Question 1

How's the heat sink that comes with it? Reliable and reasonably quiet?

Accepted Answer

This is the stock Intel unit. If the CPU heats up while gaming, the fan can get loud. My MSI gaming board runs it up to full speed at POST and it makes a racket for a few seconds, but under normal operation creating docs, cruising the web, etc., it's not intrusive. If you want real quiet, you'll need a heat sink with a larger, slower fan.

Question 2

Would this cpu work well in a workstation? im not a huge gamer.  As I'm planning to build a hackintosh for school.  Also,  would a graphics card affect the performance of my computer during homework?

Accepted Answer

The i3-6320 is a beast although I also have a 6100 and the performance is close. 6320 can auto overclock on my msi m3 z170a to i5 6500 and i7 6700 specs but I've never needed more speed. The 6100 cant on a B150 m3 msi but I'm not sure if that is due to the cpu or mobo. The 6100 runs several instances of ATX tax software which is heavy without problems. 6320 runs UE4 and 3ds Max without problems and should function well as a workstation. Ofc getting at least 16gb or 32gb ram which I have helps a ton in addition to ssd. Ram wise it runs DDR4 at 2133 mhz which beats my i7-4770k DDR3 1833 mhz capabilities while running at 3.9 ghz stock. The 4770k has 4 more threads but not many programs use multiple threads at once. Both systems are responsive and fast. I'd go with the 6320 if I were you. It is cheaper, runs cooler and is more efficient without missing on daily use performance. Runs fine on a 450W while my 4770k already blew one 850W psu. I use the 6100 and 6320 with the integrated graphics without issue. If you can afford a high end graphics card nice, if not you can upgrade later if needed. I put a 80usd 2gb gtx card on my 4770k the other day and actually decreased the performance from integrated graphics. You'll have to buy something in the 150usd range to actually improve performance and see a difference so if you won't max out for specs because the budget is not an issue, integrated graphics is just fine.

Question 3

intel charts say this 6320 core using  47 watts but Newegg lists it at 65 watts 
Why are they so different ?

Accepted Answer

I'd go by the Intel specs.  The locked versions of the Core 5 and 7 are 65- watts.  I have my i3-6320 cpu cooled by a Natua's smallest, thinnest model.  The cpu runs in the low 20's cel. when watching online videos on my HTPC.

Question 4

1.35v memory or 1.2v ?

Accepted Answer

The memory voltage I use is 1.2V, but it was specified by the motherboard manufacturer.  This should be similar in your case.

I purchased the processor and ancillary motherboard and articles to update a Sandy Bridge HTPC.  The results are very pleasing and the decision worthwhile.

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