Q9550 vs. i7-920

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artistin805

artistin805

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Jul 17, 2008
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So with a Rendering 3D studio Max & PhotoshopCS4 view:
Q9550 vs. i7-920
What processor is more worthwhile here?
&
What memory performances are gained?
The i7-920 with--8GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1066MHz
or
The Q9550 with--8GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz

These are current possible configurations thru Dell.

Prices compared are within <$100.
 
If you are doing CPU intensive tasks, I'm pretty sure the 920 can handle even the fastest of the Quads. For gaming however, they are more or less tied. Seeing as you want to do "real" CPU work, get the 920 if at all possible. Should be faster then the 9550.
 
The i7 920, but no way the prices should be within $100.

You don't need a High-End CF/SLI mobo for what you are doing.
The Mobo Alone should be $150-$200 less for the Q9550

Just 6GB of DDR3 is over $150 more than than 8GB of DDR2 on NewEgg.

You are definitely looking at the wrong parts to accompany your Q9550.

The Difference is closer to $300.

Now, the i7 is definitely the better choice.
It's up to you to look at your finances and determine if $300 is worth it to you.
 
Crysis imo is bad for this because its a gpu dependent game....the gpu is limiting it more than the cpu, but a game like Supreme Commander which used a lot of cpu power would be better

Habitat srysly trademark LOL! it might catch on
 
Not rly...if i wanted i7 i could give my current processor to the workstation im building at a discount and buy myself another build. Im waiting till Westmere for the die shrink and whatever that other technology they are putting in was...HK+ or something ill go check Intel's technology
Edit**: I cant appear to find the technology under intel...i read about it but i cant find it now 🙁

I came here to see what ppl said ur post wasnt even here until i went to post mine. I wanted to check what aevm had to say....been awhile since i read his posts (dont hang out in Homebuilt as much)

@aevm: thats the weirdest thing ive ever seen.....

Also at to the i7 vs. Q9x50 the only thing i dont like about the new architecture is the ram... The processor is reasonable and so are the boards for such a high end part, but the ram i just dont like the pricing. I mean u can get 4 Gbs of good ram for $45 and DDR3 starts at $170+
 
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145184
And 2x2GB for $25.

But quibbling over dollar figures is silly.

If you have the cash to get the system you want, go for it.

I dropped over $400 on a DINNER with my wife at a 5-Star Restaurant for a special occasion. Sure it was a great 3+ Hour Dinner, but that was it.
What it REALLY that much better than Appleby's? Not technically.

Is i7 System worth that much more?
Yes, if you have the spare cash.
No, if you dont :>
 
Simply put, if you have the spare cash, go for the new technology. Its already known that the Core i7 is better.

Now, remember, I said "spare" cash.. Don't go blowing your house payment just get a new pc...
 


I am not experienced with the performance factors of your applications, but I assume that they are multicore optimized, and can make use of lots of ram.

The 920 should win on the cpu functions, and the option for massive ram up to 24gb in triple channel mode.

What are the specs of the Dell offer?
I suspect that you may be able to do better by building it yourself.
 
Studio XPS
Windows Vista Home Premium Edition SP1, 64-Bit

Intel® Core™i7-920 Processor(8MB L2 Cache, 2.66GHz)

Memory 8GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1066MHz - 6 DIMMs

Monitor Dell 24 inch Consumer™ S2409W Flat Panel, Adjustable Stand

Video Card 512MB ATI Radeon HD 4850 AT4850 [320-7704]

Hard Drives 500GB Data SecurityRAID 1 (2 x 500GB SATA 3Gb/s7200RPMHDDs)
Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 9.0 Multi-Language
Optical Drives Single Drive: 16X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double
Sound Card Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio IS
Network Integrated 10/1000 Ethernet IE
Microsoft Works 9

$1,668.00
 
Studio Mini-Tower

Intel® Core™ 2 Quad processor Q9550 (12MB L2, 2.83GHz, 1333FSB)

Windows Vista Home Premium Edition SP1, 64-Bit

Memory 8GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz - 4DIMMs

Hard Drive 500GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/DataBurst Cache
Monitors Dell S2409W 24" Full HD Widescreen Flat Panel Monitor
ATI Radeon HD 3650 256MB supporting HDMI
Integrated 16-in-1 Media Card Reader
Integrated 10/1000 Ethernet IE
Adobe Acrobat Reader 9.0
Optical Drive 16X DVD+/-RW Drive
Sound Card Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio IS
Microsoft Works 9.0

* Note the Less Hard Drive & Decent Graphics Card* Not available in this config.

