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Building a cheap i7 920 System

C

computerinfo

Limp Gawd
Joined
Oct 19, 2007
Messages
381
I am hoping we can keep this thread going as prices change. I was about to build a new system today with a Q9550. I decided against it and am now waiting to see if the prices of the i7 920 and related components fall.

My Q9550 build would include:
Q9550 @ $310,
Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3P @$100,
4GB of OCZ memory @ $50.
____________
Total: $460

The i7 920 system would be:
i7 920 @ $295
Mobo @ $220
3GB Memory @ 110
____________
Total: $625

Difference of $165
(seems to be a small amount given the performance edge) - all newegg.com prices.

All other components would be recycled from old system including power supply, case, hard drives, video card and Microsoft XP 32 (assuming the 32 bit version is okay).

The the performance of the i7 920 is a lot greater that the Q9550 system, I think it is wise to sit on the sidelines for a short while and see where prices go.

I assume prices will fall and new motherboards and memory will come out at lower prices for the x58 system.

Does anyone have any input here on predicting what will happen in the next month or so.

Also, is my math and thought process correct????
 
Interesting topic...definitely something to keep updated. I'd advise going to vista 64 bit or server 2008, however.
 
I don't call myself an expert at all since I'm in the middle of building an i7 system myself but my thought process was similar.

A few notes: the price delta is actually slightly smaller if you're willing to forgo Newegg and use the 30% MS Live cashback deal that was on for today. It worked for me but I can't say it will work for everyone since it needs Paypal, etc. I do really like Newegg and use them all the time (like for my case) but I couldn't pass up the savings that MS is handing out for now.

I got a 920 for 202$ and the MSI X58 for 150$ and a 620HX PSU for 80$ AR (crosses fingers). I couldn't find any great deals on the DDR3 memory so I ended up paying 115$ for 4GB DDR3 1333 (2 x 2GB, yeah I know people like tri-channel but benchmarks are mixed so far on how much extra performance you get and I *know* DDR3 prices are going to drop like a rock so I might add the extra 2GB stick later when prices are closer to DDR2 and it looks like I need more ram). To be honest, my memory usage currently barely goes above 2-3GB since I don't do heavy Photoshop, etc. I'm not recycling much but the prices on the other items are pretty constant no matter which platform.

I assume Q9550 and P45 prices drop accordingly so the price difference is slightly lower.

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong but I think XP only supports 4 cores so if you want to take advantage of the HT in the i7, you might want to upgrade to Vista. If you don't care about HT, then XP is okay for now.

As for if the i7 is better than the Q9550, it's a bit mixed too. It really depends on what you do with your computer. If you just game only, the Q9550 will probably be roughly the same performance because almost all games are GPU bound at the moment. This may change when GPUs get significantly faster, like if Nvidia comes out with a super GTX 380 or ATI has a super 5870 or whatever the next gen stuff is called but that's pretty far down the line. I vaguely remember how the i7 was slightly faster when they were testing it with tri-SLI 280s but I don't really recall the details. To be honest, though, if you're just gaming only, the i7 probably won't give you anything extra since most games are GPU bound, especially if you run 1920+ res with everything maxed including AA/AF.

The i7 pulls ahead a bit on highly threaded apps. There are a bunch of reviews on this site in the sticky threads.

I guess the main question is what your budget is like and what you do with your computer. The i7 is slightly faster but it obviously carries a bit of a price premium. For me, the price difference wasn't large enough and I like shiny things, especially since I'm running a P4 Netburst currently. As for what happens in a month, it's the computer industry. Prices on everything fall sooner or later although you might find a fantastic deal here and there with sales. I mean if you wait long enough, the LGA1160 will be out and that will probably end up replacing the LGA775 eventually for budget PCs. It's mostly the same difference like people buying a 4870/GTX 260 or people who buy GTX 280/4870X2.
 
can get 25% cash back through MS Live too. Basically a 60 day MIR.
$470 vs 345.
 
Case: - Lain Li v1200 Plus II
PS: - Antec NeoHE 500
Video: - either old 8600GTS or new Sapphire 4830
OS: - MS Windows XP
 
Attean said:
Interesting topic...definitely something to keep updated. I'd advise going to vista 64 bit or server 2008, however.
Click to expand...
Do not go Server 2008 if you have ATI cards. Well, might be okay as long as you don't run CrossFire, but I still wouldn't trust ATI to do it properly.
 
