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Dom needs a new CPU for I7 system

domthecondom

domthecondom

domthecondom

Soldato
Joined
9 Jul 2008
Posts
3,891
Location
Bristol
Hi guys,

I am currently in the stage of getting a I7 rig,

So far I have only choosen the case and know that I want to go Watercooled.
So i figure the next step is the CPU

deffetly going Intel and I7 =]

So far I have only really looked at the 950 and 940, which seems very good for there price range!. The higher ranges like 975 and 965 cost a bit to much to go into my rig.

So which CPU should I go for? 950 or 940? Or is there a new ounce coming out anytime soon?

My Rig will be mainly for Gaming, photo and video editing.
Will be intrested in overclocking aswell. :)

Cheers Dom
 
i duno, i just thought that the 920 is getting on a bit now?

Or am i wrong?

I just want a decent I7 system before i move out, as money will be tight for upgrading :)

The newer chip looks more appealing!

But if the 920 is a better bang for the buck then hell, why not!

I heard romours the I7 arn't good for gaming? and that turning hyperthreading off is better for gaming?
 
i7 920 D0 on water and you'll be set. Should be hitting 4.0GHZ + with ease and good temperatures. People do that on air. ;)
 
The i7 is excellent for gaming, it just happens that the amd ones are nearly as good and a lot cheaper, as games arent very processor bound at present.

Out of the two, definitely the 950. Don't get the older, nastier stepping of the 940. The extra multiplier (relative to 920) isn't as helpful as it first seems, the x24 is reputed to be very buggy leaving people using x23 anyway. Further, at 220 blck, you've probably hit the limit of the cpu at the x20 multiplier anyway. So the 950 offers close to nothing over the 920 d0, for significantly higher cost.

The above assumes youre on water, or heavens forbid air. If you can strap a ss to it, or use chilled water the game changes somewhat and the 950 starts to look like a better call.
 
people are hitting 4.2-4.4ghz on water with the 920 the 940 and 950 wont give more if anything MIGHT be able to push 4.5

the extremes have been pretty fail at overclocking unless using crazy hydrogen. a lot of overclocking reviews have stated the extremes are unstable at around 4.3/4.4.

So the 920 is definetly the way to go.
 
5ghz+ stable on phase seems to be standard for 950s, I think fairly normal for 920s. As thats 24/7, I don't class it as crazy. Extreme editions fail at overclocking? What on earth are you basing this on, they're killing everything else available

Main reason for returning to this thread was to point out that the 6 core i7 chips are coming out eventually. I'm probably going with a 920 D0 then upgrading to a 6 core once they're out.
 
I meant single stage phase :)
Which is rather a lot of effort, but is very good at cooling a processor.

On above ambient water I'm pretty sure you'll see the same clocks out of the 920 as you will out of the 950, near enough anyway. A good 920 will likely go higher than a poor 950.
 
argh I can still not make my mind up,

which one should I go for? And which CPU will last me?
I am quite new to overclocking and got my E6850 to 3.6Hhz (quite easy on that CPU).

920 940 or 950 obviously D0 stepping

Help me out :(
 
940 doesnt come in D0 stepping, the 950 is the 940 in D0 form

Depends a bit on how you feel about bang per buck. The 950 is better, but as performance / price it doesn't win. Have you done watercooling before? If not you may have underestimated the expense
 
Nope first time doing Watercooling.

Well I heard the 920, can pretty much hit the same clockspeeds as the 940/950 when overclocked.

And obviously is Cheaper, but i don't understand why there is 3 920s on overclockers website and no differences.

Anybody care to explain?
 
domthecondom said:
Anybody care to explain?
Click to expand...

Intel Core i7 920 D0 Stepping (SLBEJ) 2.66Ghz (Nehalem) (Socket LGA1366) - Retail
Intel Core i7 920 2.66Ghz (Nehalem) (Socket LGA1366) - OEM
Intel Core i7 920 D0 Stepping (SLBEJ) 2.66Ghz (Nehalem) (Socket LGA1366) - OEM

Bolded the things that make the difference.

Retail comes bundled with an Intel cooler.

You want D0 Stepping, it clocks better.

Basically buy the this week only one (Retail + D0 stepping). The Intel HS is handy for testing purposes before you use a thirdparty air/water cooler.

Not trying to be rude here, but if you cant research basic stuff like this then are you REALLY sure you want to go with watercooling? It's time intensive and expensive.
 
In fairness to dom, thats really not much of a difference. One comes with a nearly worthless heatsink, and there are two stepping variations. D0 is more popular, but the older stepping still does just fine under water.

What've you budgeted for water cooling? The 920 D0 stepping and the money saved spent making the water cooling better is probably the way to go
 
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Cheers for explaining guys :)

@ sldsmkd your not being rude, should have really had a look, but at a quick glance (only had 10 mins lunch left) i couldnt tell a difference, i guess the other 920 is CO stepping?
 
Other 920 would be the C0, yes.

D0 will clock higher and easier than C0. D0 should also need less volts when going high.
 
Hey dom, if I were you, I would just go for a D0 stepping i920, they will run quite happily @ 4GHz under air, and even more with WC...

Though if you are set on either the 940 or 950, I personally would go for the 950 myself...
 
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