Unsure what to upgrade CPU or GPU.

[Matlad]

I am itching to upgrade something! Presently have a i920 clocked at 3.8ghz on a dfi motherboard with 12gb 2133 gskill memory. I have a slightly overclocked nvidia 570. Running 1680x1050 Res but will be getting new higher Res monitor later in the year. Running on a 240gb ocz ssd drive. I need to upgrade something, maybe the last time for a few years when kids arrive! Can't decide to go for new platform on ivy bridge with new motherboard or keep this setup and upgrade gfx instead to one of the new keplar nvidia cards. Which will give me a better increase, bearing in mind will be running higher resolution later in the year and may not be able to upgrade anything else for a few years! Thanks in advance.

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[Manicdan]

you shouldnt be cpu limited except in a few rare occasions.
go with the gpu upgrade hands down

[deachus]

I vote for a platform upgrade to Sandy Bridge based off my upgrade from 920 to 2600K back in April of this year. I have never been happier and with that resolution you don't need a new VGA. I ran a 560 Ti until I popped a second 560 Ti in this week and could play all games no issues at 1920x1080. with a single 560 Ti. You didn't state what you use your PC for so its a bit hard to inform you of the correct/recommended upgrade path. And if you go with SandyBridge the MB will by Ivy Bridge ready when they are released.

[Telo]

I am itching to upgrade something! Presently have a i920 clocked at 3.8ghz on a dfi motherboard with 12gb 2133 gskill memory.

I'm amazed you got your RAM to actually run at the advertised speeds since it needs 4266 uncore to achieve that. Anything close to 4000 uncore on my i7 950 means a sure BSOD.


As for the upgrade, you would need to specify what you would like to achieve [what you mainly use your PC for] and your budget.

[Matlad]

Have a budget of around £500-£600.
Mainly game on PC but occasionally edit videos and make movies.
My ram is actually running at 2000 and uncore at 4000 as your right, it bsod any higher. I debated sb-e but think ivy would serve me better. May be unable to upgrade any more for 2 years or so. Bear in mind I would maybe get £150 for motherboard, CPU and memory from eBay?

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[Telo]

Have a budget of around £500-£600.
Mainly game on PC but occasionally edit videos and make movies.
My ram is actually running at 2000 and uncore at 4000 as your right, it bsod any higher. I debated sb-e but think ivy would serve me better. May be unable to upgrade any more for 2 years or so. Bear in mind I would maybe get £150 for motherboard, CPU and memory from eBay?

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So roughly 650 to 750 pounds... I would say, since you want to eventually hit Ivy, get yourself a 2500k and a good Z68 motherboard.
I said 2500k because it relatively cheap compared to the 2600k [100 dollars cheaper in most cases here in the US]; then you can use that saved cash towards the purchase of the Ivy chip when they come out.

[LennyRhys]

Your GPU will be bottlenecked at 3.8GHz - I ran several tests with my 920 and noticed FPS improvements up to 4.5GHz which is as high as my 920 will go 3D-stable (HT off).

If you do video editing you want hyperthreading power, so IMO your best bet is to get a good batch of i7 970/i7 980X and ramp it up to 4.5GHz. I've owned all of the Core i7 hexcore CPUs - 970, 980X and 990X - and all of them did 4.5GHz with HT enabled at or below 1.4v. Preowned they will set you back as little as £300, and if you're shrewd you can negotiate a good deal... I got my golden 980X on ebay for £385.

Incidentally I really regretted letting my 990X go so am getting it back this week and keeping it until I can find a 970 that will do the same clock speed.

I strongly recommend sticking with the X58 platform and getting a powerhouse hexcore CPU rather than losing money by selling stuff and side-grading to SB...

[OC Nub]

No one needs a reason/excuse to upgrade, new hardware is just fun!

Id get a good z68 board and a 2600k-2700k and enjoy low voltage, low temps, and high over clocks. I really dont miss my x 58 a bit. After seeing what SB can do I never looked back.

Only guys I see calling s1155 a side grade from s1366 are guys still on x58.

[Manicdan]

why put 400$ into a new MB/CPU when hes already at 3.8ghz on a decent architecture.
hes also planning on getting a new monitor, so 1080p gaming would easily benefit from a much stronger gpu.
id say hold off until the new nvidia gpu if they are the brand you want, or a 7950 when they launch.

[OC Nub]

He said after this he would be unable to upgrade for 2 years. If it were me, Id make due with the 570 for now and go with the newer platform. Could always find a used, cheap 570 for sli in a year if he felt he needed it. Just my opinion.

[l0ud_sil3nc3]

He said after this he would be unable to upgrade for 2 years. If it were me, Id make due with the 570 for now and go with the newer platform. Could always find a used, cheap 570 for sli in a year if he felt he needed it. Just my opinion.

could not agree with this more, what is the point in getting the newest gfx card when you are 2-3 generations behind on cpu/mb

[Matlad]

I think this is the way I am heading. Get new CPU and mobo and ensure can go sli in future. Think I will wait until April until ivy arrives as won't have cash until end of Feb. Will then compare ivy to sb-e and make a decision.

