What CPU is needed for the GTX 295?

Is an E8400 enough to run the GTX 295 without there being a bottleneck?

Do you have any more information? How much do I need to overclock it?

3.8GHz will be will be good. Also is what Resolution you play. if you play at high Resolution (eg 1900x1200) you do not need to overclock to high.

Noya you do not need Core i7 for the GTX 295

Is it just me or are people getting dumber?

um no, that wouldnt be good. the stock hsf can handle a small oc like 3.2-3.3GHz but i found that 3.4GHz and above the temps were a little too much. i run a e8400 also and i have a temp asus 80mm cooler on it and it idles at 43C and i have smart fan so it changes the fan rpms as the temp rises. which is annoying because when i play a games i can usually hear the asus cooler, i have cm 690 case with 7 1200mm+ sized fans and the cpu cooler is the only one i can hear. but tommorow ill have my zalman 9500a cooler and try to push 4.0GHz. i reccomend you buy a arctic freezer 7 pro or a zalman 9500/9700 hsf as those are the best rated coolers on newegg. get a new hsf.

YOU DO NOT NEED TO OVERCLOCK YOUR CPU, IT IS PERFECTLY FINE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!




FFS PEOPLE.

you lucky

I strongly agree.

I think its something in the food.....

There shouldn't be a problem with e8400 just overclock it. my rig is e6600 overclocked to 3.2 in sli gtx 280 it runs smoothly.

I just ordered the GTX 295 and all I have is a lowly QX6700 (2.66GHz). Don't I feel inadequite.

Well, at 1900x1200 your CPU will probably hold back the 295. It's not like it would matter if you're getting over 100 FPS though. If you're worried about it then get the Xigmatech cooler and some Arctic Silver to help you overclock your CPU if you don't want to worry about being CPU limited. You should be good if your CPU hits around 3.8-4.0 GHz.

It depends on the game, settings and resolution, as some of these elements create situations that are more computer bound than others.

I'm a fan of having actual numbers to back up my claim, so here you go...

http://www.legionhardware.com/document.php?id=807

If you really don't want to read the whole article, at least check out the following two pages. I believe they do a good job highlighting the difference between a faily graphics card bound game (Crysis Warhead), versus one that is a little bit more even handed (World in Conflict).

http://www.legionhardware.com/docu [...] id=807&p=5

http://www.legionhardware.com/docu [...] d=807&p=15

As you can tell, when paired with a GTX 295 at high resolutions, a Core 2 at 3.0 Ghz is decent in Crysis Warhead, but a notable bottleneck in World in Conflict.