I7 920 or q9650?

[sjef29]

I am building a new gaming rig and I am stuck between the i7 920 and q9650. They seem the same to me with becnhmarks and some games. this are the systems i want to buy with them:

i7 920@2.66ghz (overclocking to 3.6 or trying higher)
Asus p6t intel x58 chipset
Evga Gtx 260 c216 in 2 way SLI
Thermaltake water cooling 850i
700w PSU from coolermaster
OCZ platinum 1600mhz cl7 triple channel 6gb
$1362,93

Q9650@3.0 ghz (overclocking to 3.6 but hopes for 4.0ghz+)
Xfx 790i Ultra sli Nforce 790i chipset
Evga Gtx 260 c216 in 2 way SLI
Thermaltake water cooling 850i
700w PSU from coolermaster
OCZ flex ex 2000mhz cl8 dual channel 4gb
$1351,47

Im quite the money spender and budget is $1400 Which one to choose for Hardcore gaming and overclocking? Thanks a bunch!

 

[hefox]

i7 920, of course. It gives you the option to update in the future. I would buy Corsair or OCZ instead of Coolermaster psu. Also I wouldn't buy that water cooling. You can buy aircooling much better and cheaper of course.

 

[sjef29]

The much cheaper is fine but water cooling is way better isn't it? and the i7 is very high temp if i look at some pictures on google. And whats the difference between Corsair,Ocz and Coolermaster psu?

i7 920, of course. It gives you the option to update in the future.

And does intel continue with the 1366 socket? or in what perspective do you mean update in the future?

 

[hefox]

1. No. That water coolling is not even better. Aircooling from Thermalright, Prolimatech or Noctua is much better, cheaper and a lot quiter.
2. The difference is quality between this psu. See below.
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/759/9
3. Intel is preparing a six-core cpu for sk 1366 so you have this option.

 

[sjef29]

ok thanks only 1 thing about the water cooling. Why should it be worser then air cooling? Water (liquid) cooling can cool with more power and lower temp. because water can be lower then room temperture with good cooling (if im right, im not rlly a expert )

 

[hefox]

I said, that watercooling (Thermaltake one) not watercooling in general. Check this:
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/coolers/display/thermaltake-pw850i-prowater_9.html#sect0

 

[sjef29]

aah soz thought you meant water cooling general indeed. and yea i see it think i need to do some fine searching again for i7 rig then. Thanks for ya help

 

[Nashsafc]

Go phenom II 965. They are cheaper than the Q9650 configuration and they have DDR3 motherboards so you can get better ram. The overall cost should actually be cheaper than the q9650 and the phenom 965 gives about the same performance, in some games it has even better performance. If you get a phenom 955 or 965 you can save over $100 dollars i think compared to the i7 configuration.

 

[Nashsafc]

Ok for $1400 budget. Go i7. Get 2 ATI 4890s in CFX. Don't get one gtx 295, if you ever concider because two ATI 4890s are cheaper and actually give more performance in alot more games. They say that with good air cooling you can overclock the i7 920 to 4ghz no problem. Think about Asus Triton 81? I don't know if you can get good watercooling in that budget, lol maybe just a Domino A.L.C for that budget.

 

[Yoosty]

Definitely the Core i7(920) and the P6T compared to the Q9550 and the 790i (which always had problems) .

Another Mobo you might want to look at is this one that seems to be a dark horse candidate.
ASRock X58 Extreme LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $169.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157163

Also a very great price on the Ram you choose at Amazom.com which is around $30.00 cheaper then NewEgg has it now.
OCZ OCZ3P1600LV6GK DDR3 PC3-12800 1600MHz 6GB Platinum XTC Triple Channel Kits $113.99 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping.
http://www.amazon.com/OCZ-OCZ3P1600LV6GK-PC3-12800-1600MHz-Platinum/dp/B001NFZ5PQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1251006988&sr=8-1

 

[hefox]

Check this:
http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/cooling/2009/07/29/corsair-hydro-h50-cpu-cooler-review/4
This looks good and is pretty cheap.

 

[Nashsafc]

What about Corsair ram, isn't that also good, comes at the same frequency and costs less. Like under $100? The XMS3 1600mhz.

 

[Nashsafc]

Omg is tha true that the Domino A.L.C is actully that good. I mean when it is on full power. It's quie cheap as well.

 

[Yoosty]

What about Corsair ram, isn't that also good, comes at the same frequency and costs less. Like under $100? The XMS3 1600mhz.

Corsair is very good ram, but it is expensive and could you link where you found Corsair XMS3 6gb (3x2gb) triple channel is at. Since all of those at NewEgg are higher prices.

 

[Nashsafc]

I am fom the UK you can get it from £90 that's the 3 sitcks of 2gb 1600MHZ. Here on amzon it's offered for $119

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B001K56XW8/ref=sr_1_olp_6?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1251303675&sr=8-6

 

[xaira]

the 9650 is only superior in cache intensive situations

 

[Nashsafc]

better than the PHENOM II 965? What would be cache intensive situations? Is Core 2 Quad actually only very slightly better than the phenom 965 in terms of performance or has the phenom II beaten it yet, better even by 2 seconds or1-2 framerates?

 

[Yoosty]

I am fom the UK you can get it from £90 that's the 3 sitcks of 2gb 1600MHZ. Here on amzon it's offered for $119

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B001K56XW8/ref=sr_1_olp_6?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1251303675&sr=8-6

Thank you Nashsafc for the link. Over here it would cost more.

90.00 GBP = 146.008 USD

 

[Nashsafc]

O right. Fancy. Is it really that much. i thought 90 GBP was like $120

 

[hefox]

Corsair H50 is better and cheaper than Domino so is a good alternative.

 

[Yoosty]

Corsair H50 is better and cheaper than Domino so is a good alternative.

Yes it might be, but after 6months to a year you will see a rise in temperture due to the liquid(water) in the self contain close system of being cooked off and that is at stock settings.

 

[xaira]

^+1, dont no of any cache intensive situations, i just knoww they exist, but, for gaming, x58 will always b the better choice

 

[sjef29]

actually I thought of all those options but for the Phenom II 965 i need a good ddr3 motherboard am3, that isn't here quite yet. MSI is making one and is planning for release soon, the nf980 g65 Its a very good mobo with ddr3 up to 2133 mhz and 3 way sli. And for something else then water cooler.
what is the best air cooler fo cpu on the market today? compared with price-performance?
But the i7 has some issues with the cache...(or threads)? My friend has one and the i7 is quite...buggy. i got higher fps on some of the simplest games like l4d. and ive got a 2ghz dual core :S and he has better gpu (4890) i got 260 c216.

 

[xaira]

the board and ram you choose with an i7 is really important to its stability, or ur friend just got a bugy chip

good air coolers
sunbeam ccf
cooler master v8
thermalright ultra 120 exreme
http://www.frostytech.com/articleview.cfm?articleid=2383&page=4

 

[jennyh]

better than the PHENOM II 965? What would be cache intensive situations? Is Core 2 Quad actually only very slightly better than the phenom 965 in terms of performance or has the phenom II beaten it yet, better even by 2 seconds or1-2 framerates?

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/default.aspx?p=102&p2=49

Phenom II 965 BE = 20 wins

Core2 Q9650 = 11 wins.

Just like the rest of the compared cpu's (940vQ9400, 955vQ9550 etc), the phenom II's are generally ahead in 50% more of the tested benchmarks. The Phenom II's are just better than Core2's, it's a plain fact and there is no point at all in buying Core2 anymore.