need help deciding which upgrade path to take

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maxbennett

n00b
Joined
Oct 3, 2009
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1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Gaming with nvidia 3d vision, web browsing, music, and maybe Photoshop down the line if I ever pick it up.

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$500 as I just need a few pieces, not complete package.

3) Where do you live?
San Diego, California.

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.
CPU, Motherboard, and maybe RAM depending on what mobo I purchase.

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
Monitor, kb+mouse, case, speakers, evga gts 250 1Gb, and 550 watt power supply. Not sure what bramd my PS is but I am confident that it will get the job done for the time being.

6) Will you be overclocking?
I will keep my options open.

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
I have the Samsung 2233rz for 3d vision- 1680x1050

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Would like the main parts by the end of this year.

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
I need room for a wifi card(pci) and sound card(pcie) plus I want the option for SLI down the road.

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license?
I will be buying Windows 7 in the coming months and will be installing it on a clean WD6401AALS.

Hey guys! 1st day on the [H]ardforum; long time reader, 1st time posting. I am stuck in a pickle trying to decide to upgrade to the q9550 or the i5 750. My current motherboard is the Intel dp35dp and is running the Intel C2D e4500(?) 2.2ghz. Going the 775 route would allow me to plug in the q9550 right away and upgrade my motherboard later. Since, I will be using nvidia 3d vision, I will need as many fps as I can. Benchmarks have shown that the i5 is up to par with the i7, which defitnely outperfomred the C2D series. So, is the i5 worth it to me? Thanks in advance!
 
If you can, give us the brand and model number of the PSU you have, as well as how long you've had it for.

Out of curiosity, which case do you have?

And why do you need SLI/CrossFire?

Unless you could get the Q9550 for cheap used, and you're willing to keep the your current setup for at least two more years, Core i5 would be fine. However, for gaming (as the priority of this build) and to go as cheap as possible, the AMD Phenom II X4 processors would work just as well for your needs. Performance-wise, the Phenom II performs about as well as the Q9550, but both would be supplanted by the Socket 1156 Core i5/i7 (better) and the Socket 1366 Core i7 (the best, and the most expensive).
 
tiraides said:
If you can, give us the brand and model number of the PSU you have, as well as how long you've had it for.

Out of curiosity, which case do you have?

And why do you need SLI/CrossFire?

Unless you could get the Q9550 for cheap used, and you're willing to keep the your current setup for at least two more years, Core i5 would be fine. However, for gaming (as the priority of this build) and to go as cheap as possible, the AMD Phenom II X4 processors would work just as well for your needs. Performance-wise, the Phenom II performs about as well as the Q9550, but both would be supplanted by the Socket 1156 Core i5/i7 (better) and the Socket 1366 Core i7 (the best, and the most expensive).
Click to expand...

I will try to find out the power supply and case models and post them in the morning. Don't need SLI but seeing as the 3d vision takes a hit on your fps, I thought it would help. The reason why I only posted Intel products was because of this, AMD motherboards not supporting SLI, but if SLI isn't worth it then I will defitnely look at them. How does AMD stack up against Intel outside of gaming? I'll just take the q9550 off my list for now.
 
maxbennett said:
I will try to find out the power supply and case models and post them in the morning. Don't need SLI but seeing as the 3d vision takes a hit on your fps, I thought it would help. The reason why I only posted Intel products was because of this, AMD motherboards not supporting SLI, but if SLI isn't worth it then I will defitnely look at them. How does AMD stack up against Intel outside of gaming? I'll just take the q9550 off my list for now.
Click to expand...

There are AMD motherboards out there that supports SLI. Though for your resolution, SLI isn't needed, even for 3D Vision AFAIK.

In video rendering, 3D rendering/editing, and photoshop, Intel Core i5 and Intel Core i7 are faster. For general work like web browsing and word processing, you would honestly not notice a difference.
 
The new Phenom II X4 processors perform about as well as the Yorkfield Core 2 Quad processors, but the Core 2 Quads are slightly better. They're also slightly more expensive than the Phenom II processors. However, the key thing to take note of is the fact that Intel's Socket 775 line-up reached end-of-life status earlier this year; you won't see much of an "upgrade cycle" for them by this time next year. As a long-term solution, you'd be better off considering the Phenom II processors.

You won't really see much of a benefit by using a(n) CF/SLI setup with your current resolution, as there are several single-GPU cards that would perform fine on their own (at that resolution). The GTS 250 is based off last year's 9800GTX design, so you may be better served by buying a newer, better video card (and selling your old card to recoup some of the costs).
 
tiraides said:
The new Phenom II X4 processors perform about as well as the Yorkfield Core 2 Quad processors, but the Core 2 Quads are slightly better. They're also slightly more expensive than the Phenom II processors. However, the key thing to take note of is the fact that Intel's Socket 775 line-up reached end-of-life status earlier this year; you won't see much of an "upgrade cycle" for them by this time next year. As a long-term solution, you'd be better off considering the Phenom II processors.

You won't really see much of a benefit by using a(n) CF/SLI setup with your current resolution, as there are several single-GPU cards that would perform fine on their own (at that resolution). The GTS 250 is based off last year's 9800GTX design, so you may be better served by buying a newer, better video card (and selling your old card to recoup some of the costs).
Click to expand...

Well, I was actually looking into SLI for the new nvidia cards, whenever they come out. I am willing to hold off completely for now as I want my next card to have directx11, and since I have 3d vision I can't jump to ATI cards. Isn't AMD supposed to come out with 6 core processors next year that will work with A3? This would defitnely push me towards AMD if so, because if I remember correctly, Intel's new lineup will only be supported on some 1366 motherboards.
 
 
lt_shiro said:
Foxconn Inferno Katana GTI LGA 1156 Intel P55 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $155

Intel Core i5-750 Lynnfield 2.66GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80605I5750 - Retail $200

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL - Retail $86

Free Shipping :D



Antec TruePower New TP-750 Blue 750W Continuous Power ATX12V V2.3 / EPS12V V2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE ... - Retail $105

In case you want go sli in future.
Click to expand...

Is 750w enough for SLI? If so, would it be futureproof for SLI with the new nvidia cards when they come out? Think I might go i5 and just be done building for a couple of years, besides upgrading my gpu. The build you gave me is great, especially for the price.
 
I don't have power usage numbers for Nivida next gen. So I can't safely say yes at this time but 62A should be enought for most SLi setups.
 
No real need for SLI at that res anyhow, as pointed out above, numerous times.
 
maxbennett said:
Is 750w enough for SLI? If so, would it be futureproof for SLI with the new nvidia cards when they come out? Think I might go i5 and just be done building for a couple of years, besides upgrading my gpu. The build you gave me is great, especially for the price.
Click to expand...

Yeah there have been no info whatsoever about the power usage or even performance of the new Nvidia cards. In fact, the new Nvidia cards aren't due to Q1 2010 IIRC. So yeah, can't say that the 750W will be enough for SLI GT300s.
 
x4 630 isn't good CPU for gaming for two reasons, lack of L3 cache and low clock speeds.

i5 750 is more than enough for 99% of the games out there right now.
 
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