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Upgrading to i7

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sam432   09-12-2009 at 02:10:35 PM

Hi everyone, i am looking to upgrade my computer to an i7 processor and board. i currently have a q9650, and an old 650i board. my question is whether i should go with the i7 920 vs i7 860. The 860 ends up being about $60 cheaper, but is it not as good? also, i want the best for crossfire, as i have 2 4850s and would like to keep them. Thanks

one more question- is there difference between 10600 and 10666 ram? specifcally, would these two packs be compatible with each other?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820231189

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820148194


Message edited by sam432 on 09-12-2009 at 02:30:18 PM
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flyin15sec   09-12-2009 at 03:13:11 PM
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Ram compatibility is really a coin flip. You won't know until you try it. Typically, if you can get the timings and voltages to match up, it should work fine.

If you're buying from Newegg, looking over those two kits, you're better off buying a triple channel DDR3 kit for the same price, and go with an i7 920 setup. You can make up the difference in motherboard price. This way the cost should be around the same.

Reply to flyin15sec
sam432   09-12-2009 at 03:33:36 PM
- 0 +

thanks, your right about saving moeny on the x58, but i dont want to get a cheap board, that is where i want to put most of my money, so i can get a nice stable one.

also, any thoughts on going amd? would a phenom 2 965 be better than my q9650? because this would be much cheaper as i wouldnt need new ram

Message quoted 1 times
Message edited by sam432 on 09-12-2009 at 03:38:46 PM
Reply to sam432
flyin15sec   09-12-2009 at 06:37:09 PM
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It's hard to answer your question. What do you plan on doing with your setup?

As it is, the cheapest alternative is to get a quality P45 board and see what you can do with that Q9650 - this is a very potent processor in itself.

Going AMD would entail you to get new memory, as going with an AM2+ motherboard now is a waste. You'd have to go AM3, which means DDR3 memory.

Reply to flyin15sec
stevensl2   09-12-2009 at 06:41:27 PM
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Since you have 2 4850's you would probably want the x58, The i5's are limited to x8 x8 when in crossfire or SLI I believe.

Triple channel ram also benefit quite a bit in games from what I've seen. I used to be getting like 160fps avg in Tf2 with my phenomII 940/ 4gb 1066mhz, and ever since I upgraded I have been getting over 240fps in Tf2.

But of course It's different for every user, I DID OC my parts quite a bit. You can find out the memory motherboard compatibility list on their websites, I checked before buying my G.Skill Rams, I mean.. The store owner told me they are guaranteed to work, This was when I was shopping in the electronics area In Taiwan Taipei.

The i7 is meant to run DDR3 1333, so anything over would count as OC.

------------------------------ http://www.speedtest.net/result/638783794.png
 Reply to stevensl2
sam432   09-12-2009 at 06:48:44 PM
- 0 +

ok thanks, i definately want a new motherboard, as mine is very unstable and i don't want to overclock on it. would simply getting a new 775 board, say an x48, be worth it? and does x16 vs x8 really matter?

Message quoted 1 times
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RIOTinYOURcity   09-12-2009 at 08:48:20 PM
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sam432 wrote :

does x16 vs x8 really matter?



If your doing 2+ GPUs on a very high resolution like 1920x1200, yes it does. From all the reviews I've read SLI/CFX isn't bottlenecked too harshly as long as you stay at lower resolutions, probably around 1080 and below.

Reply to RIOTinYOURcity
sam432   09-12-2009 at 09:00:28 PM
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oh well im using a 1080p monitor, so i guess it will bother me. however, my 650i only has two 8x lanes, and ive never noticed a problem with my two 4850s

Reply to sam432
RIOTinYOURcity   09-12-2009 at 09:12:14 PM
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Then you should be set!

Get the i7 860 unless your running serious apps while multitasking.

Reply to RIOTinYOURcity
PsychoSaysDie   09-13-2009 at 12:39:59 AM
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sam432 wrote :

thanks, your right about saving moeny on the x58, but i dont want to get a cheap board, that is where i want to put most of my money, so i can get a nice stable one.

also, any thoughts on going amd? would a phenom 2 965 be better than my q9650? because this would be much cheaper as i wouldnt need new ram




Cheap boards are fine for the I7. I had a Gigabyte EX58-UD3R running a 920 @ 4.2Ghz daily for months. You dont need a 200+ dollar board

------------------------------ Dell Precision 670
Dual 2.8Ghz SL8MA's
16GB DDR2
XFX 5770
Reply to PsychoSaysDie
sam432   09-13-2009 at 01:12:39 AM
- 0 +

thanks that board actually looks nice, two questions about it
1. does it support sli and crossfire, or just crossfire
2.are the 2 pci x16 real x16, or 8x thanks

Message quoted 1 times
Reply to sam432
yomamafor1   09-13-2009 at 02:14:13 AM
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All Gigabyte X58 boards support both SLI and Xfire. X58 chipset supports 2 PCI-E 2.0 x16 lanes.

------------------------------ Intel will not take the top spot, or probably the top 3 spot back for the forseeable future. Not even with 32nm and more cores will intel be able to beat Jaguar. - JennyH the AMDiot, Nov 2009
 Reply to yomamafor1
PsychoSaysDie   09-13-2009 at 04:51:32 AM
- 0 +

sam432 wrote :

thanks that board actually looks nice, two questions about it
1. does it support sli and crossfire, or just crossfire
2.are the 2 pci x16 real x16, or 8x thanks




The I7 supports 32 lanes so it's 2 X16 slots

------------------------------ Dell Precision 670
Dual 2.8Ghz SL8MA's
16GB DDR2
XFX 5770
Reply to PsychoSaysDie
sam432   09-13-2009 at 01:42:18 PM
- 0 +

ok that board looks nice i think im going to go with that and an i7 920 + 6gb ddr3
thanks everyone

Reply to sam432
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