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[LennyRhys]

Only guys I see calling s1155 a side grade from s1366 are guys still on x58.

Yep, the guys with the most common sense LOL!

[l0ud_sil3nc3]

Yep, the guys with the most common sense LOL!

have you even used a sb setup?

it's cooler running, it overclocks higher, uses less power and can be had for the same price if not cheaper than a nice 1366 setup.

memory bandwidth does not even compare nor do the speeds which memory can be run at, especially when dealing with 4GB dimms.

I would say the people that are on sb are the ones with the common sense

[herderien]

it's cooler running, it overclocks higher, uses less power and can be had for the same price if not cheaper than a nice 1366 setup.

sure...if you don't already own a 1366 setup...specially when new things like ivy or 3820 are comming in a few week / month

[Telo]

My 2 cents...

People seem to forget the main thing about the post... it is not for you, it is for him. You can be a fanboy of a platform all you want, that is your choice; he is obviously not happy with the i7 920 and would like to upgrade. The fact that this will be he last upgrade for two years points out to getting new MB and CPU is the best option hands down; if it is 1155 or 2011 is up to him. Also, he already has a 570 which is like having a 6950, there is only so much he can do as for getting a higher grade card; and going SLI is extremely easy by getting a second hand 570 from forums.

[Matlad]

Thanks for everyone's input. I think I am going to upgrade to ivy in April and sell my present CPU and motherboard. Will keep my memory and gpu but go for a board I could sli my 570 gfx maybe in the future.

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[LennyRhys]

The main problem with X58 is that although hexcore CPUs are a viable upgrade option, they are extremely expensive.

@l0ud_sil3nc3, nope never used a SB setup - I know that my 990X will trump any SB quad core in video encoding/rendering, which is one of the main reasons I upgraded to it, so there would be no point in me getting SB. The bandwidth is higher and the architecture is better (no doubt about that), but that doesn't really translate into real world performance at all, only benchmarks - a 5GHz 2700K and a 4.5GHz 990X will feel very much the same on the same system, even though each will excel in different areas, eg single threaded performance and multi threaded performance.

Since the OP is a gamer, then SB is the obvious choice... I just thought he might fancy some hexcore goodness for his movie making.

[iboomalot]

upgrading to a 2600K isn't all that expensive compared to a new GPU like a 7970 but even a new 570 is $340 but this summer after the 7xxx and NVs new release hits full production the 570s should come way down in price for a nice upgrade this late summer.

The 1155 should upgrade to the Ivy Bridge if you need to purchase right now. I would suggest do what Iam doing is waiting about 3 months for the Z77 1155s mobos to hit and upgrade to ivy bridge this april.

Its so close to a shrink to be buying anything at this point and 22nm might be a OCers dream.

[OC Nub]

Lol

yep, the guys with the most common sense lol! :d

[l0ud_sil3nc3]

The main problem with X58 is that although hexcore CPUs are a viable upgrade option, they are extremely expensive.

@l0ud_sil3nc3, nope never used a SB setup - I know that my 990X will trump any SB quad core in video encoding/rendering, which is one of the main reasons I upgraded to it, so there would be no point in me getting SB. The bandwidth is higher and the architecture is better (no doubt about that), but that doesn't really translate into real world performance at all, only benchmarks - a 5GHz 2700K and a 4.5GHz 990X will feel very much the same on the same system, even though each will excel in different areas, eg single threaded performance and multi threaded performance.

Since the OP is a gamer, then SB is the obvious choice... I just thought he might fancy some hexcore goodness for his movie making.

I will take a 5ghz sb over any 4.5 gt, but that is just me, and I have owned both platforms

Another reason to consider upgrading is as every new generation comes out, older gear is worth less and less, meaning you will take a bigger hit when you sell your 970/980/980X/990X and 1366 board, hence why all of mine are gone.

Honestly the OP should just get the best of both worlds and get a 3820 when they release if he is needing more multi threaded performance, or if not, then stick with a Z77/3770K setup, I am sure it will be super beast

[LennyRhys]

Another reason to consider upgrading is as every new generation comes out, older gear is worth less and less

Especially X58, but I'm not thinking of it as an investment - it's an expense, a big expense, but a worthwhile one IMO. Some people want to spend less in the long run and change out their system relatively often which is totally fine, but I've had my X58 system for nearly 2 years now and am more than happy to keep it for another 2 years at least now that I have a golden 990X under the hood, with the possibility of getting a better motherboard for overclocking.

But I agree that SB would be a good move for the OP.

[Manicdan]

But I agree that SB would be a good move for the OP.

thats a 400-500$ cost for what though? games wont be that much faster and encoding isnt done for hours each day.
i think waiting for SBs replacement is the way to go. get something with PCIE3 that wont break the bank in the next +8 months or so, then in the next 2 years get a gpu that should keep up with games of the next consoles.

[Kingcarcas]

Good gravy that's a good system, can you get new headphones or speakers or something?? Seems like everyone upgrades every generation, i'm still on socket 775