The future of memory on Core i7

[imported_peebee]

I'd like to say that I've been a huge follower of Anandtech for the last 5 or so years. I've read the articles weekly and enjoy them immensely. Especially those written by Anand himself. He has a gift for technology and writing that's well displayed in his exceptional articles.

Now, althought that is true, I've never posted on these forums. Not only that, but through the last few years the heavy focus on my career has somewhat dampened my passion for the burning edge technology that I once turned myself to on a daily basis. Which is why I'm posting in these more than capable forums.

I'm looking to upgrade my current outdated Athlon X2 4400+ rig. I'm holding off on SSD prices to drop a bit more, for Core i7 to mature (not that it isn't awesome right now) a little more, and DDR3 to creep down a touch as well. I probably will start pricing a rig out in Q4 of 2009 and will have parts flowing my way then.

My question is this... I read somewhere on anandtech that Intel was moving from triple channel memory setups to dual channel. I didn't get much info about triple/dual at the time because I was preoccupied. And I understand Intel is making this move simply because they're stacking L3 in favor of increases available memory bandwidth, etc.

• Would I be better off waiting until this transition is complete?

• Is this happening during Core i7 or a future platform?

• Would it be disasterous go to with a Core i7 rig running triple channel if it's going to be abandoned in half a year?

Any other relevant info would be awesome. Thanks for reading!

Mike

 

[taltamir]

core i7 is splitting into two sockets, one with triple channel ram, one with dual channel.

There is no real drawback to buying a triple chanel i7. it is not going to be abandoned, and even if it is, so what?
PC upgradability is a myth anyways.

 

[imported_peebee]

Thanks for the reply. Although I don't entirely agree that PC upgradability is entirely a myth. I loved socket 939 for the simple fact that my single core 3500+ was replaced with an X2 4400+, no questions asked.

As for splitting the sockets, it has me worry about where LGA 1366 would then go. I really don't want to build on a platform with a doomed future.

IMO, Intel is pretty well known for abandoning a platform that was superseded by whatever newer platform they're marketing.

Thanks again!
Mike

 

[Denithor]

It looks like Intel plans for s1366 to be the server & extreme high end platform (cheapest desktop chip will be >$500 once they launch i5 and phase out the 920).

They will then promote i5 on s1156 for performance & mainstream systems, apparently featuring a 4-core/8-thread 2.8GHz chip at the top end (HT enabled).

i5 will have the PCIe lanes built into the chip for faster access to the GPU. Of course, this is limited to 16 total lanes so if you want to run SLI/CF you may be better off with an i7.

There are quite a few posts with this info scattered around this forum - take a read for much more complete info. Some of the guys here have incredible sources in the industry and a great deal of knowledge concerning where the products are going.

 

[dac7nco]

peebee,

LGA 1366 is going up, not away. there is soon to be a 6-core 1366 CPU, and Anandtech was the major reason I built a dual-Nehalem xeon. Core i5 will be a very impressive part, but 1366, IMO, is "THE" socket to have... Intel simply has erased most of the 1366 CPUs from their lineup. This is somewhat smart, and somewhat rude. The i7 920, in my opinion, was the single greatest CPU of all time, matched only by the K6-3, Celeron 300A and 68040. My Amiga was a beast.

Daimon

 

[imported_peebee]

Ahhhhhhhhhhh, that makes much better sense. I understand their direction now. At least I believe I do.

From what it sounds like, Core i7 s1366 (and triple channel memory) isn't going anywhere. They're just introducing s1156 for Core i5 with dual channel memory.

I was completely turned around thinking they were laying down s1366. Thanks for the clarification, and yes, s1366 is the way to go.

 

[dguy6789]

Originally posted by: peebee
Ahhhhhhhhhhh, that makes much better sense. I understand their direction now. At least I believe I do.

From what it sounds like, Core i7 s1366 (and triple channel memory) isn't going anywhere. They're just introducing s1156 for Core i5 with dual channel memory.

I was completely turned around thinking they were laying down s1366. Thanks for the clarification, and yes, s1366 is the way to go.

You got it right on the money. 1366 is the socket of choice.

 

[Tempered81]

Originally posted by: peebee

IMO, Intel is pretty well known for abandoning a platform that was superseded by whatever newer platform they're marketing.



Thanks again!
Mike

yes, up until netburst with the exception of s775. they held onto this one for an unusually long period of time - jan 2004 prescott p4's -------> Yorkfield Q9650/QX9650/QX9770 & release of Core i7.

In fact, intel is still releasing new parts that still use socket T LGA775.

 

[dac7nco]

Yeah, what jaredpace said... in LGA775, the Pentium E5200, for it's sale price, is a badassed chip. Think of the initial c2d 6600, and look at the price from just a few years ago. A 5200 LGA775 is a major deal, for <$60..

