Dell OEM board, Chipset H57: is i7 870 / xeon x3470 going to work?

csandreas1

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I have a DELL pre-built pc with an i5 650 cpu and i want to upgrade to a better cpu mostly for gaming, since i get cpu bottlenecked in most games, even in cs go (my gpu is rx 460). I have found those three to be really good but i am not 100% sure if they are compatible with my board since in the website it only shows that supports i3 and i5. Can i update the bios and use the xeon? Also i have checked chipset cpu support website and i have found all the i5 and i7 first gen to be compatible but not xeon.

Intel H57 Express chipset processor support
.

My motherboard details:

Manufacturer Dell Inc.
Model 0C2KJT (CPU 1)
Version A00
Chipset Vendor Intel
Chipset Model Havendale/Clarkdale Host Bridge
Chipset Revision 18
Southbridge Vendor Intel
Southbridge Model H57
Southbridge Revision 06

BIOS
Brand Dell Inc.
Version A07
Date 13-Nov-10


Links of the processors:
Intel core i5 760
Intel xeon X3460
Intel Xeon X3470
i7 870

User Benchmark comparison.

Also are those used parts from aliexpress good? Why are they so cheap?

EDIT:

I confirm that xeon x3470 works on my DELL Inspiron 580 with motherboard Dell 0C2KJT and bios date 20101113
Proof: http://www.userbenchmark.com/UserRun/4809510
before upgrade: http://www.userbenchmark.com/UserRun/4809194
 
Solution
A lot of the time, manufacturers don't list the mainstream socket Xeons on their support page, but they still work. For example, I'm using a Xeon X3440 in my ASUS P7P55D-E LX board, and it works fine, even though it isn't on the support list. As a general rule of thumb, if there are NO Xeons on the CPU support list, it probably means that the manufacturer just didn't bother to test/list them.

The X3470 is identical to the i7-870, so I don't see why it shouldn't work. And the other Xeon X3400 series chips are just differently clocked versions of the same Lynnfield core found in i5-7xxs and i7-8xxs, so they ought to work too. However I'm used to using retail, big brand motherboards (think ASUS, Gigabyte etc) rather than OEM boards such...

csandreas1

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i can't use xeon anyway it is not listed in the chipset cpu support link i posted. Another choice is the i5 760 and it is 40 euros cheaper in Aliexpress but with 4 threads
 

Mightyena

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A lot of the time, manufacturers don't list the mainstream socket Xeons on their support page, but they still work. For example, I'm using a Xeon X3440 in my ASUS P7P55D-E LX board, and it works fine, even though it isn't on the support list. As a general rule of thumb, if there are NO Xeons on the CPU support list, it probably means that the manufacturer just didn't bother to test/list them.

The X3470 is identical to the i7-870, so I don't see why it shouldn't work. And the other Xeon X3400 series chips are just differently clocked versions of the same Lynnfield core found in i5-7xxs and i7-8xxs, so they ought to work too. However I'm used to using retail, big brand motherboards (think ASUS, Gigabyte etc) rather than OEM boards such as your dell, so the only way to find out for sure would be to try it
 
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csandreas1

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Thanks for the info. I have to find a forum to ask people who use xeon processors if they work with Chipset H57. I don't want to risk it to order it and wait 1 month to arrive and then may not work. I know xeon is better than i5 760 since it has 8 threads but i still have to be sure before purchasing. Since my motherboard is a dell pre-built it is probably like my bios version won't support xeon even though it is lately updated than xeon. I doubt that i7 xxx would work either. Perhaps yours worked because you are running a compatible bios version to that cpu.
 

Mightyena

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Mine works because the Xeon is functionally identical to the other Lynnfield chips that are supported. According to ASUS there is no "compatible bios version to that cpu" - they simply don't test it with xeons.

Since you have an OEM Dell board though, all bets are off. If you want something that will definitely work, go for the i5-750 or i5-760. You might want to get in touch with Dell and find out from them if i7s are supported. If so, an i7-860 or i7-870 would be a real improvement over the 650 you have. If you want to risk it with a Xeon, the X3430 is equivalent to an i5-700 series (8MB cache, Turbo Boost, no Hyperthreading), just running at 2.4GHz instead of the 2.66/2.8 of the i5 offerings. It is also much cheaper - depends where you are, but I can get one on ebay for under £15, compared to £30 for an i5-750

Also to answer a question in your original thread:
Also are those used parts from aliexpress good? Why are they so cheap?
They're cheap because they're old. The i5-750 came out in late 2009, making it almost 8 years old now.
 

csandreas1

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I have contacted them but they didn't help at all, they had tested worse processors than mine lol. Read their answer:

The Inspiron 580 has been tested with the below processors.

Intel® Pentium™ G6950
Intel® Core™ i3 - 530, 540
Intel® Core™ i5 - 750, 650

Your findings in relation to the processor being compatible is correct. However, since the processor has not been tested on this platform, I am unable to assure you 100% flawless functionality.