$1,558.00
 
How do they manage to deliver 8GB in 6 DIMMs???

Dell monitors are very nice :)

These specs are worth $25 in total:
Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 9.0 Multi-Language
Optical Drives Single Drive: 16X CD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double
Sound Card Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio IS
Network Integrated 10/1000 Ethernet IE
Click to expand...
 
The first config (with the i7 and the gaming video card) is worth a lot more than the second one (with the Q9550 and the home-theater video card).
That is, at those prices, and no other choices being available, I'd definitely go for the first option.

The problem is that the second config is very overpriced. You can build it with parts from Newegg for much less.
 
What about these? I ordered the Q9550 6 days ago from Dell but can cancel up until tomorrow and order the new one (XPS730x) for shipment 12/20. I will be using the PC for gaming and basic multimedia/video. From what I've researched, the new i7 doesnt provide that big of a difference in those departments. Let me know what you think:

Model: XPS630
Processor: Q9550 (12MB,2.83GHz, 1333FSB)
RAM: 4GB Dual-C DDR2 800MHz (4x1)
Video Card : nVidia GeForce GTX 280 – 1024MB <-----Clearly this is a better card, but is it worth it for the lower processor?
Hard Drive :750GB - 7200RPM, SATA 3.0Gb/s, 16MB Cache
Sound Card: Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio
Price: $1,814.11


Model: XPS730x
Processor: i7-940 (2.93GHz, 8MB cache)
RAM: 3GB Tri-C DDR3 at 1066MHZ (3x1GB)
Video Card : nVidia GeForce 9800GT 512MB
Hard Drive : 500GB - SATA-II, 3GB/S, 7200RPM, 16MB Cache
Sound Card: Soundblaster X-Fi XtremeGamer (D), PCIe
Price: $1,941.73

Either one will have a new Dell 24" UltraSharp 2408WFP monitor connected.

Thanks!!
 
I think you made the right choice. The setup you ordered will do better in all games except FSX.

For one thing, it has more RAM.
http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2008/07/08/is-more-memory-better/1

For another, a faster CPU doesn't always help much in games:
http://www.legionhardware.com/document.php?id=775&p=2

A faster GPU, on the other hand, is almost always the key to better fps. For example the same system, with a GTX 280, got 36 fps in Crysis at 1920x1200 and only 30 fps with GTX 260. With a 9800GT I guess it would have been under 25 fps.
http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=3415&p=4

The seconds setup would compress videos faster, if it had two separate hard disks for source/target. With a single HDD, it would be bottlenecked big time, just like the Q9550 system, and both would do the job in the same time. Even my Q6600 is only used at half-capacity if I mess up and put both source and target on the same drive.
 
Are they fairly priced (I get a discount with Dell through my employer) compared to the option of building my own system? I have never done it and the warranty/hassle-free/time-saving is worth a great deal to me.

To note: In the case of the 630 I am spending extra money on the GTX 280. I can always replace the video card in the 730x when the 9800GT becomes useless.

In buying the 730x, I am spending the extra money on the i7-940. Do you not find it wiser to have the option of upgrading more with the i7-940/newer technology?

I'm leaning towards the 730x and waiting the month for it to arrive. Unless, however, you think it is pointless given my limited use of the benefits of the i7 and the fact that in a year from now, it won't matter which one I chose because they will both be outdated...lol
 


I wouldn't worry that the i7 940 will be outdated in a year. Or the Q9550 for that matter. My own Q6600 is still doing its job very happily after a year and a half and I don't have the slightest need to upgrade it yet. The i7 940 or Q9550 run circles around it too. Besides, you can learn to overclock by the time you need more CPU power, and gain another year or so that way.

Fairly priced? Let's see:
CPU: Q9550 (12MB,2.83GHz, 1333FSB) $320 at newegg
RAM: 4GB Dual-C DDR2 800MHz (4x1) $50
Video Card : nVidia GeForce GTX 280 $400
Hard Drive :750GB $90
Sound Card: Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio $0
Price: $1,814.11

Add:
$150 motherboard
$150 case+PSU
$25 DVD-RW
$100 Windows DVD
$450 24" monitor

The parts would cost $1735, give or take $100 or $200, IMO. You pay $1814, i.e. Dell's profit is around $100. They do the assembly and take care of mail rebates and install Windows for this money. Yes, it's quite fairly priced, I'd say. Mind you, just look at Dell's stock price, you can see they're not very profitable these days.

 
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