Best intel cpu for overclocking + 7950 or xfire for less than 300$

[ralphjayson]

I currently have amd phenom II x6 1055t @ 3.5ghz and i did some research and i guess intel is much better especially with i5 2500k. i could get the i5 2500k for 250$ right now, but is there a better cpu for less than 300$?

 

[chris2341]

Personally I dont think you will find a better processor for under $300.
2500k is the best bang for your buck CPU out there and is only 224.99 and you get a ten dollar gift card right now from newegg
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115230

You probably already know this but you will also need a new motherboard if you go to LGA1155 so take that into account when budgeting.

 

[Ohmybad]

if you're gaming i don't think you will notice a difference between your 1055t and the i5, i say this just because you already have a solid base computer... but yes the i5-2500k is the best sub 300$ CPU to OC... maybe the 2550k it doesn't have the IGP (integrated graphics on proc) the intel 3000 graphics or w/e

 

[abekl]

right now, the 2500k is it. If you can wait a few weeks, the 3570K will be out, at about the same price, with slightly better performance numbers.

 

[de5_Roy]

depends on your full specs.
if you're getting intel, you'll need both cpu and motherboard replacement. why not decide after ivy bridge comes out? ivy bridge's z77 and z75 chipsets will natively support ivy bridge cpus as well as pcie gen 3.0 like 7950 and can support crossfire and sli. z77 - up to x8+x8+x4, z75 - up to x8+x8 modes.
imo your current cpu seems adequate for now.

 

[ralphjayson]

Will the price be similar as they are now? I don't want to waste money for 5-10% in performance boost.
I am ok with pcie 2.0 at xfire 8x since the 7950 and even 7970 can't even max out at 2.0 since I am running it at my 2.0 pcie motherboard and it's only running at 1.1 pcie speed.

 

[de5_Roy]

afaik, retail prices are unknown. intel is rumored to launch the cpus at similar msrp level as sandy bridge last year. final pricing for desktop cpus will depend on a lot of factors like yields, economy, hdd prices etc.
latest preview from anandtech shows minor performance increase at cpu side, but major performance increase at the igpu side.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/5626/ivy-bridge-preview-core-i7-3770k
if you have the 7950 and are running it with satisfactory performance, you could wait for a little while.
to summarize: nothing is certain until ivy bridge comes out.

 

[IntelEnthusiast]

While I havent seen anything official on pricing for the next generation of Intel® Core™ processors they are expected to fit right in at the same spot that the 2nd generation Intel Core (current) processors are.

If you are planning to use a video card then there there won't be much of a performance increase when going to the next generation Intel Core processors. So just go with the Intel Core i5-2500K.


Christian Wood
Intel Enthusiast Team