Intel Core i5-750 Quad 2.66 vs AMD Phenom II X4 955

[celt-]

I'm having a hard time deciding which build to concentrate on.
Gaming rig.

My original Idea:
Intel Core i5-750 Quad 2.66
ASUS P7P55D mobo
Radeon HD 5750 1GB
Corsair XMS3 4GB DDR3 1600
Thermaltake SpinQ Cooler
Corsair 850W PSU
Maxtor DiamondMax 10 200GB
SILVERSTONE Kublai Series KL02-BW Case

New Idea:
AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core
MSI 790FX-GD70 AM3 AMD 790FX ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
OCZ Obsidian 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600
SILVERSTONE Kublai Series KL02-BW Case
? Video Card
? PSU
? HSU

Im not worried about the ability to crossfire in the future, I was told that the P7P wont support it, I dont know if the MSI mobo will.

What would be a better build? The AMD or the INTEL?

 

[impaledmango]

First I'd take the i5 build because the i5 750 has a better clock/performance ratio against any amd cpu wise and overclocks the same and they would both cost about the same.

first thing that seems wrong about your intel build is that it has a 850w psu for system that wont even push 450w. I'd get this psu instead.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005
corsair 650w.

this cooler is a beast for overclocking as well for only $30.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065&Tpk=cooler%20master%20hyper%20212

I have my i7 OC'd to 3.8ghz and it doesnt break 65c on full load.

This case is also looks better then your case (in my opinion) and has some nice airflow.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119196

This board is also the best for price and it offers sli and crossfire and is good for overclocking.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130239

and last I'd get this card instead

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121355&cm_re=5770-_-14-121-355-_-Product

 

[celt-]

impaledmango please see
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/275109-31-rate-build#t2022119

thanks for your advice.

 

[nofun]

the i5-750 has better performance for gaming.

 

[batuchka]

Actualy i would consider P2X3 720BE if it means you could hit a better GPU like HD 5850/5870 ^^ Our very own forums had tested a USD $1000 i7 965 with a $119 P2X3 720BE and extensive articles for what chip for what task were also written

A lot of fud about peeps getting quad cores for gaming rig i see lol
I would also hit this stunning AM3/770 since i think it silly to have to pay for SLI/CF when TS specifically stated he has no interest in it @@
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128392

OC, unlocking and real owners input thread on that mobo
http://forums.vr-zone.com/overclocking-bazaar/466518-amd-x2-550-phenom2-black-edition-unlocking-thread.html

So to answer your question: get as stunning a GPU your budget allows then work backwards hehe

 

[Onus]

I think I will agree with Batuchka. IF getting the AMD CPU leaves enough in your budget for a better GPU, I think you will see slightly better performance. We're all waiting for the Part 2 of the balance gaming rig series which will feature AMD; Part 1 was for Intel chips.

 

[impaledmango]

well also the i5 750 performs better than a 3 core in other tasks. And also check out his other thread if you want to comment on his build.

 

[celt-]

First and foremost, a sincere thank you to all who contributed the time and knowledge to give me input on this build.

I have decided to stick with the Intel i5.

My budget is under 1200, and I do plan on using the PC for more than just gaming, or else I would really strongly consider the P2X3. I use photoshop CS2 quite regularly, thus ill take a little extra in the application performance area.

The following is the final setup, as ordered from new egg:
CPU: Intel i5-750 Quad 2.66 -$199.99 Here
Mobo: MSI P55-GD65 -$154.99 Here
GPU: HIS Radeon 5770 -$189.99 Here
PSU: OCZ Fatality 550W -$64.99 Here
HDD: WD Caviar Black 640 GB -$74.99 Here
RAM: OCZ Platinum 4GB DDR3 1333 -$99.99 Here
Cooling: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus -$41.85 Here
Case: Cooler Master Storm Scout -$94.99 Here
Monitor: Asus 23.6” 1080p LCD -$179.99 Here
OS: Windows 7 64 bit -$104.99 Here

Total cost after discounts: $1160.21
(Hyper 212 was purchased for 41.00 (with shipping) from another site)

I feel that this is a respectable build. The Graphics are not "top of the line", but the mobo is CF compatible, and the Radeon 5770 can run DX11, so if I feel the need to upgrade my video I can always CF another card, without "wasting" my 5770. This setup also allows me to do some overclocking, which I admittedly need to research more.

I received solid recommendations for a SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD502HJ 500GB
Here
But I chose to stick with the WD 640GB. This article: Western Digital Caviar Black 2TB (which describes the 2TB version) describes it as a pretty solid HDD.

Thanks again for all the help.
I saved almost $80 in combo deals. Its to bad the Hyper212 was out of stock, that would have saved me another $10.
Any final thoughts? How about the monitor, anyone have experience with it?
Thanks again.

 

[impaledmango]

I personally dont like 24" 1080p monitors. The screen doesnt look as nice as 21.5" from my experiences. Though it is kinda personal preferance. I have a Samsung P2270, which I love so much, deffinatley a better gaming experience then my old 19" acer!

 

[Outlander_04]

I with batuchka here too .

gfx card first for gaming at high resolutions . That suggests you save money on cpu and the 720 be/770 combination is the best budget choice still

 

[atomicdumpling]

That looks like a very nice build Celt.

