pentium 3 years. So any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

To get most out of your E8500 i suggest a Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3R , I'm not a fan of the dual memory type GA-EP45C-UD3R that jombee suggested, the single memory type boards tend to be more stable,  my abvice is stick to DDR2 for a Core2 , leave DDR3 to the Core i7.

Graphics card wise it depends on what you want to spend, but currently for PC gaming I'd suggest either a ATI Radeon HD4870 or HD4870x2.

Power supply, it depends which graphics card you go with and what else you plan to have in the system, but a good brand name (Seasonic, Enermax or similar)600w for the HD4870 and at least a 750w for a system with a HD4870x2.

Just what I needed to know. Thanks. Any particular CPU cooler I should look at?

[joeH]

Well, my cab is now finished with the exception of the PC. Anybody got any CPU/motherboard reccomendations? Like jombee above, I'm looking at the E8500 CPU. What's a good mother board to go with this processor? I'm planning on overclocking to 4Ghz or higher. I'm also going to need a good video card that will let me play modern PC games like the upcoming Street Fighter IV. The motherboard will be mounted inside the cabinet instead of a case. What about a beefy power supply? Any particular model?

I've been out of the PC building scene for a while since I started using Mac's. The last time I built a PC was during the Pentium 3 years. So any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

The Gigabyte board is a good board.  I'm running my E8400 clocked to 4.0ghz on an Asus P5Q Pro. May want to check that one out as well.

[taz-nz]

Any particular CPU cooler I should look at?

To quote myself.

The Sunbeam Core Contact Freezer offers great value for money, but if you want to go all out get a Thermalright True Black 120 and a couple of Scythe SFF21F 1600rpm fans.

There are more extremem options but they aren't really needed with the E0 stepping E8500s.