Hello,
I'm building a new computer and have a couple questions about the specifics. I approached two friends and they suggested two different setups for the processor, motherboard, and memory. The have been having a small debate on which is actually the better setup. I asked two more very computer-savvy friends their input and they are split as well.
Here are the setups:
Setup 1 (Frank):
Processor - $289.99 - Intel Core i7-950 Bloomfield 3.06GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor BX80601950
Motherboard - $179.99 - MSI X58 Pro-E LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard
Memory - $72.99 - Crucial 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1066 (PC3 8500) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model CT3KIT25664BA1067
Setup 2 (Donald):
Processor - $224.99 - Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52500K
Motherboard - $179.99 - MSI P67A-GD65 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
Memory - $99.99 - CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMZ8GX3M2A1600C8
Here are their arguments:
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Frank:
"I feel like triple channel would surpass the dual channel; even if the processor may be just slightly better... i think the performance would on the ram would more than make up for it..."
Donald:
"ya someone mentiond once that tirple channel doesnt get fully utilzied and it was better to jsut stick w/ dual channel. that's why most sandy bridge motherboards do dual channel instead of triple but i did not confirm this"
Frank:
"triple channel ram that is rated above 1333 doesn't get utilized... (for instance your brother bought ram that is rated at 1600 mhz...) but he is only going to get to use 1333 unless he decides to overclock... which is risky... So since most ram is rated higher than 1333, yes its easy to see how people come upon that conclusion... however... three sticks all running at 1333 are faster than 2 sticks running at say 1600"
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Ali’s Comment’s:
For starters: Donald is right. Your practical gain out of triple channel memory may not offset the cost. I haven't looked at prices in a while to see if they've leveled out, but if you wanna spare some bank, go dual channel.You should go the Donald route in the spec sheet,
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Jackson's Comments:
All I can say is the more memory bandwidth, the better. It's hard to say though, which setup offers more. At first glance, tri chan does. But you have to remember that new processors come with new socket technology that just straight up offers more bandwidth on a lot of stuff. It's impossible to tell without some involved reading.
Donald's right in that the processor maybe slightly faster, but that probably won't ever be the bottleneck of your system. You can have a magic processor from the future that's 20x as fast, but it'll still be waiting to read from memory and disk, so you won't ever feel it. Imagine a guy who is really good at math, but I only give him 1 simple problem to solve a day. The rest of his day, is just wasted."
----------------------------------
Any help or advice would be extremely appreciated! If there is a "better" setup you can suggest for a similar price, go for it. Who do I trust?
Thanks!
EDIT: For those interested, this is "the rest" of the setup I've looked at so far.
Graphics Card - $242.99 - SAPPHIRE 100312-1GSR Radeon HD 6950 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity
Hard Drive - $59.99 - Seagate Barracuda ST31000524AS 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
SSD - $109.99 - SAMSUNG 470 Series MZ-5PA064/US 2.5" 64GB SATA II Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
Case - $59.99 - RAIDMAX Quantum ATX-798WB Black SECC ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
Power Supply - $101.99 - COOLMAX RM-1000B 1000W ATX 12V v2.2/ EPS12V v2.91 SLI / CrossFire Ready Active PFC and Compatible with Core i3/i5/i7 Power Supply
This is the first machine I am building. Thus, I know very little.
I'm building a new computer and have a couple questions about the specifics. I approached two friends and they suggested two different setups for the processor, motherboard, and memory. The have been having a small debate on which is actually the better setup. I asked two more very computer-savvy friends their input and they are split as well.
Here are the setups:
Setup 1 (Frank):
Processor - $289.99 - Intel Core i7-950 Bloomfield 3.06GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor BX80601950
Motherboard - $179.99 - MSI X58 Pro-E LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard
Memory - $72.99 - Crucial 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1066 (PC3 8500) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model CT3KIT25664BA1067
Setup 2 (Donald):
Processor - $224.99 - Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52500K
Motherboard - $179.99 - MSI P67A-GD65 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
Memory - $99.99 - CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMZ8GX3M2A1600C8
Here are their arguments:
----------------------------------
Frank:
"I feel like triple channel would surpass the dual channel; even if the processor may be just slightly better... i think the performance would on the ram would more than make up for it..."
Donald:
"ya someone mentiond once that tirple channel doesnt get fully utilzied and it was better to jsut stick w/ dual channel. that's why most sandy bridge motherboards do dual channel instead of triple but i did not confirm this"
Frank:
"triple channel ram that is rated above 1333 doesn't get utilized... (for instance your brother bought ram that is rated at 1600 mhz...) but he is only going to get to use 1333 unless he decides to overclock... which is risky... So since most ram is rated higher than 1333, yes its easy to see how people come upon that conclusion... however... three sticks all running at 1333 are faster than 2 sticks running at say 1600"
----------------------------------
Ali’s Comment’s:
For starters: Donald is right. Your practical gain out of triple channel memory may not offset the cost. I haven't looked at prices in a while to see if they've leveled out, but if you wanna spare some bank, go dual channel.You should go the Donald route in the spec sheet,
----------------------------------
Jackson's Comments:
All I can say is the more memory bandwidth, the better. It's hard to say though, which setup offers more. At first glance, tri chan does. But you have to remember that new processors come with new socket technology that just straight up offers more bandwidth on a lot of stuff. It's impossible to tell without some involved reading.
Donald's right in that the processor maybe slightly faster, but that probably won't ever be the bottleneck of your system. You can have a magic processor from the future that's 20x as fast, but it'll still be waiting to read from memory and disk, so you won't ever feel it. Imagine a guy who is really good at math, but I only give him 1 simple problem to solve a day. The rest of his day, is just wasted."
----------------------------------
Any help or advice would be extremely appreciated! If there is a "better" setup you can suggest for a similar price, go for it. Who do I trust?
Thanks!
EDIT: For those interested, this is "the rest" of the setup I've looked at so far.
Graphics Card - $242.99 - SAPPHIRE 100312-1GSR Radeon HD 6950 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity
Hard Drive - $59.99 - Seagate Barracuda ST31000524AS 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
SSD - $109.99 - SAMSUNG 470 Series MZ-5PA064/US 2.5" 64GB SATA II Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
Case - $59.99 - RAIDMAX Quantum ATX-798WB Black SECC ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
Power Supply - $101.99 - COOLMAX RM-1000B 1000W ATX 12V v2.2/ EPS12V v2.91 SLI / CrossFire Ready Active PFC and Compatible with Core i3/i5/i7 Power Supply
This is the first machine I am building. Thus, I know very little.