I've had my computer for a while now, and this seems to be about the right time to get a new one. I've been hearing a lot about Intel's new generation CPU's, and I've got Vue 6I related questions.

My current system is:

Windows XP Home SR2

2.53 GHZ Pentium 4

2 gig RAM

256 meg ATI Radeon 9600 AGP Video Card

The typical system everyone seems to be offering now is:

Windows XP Media Center (most offer free upgrade to Vista when it’s released)

2.13 GHZ Core 2 Duo E6400

2 gig RAM

256 meg ATI or nVidia Video Card

Questions:

1. Does Vue6I see the Core 2 Duo as one processor or two?
2. If two, does Vue6I automatically use both, or do I have to set up a render cow?
3. Do I need a 64 bit OS for Vue6I to fully utilize the power of the Core 2 Duo?
4. If I get a system like the one above, how much speed increase should I expect to see over my current system?

Any information I can get is most helpful and appreciated.

 Thanks!

Not sure about Intel's dual core, but with my AMD 64 4800+,  Vue does show it as two processors.  I don't know for sure if it's utilizing both, but the speed increase is quite noticeable.  And No, you do not need a 64 bit OS for Vue to utilize the cpu (unless you have more than 2Gb Ram).  

I run a E6600 CoreDuo system with a Intel 975XBX sys bd + 4gb ram and a QuadroFx board.

This system simply fly! It's much faster ( ~ 30 / 40%) than the previosly already fast AMD X2 4400+
And is extremely faster than any P4 based system, including the D dual core version.

Vue5 infinite and 6 take full advantage of both cores when it's time to render.

You simply need XP home or Pro 32bit version.

From the preliminary benchmark I made there is NO speed difference between 32 and 64bit op.sys. with the current Vue6 release running some supplied demo scenes. Other user opinion welcomed!

I own exactly the configuration you mentioned in your first post. My old PC was a Pentium 4 2,53 GHz with only 512 MB RAM. So for me the speed of my new compuer is a HUGE difference compared to my old one - however, when talking about Vue I don't know if it's just my PC that's performing better or if it's also the rewritten rendering engine of Vue 6.

In any case I absolutely recommend the new Intel Core 2 Duo. And yes, Vue recognizes both CPUs.

SpacegFX, dis you get the 64bit version of Vue? Or the 32bit?

Thanks all! This is just the kind of information I was looking for.

Running 64-bit doesn't get you more speed necessarily, but it will give you better memory usage.  If you have 4GB, you can use all 4GB.  All my 32-bit system uses is 3GB of the 4GB that I have on the board. 

@bruno021: I got Vue6 Infinite, the specs say: "Enjoy better memory management, a native 64 bit architecture and improved efficiency in managing large scale scenes." I run the installer in both the op.sys. without problem, during the week end I will run some heavy scenes benchmark.

One last question.

If I get a new system, will I get any benefit from using my old system as a render-cow?

Thanks again.

I have a quad processor, 16 gigs of ram and a 1 gig video card...and Vue still crashes!! If you are trying to render a scene with both displacment maps and SSS - vue will go down faster than a girl on prom night.

If you are getting a Core 2 Duo, make sure to overclock it. I'm running my E6400 at 3200MHz right now.