Have not built in a while need some help getting up to speed

[random betrayal]

So after some trouble shooting I have come to the conclusion that the motherboard's PCI slot is dead in the computer that is in my sig. I have no video output but everything has power and posts fine. Ran several cards through the machine and none of them have video output. All cards have video output when put into the home server

I have not stayed up to date on the advancements in mainboards and cpu or memory for that matter in how the relation of memory speed relates to the cpu frequency. I don't know which of the sockets out there now are newer or better.

I hope to be able to restore the win 7 from the home server to the new mainboard and I suspect this may be easier if I stay with Gigabyte motherboards.

I would like to stay intel. I like the idea of the new processors that ramp up their clock when called upon, do these only do this in socket 1156 boards? Or is it vice versa and socket 1366 does this? I may do a small overclock but not if doing so will affect the cpu from ramping down into a low power saving state.

I would like to up the memory to at least 6 gig as my wife does photos and we have been getting the windows message that we are out of memory quite often. 8 gig may be an option as well.

Number one factor is stability as my wife runs her photo business off this computer and it also functions as the main computer in the house. I don't do games much just some Civilization here and there. I do a little bit of video encoding and wife does lots of pictures that has filled up a terabyte on the home server already.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Budget would hopefully be in the $500 range + or - $100.

 

[Sp12]

Is your ram DDR2 or DDR3?

 

[mfenn]

Both 1156 and 1366 CPUs have Turbo Boost, but the 1156 CPUs can turbo MUCH higher.

Core i5 750 $195
GA-P55A-UD3 $140
2xG.Skill DDR3 1600 4GB $99 x2 = $198
Total: $533

If you live near a Microcenter, you can pick up an 875K for $200, which is a much faster chip.

 

[mfenn]

Is your ram DDR2 or DDR3?

He's got 4x1 on a P35C, so it's got to be DDR2.

 

[random betrayal]

Is your ram DDR2 or DDR3?

Current ram is DDR2 with 4 sticks at 1 gig a piece. I think I will need to replace these to go with 6 gigs or more right?

So do sockets 1156 take the i-3,5 & 7 chips right, but which numerical models it is the 860 that I see talked about on here or the 920?

 

[mfenn]

Current ram is DDR2 with 4 sticks at 1 gig a piece. I think I will need to replace these to go with 6 gigs or more right?

So do sockets 1156 take the i-3,5 & 7 chips right, but which numerical models it is the 860 that I see talked about on here or the 920?

Moving to Intel's new platform is going to require DDR3 anyway.

I think you see the 750, 860, 875K, 920, and 930 talked about quite a bit. The first 3 are 1156 and the latter 2 are 1366.

 

[random betrayal]

Both 1156 and 1366 CPUs have Turbo Boost, but the 1156 CPUs can turbo MUCH higher.

Core i5 750 $195
GA-P55A-UD3 $140
2xG.Skill DDR3 1600 4GB $99 x2 = $198
Total: $533

If you live near a Microcenter, you can pick up an 875K for $200, which is a much faster chip.

I like this, thank you.

Question as to the 750 vs the 875 are the both i5 chips. What is big bonus to going with an i7 chip and what kind of ramp in frequencies do these chips have when only a core or two are busy?

 

[Sp12]

There is NO REASON AT ALL to buy an i7 875. The 875K is cheaper, faster, and unlocked. It also has a 3.6 turbo. (!!)

i7s simply have hyperthreading enabled, which can help in some multihreaded apps like video encoding. The i7s don't have any better turbo, as its based on the chip and socket type.

 

[mfenn]

I like this, thank you.

Question as to the 750 vs the 875 are the both i5 chips. What is big bonus to going with an i7 chip and what kind of ramp in frequencies do these chips have when only a core or two are busy?

You're welcome, that build should be a decent bump up your C2D and give your wife the RAM she needs.

Note: The 875K is an i7. See Sp12's post as I think he hit the high points.

 

[random betrayal]

There is a microcenter about 1.5 hours away but the website is showing the 875K as $299. They ave a 750 at $169 and an 860 at $229 so the 750 looks a little more doable in budget terms then the 875k, but the 860 is in the running I would think.