I believe the i5-750 is a better choice than the Phenom II X4 955.

 

[impaledmango]

I with batuchka here too .

gfx card first for gaming at high resolutions . That suggests you save money on cpu and the 720 be/770 combination is the best budget choice still

He's not just going to be doing just gaming, and I would think that a quad core would be better for future games that come out within the next year. And to be honest 5770 is a pretty good card and he can always get a second one if ever has troubles down the road. And he wants to overclock the i5 to 3.8ghz to get the most out of his system. The benefits of having a good overclocked quad core for more than just gaming is better then a triple core in all aspects. If he really wants better performance in games he can pick up a 4890 for the same price as the 5770. Also there's no point cutting corners in the most expensive parts in his budget (cpu and motherboard). He can always switch out his graphic card later, but having to buy a new cpu and motherboard just to get some performance upgrade isnt really the best option. I feel that having a more balanced system beats focusing on only one part of your system (no matter how important one part may be) since he's making a jack of all trades PC, and it's not like the 5770 is a bad card, especially with early drivers, but like I said you can switch it out for a 4890.

Anyways what would he switch it for? A 5850? A 4890 performance good enough if he wants to have good performance and games and doesnt compromise his superior cpu. He can always add a second 5770 down the road.

 

[celt-]

I went with the 5770 over the 4890 because I wanted the DirectX11 compatibility.
If I notice any problems, I will CF another card.

I'm kinda thinking along the same thought as impaled. This build leaves me the option to upgrade via one GPU instead of a CPU and Mobo.

Here's a question:

Whats better for gaming performance, a 5850 or two 5770's?

Also, can you CF a 5770 with say a 4890 or a 5850?

Thanks again you guys rock

 

[impaledmango]

I went with the 5770 over the 4890 because I wanted the DirectX11 compatibility.
If I notice any problems, I will CF another card.

I'm kinda thinking along the same thought as impaled. This build leaves me the option to upgrade via one GPU instead of a CPU and Mobo.

Here's a question:

Whats better for gaming performance, a 5850 or two 5770's?

Also, can you CF a 5770 with say a 4890 or a 5850?

Thanks again you guys rock

No you cant cross crossfire between 2 different gens, but you may be able to crossfire a 5770 and a 5850, but the 5850 would downclock to the 5770 level if I am correct and would run the same as 2 5770s. Also 2 5770 performs between the 5850 and 5870 (closer to the 5870 performance wise). 5770s are really good at scaling apprently

 

[celt-]

That is good news.
So down the road an economic option would be to crossfire in another 5770.

Ill have to do some research as I've never attempted a CF, and Im particularly interested in what effects a CF would have on my PSU.

Ive read that the 5770 is good on power consumption(compared the the 4890) but I would assume that do perform a CF I may need to upgrade to a bigger PSU

 

[Onus]

Ok then, for application performance AMD isn't the best choice; even the fanbois need to admit that. That's a Sirtec-built PSU, so it may not be the best choice for Crossfire in the future, although it did pass 80+ (100% load, after warm-up).

 

[batuchka]

If 720be vs i5 for multi threaded apps then hell no ^^ Compare that with a $140 P2X4 925 and a 770/785G and compare *platform* price/performance...hmm

 

[Outlander_04]

The OP says GAMING rig , so 720be/770mb/badass gfx is the best choice

as far as application benches in favour of the i5 go well who cares . I would not sit and watch my computer encode a movie . I start up and walk away for a coffee so I dont care if it takes a few extra minutes because I wont be there .

Gaming is different though because I will be sitting there wanting best quality and fps

 

[nofun]

It all depends on how much the OP wants to spend. For the $200 price point, the i5 is the clear winner. Considering that the P55 architecture is reasonably priced, and that the i5 also delivers a reasonable performance/cost gain, I would still consider the i5.

from this article (http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/core-i5-lynnfield,2379.html):

Now of course these are synthetic benchmarks, which must be verified by real-world proofs; however, synthetic tests are a good starting point as they take a sample of many different applications and optimizations to deliver a balanced rating. I suggest that the OP reads the remainder of the article, as I believe the real-world gains do more or less correlate to the synthetic results.

HOWEVER, as I said before, it's all about how much money the OP is willing to spend. For his price point ($1200), it may well yield better performance to go with a lower-end CPU and drop in a higher-end GPU. The AM3 socket will still be upgradeable in the future; thus, a middle-range AM3 chip right now may be the way to go. Still I think for the price point he's looking at (the next step up from a HD 5770 would probably be a HD 4890 @$200, a GTX 275 @ $250+, or an HD 5850 @ $300), I would say that the build he listed above is a good solid choice. He can always crossfire later when the time comes.

 

[tarquinbiscuitbarrel]

if you plan to crossfire your 550w PSU might not be enough.

 

[celt-]

Great info and a good read.

 

[vinay_venturas]

Hi celt. How is your msi p55 gd65 working? Is it working smooth with your psu? I'm asking it because i too want to get the same board.

 

[celt-]

I really like it. I have my i5 overclocked to 3.4 just by hitting the oc button n the board. I'm sure i could get it higher manually, but its running nice and stable right now so I'm leaving it as is. Overall, I'm very happy with this board. My case is a bottom mount PSU and I had no problem hooking up the CPU power supply. Great mobo IMO