How good of a processor do you need to have large excel files open quickly....

Would something with the following specs be able to destroy large excel files:

Processor 3.5 GHz FX-Series Six-Core FX-6120
RAM 10 GB DDR3

 

What you doing in excel? Any modern computer will open any normal excel file relatively quickly.

HOW big we talking?

 

One that's over 9000 at least.

 

lol, I'm not really sure. My bro said they were big enough to slow down the computers at work, though I have no idea on the specs on those.

 

6 cores @ 3.5GHz and 10GB of ram

That thing will be an absolute beast, I assume it would do everything fast

 

I don't think you'd see a significantly noticeable difference between the computer you listed and anything more expensive that currently exists.

 

locally to your machine? also depends on the content the excel doc contains

 

yesh 6 cores means you're ahead of the game as it stands

 

After you get passed 50MB or so they can really run slowly. At around 200-400MB they straight die.

Mind you if you are doing something that big you probably should be in SAS or SQL Server.

Disclosure - I am referring to my work PC, my home rig may perform better.

 

when someone says their "computer at work" does anything slow... 9 out of 10
times its all the shit their IT guys have running on it and all the shit they have managed
to install with out telling their IT guys.

 

AMD's multi-core processors don't have hyper threading, so it'd be the equivalent to a 3 core 6 thread Intel processor.

 

If an excel file gets so big that it's slowing down your computer it's probably time to learn Access.

 

Core i7 3770k, 16gb Corsair Platinum RAM, GTX 690 in SLI, Asus Maximus V formula, liquid cooling, OCZ Vertex 4 256gb SSD's in RAID 0, an 27" Apple Cinema display, and all housed in a Silerstone TJ11 case . That should do it.

 

And if you're even remotely considering Access you may as well use SQL Server, SAS, R, Minitab, etc.

Access sucks hard.

 

Commodore 64.

 

Or they just moderately powered because the admin assistants and the quantitative analysts get the same models.

 

I would hold dual core processors to be the absolute bare minimum.


& what's this I keep hearing about Atom processors? I've read somewhere that it's supposed to be reinvented. I call boolshit

 

Honestly, you would be much better served investing in a SSD than a processor (although the one you selected is fine. I personally prefer the i7 series with hyperthreading, but you will be paying about twice the price).

I used to run macros on pretty large excel files (dumps from an MS Access Database that were often 200+ megabytes) without issue on a Core 2 Duo.

 

^^ SSDs run a hell of a lot better with sata 3

 

Intel is better than amd. Also get an ssd(solid state drive)