 

[Sp12]

There is a microcenter about 1.5 hours away but the website is showing the 875K as $299. They ave a 750 at $169 and an 860 at $229 so the 750 looks a little more doable in budget terms then the 875k, but the 860 is in the running I would think.

1.5 hours each way? I don't think it's worth it once you factor in the price of gas/your time.

 

[MJinZ]

There is NO REASON AT ALL to buy an i7 875. The 875K is cheaper, faster, and unlocked. It also has a 3.6 turbo. (!!)

i7s simply have hyperthreading enabled, which can help in some multihreaded apps like video encoding. The i7s don't have any better turbo, as its based on the chip and socket type.

Turbo is great and all, but it's all the same on any Core i7s. Go into BIOS - set CPU to 3.8ghz on stock voltages - enjoy.

I would not recommend a dead socket like the 1156, since X58 is pretty cheap these days, no reason to not get one and a dirt cheap $200 chip that is guaranteed to run at 3.8ghz on stock voltages.

 

[Sp12]

Turbo is great and all, but it's all the same on any Core i7s. Go into BIOS - set CPU to 3.8ghz on stock voltages - enjoy.

I would not recommend a dead socket like the 1156, since X58 is pretty cheap these days, no reason to not get one and a dirt cheap $200 chip that is guaranteed to run at 3.8ghz on stock voltages.

I have no idea what you're talking about. And it's definitely not the same on all i7s. The 875K goes to 3.6, the 930 goes to 3.06.

Also, no overclock is ever guaranteed, and an overclock to 3.8 on stock volts is VERY unusual, congrats on getting that though. And the 930 is 290 unless you can get it at microcenter.

 

[MJinZ]

I have no idea what you're talking about. And it's definitely not the same on all i7s. The 875K goes to 3.6, the 930 goes to 3.06.

Also, no overclock is ever guaranteed, and an overclock to 3.8 on stock volts is VERY unusual, congrats on getting that though. And the 930 is 290 unless you can get it at microcenter.

920s were $200 at Microcenter all day long. 920s guarantee 3.8ghz on stock voltage (almost all, though I have seen a few cases of very bad ones). Adjust your voltages a little and 4-4.2ghz is fairly certain as well.

An 875K is the same idea. It basically guarantees 3.6ghz by using Turbo. It can probably go to 3.8 on stock voltages as well.

The only difference is the platform. X58 provides advantages, being Hyperthreading and triple channel memory.

 

[Sp12]

920s were $200 at Microcenter all day long. 920s guarantee 3.8ghz on stock voltage (almost all, though I have seen a few cases of very bad ones). Adjust your voltages a little and 4-4.2ghz is fairly certain as well.

An 875K is the same idea. It basically guarantees 3.6ghz by using Turbo. It can probably go to 3.8 on stock voltages as well.

The only difference is the platform. X58 provides advantages, being Hyperthreading and triple channel memory.

I did just mention the microcenter deal... but I think you have the 3.8 wrong. That's a very exceptional OC that I don't think is typical, you may just be seeing a case of self-reporting bias. Also, because there are chips that don't reach these clocks, it's not guaranteed by definition.

P55 has advantages as well, like higher turbo and a lower price. Hyperthreading is not an advantage of X58.

 

[MJinZ]

I did just mention the microcenter deal... but I think you have the 3.8 wrong. That's a very exceptional OC that I don't think is typical, you may just be seeing a case of self-reporting bias. Also, because there are chips that don't reach these clocks, it's not guaranteed by definition.

P55 has advantages as well, like higher turbo and a lower price. Hyperthreading is not an advantage of X58.

Not really, I'm an active member of the EVGA X58 forums, and I have not seen many fail to achieve 3.8ghz on stock Vcore. In fact, overclocking guides will mention that 3.8ghz is easily achievable on stock voltages.

Keep in mind stock voltages vary from chip to chip. Mine defaults to 1.26V and it maintains V-Droop (the Voltages actually drop on load). Some people may disable V-Droop (where voltages will rise on load) and keep a stable 3.8ghz on their stock Vcore.

Turbo is just factory overclocking. If 3.6ghz is what you want, that is completely guaranteed on an i7 920 or 930 on stock voltages.

