Q9550 or Core i7

newbcake

newbcake

newbcake

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hey guys, well the title saids it all.

Looking to upgrade from my E6750, i guess the main usuage will be for surfing/some gaming and CAD work when im back in uni.

I was hooked on 920 for ages, but at the moment i just cant justify the cost for whats its going to be used for. Additionally, i dont fink i would ever fully utilise the potential.

If i upgrade to a Q9550, i will need a motherboard and RAM. i was wondering if anyone could spec a system for me. and are there any mobo that uses DDR3?

thanks in advance
 
the i7 isnt that much more greater in terms of performance so if you get the Q9550 guess you wont need a new mobo and stuff so it would be a huge increase in performance and thats not even overclocking it yet:D:D:D
 
hey, thanks for reply

i have a feeling that a cheap X58 mobo will just hamper the 920, whereas if i spend around £130 on a 775 mobo it will be around mid/top range.

sorry if im going around in circles, one part of me really wants the 920 but the more sensible side tells me to go cheaper.

any thoughts?
 
i was looking at the Q9550, £170 ish
GA-EP45T-UD3P £110 ish
Corsair XMS3 DHX 4GB £65 ish

around £345

hmmm. soo tempting since i heard that mobo is one of the best overclockers out there
 
This is what Im currently using -
Q9550 - http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-203-IN
EVGA 750i SLI *** - http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-103-EA
and after my first ever 45mins of overclocking I got to 3.2GHz on stock voltages without any issues.
I have a feeling my RAM could end up holding me back though (4x1GB corsair Dominator http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-119-CS&groupid=701&catid=8&subcat=817).
If you got 2x2GB instead you would need less voltage. And I think if u still get PC2-8500 then it will be happier running at overclocked FSB's, not sure though.

Will U need a cooler ?
 
newbcake said:
my budget is fine for I7, but i heard its going to be phased out. that is what made me fink of an alternative
Click to expand...

i7 is not going to be phased out for a long while. Obviously it will eventually die just like all chip lines, but the future is bright for i7.

The x58 board should be getting some new processors later in the year, and in 2010 a 6 core 32nm chip will arrive that will fit in existing X58 motherboards.

The thing you may have heard is being phased out is the i7 920. In my opinion, this is likely because it is too cheap to make the new i5 chips worthwile getting, so if they push the i7 price range way up they can sell more i5s. However, if you already have an i7 920 before this happens - then it does not matter one bit.
 
nar i got a cooler already. cant you get it above 3.2Ghz or have you not tried yet?

AMD phenom 2 955 also looks nice. too many choices.

I have to beat it into my head that i DONT need a I7, money can be spent on better GPU :D
 
thanks, but for most average Joe's, is the I7 really ideal?

Yes it is rated high in bench marks and video encoding, but do people buy it because they want the best equipment or can they actually utilise the cpu.

I can see myself very happy with the I7 for the first week, but i fink after the novelty wears off, i will regret not spending less.

sorry for the rants people, was never a good decision maker
 
I am going to stick with my suggestion that an i7 rig is better value than a DDR3 +q9550 rig.

However, to be honest I don't think either are ideal for your needs. The core 2 Duo e6750 is a good chip - what problems are you having with it? Are games running slowly on it? If so, it is likely not your CPU but your graphics card that is slowing you down. Also, how much RAM are you using - these days 4GB is the sweet spot for most dual channel stuff. Furthermore, what is the CPU cooler you are using and have you overclocked your CPU (if so, to what speed?).

In essence, it sounds like your CPU is good enought - but depending on the rest of your system it may be worth upgrading elsewhere.
 
your probably right about not upgrading, but i usually upgrade every 2 years.

Currently using 8800GTS which is really letting me down. I will be upgrading it, probably to a 4890 since they are cheap atm.

Got an ASUS Triton 88, not too shabby but it does the trick.

my RAM is letting me down with overclocking at the mo, it just wont stabilise above 3.0ghz
 
When is i7 set to be phased out btw? I was considering i7 next year but may not now. Was thinking of a sidegrade from Q6600 to Q9550 but tbh my Q6600 is at 3.2GHz and running good but 12MB of L2 would not make much difference right over the 8MB on the Q6600?
 
newbcake said:
your probably right about not upgrading, but i usually upgrade every 2 years.

Currently using 8800GTS which is really letting me down. I will be upgrading it, probably to a 4890 since they are cheap atm.

Got an ASUS Triton 88, not too shabby but it does the trick.

my RAM is letting me down with overclocking at the mo, it just wont stabilise above 3.0ghz
Click to expand...

Aye, it sounds like a graphics upgrade would give you a nice performance boost. I agree that a 4890 is your best option for the moment. Out of interest, what are the model names of your mobo and RAM? I might be able to give you a hand with some overclocking/upgrade options.

When is i7 set to be phased out btw? I was considering i7 next year but may not now. Was thinking of a sidegrade from Q6600 to Q9550 but tbh my Q6600 is at 3.2GHz and running good but 12MB of L2 would not make much difference right over the 8MB on the Q6600??
Click to expand...

The 32nm Westmeres should be out in 2010 (probably the middle), they are s1366 so they should work with current X58 mobos (with a BIOS flasg). The next truly new tech from intel is sandy bridge, and thats a long while away. Best advise is to come back when you want a new CPU and see how the market is. Who knows - maybe AMD will be on top and i7 will be the budget chip :D

A change from q6600 to q9550 is not going to do that much. I recommend upgrading your cooling and push to 3.5GHz meanwhile getting a new GPU like a 4890 or gtx 275.
 
Cooling won't make any difference for me as the system is cool anyway and my Q6600 is a 1.325VID so max stable OC under gaming conditions is 3.2GHz ! - any lower VID Q6600s I could easily get 3.5+ no problems.

Already gone from P35 mobo to P45 (Gigabyte EP45-UD3P) and while the mobo rocks ass the CPU does not like going above 3.2GHz and being stable 100% regardless of voltage changes :p

Will keep an eye on the new Intel chips though :)
 
650i - I have a bit of experience overclocking core 2 duos with those, 3.2Ghz is pretty good with that board. The Asus version I used had massive Vdroop (corrected with a pencil mod) and many FSB holes, a real challenge to overclock.

I can imagine the motherboard is the limiting factor in your overclock. If its runs happily at 3.2GHz then I say leave it there, in pretty much all games your CPU will run more than fast enough. For gaming and general use I believe a RAM upgrade to 4GB would be worthwhile - and since its an SLI board, this GPU is the best.
 
newbcake said:
i was looking at the Q9550, £170 ish
GA-EP45T-UD3P £110 ish
Corsair XMS3 DHX 4GB £65 ish

around £345

hmmm. soo tempting since i heard that mobo is one of the best overclockers out there
Click to expand...

Thats not far off a i7 set up. Imo its worth the extra and even the basic gigabyte boards like the UD3R wont hold the cpu back.
 
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