Also if i would risk to go for Xeon i would definitely go for the x3470. But i don't want to risk it. I will probably go for the i5 760. Sad because it is the same price as the much better x3470. Also i have one question if the i7 870 works it means the xeon will also work for sure? Lately i have read an answer to the forums that an i7 870 worked on his machine
 

Mightyena

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If you're not risking anything, then you'd want to go for the i5-750, not the 760, which isn't listed as compatible either based on that reply.
Not sure how much stock I'd put in their answer though...
 

csandreas1

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It is not worth. What would you do in my case? Would you risk it?
 
" I doubt if this works with dell bios. "

"I just want to confirm for anybody that has this older PC like I do that you can indeed stick an i7-870 in the motherboard and it will work fine. Just because Dell did not "support" the i7 in this motherboard, does not mean the chipset and Windows will not recognize it. My BIOS, which is revision A07 from 2010, recognizes the CPU as an i7-870 with hyperthreading. I feel like many of the other threads I read on this topic were misleading by so called experts who said it would not work, so I tried it myself and it works just fine."

http://en.community.dell.com/support-forums/desktop/f/3514/t/19443802

i7 870, together with i5 750 were the first CPUs supported by the P55 chipset with no BIOS update needed. Intel H57 chipset was released much later, so no question I'd say if supporting or not the 870.
 

Mightyena

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The problem most people probably have with it that causes them to be cautious is it's a Dell OEM board. Although they use the standard Intel chipsets, the manufacturer often only adds specific CPU support into the BIOS, so goodness knows what it will actually run with. In all likeliness an i7 or Xeon will work fine in there, but it may well just sit there beeping. I had an HP that seemed to have some sort of CPU whitelist. The max supported CPU was a Q8300, and trying to put in a Q9xxx or even a Q8400 would just result in it sitting there beeping, even though the only difference is a 166MHz clock speed increase.
 

Mightyena

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But i don't know why xeon CPUs are not listed in the official h57 Chipset page. Also, in the xeon page you can see only server chipsets..
Probably because the Xeons are designed for use in servers, so that is what Intel certifies them for use in. Also, the server chipsets appear to have incomplete data on their website, since going Xeon X3470 -compatible products-> Intel 3420 chipset -compatible products-> the X3470 isn't listed.

You can take one of two conclusions from this:


  • ■ The X3470 works with the chipset, which does NOT workj with the X3470
    ■ Intel's CPU support lists are not exhaustive
 

csandreas1

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I don't know what to do. Should i order the i5 760? Is that better with rx 460?

http://cpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-Core-i5-760-vs-Intel-Core-i5-650/m717vsm340

According to userbenchmark there is no much different in gaming compared to i7 870 and the i5 is more likely to be compatible with my board:

http://cpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-Core-i5-760-vs-Intel-Core-i7-870/m717vsm961

Dell employer suggested me to go for the i5 750 since it is tested with dell inspiron 580 and there is a tiny difference with the i5 760 that i told them: http://en.community.dell.com/support-forums/desktop/f/3514/t/20016657
 

csandreas1

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Maybe i will get gpu bottleneck with the i7. Maybe i5 760 would be better with rx 460 ?
 

csandreas1

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i have found the i5 760 40 euros on aliexpress. The i7 is 80 euros. Both CPUs are used. I think the i5 will be enough with my card
 

csandreas1

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I think i will risk it and order the xeon x3470: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/equal-i7-870-from-Intel...


Note sure if it is compatible with Dell OEM motherboards. It is compatible with the older h55 chipset, won't it be compatible with my chipset h57? The problem is dell bios and not chipset. If it won't work i will return it back
 

Mightyena

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The 870 is almost twice the price of the X3470, for absolutely no improvement - they are literally the same chip.

Let us know how it works out! You're right, the Xeon should be supported by all chipsets (P55, H55 and H57), but Dell might not have added support for it in their BIOS. If you can return it if it doesn't work then that should be fine. Also, if it doesn't work it may be possible to find someone to mod the BIOS and add Xeon support, if it's based off one of the popular BIOS manufacturers (AMI or Award).
 

csandreas1

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Check those user benchmarks on http://www.userbenchmark.com. These benchmarks of the users who have exactly the same motherboard and pc as mine, confirm that i7 870 and Xeon x3470 are compatible with my system:

i7 780:

http://www.userbenchmark.com/UserRun/2199791.

Xeon X3470:

http://www.userbenchmark.com/UserRun/3620875

My Benchmarks:

http://www.userbenchmark.com/UserRun/4384287

So this is a proof that those CPUs are going to work on my board.
 

csandreas1

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Just ordered the xeon x3470. I will let you know if it works!!!
 

csandreas1

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Yo how are you? Remember my post? Xeon works on my rig!! I have seen huge performance in gaming i can now play gta v, bf1 cs go on 300 fps very smoothly on high settings! Even with 6 gb of ram. I am uploading a benchmark on youtube soon i will embed the video below!