It comes down to motherboard prices if you have access to a Microcenter. I think X58 boards are very cheap. I just sold an X58 SLI board (used, board only) to someone for $125, though I'm using a $400 Classified board.

 

[random betrayal]

As I mentioned the highest overclock is not my concern. Stability is. I am wondering what you mean by a dead socket in the 1156 though. Are they not making this anymore? Is socket 1366 the socket they are going to be using from now on for new intel processors?

 

[random betrayal]

The only difference is the platform. X58 provides advantages, being Hyperthreading and triple channel memory.

Which boards and cpu's use the triple channel set up? Recommendations?

 

[mfenn]

As I mentioned the highest overclock is not my concern. Stability is. I am wondering what you mean by a dead socket in the 1156 though. Are they not making this anymore? Is socket 1366 the socket they are going to be using from now on for new intel processors?

Arrrrg.... These are the scare tactics that X58 die-hards love to employ.

FACT: LGA1156 and LGA1366 are the only two Intel sockets available right now.
FACT: LGA1156 and LGA1366 are going away in 2011.

LGA1366 is just as dead as LGA1156 once Sandy Bridge comes out.

Which boards and cpu's use the triple channel set up? Recommendations?

Don't bother, especially at your budget. Triple channel memory is useless unless you're running a high-throughput database or SiSoft Sandra benchmarks all day long.

 

[mfenn]

Turbo is just factory overclocking. If 3.6ghz is what you want, that is completely guaranteed on an i7 920 or 930 on stock voltages.

This is just plain wrong. Turbo takes the total power draw of the chip into account. 4 cores at 3.6 is not the same as 1 core at 3.6.

 

[mfenn]

There is a microcenter about 1.5 hours away but the website is showing the 875K as $299. They ave a 750 at $169 and an 860 at $229 so the 750 looks a little more doable in budget terms then the 875k, but the 860 is in the running I would think.

875K @ $200 is in-store only.

 

[MJinZ]

Arrrrg.... These are the scare tactics that X58 die-hards love to employ.

FACT: LGA1156 and LGA1366 are the only two Intel sockets available right now.
FACT: LGA1156 and LGA1366 are going away in 2011.

LGA1366 is just as dead as LGA1156 once Sandy Bridge comes out.



Don't bother, especially at your budget. Triple channel memory is useless unless you're running a high-throughput database or SiSoft Sandra benchmarks all day long.

Correct, both sockets will be dead by the replacement Socket 2011. However, there are no benefits of going to 1156 unless you are constrained by an extremely tight budget.

 

[mfenn]

Correct, both sockets will be dead by the replacement Socket 2011. However, there are no benefits of going to 1156 unless you are constrained by an extremely tight budget.

My feeling is the exact opposite, that there is no reason to spend the extra on LGA1366 unless you need Tri/Quad CFX/SLI. I guess we'll have to agree to disagree here.

 

[random betrayal]

Thanks for the insight guys. I think I am getting close to a decision. The 3 hour total drive to microcenter is weighing on my decision making process. How much of a jump in performance or other factors is it from the 750 to the 860 or the 875k. I assume all do the power saving trick of ramping up or down cores and voltages based on workload. If I do a small overclock do the power saving aspects remain. I know it did not work with my core 2 duo once I put the overclock into play. The multiplier dropped but the increased voltage never had the same corresponding drop under reduced workload.

 

[mfenn]

Thanks for the insight guys. I think I am getting close to a decision. The 3 hour total drive to microcenter is weighing on my decision making process. How much of a jump in performance or other factors is it from the 750 to the 860 or the 875k. I assume all do the power saving trick of ramping up or down cores and voltages based on workload. If I do a small overclock do the power saving aspects remain. I know it did not work with my core 2 duo once I put the overclock into play. The multiplier dropped but the increased voltage never had the same corresponding drop under reduced workload.

Here's a comparison of the 750 and 860. The 875K will be a bit faster than the 860.

Yes, all of those CPUs have the same power-savings features. As a general rule, if you do a stock voltage OC, you can get away with keeping the power-savings options turned on. Otherwise, you'll turn them off (this is the price you pay for a high OC).