Alienware, AVADirect, Others Now Offer Ivy Bridge-E
Alienware, Maingear and a number of other OEMs have Ivy Bridge-E solutions ready and waiting for your money.
Alienware said on Wednesday that its flagship gaming desktop, the Alienware Aurora, now comes packed with Intel's new "Ivy Bridge-E" Core i7 processors, including the super-fast i7-4960X Extreme Edition chip, as well as the latest GeForce 700-series graphics and AMD 8900-series graphics options. Players can also increase speed and capacity by adding additional hard drives or solid state drives within the four internal drive bays, the company said.
The Alienware Aurora entry configuration starts at $1,399 USD and now offers double the amount of storage over the previous generation, an unlocked and overclocked quad-core Intel Core i7-4820K Ivy Bridge-E processor, and an Nvidia GeForce GTX760 1.5 GB DDR5 graphics card. The company also offers the ALX chassis as an option, providing an intelligent thermal management system that monitors key locations within the chassis.
"Alienware has always pushed the limits with the capabilities of its platforms, and the award-winning Aurora is no different," said Frank Azor, General Manager, Alienware. "Hardcore gamers around the world will be able to play the latest games at the highest settings, on a system engineered to deliver the ultimate gaming experience for years to come."
Custom computer builder AVADirect also said on Tuesday that it's offering Intel's new Ivy Bridge-E processors including the six-core i7-4960X Extreme Edition, the six-core i7-4930K and the four-core i7-4820K chips. Their smaller die size means less power required and less heat generated inside the box, opening the door to push these chips beyond their factory settings. Coupled with AVADirect's Custom Liquid Cooling, customers should see extreme overclock results up to 30 percent, the company said.
"Reduced temperature output also aids AVADirect's goal to provide the most quiet, high-end workstations available today; the utilization of various low-noise cooling solutions is a perfect combination with Intel's Ivy Bridge-E processors," the company said. "End-users can expect to receive the benefits of AVADirect's new Ivy Bridge-E solutions through desktop, workstation, mini-PC, notebook, and various small form-factor configurations."
Virginia-based Velocity Micro has also jumped on the Ivy Bridge-E bandwagon, announcing the immediate availability of Raptor systems powered by the new Intel Core i7 processors, starting at $2,399 USD. The Core i7-4960X Extreme Edition sports a base clock speed of 3.6 GHz, but soars up into the 4 GHz realm with Turbo Boost switched on. The 4930K and 4820K have 3.4 GHz/3.9 GHz and 3.7 GHz/3.9 GHz base/Turbo clock speeds respectively.
Other OEMs announcing their support for the new desktop processors include Origin PC, Maingear and IBUYPOWER. Of course, if you plan to build your own Ivy Bridge-E rig from scratch, then forget everything you've read: this is for readers wanting to take a shortcut.
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Kevin Parrish has over a decade of experience as a writer, editor, and product tester. His work focused on computer hardware, networking equipment, smartphones, tablets, gaming consoles, and other internet-connected devices. His work has appeared in Tom's Hardware, Tom's Guide, Maximum PC, Digital Trends, Android Authority, How-To Geek, Lifewire, and others.
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DarkSable I don't... why in the world would you pair an ivy bridge-E with a 760?Reply
It doesn't make sense for a gaming computer to have that powerful of a CPU, and it certainly doesn't make sense to buy an alienware as a workstation. -
bryonhowley I would still prefer to build my own rig instead of buying an Alienware or any other pre-built rig for that matter. But for me it is more of a hobby and something I really enjoy doing. Plus I can pick better components than the limited parts they offer. That just seems a little mismatched pairing a i7 six core with a GTX 760 1.5gig.Reply -
Grandmastersexsay Why would someone pay for the Ivy Bridge-E when Haswell will beat it in single threaded applications for almost 1/4 the price? There are very very few programs that can take advantage of all four cores, let alone six. From AutoCAD to your favorite video game, they're all single threaded. I just don't get it unless you are one of the very few people that will use all those cores, in which case you would probably be better served with a multi processor work station build for the same price.Reply
Ivy Bridge-E should have came out almost two years ago. -
aggroboy Reply
That's their entry-level system which also uses 4820k (not 6-core).11526709 said:I don't... why in the world would you pair an ivy bridge-E with a 760?
It doesn't make sense for a gaming computer to have that powerful of a CPU, and it certainly doesn't make sense to buy an alienware as a workstation. -
DarkSable Reply11527900 said:
That's their entry-level system which also uses 4820k (not 6-core).11526709 said:I don't... why in the world would you pair an ivy bridge-E with a 760?
It doesn't make sense for a gaming computer to have that powerful of a CPU, and it certainly doesn't make sense to buy an alienware as a workstation.
It's still pointless over a plain old quad core i5. -
Diclonius Franbunny ReplyI don't... why in the world would you pair an ivy bridge-E with a 760?
It's about giving people the options line up for their choice of parts. It provides options to consumers, whether its a good choice or not.
Alienware offers cards up to the dual 780s, GTX 690, HD 8990, ect. you can pick your build when you order an alienware. They are just offering options.