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990x vs Sandy Bridge vs Haswell !!!

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  • Overclocking
  • Sandy Bridge
  • CPUs
Last response: in CPUs
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June 3, 2013 12:42:41 PM

I currently have an i7 960 processor on the x58 platform that I bought right before Sandy bridge dropped. Overclocking has always been on my mind, but I find overclocking the 960 to be frustrating when trying to reach the speeds I want (4.0 , 4.2 Ghz). Heard SB and Haswell are much easier.

Also I do not feel that I am getting the full use of my SATA 3 SSD's through the Marvell drivers and it would be nice to have PCIE 3.0 and new features for future proofing.

Would it be worth it for me to upgrade to Sandy Bridge or Haswell?I do mostly gaming, recording audio, and editing video on my pc.
Would it be easier for an overclocking newb like me to get a good speed on these new chips without frying my equipment? I want to be able to run games at 1080p around 120 fps or in 3d around 60 fps for a good while.

I just feel like maybe my 960 x58 setup is holding back the true potential of my SSD's and my 2 GTX 670 FTW in sli. Getting a 990x had crossed my mind because of the unlocked multiplier but for that money I could get a whole new Haswell setup.

More about : 990x sandy bridge haswell

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June 3, 2013 12:46:37 PM

If you just want to upgrade...I would say go to SB or IB. However, there really isn't a need to do that right now if your performance is still fine.

1st gen Core I series owners haven't had a reason to upgrade for a while, and haswell didn't change that. You're still fine.

Honestly...the one upgrade that makes some sense for you might be to go to SB-E and go with something like the i7-3930k and a LGA 2011 board. That's the only real performance boost you would see that might be worth it. However, if you don't need the computing power, or don't want to drop $700 on a CPU/MB upgrade...save your cash and wait.
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a b K Overclocking
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June 3, 2013 1:01:25 PM

You will notice some performance gains upgrading to Haswell, not bad actually an i7 4770k and a decent board will set you back around $500. Whats your budget btw?
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a b K Overclocking
a c 210 à CPUs
June 3, 2013 1:08:48 PM

If you're upgrading for sure, then look at Ivy Bridge or SB-E, haswell is just Ivy bridge on a new socket with a better iGPU.

Gamers use a discrete GPU, so you have no need for that, and haswell draws more power than Ivy Bridge. So...really no reason to go to haswell and spend the money for 4-6% improvement.
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a b K Overclocking
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June 3, 2013 1:11:14 PM

Correct there is really no real benefit moving to Haswell unless you want more SATA 3 ports and native USB 3.0. Sandy Bridge E would be the best move and upgrade path!
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June 3, 2013 1:13:54 PM

hafijur said:
Well other then pcie 3 upgrade on the newer machines, 1st gen core i7 were pile of junk imo. Heated up, very power hungry barely any faster then a core 2 quad while taking signifacantly more power and no igpu compared to the newer core i series. If you record gameplay with action a sandy bridge ivy bridge or even haswell cpu will be a huge upgrade for recording with quick sync. Nowadays a top end i7 quad is like 60% faster then your 960 and takes like 1/3 of the power consumption.

Its quite funny as my brother had old i7 bloomfield quads in one omputer room and at the time the newer sandy bridge computers in another room with similar cooling. The i7 bloomfield computer room would always be so hot and fans would be loud while the new computer room would be quite cold and virtually silent.


It's funny that you say that cuz my room always seems like the hottest room in the house. My friends Sandy Bridge runs about 10 degrees cooler than my 960 with the same H70 cooler.
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June 3, 2013 1:15:52 PM

redeemer said:
You will notice some performance gains upgrading to Haswell, not bad actually an i7 4770k and a decent board will set you back around $500. Whats your budget btw?


$1000 max. All I need is CPU MB and RAM. Everything else in my current rig I'm happy with.
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June 3, 2013 1:19:26 PM

Is Sandy Bridge E a different socket from Sandy Bridge? Will there be future support for it? And won't 1150 be around for a while or will that change again with broadwell/ skydale?

Really, I just wish I had an unlocked multiplier.
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a b K Overclocking
a c 210 à CPUs
June 3, 2013 1:28:11 PM

Cuzzin Chizzy said:
Is Sandy Bridge E a different socket from Sandy Bridge? Will there be future support for it? And won't 1150 be around for a while or will that change again with broadwell/ skydale?

Really, I just wish I had an unlocked multiplier.


