new build

[vze3rvb2]

My ASUS P5B deluxe died (I killed it trying to attach the stock intel fan/heat sink).

I want to upgrade to an I7 with a good motherboard. Which CPU is the sweet spot? The 920 or the 940? Which motherboard? My current build is below. Do I need a new graphics card too with that?

Any recommendations for a case? I have a LIAN LI midsized tower that never gave me room for a bigger cooler.

I plan to reuse the PSU and HDDs, maybe recycle a fan or two if possible.

Thanks for your suggestions and help.

LIAN LI PC-G50A Silver Aluminum ATX Mid Tower
ASUS P5B Deluxe/WiFi-AP Socket T (LGA 775) Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard
eVGA 256-P2-N583-AR Geforce 7900GT 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card
Antec TRUEPOWERII TPII-550 ATX12V 550W
Intel Core 2 Duo E6400
CORSAIR ValueSelect 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300)

 

[heatlesssun]

I'd just go with the 920. If you look at my sig, there's a good parts list for an i7 rig. I plan on going to Gulftown when it comes out that's why I went with the 920 for now.

 

[Dangman]

Don't plan on reusing the PSU:
The Truepower I and II series as well as the Smartpower series were well known for their above average death rates due to a poor choice in caps and cooling design. In more specific terms, Antec/CWT specified/used caps (Fuhjyyu caps) that did not respond well to heat. Unfortunately, Antec made the decision to have the PSU fan only ramp at really high temps in an effort to keep the PSU quiet. However, just medium to high temps were enough to screw up the caps so really high temps were murderous. Over time, this degraded the quality and performance of those PSU series.

So I recommend replacing the PSU, especially if you hear a squeal, whine, or any odd noise coming from the PSU. Those are usually the first signs of those particular PSU lines dying. However, do note that the Truepower I and II series as well as the Smartpower series had a three year warranty. So if you do hear a squeal, whine, or any odd noise, that's enough grounds to RMA the PSU.

Anyway, this thread is better suited for General Hardware since you're asking about an entire build. SO please contact a moderator to move this thread over there. In the meantime, please answer these questions:
1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
3) Where do you live?
4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
6) Will you be overclocking?
7) What size monitor do you have or plan to have?
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license?

To answer your questions:
- The i7 920 is the best bang for the buck socket 1366 CPU out there. Whether or not that i7 920 is a good choice for YOU depends on your answers to the above questions.
- Whether or not you need a new video card depends on your answer to number 1 and whether or not you need more gaming performance.
- Can't recommend a mobo unless you answer question 9.

 

[Roland00]

Get a 920 here is why (I am just going to repost a post I did in the Hot deals forums discussing 940 vs 920

There is a new stepping for i7s called d0. d0 come in 920, 950, and 975EE. d0 overclock better than the old stepping. The 940 uses the old stepping and isn't made anymore.

In addition when you overclock you will achieve similar results from 920 vs 950 and old 920 vs old 940. This is because the 920 has a cpu multiplier of 20, the 940 has a cpu multiplier of 22, the 950 has a cpu multiplier 23. This is an extremely high multiplier you only get a 10% or 15% multiplier with the 940 or 950 vs 920. Your base clock is going to have much greater effect on your overclock than the multiplier since the cpu has such a high multiplier.

Because of this the 940 is only better than the 920 if you keep the cpu at stock clocks.

Here is the old thread detailing an old discussion
http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1479083&highlight=940

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You can get an i7 for 290 online (plus you can do bing cash back) or 199 at microcenter. Spend the extra 40 or 130 dollars on a ssd or on a better graphic card.

Sadly you can no longer the i7 920 at 199 at microcenter it is now 229.