Should i replace my i7 920?

[rvdman306]

So i was gonna overclock my i7 920 but it turns out my BIOS is locked and i cannot access my voltage settings.

People tell me my setup is good, but my CPU is holding me back. I have spent alot of money on this setup and if i have to spend another 200-300$ for a better CPU then i would assume that's a good idea, right? Only problem is, my warranty is expired so i would have to either do it myself, or get my friend who knows alot more then me to do it.

Here are my specs.

AMD HD7870 with 2gb of VRAM Gigabyte OC'd edition.
650W PSU
Motherboard: Gateway TBGM01
Processor: Intel i7 920 2.7ghz
Operating system Windows vista
12g of RAM
Directx 11

If you need ANY other info please don't hesitate to ask.

 

[antonisrsx]

if you are a gamer your cpu doesnt holding you back. it doesnt worth to spend 200-300$ for a better CPU (+$$$ for new motherboard)

 

[harna]

You would be better advised to approach your PC vendor and ask for the BIOS access codes to see if you can get in to OC your PC. If the warranty has expired they'll probably only warn you that playing around with OC settings is at your own risk. This is why they locked the BIOS up in the first place, because who admits they pushed things a bit to far, and how do you prove OCing killed it. But being out of warranty means it is at your own risk entirely and they will probably allow you access. I really don't think they actually have a choice, it's your PC after all.

As for bottle necking your system at stock, I find hard to believe that an i7920 does not have the grunt to power the HD7870. I don't think a new motherboard would deliver you a cost/risk effective solution.

 

[rvdman306]

You would be better advised to approach your PC vendor and ask for the BIOS access codes to see if you can get in to OC your PC. If the warranty has expired they'll probably only warn you that playing around with OC settings is at your own risk. This is why they locked the BIOS up in the first place, because who admits they pushed things a bit to far, and how do you prove OCing killed it. But being out of warranty means it is at your own risk entirely and they will probably allow you access. I really don't think they actually have a choice, it's your PC after all.

As for bottle necking your system at stock, I find hard to believe that an i7920 does not have the grunt to power the HD7870. I don't think a new motherboard would deliver you a cost/risk effective solution.

Ok thanks i will go to my PC vendor and ask for the BIOS access codes.

I thought the i7 920 would be powerful enough also, but from research online and from what people tell me, it is holding me back compared to my other specs.

Comparing to benchmarks of 7870 online my setup does not perform as well

I get 30-40 fps on BF3 1920x1080 ultra settings with pretty bad screen skipping/stutter.

GTA4 gets 30-40 fps on high settings with shadow quality/night shadows turned off(turned on and i get 1-10 fps) view/detail distance varies from 25-50 depending on how smooth the game is running. Online i have to have everything on low to play smooth due to so much going on at once.

Skyrim works well. not much screen lag on ultra + mods.

I have not played many other graphical demanding games to compare.

 

[cbrunnem]

whatever you do dont get a new motherboard to overclock your 920. its not good to invest in old tech.

 

[rvdman306]

whatever you do dont get a new motherboard to overclock your 920. its not good to invest in old tech.

I wouldn't. If i were to get a new motherboard I'm pretty sure i would get a new processor also.