Yes, SB-E is LGA 2011...most of those MBs are pricier though, and so are the CPUs. There is an IB-E coming with the haswell generation on the same socket (LGA 2011).

Socket 1150 is done after Broadwell. Skylake is a new socket.

To get an unlocked multiplier go with the SB 2500k...you'll be fine there.
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a b K Overclocking
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June 3, 2013 2:05:56 PM

with a $1000 budget I would go with a 3930k an Asus x79 board and 16GB 2133 memory
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a b K Overclocking
a c 210 à CPUs
June 3, 2013 2:27:41 PM

Comparable i7-3930k build with 16 GB RAM:

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/12CQ3
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/12CQ3/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/12CQ3/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i7-3930K 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor ($563.98 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($22.98 @ Outlet PC)
Motherboard: ASRock X79 Extreme3 ATX LGA2011 Motherboard ($197.86 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($110.00 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon HD 7870 XT 2GB Video Card ($209.99 @ Newegg)
Case: BitFenix Merc Beta (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($24.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 500W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($62.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($64.98 @ Outlet PC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.94 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: Asus VE228H 21.5" Monitor ($137.58 @ Newegg)
Total: $1544.27
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-03 17:26 EDT-0400)
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a b K Overclocking
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June 3, 2013 2:37:05 PM

If gaming is all that's important to you, then you will see no benefit from upgrading whatsoever.At 4GHZ your CPU will be about as fast as a 4770K.
Yes you'll see a nice boost in video editing performance and your SSD's will get faster, but to me that just doesn't seem like a good enough reason.
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/ssd-upgrade-sata-3gbps,re...
Is seems that there are big gains to be had, but those gains don't really mean much.

But if you're sure you want to upgrade, here's what i think you should buy.

CPU: Intel Core i7-3930K 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor ($563.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-X79-UD3 ATX LGA2011 Motherboard ($216.98 @ Outlet PC)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($117.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $898.95
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
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June 9, 2013 8:12:35 AM

8350rocks said:
If you just want to upgrade...I would say go to SB or IB. However, there really isn't a need to do that right now if your performance is still fine.

1st gen Core I series owners haven't had a reason to upgrade for a while, and haswell didn't change that. You're still fine.

Honestly...the one upgrade that makes some sense for you might be to go to SB-E and go with something like the i7-3930k and a LGA 2011 board. That's the only real performance boost you would see that might be worth it. However, if you don't need the computing power, or don't want to drop $700 on a CPU/MB upgrade...save your cash and wait.


Dont do that! Ivy bridge-e is releasing in a few months
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June 9, 2013 8:16:14 AM

8350rocks said:
If you just want to upgrade...I would say go to SB or IB. However, there really isn't a need to do that right now if your performance is still fine.

1st gen Core I series owners haven't had a reason to upgrade for a while, and haswell didn't change that. You're still fine.

Honestly...the one upgrade that makes some sense for you might be to go to SB-E and go with something like the i7-3930k and a LGA 2011 board. That's the only real performance boost you would see that might be worth it. However, if you don't need the computing power, or don't want to drop $700 on a CPU/MB upgrade...save your cash and wait.


Dont do that! Ivy bridge-e is releasing in a few months. Its not too much better but its better nonetheless.
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June 9, 2013 8:36:36 AM

Bro Ivy Bridge-e is just stupid ass marketing tease like most companies do with their dumb ass EXTREME processors. Go with what you have planned.

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June 9, 2013 9:42:06 AM

bretmh said:
Bro Ivy Bridge-e is just stupid ass marketing tease like most companies do with their dumb ass EXTREME processors. Go with what you have planned.



Im just saying it's a better choice than sandy bridge-e. I would recommend the i7 4770k for op's use.

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a b K Overclocking
a c 210 à CPUs
June 9, 2013 9:49:31 AM

The 3770k is better than the 4770k, especially if you overclock.
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June 22, 2013 6:02:40 PM

If you overclock the best cpu you can have right now thats not an E series is the i7-3770k becosue yes haswell showed 1-4% increase over ivy clock for clock but asus and toms hardware could barely get any haswell chip over 4.3ghz, intel seems to be improving i gpu and ipc and it keeps lowering overclock headroom, just get a i7-3770k and under air you can easily get it to 4.5ghz and beat any haswell platform out there. my i7-3770k is at 4.7ghz with just 1.288 volts been that way for 5 months now best cpu you can buy can handle anything you can throw at it.
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