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Cpu vs motherboard; core 2 duo vs i7

Forum CPU & Components : CPUs - Cpu vs motherboard; core 2 duo vs i7

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hi i built a system a year ago and sadly my motherboard was fried during a storm, ive managed to use the best of it but since im saving money im not sure if i should save up for i7 processor with a new motherboard or if i should buy a core 2 duo.

atm i have a amd quad core 9550 2.2 ghz, this was a bad decision i now find out since i only game and watch movies on my computer.

i was wondering if i strictly gamed on my pc if i should stick with a 2 duo or go for an i7, also if i need a new motherboard right away for these processors, my motherboard is a asus 790fx m3a32-mvp deluxe. which is a 400 dollar motherboard and i really dont want to replace it if it wont work with other processors.

to sum it up i need to know:

which processor is better for gaming i7 vs 2duo
if i need a motherboard made for these models
this pc is mainly for gaming.

ty for the feedback

Add a reply

You can't use an Intel CPU with an AMD Mobo, That's like eating fish and honey!!
You can upgrade to AMD Phenom II 955 ($150~) or LGA1156 i5 ($350~) Mobo and CPU Oh and RAM ($400~)

Medo

------------------------------ -Medo Egyptian
"Simplicity is a mix of complexity."
Reply to psycho sykes

You could try:
ASUS M4A78-E AM2+/AM3 AMD 790GX HDMI ATX - $114.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] -_-Product

Though if you really are set on buying a new rig:
i7
- Better if used with SLi or XFire
- Single-card performance is sometimes equal with a C2Q
- Pricey

C2D
- Cheap
- Relatively easy to OC (but so is the i7)

Reply to amnotanoobie

personally the core 2 duo is an old chip now.

id go for the phenom II, or i7 860, or i5

the i7 860 seems to offer great value as it runs at 2.8 ghz stock can OC well, and has hyperthreading to allow 8 logical cores (though it has 4 physical) it would work with a LGA 1156 motherbaord and dual channel DDR3 ram.

if i were building a good gaming rig for multi purpose too keeping in mind some kind of budget id be looking at the i7 860 atm but thats my personally view

Message quoted 1 times

------------------------------ Q6600 @ 3Ghz
8800 Ultra
4GB OCZ 1:1 ratio
2 x 500GB WD RAID 0
Reply to mildiner86

mildiner86 wrote :

ive looked at the i7 prices and they are pretty nice compared to the core 2 duos since they are old, can someone tell me the difference on the i7 vs the phenom 2, also is cross fire similar to nvidias sli?

on the lga 1156 can someone list the pros and cons of each model i saw 5 different models ranging from le to deluxe.

Message quoted 1 times
Message edited by g4kioN1 on 09-15-2009 at 02:21:49 PM

Reply to g4kioN1

as for the i7/i5 range its a lil complicated.

lga 1366 is the origional i7, most favored is the 920 at 2.66 ghz if u go with this cpu and a 1366 board u will be allowed tri channle ram which runs slightly faster than dual but not by a massive differnece

the lag 1156 can take an i5 or the right type of i7 namely the 860 i7 which is at 2.8 ghz

the differnce with i5 and i7 is that the i7 ha hyperthreading where as the i5 doesnt.

as for the phenom II just look at sum benchmarks its a quad core CPU similar in preferomance to a core 2 quad but slightly better

but an i7 will out preform a phenomII

------------------------------ Q6600 @ 3Ghz
8800 Ultra
4GB OCZ 1:1 ratio
2 x 500GB WD RAID 0
Reply to mildiner86

g4kioN1 wrote :

Well here a list of pros and con's i made on another thread about the core i5, i7 800's, and i7 900's. (no there no AMD cpus in this. i dont know much about there cpu's so i'll let someone that does know it post somthing about it.)

Quote :

Well it depends on what you'll use it for. If it just going to be used for email and web surfing then i would say I5. If it going to be gaming that only going to use 1 graphic card the the get the I7 8xx's. If your going to need 2 graphic cards for a game and/or need max ram bandwidth for memory intensive programs then the I7 9xx's cpu's.

Here's some pros and cons to each CPU series.

I5:
Pros:
Cheap cpu.
Great turbo
Will get the job done for most to all programs.
Runs cooler than the I7 9xx's
Can run faster 1333 MHZ ram than the I7 9xx's.

Cons:
No HT
No triple channel memory
Doesn't have full dual 16x bandwidth for 2 video cards.
Will not be upgradable with 6+ core cpus.

I7 8xx's
(pretty much the same as i5's)

Pro's:
HT
Can be cheaper than the 9xx's (depending on locations and store)

I7 9xx's:
Pro's:
Triple channel memory
HT
full Dual 16X video bandwidth.
upgrade option down the road to the Core i9 when you need 6 cores

Con's:
Can be expensive. (depeding on location and store)
can be very hot if not in a well ventilated case.
Can only run 1066 MHz ram unless over clock to fully use cheaper 1333 MHz.
not as powerful turbo as the i5 and i7 8xx's cpus.

Well i hope this helps.

Reply to warmon6

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