Choosing the CPU

definitely the i7 2600k
However i think you are on a budget?
Then the i5 2500k would be a great budget cpu.

^+1

Well out of those 2 cpu's, as others have agreed, I'd go with the 2600K.

Although, if your not into much overclocking, (and if you dont need the more powerful integrated graphics) then i would say just save a few bucks and go for for the non K version. (core i7 2600 for example)


If you need a more budget oriented cpu, then i would also recommend a Core i5 2500k or Core i5 2500.

Yeah, I am on a budget. But i think I can afford 2600K.

BTW: Can you recommend me a compatible motherboard? I would prefer a model with a lot of PCI and PCI-E slots for future updates and SLI technology for multile Nvidia GPUs

I've just checked the Intel's website. Before you sent your post i didn't even know that the K means integrated graphics. Well, I certainly don't need the graphics, but I would like to have a CPU with unlocked multiplier. Any ideas?

What motherboard with Socket 1155 and x58 chipset should I get?

No, i advice you to get the i5 2500k unless your doing heavy cpu oriented work.The only things that make a i7 2600k a i7 2600k is that its an extra 2mb cache and HT which is very very worthless.
I found that out since i have 2 i7 2600ks..I should have bought 2 i5 2500k..Really stupid of me..

My bad. Just realized X58 doesn't support 1155

You get a p67 chipsets which are available now or a z68 chipset which would be available in a few days time depending on location.
I suggest the z68 asrock mobos.Though i dont know what you plan to use your pc for just yet.

All of the 2nd gen core i(3,5,and 7) have intergrated graphics, it just the "k" versions have a more powerful graphics than there non k counter parts.

As for wanting unlocked multi's well that would limit you to the K variants. I just suggested the non k variants as you were saying that you wouldn't be overclocking or very much of type of saying.


As for motherboard idea's,

It sound like your wanting a motherboard close to (if not exactly like) this

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

2 pci-e 2.0 x16 slots (runs at 8x when both slots are used)

2 pci's

3 pci-e 2.0 x1



There are higher end motherboards with more pci-e x16 (and less pci-e x1) slots but the price is very high for those types of motherboards.

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



Although as ghnader pointed out, what are you going to be using for? depending on what your doing (say gaming) me might be able to put more of the right components for the task your about to.

I recommend waiting a few weeks until there are more reviews of Z68 boards

Gaming is going to be one of the biggest uses of this PC.

As for the motherboard I've found a bit more high end model from Asus that is better suited for a hi end PC which would last for 5+ years.



I really need some help choosing the best graphic card. I sort of like the the 560 gtx from Nvidia. However I'm not sure exactly which card to pick (for example: Asus 560gtx or maybe Gigabyte 560 gtx etc.)

Do you know any other graphic cards in this price range or less that perform as good or better?

yes then 2500k would be great build.

Right now very few games support more than 3 threads; with that in mind the 4 extra threads that the Intel® Core™ I7-2600K has over the Intel Core I5-2500K doesn’t have much value in a gaming environment. So at that point you are looking at 100 MHz difference in performance for just about $100. Now as far as sockets go 1155 is our latest socket and is projected into the foreseeable future as our main stream socket for the desktop market. So now that leaves you with making up your mind as to which board to pick. For a gamer I would say you should look at the P67 or the new Z68 boards. There are some great well established P67 boards from all the major manufacturers.

Christian Wood
Intel Enthusiast Team

Could you please help me with the graphics card? I am thinking about Nvidia GTX 560 Ti GPU, but I don't know what brand should I get (e.g. Asus, Gigabyte...)

brands which are best are dependant on the person to person..
I like gigabyte some people like Asus others like Msi.
Do you want to play eyefinity?Or just use 2 displays?

I like Gigabyte cards.So yeah get the gigabyte 560 ti OC version.

I think I'll stick to i7 because I also use software like Photoshop and Autodesk 3ds max which should benefit from those extra 4 threads, right?

I would like to know what's your opinion on this board:

Sounds nice!

Where could I get it?

BTW: There is also a non Ti version of the 560 GTX, which is claimed to have like 100Mhz more processor speed than the Ti version. Is it worth checking out?

no it wont use the threads..

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/item?linkID=...
there is only the gtx 560 ti version.Ti is just a naming scheme.All the gtx 560 s are the same.

So you are saying that getting 2600K would be dumb considering the software capability of using multiple threads?

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/item?linkID=...

in my above thread it shows autodesk not to be dependent on cores.

It's nice of you doing a research but the link that you posted shows the cores that AutoCAD uses and not 3ds max which is a completely different software.

It says here that it supports multiple cores in MentalRay rendering. That's good, coz I use MentalRay alot

sorry it does support multicore technology.
http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/item?siteID=...
But if i were you i would choose the i5 2500k but the i7 2600k is good.Its just that i dont think i7 with its Hyperthreading and 2mb more of level 3 cache is worth the extra 100bucks.

You've got a good point. But I think I gonna consider the i7 as an investment in the future, because sooner or later software will support more threads.
I'll see how will it go money vise, but if I can afford it, I'll probably buy it.

Anyway, thanks for your help.

What about multitasking?

The i7 has 4 more threads than the i5. Does that improve the computer's performance when running several apps at once?