Uberbob102000 said:
Nope XP supports 8 cores. As long as you don't have more than two physical CPUs.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I wasn't sure. XP isn't terrible. Neither is Vista really.

Well, it's all over the Hotdeals section but pretty much if this is your first time. Go to live.com and click the cashback link at the top to sign up for an account.

Then go to live.com, search for something common like "ps3" and there should be a banner ad at the top that says something like "PS3 items - www.ebay.com Live Search cashback Buy PS3 items. You may get 30% off with Paypal if eligible."

Click that link and the next 1 item you order will get 30% off if you Buy it Now and use Paypal. There should be green Cashback things all over your screen.

On some auctions, you'll get Ebay's inbox mail and have to click to confirm to receive the cashback. It's kind of like a MIR, I suppose. Jump through some hoops but it works for almost anything. Just read the terms and conditions and rules first. For me, the cashback posted to my account within like a minute. Some people it takes a day or so.

If you order multiple items, you have to go through live.com and search "ps3" for every item before buying it with Ebay.

There's probably more details in that gigantic "Get 35% off Ebay stuff" thread in the Hotdeals discussions. A lot of the Ebay stores are places like buy.com, Mwave, ZZF, etc. so you can get a real invoice from them to use for MIRs, Evga warranties, etc. but just be careful since nothing is 100%.
 
As an eBay Associate, HardForum may earn from qualifying purchases.
I see the cash back banner but i can not click on it. Also, I am just not sure if I hit the Buyitnow button that I will actually get the credit.

I must be missing something...
 
I've gotten it to work before in FF and stuff but IE seems to work better for the MS cashback stuff. Go figure. Not sure if that is your problem.

For me, I click on the "PS3 items" link after searching on live.com and it takes me to Ebay. At Ebay, right below the search box you should see a green "Microsoft cashback 30%" banner. Then when you buy it now but before you confirm, the green 30% banner appears again. Then on the last confirm screen, the green banner appears a final time and says something like

"Microsoft cashback 30% US$90.00
You must pay with PayPal to get your Microsoft cashback
This item is eligible for cashback, but this seller doesn't use eBay checkout. Since you won't be completing your purchase on eBay, it's very important that you remember to pay with PayPal.

If you use another payment method, you won't be eligible for cashback. See conditions. "

All of this should be above the "Commit to Buy" button. So you can test all that out without buying anything. Also note that the Cashback session is only 1 hour long so if you spend too much time browsing you have to go back and do the whole thing again. I'm not sure how else to make it more clear.
 
I'm a little nervous. I went through the whole process and after I paid with paypal, I received a page that said:

Congratulations, you're eligible for US $88.50 cashback!

One more step to get your money:
You must click the Get cashback button below to create or access your Microsoft cashback account.
Get cashbackGet cashbackYour Microsoft cashback will then be available in your PayPal account in approximately 60 days. See conditions.

I clicked the button and it says:
We are having technical difficulties. Please try again later!

I hope i am not screwed ot of the $88.50

Now what???

I noticed that i did not have my live account synced with paypal. I just did the link after the transaction. Will this affect the credit.
 
That link usually doesn't work for strange reasons. You'll get a inbox mail in your Ebay inbox thing (My Ebay->Messages)

From: eBay
Subject: You're eligible for Microsoft cashback

In that message is a link that does work for some weird reason. The mail typically takes a few minutes to arrive.
 
Okay, did that. It shows pending in my live acount.

Wow, what a deal. Why is this possible? Who can make money
 
I haven't kept myself on the new with the new processor but can someone give me ifo on the I7? I know it is code name Nehalem. How does it perform compare to core 2 duo series? Is it ground breaking performance like from moving like a Athlon XP to a core 2 duo?
 
I would go with the core i7 setup, more intense that its going to be around longer and leaves some upgrade paths for you.
 
Done. I finally went with the i7 920.

My new system will have:
- Windows XP 32 bit
- Intel i7 920
- MSI x58 Platinum MB
- Asus 4830 Video
- Antec NeoHE 500 Power Supply - I hope it is enough
- Lian Li v1200 Plus II
- 74GB Raptor
- Memory 3GB - Still need to buy - Soo many decisions to make.....

Thanks for the help everyone.

I sure hope this new rig boots for me....
 
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