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I5 750 vs. i7 930 (microcenter), please advise

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Hey guys I am kind of in a sticky situation here. I am planning on building a new computer in just a few weeks, and have been planning on going with a build based on the i5-750. HOWEVER, there is a microcenter about 30-40 minutes from where I live, so I was wondering if it would be worth it to go with a 1366/i7 platform.

Here is what I have so far concerning cpu/mobo/ram:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

That's an i5 platform coming out to be around $460 after rebates.


NOW, I can get an i7 930 from microcenter for $216 (tax included). Ram is obviously going to cost more because I would definitely go 6gb in triple channel instead of 3gb. I would also want a mobo of very similar quality to the one in my i5 build.

My question is how much more would I have to pay for the i7 setup while not sacrificing on mobo/ram quality, and is it worth it? Which mobo/ram would you suggest? I'm guessing it's somewhere around the magnitude of $80 more for the 1366 platform (cpu/mobo/ram).


Extra info:
I am not too concerned about the loss of PCIE bandwidth when going with the 1156 socket. I think x8 x8 is plenty for if I ever wanted to crossfire some 5850's
I'm also not too concerned about longevity of the socket. I don't plan on upgrading this cpu for at least 2 years.
I do like that the i5 is very power efficient, especially with a moderate overclock w/turbo enabled
I like the overclockability of the i7 930 over the i5 750.
Triple channel memory is obviously better (but more expensive) and so is hyperthreading.


So basically I am just looking for some convincing either way. And if you were to convince me towards i7, which mobo and ram do you recommend?

Really I have been planning on going with the i5 for a very long time. But I almost feel bad about not taking advantage of the Microcenter special, especially when not everyone has a microcenter close to them.

Sorry for the way long post. I have a habit of trying to put all applicable information in there instead of letting you guys ask a few questions first.

More about : 750 930 microcenter advise

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PanickerA said:
change that RAM to this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

it's the same price

it has a lower clock but much better timings, which is more important


My only concern is that after reading some reviews, I have seen two instances in a row where people have cited that they could not get 8gb of this memory to work in a GA-P55-UD4P. I am getting pretty much the same mobo, except mine is P55A (Sata and USB 3.0).

Does anyone else see problems with this?

touchdowntexas13 said:
Microcenter has it for $248(after tax). Does that seem like a reasonable upgrade over the i5-750?

The 860 has hyperthreading and is the 1156 equivilant of the 930 more or less.
The 750 overclocks very well btw but doesn't have hyperthreading.
Hyperthreading may not be a big deal to some but most cpu's have it,allows alot of programs to function faster.
The 860 is a very versatile cpu it does just about everything very well.
None of these 3 cpu's are slouches.
I would seriously consider it.
And this is your best ram value it has more headroom i own some it's very fast.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
If i were to buy a mobo today for my 860 it would be this one it's simply better then the Giggy you listed and i own two Gigabyte boards.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
The ud4p has limited functions of the new tech features if you ever crossfire
6 months ago the Asus i listed cost over $200 it's a loaded mobo.
Just add the U3S6 expansion card down the road when SATA3 and USB3 are necessities it's cheap anyways.

davcon said:
The 860 has hyperthreading and is the 1156 equivilant of the 930 more or less.
The 750 overclocks very well btw but doesn't have hyperthreading.
Hyperthreading may not be a big deal to some but most cpu's have it,allows alot of programs to function faster.
The 860 is a very versatile cpu it does just about everything very well.
None of these 3 cpu's are slouches.
I would seriously consider it.
And this is your best ram value it has more headroom i own some it's very fast.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
If i were to buy a mobo today for my 860 it would be this one it's simply better then the Giggy you listed and i own two Gigabyte boards.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
The ud4p has limited functions of the new tech features if you ever crossfire
6 months ago the Asus i listed cost over $200 it's a loaded mobo.
Just add the U3S6 expansion card down the road when SATA3 and USB3 are necessities it's cheap anyways.


The RAM seems pretty good, but I don't like that it's rated at 1.65V as opposed to 1.5.

I'll have to look more into the mobo. I had picked the gigabyte because of features and the number of reviews. Is there no native support for usb 3.0 and sata 3.0 on that board? What exactly does that us36 card do?

Thanks.

I've built 3 i5-750 machines recently because I could save a little money on the cpu, on the motherboard, and on the ram. (On the ram because we wanted at least 8GB, with the 930 we would have had to buy 12GB.) Also, our cad apps didn't require that many cores/threads.

Some games seem to make use of lots of cores, they might benefit from hyperthreading. Otherwise you might wish to save a little money with the 750.