Daimon

 

[NA1NSXR]

DDR3 prices are reasonable now and LGA1366/X58 will cover you over the entire lifespan of the nehelem architecture. This is my reasoning for persuing a i7 system now. You will have at least a 6 core die shrink option before another platform worth moving to comes out. I generally build a new desktop every two tick-tock cycles at introduction of new technology. I only lightly participated in Core2 with a laptop. My old desktop was a 939.

To address your question though the sweetspot for a platform change is either now with X58/i7 or next year with i5 and non 1366 i7 (if you want USB3.0 and some newer standards).

The next sweetspot for graphics will be early next year after the first pricedrop for the new year-end GPUs.

As for SSD's I would skip the current generation, the improvements and pricedrops in that market are coming too quickly.

These are just some of my thoughts on purchase planning right now since I am also in the market like you. I will probably go ahead with a i7 now and use a cheap video card to drive my 1680 monitor for the time being and then do a video card/monitor upgrade early next year and call it done for this round. Your plan might be slightly different if you're a frequent upgrader but this is more or less how I see it.

 

[ilkhan]

It was pointed out to me that my previous version of this post was rather crude and not very diplomatic. Thus, I'll replace it with what was suggested as an alternative to my wording. The member who pointed this out has far, FAR more patience than I do. But I see their point and will thus use their wording.

Originally posted by: Denithor
It looks like Intel plans for s1366 to be the server & extreme high end platform (cheapest desktop chip will be >$500 once they launch i5 and phase out the 920).

I know this is accepted as conventional forum wisdom, I've seen it referenced multiple times here and on other forums, but I was under the impression this information had been refuted by Intel or some other reliable source...

Can anyone confirm with a link to valid source, just for my own edification and peace of mind, that the $266 s1366 part is going away sometime soon?

(this isn't aimed at you Denithor, but if you happen to know where this info is originating from I'd be most appreciative of reading up on it)

To expand, the single and dual socket Xeons are s1366 parts. Xeons are are server parts and new sockets aren't created lightly. It's going to be around a long ass time.

 

[imported_peebee]

Originally posted by: NA1NSXR
DDR3 prices are reasonable now and LGA1366/X58 will cover you over the entire lifespan of the nehelem architecture. This is my reasoning for persuing a i7 system now. You will have at least a 6 core die shrink option before another platform worth moving to comes out. I generally build a new desktop every two tick-tock cycles at introduction of new technology. I only lightly participated in Core2 with a laptop. My old desktop was a 939.

To address your question though the sweetspot for a platform change is either now with X58/i7 or next year with i5 and non 1366 i7 (if you want USB3.0 and some newer standards).

The next sweetspot for graphics will be early next year after the first pricedrop for the new year-end GPUs.

As for SSD's I would skip the current generation, the improvements and pricedrops in that market are coming too quickly.

These are just some of my thoughts on purchase planning right now since I am also in the market like you. I will probably go ahead with a i7 now and use a cheap video card to drive my 1680 monitor for the time being and then do a video card/monitor upgrade early next year and call it done for this round. Your plan might be slightly different if you're a frequent upgrader but this is more or less how I see it.

Good info, thanks.

I'm not a frequent upgrader by any means, but I like a flexable platform that allows me to swap a chip out for something with more cores and/or faster speed if desired.

As for the SSDs, I was waiting for TRIM to be fully supported and prices a bit more reasonable. First generation or not, 200MB+/sec sounds really tasty to me. Even at 200MB/sec I'm sure they'll get better as the technology matures.

You're probably right that Core i7 is great to build on NOW, but I was hoping for high end graphics cards to drop in price as well. I'm running a 30" HP LP3065 at 2560x1600 and it takes a hell of a beast card to get the best out of it.

Thanks again for all the info guys.

 

[Scotteq]

Originally posted by: Denithor i5 will have the PCIe lanes built into the chip for faster access to the GPU. Of course, this is limited to 16 total lanes so if you want to run SLI/CF you may be better off with an i7...

Yah - It'll be PCEe 2.0, with the doubling in bandwidth that comes with it. And being on the CPU I would expect it to enjoy very low latency. So I'm going to step out on a limb a little bit, and theorize that a Core i5 will be a very nice SLI/Crossfire chip. Basically, I'm thinking the cutoff mark Denithor has offered may possibly be better placed between 2 and 3 GPUs, instead of between 1 and 2.

 

[Modelworks]

The future for memory is PoP. Rambus has been buying up PoP companies for the past year. It is basically integrating the memory in layers similar to how a cpu is now. So you will have a socket like a cpu socket where a memory module plugs into. About half the size of current cpu sockets. It allows more memory in a smaller space because it goes vertical. 2GB is about 3/4" in height and about 1" square . A lot of the space used for current chips is to bring the leads out so they can be connected. It also can run faster because the interconnects between modules are next to zero in length.The only thing holding it back has been manufacturing .But Epida has made some great strides in the PoP area. Ram capacities in the 2GB area are already available. The only downside I can see is that it is not upgrade friendly. You can't stack the modules so if you want to go from 2 to 4GB you have to pull the old module. If anyone is familiar with BGA chips , it is like that, but in socket form.