ambam :
The new processors from AMD/Intel are only 5% faster in gaming performance. There won't be any games using 6-8 cores/threads for a very long time. The Bulldozer and Sandy Bridge are geared more toward HD video encoding, and other CPU-intensive applications. There is not significant increase in gaming performance.
According to
Anand's Sandy Bridge Preview, it shows a hell of a lot more than a 5% performance increase under all cases, including gaming.
As these are just Preview numbers and no retail CPU's are out for further testing however, take these numbers with a grain of salt....
ambam :
Besides, the entry level Sandy Bridge will probably cost $500.
If Intel did that, they would go out of business....
Expect Sandy Bridge to take over their current generations price points with a moderate markup for the first few months after release.
The cheapest Sandy Bridge at launch will be the Core i3 2100, which will replace the i3 560 at around $138.
Source:
http://www.anandtech.com/show/3871/the-sandy-bridge-preview-three-wins-in-a-row/4
ambam :
OT, but ANY GPU of the same type can be CF/SLI right next to each other, even if they have larger heatsinks and coolers?
If it is a single or dual slot design (like 99+% of available GPU's), yes two will fit.
There are extremely few triple slot designs and they are quite expensive.
Wolygon :
The only reason they will have a small gaming performance increase is because the GPUs are the bottleneck. Though as better and better GPUs are developed the current CPUs will start to bottleneck the GPUs more and more. The i5s have only 4cores/4threads yet they have performance approaching a 980X.
Why waste $300 on a new board at this point? It will be a waste of money.
+1
Especially considering that you will gain
NO extra performance through upgrading your current motherboard.
The only thing you would gain is a slightly cooler master GPU which, if it turns out to be an issue, a few inexpensive fans should fix.
Wait, scratch that.
The Sabertooth will give you the same distance between GPUs as your current board....
So, no benefits to your GPU temps either.....
ambam :
$200 ASUS X58 motherboard, and I don't think a $1,700 8-core Sandy Bridge extreme edition will give us any noticeable increase in gaming performance for a very long time.
See the above link where a low end 4c/4t Sandy Bridge (even gimped without turbo boost enabled) makes a quite good showing against Intel's current top end parts.
Also, expect the top chips to cost $1000 and the others to fall into Intel's other current price points (link above).
ambam :
Could you sit Two of THESE cards right next to each other? It has a different heat sink and cooler than the reference cards, I'm worried that they could block one other due to that.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125326&cm_re=gigabyte_hd_5870-_-14-125-326-_-Product
Yes, even with the aftermarket cooling, it is still a dual slot design.
Two will fit just fine on your current motherboard.
As an additional bonus, the aftermarket cooling should alleviate most of the (potential) heat issues with keeping two cards so close.
ambam :
First off, Intel's flagship processors have always been extremely costly, usually upwards of $1,000. The 8-core sandy bridge will probably be $1,500, but that's just my guess.
Try $1000 for Intel's current top consumer CPU.
Their top Sandy Bridge should cost the same.
ambam :
The ASUS P6T SE is a value X58 board, it looks cheap and flimsy. I'd like a motherboard which is made from extremely high quality components, and will last me quite a while before it breaks.
Even ASUS' value boards are still pretty good quality.
With the assumption you
can get it to break, a 3 year warranty tells me you will still get a good life out of it.
Not like you have a MSI or other cheap board in you system....
ambam :
The ASUS Sabertooth X58 has tons of more features like SATA III and USB 3.0, MEM-ok, CeraMIX, military grade components, and tons of BIOS features. It was designed specifically for gaming.
+1 for ASUS' marketing department......
Alright, if you want the extra features (USB3, SATA 3), spend $25 and get an
ASUS U3S6.
It uses the EXACT same USB 3 and SATA 3 controller as the Sabertooth (and the vast majority of other USB/SATA 3 enabled motherboards) and connects the same also (through the spare PCIe lanes).
Bam, now you have all the features of the new motherboard.
As for the rest, do you plan on putting your CPU on LN2 and entering any overclocking championships?
Didn't think so.
In that case, plenty of people are able to push i7's to 4GHz+ with the same ASUS designed 8 phase VRM you have.
If it works good enough to push your chip to pratical limits, what do you expect to gain from the new motherboard?
ambam :
I'm selling my current motherboard on the internet, I won't get retail price for it, but maybe $120. I'll pay the difference for the better board. My current board has never been used or opened out of the box.
Then why not just return it for full price?
ambam :
I'll probably sell both of my HD 5870's and get maybe $350 for both of them, and then pay the small difference when the HD 6970 comes out. There might be a bottleneck with the Nehalem, but I doubt it will halve the performance.
LOL at unrealistic expectations.
So, they cost $375 brand new NOW.
If newer, better performing, GPUs are released at the same price point, the current generation of GPUs prices will drop.
By the time this happens you will be asking more for your used GPUs than they cost new.
They will never sell for what you think they will....
ambam :
The next product release from ATI will be the "Southern Island' HD 6000 series GPU's. These are not significantly faster than the current HD 5000 lineup. We'll have to wait until almost 2012 for the Northern Islands for the big performance boost. I don't want to wait that long.
Maybe you should wait for the cards to be released before you judge them.
You might be surprised one way or the other...
Anywhoo, it is your cash to spend.
I just think it is incredibly stupid to waste it on something that will give you no tangible benefits.
But, it is your cash to waste, so waste it as you would like...