I7 930 vs 2500k

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megadelayed

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Feb 5, 2011
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currently my build consists of:
i7 930@4.2ghz
rampage ii extreme
12gb ddr3 1600
2xgtx 480 super clocked
because my power bills are atrocious im thinking of selling my cpu and mobo and buying a 2500k with a z68 and crossfire 6870(or should i keep my 480's?)
i game at 5760x1080 but if the power savings are big enough im fine to go down to 1920 but i will still need to have triple monitor support for my work
would the upgade be worth it and would i notice bottlenecks and would the system be slower?
also i see that sandy bridge can only offer x8,x8 crossfire/sli, would that be a problem?
 
my electric bill is $250 per month in winter time...
if bad winter than it can be more.
nah my heating is gas so my electric bill arent as high as urs, but im in uk and the costs are slighly different and since im in uni atm even with work i still have to pay for living expenses and i try to save as much as possible on energy bills, since my.house had solat and wind energy.generated in my garden. im not used to this sudden rise of electricity bills and suprised to find that i use this mucj
 
so what have you decided to do, keep your i7-930 @ 4.2GHz or sell it off and go newer tech like the i7-2600K.?
maybe swapping out GPU cards first.?

also, is there to be a 3 monitor Kepler card, I think so but not sure where I read that...?
well im kinda still trying to decide since pretty much everyone on this thread told me to keep the cpu atm and just swap out the cards but it seems like a bad moment to get a new gpu atm cos amd is overpricing so im definatly waiting till kepler.
and if i do swap out my cpu/mobo for a 2500k+z68(dont think i can get 2600k) how much slower would it be compared to my current build in video editing/after effects as well.as 3d rendering projects?
 


Like what people have been saying every day high prices. If it were not for that vat prices wouldn't be so sky high but now days pure greed runs the market. When there is a little need they raise the prices a little but when there is greed they want to double or even triple the prices yet they complain that their sales are in the toilet. Looking at Intel as a great example, their prices are high yet they have complained that sales have been in their eyes flat or poor. If they would just cut their prices people would be more willing to spend. It is just like gas prices, 80% of the total cost of each barrel of oil isn't even from the producers at all but greedy speculators on wall street.
 
blackhawk1928 i guess you dont pay the bills then... there are only 5 appliances in my home that rated higher in wattage than my pc. fridge, freezer,cooker, microwave and kettle. as for cost of running it its the most expensive as its on 16-24 hours a day using between 90 and 350w per hour. i dont have anything special, an i7 920/5870 setup@3.6 it in itself adds about 60 pounds per quarter and my total bill is 200 in winter and 130 in summer so a total of about 650 per year. as you can gather from the math my pc accounts for about a 3rd of my entire electric bill so no m8 its not as you say gonna save him a few bux... its likely to save him over 100 a year which is about the same as getting the house insulated.
uk prices are getting ridiculous for electricity we pay about $.30+ per KW which is way higher than what it costs in the U.S. and our prices are gonna go up again next quarter.
 
my electric bill is $250 per month in winter time...
if bad winter than it can be more.

Is your water heater oil or electric? Mines electric so subtract oil costs and add to electric bill costs.
Either way, on a good month in spring/fall when outdoor temperatures are room temperatures, ~$400 is normal. Hot summer and Cold winter bills get up to the $700-$800 range. My area has very expensive kilowatt hours sadly.
 


I've considered build what some call a solar cabin, low power and off the grid while being easy on the wallet. Got enough cells though to build a single 350w panel which is more than enough for a laptop or two with a few other things. It is possible to keep other things like a fridge or freezer but that requires a very expensive build. :s

I've seen one video on yt where one guy had the whole house running off just the panels.
 
I thought about adding a wind turbine in my backyard and link it to the house for auxiliary power.
popular mechanics magazine..

Actually that is a good idea even as a backup power in case there is a failure but getting a good kit or a reasonably low cost install isn't easy to find. I've looked into that as well and diy offers a low cost solution but you would have to do the work your self. Getting the right generator or pma motor to use as a generator is a pain.
 
the power companies years ago (not sure about now) were mandated to buy back unused electricity for end-user locations who had alternate power supplies..

They do and the question is it worth it to you about the costs. It takes a few years for most to make back the money spent and by then they often lose much of that to maintenance and upgrade costs. For me it is worth it because the independence that it brings, the idea of knowing that there won't be a massive bill at the end of every month brings a lot of peace of mind. Plus when the power is out for everyone else your lights are as bright as ever 😉
 
I thought about adding a wind turbine in my backyard and link it to the house for auxiliary power.
popular mechanics magazine..
before i moved out for uni i had 10 solar panels and 2 wind turbines in my back garden, i got them for a reasonable price off ebay(just keep a watch on bargains, they come up all the time!)
then i had my electric meter switched to Pay as you go plan and just kept it topped up in case my power runs out or its a cloudy/not windy day but on average i save around £600-£700 a year as well as getting around £50 back from british gas since my leftover power goes back into the grid

but since i moved out where i live now isn't exactly peaceful and i dont trust leaving solar panels around since they can be easily damaged/stolen and thats how i became concious about my power bill