My i5's were able to go to 3.9GHz or so, I've read where some i7's go slightly over 4.0GHz. I'm not sure if those people were better at it than I am, or if there is a difference between the i5 and i7.

touchdowntexas13 said:
The RAM seems pretty good, but I don't like that it's rated at 1.65V as opposed to 1.5.

I'll have to look more into the mobo. I had picked the gigabyte because of features and the number of reviews. Is there no native support for usb 3.0 and sata 3.0 on that board? What exactly does that us36 card do?

Thanks.

Either one of those G.skills sets will do just fine.The reason one is I.65v is because its 1600MHz the other is 1333MHz.They're both great sets.
That Gigabyte board is very good i was just trying to point out the fact that if you ever use two gpu's in it the USB3.0 will not be functional.A design flaw imo.
You might only use one gpu so it's not a big deal so you should buy the UD4P
Correct the Asus board has no native support for usb 3.0 or sata 3 but has more features.
That's what the U3S6 card does it adds two usb 3.0 ports and sata 3.

Seriously how many people do you know that use these features? i don't know anyone utilizing them.
You really can't go wrong with the i5 750,UD4P,and either one of the ram sets.



davcon said:
Either one of those G.skills sets will do just fine.The reason one is I.65v is because its 1600MHz the other is 1333MHz.They're both great sets.
That Gigabyte board is very good i was just trying to point out the fact that if you ever use two gpu's in it the USB3.0 will not be functional.A design flaw imo.
You might only use one gpu so it's not a big deal so you should buy the UD4P
Correct the Asus board has no native support for usb 3.0 or sata 3 but has more features.
That's what the U3S6 card does it adds two usb 3.0 ports and sata 3.

Seriously how many people do you know that use these features? i don't know anyone utilizing them.
You really can't go wrong with the i5 750,UD4P,and either one of the ram sets.



Ya but which features does the Asus board have over the Gigabyte board? I mean I know the basic list of features to look through, but I many not know all of the lesser known features.

Best solution

There's nothing wrong with the Gigabyte mobo it's a great mobo it will suit you fine if all you're going to use is one gpu.
I was just wanted to make sure you were aware of it's limitations when crossfired .
You mentioned you may crossfire if you do with that board you will not have USB 3.0 function.
As for the Asus board it's a full featured board for someone who may want to get the most out of overclocking their cpu.
It's a real tweakers board that's what i meant.
It has 24 Phase power. It has a remote for on the fly adjustments.
It has 14 USB 2.O ports.
It has 3 x PCI Express 2.0 x16 slots.supports SLI.
It has many expandability options.
It's packaged with more accessories.
All i was trying to say is it's not a bad price for what you get.
I don't know all of your computing intentions.
So the Asus has more features for the same price but no usb3 sata3
The Gigabyte if crossfired no usb3 sata3.
You're in the same boat comprendre!
Easy fix add a U3S6 card to the deluxe when these features are mainstream.$30
I really don't care what you do i was just making a suggestion.
Or simply buy this problems solved it has a PLX chipset and no usb3/sata3 limitations when crossfired

http://www.amazon.com/ASUS-P7P55D-E-Pro-Intel-Motherboa...

davcon said:
There's nothing wrong with the Gigabyte mobo it's a great mobo it will suit you fine if all you're going to use is one gpu.
I was just wanted to make sure you were aware of it's limitations when crossfired .
You mentioned you may crossfire if you do with that board you will not have USB 3.0 function.
As for the Asus board it's a full featured board for someone who may want to get the most out of overclocking their cpu.
It's a real tweakers board that's what i meant.
It has 24 Phase power. It has a remote for on the fly adjustments.
It has 14 USB 2.O ports.
It has 3 x PCI Express 2.0 x16 slots.supports SLI.
It has many expandability options.
It's packaged with more accessories.
All i was trying to say is it's not a bad price for what you get.
I don't know all of your computing intentions.
So the Asus has more features for the same price but no usb3 sata3
The Gigabyte if crossfired no usb3 sata3.
You're in the same boat comprendre!
Easy fix add a U3S6 card to the deluxe when these features are mainstream.$30
I really don't care what you do i was just making a suggestion.
Or simply buy this problems solved it has a PLX chipset and no usb3/sata3 limitations when crossfired

http://www.amazon.com/ASUS-P7P55D-E-Pro-Intel-Motherboa...


haha someone just barely beat you to that suggestion. newegg has the same board for the same price, and I added it to my wish list about an hour ago.

Thanks for all your help dude. I think I will be completely satisfied with the Asus board. Have a good one.

Lol! i would have suggested that board ages ago but i was under the impression you were on a strict budget.
Oh well i'm glad you're happy! your build will be very nice.
Thanks!
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