Intel i5 & LGA1155 questions / clarifications...

PZH

I have been following this thread with interest because I have been thinking for a while now that it is time to update my AMD Athlon 3200+ based system to something more modern :rotfl:

I think that I have decided on an Intel Core i5-2400 (Sandybridge) CPU - out of preference thinking about the usual factors involved when choosing a CPU.

So, first question.... Is it worth paying the minimal amount extra and getting the 2500 for the sake of 0.2 GHz ?


I also notice the LGA1155 motherboards come in various flavours.

Second question..... Am I correct in thinking that the P67 chipset allows for overclocking (not that I am planning on doing so) but does not have integrated graphics, whereas the H67 is the reverse ( i.e. no overclocking but graphics) ?

Third question.... Am I correct in thinking that I need a R3 ( or B3 ) board to eliminate any potential errors in the furture due to the whole possible SATA degradation thing ?

What a minefield :rotfl:

GeoffX

The B3 boards are now becoming available and the Gigabyte ones I saw last weekend are quite clearly marked as such. There are three types of motherboard for Sandy Bridge processors. You're accurate about the two you've mentioned, but the third type - which isn't probably going to be available until next month - is the Z68, which essentially combines the functionality of both the H67 and P67.

I was wrong about there being three...it's going to be at least five! There's also going to be an H61 and a B65. Intel...

If you're going to be using the PC for games then I'd get the P67 with an i5-2500K processor and a decent graphics card - say an ATI 5770 or better or an nVidia GTX 460 or better. If not, then I might lean to towards the H67 as they seem to be a fair bit cheaper.

There's a basic comparison of the chipsets at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGA_1155

PZH

Thanks GeoffX

I have been looking at the Asus P8H67-V R3 because:-

a) It's slightly cheaper than the P67's (though not by much)
b) It has a legacy IDE port on it (Can use my legacy HDD as a backup / spare drive )
c) It gives HDMI/DVI/VGA output

I was also toying along the lines of a Sapphire HD 6850 but not sure if this is overkill for me and to just see what the onboard graphics can do ( not really into hardened game playing )

Also found a basic comparison of the SandyBridge Intel's at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandy_Bridge_(microarchitecture)#Desktop_processors

ddoris

It's early days to be getting into sandybridge tech. After your current old pc any wolfdale budget system would be a big step up and an i3 system would really shine.
You have not stated any reqs. for new pc but if you just want new/best why ignore 2600k ?
I hope when/if you build a system you dare actually turn it on , unlike the thread you linked to !!!

PZH

ddoris wrote: »

It's early days to be getting into sandybridge tech. After your current old pc any wolfdale budget system would be a big step up and an i3 system would really shine.
You have not stated any reqs. for new pc but if you just want new/best why ignore 2600k ?
I hope when/if you build a system you dare actually turn it on , unlike the thread you linked to !!!

I've been thinking about upgrading for many months now and I think the SandyBridge chips have some longevity in them.

I am looking at the 2400 as a highish mid point chip - not sure I even need this (given the extreme leap that it should give me anyway), but thinking long term here.

I built this current system from scratch as well - so not phased at all by putting it together and turning it on :T

gonzo127

i would suggest just forgetting about paying more to have a IDE port on your motherboard really with the price of new hard drives and the ability to buy a USB caddy for your old hard drive it would be a waste (in my mind) to over spend on such things

now are you going to over clock or not, as not being funny you really should make the choice first and buy around that as there is no point spending out on parts which can be overclocked if you are not going to bother,

if you over clock you need a 'k' chip and a p67 board, if you will not overclock save money and get a non k CPU and the H67 board and spend the savings on your other parts,

also remember if overclocking you need some good ram, not the generic or value stuff which of course will increase the price a little

anyways as ever what sort of budget you looking at and what do you actually want to do with it, and be honest with yourself as there is no point spending money on a system which is designed to do things you wont bother with

PZH

gonzo127 wrote: »

i would suggest just forgetting about paying more to have a IDE port on your motherboard really with the price of new hard drives and the ability to buy a USB caddy for your old hard drive it would be a waste (in my mind) to over spend on such things

I do agree with the statement. I did look at SATA to IDE devices and these seem relatively cheap at £5 - £6 (Although they do take a power connection)

However, the board is reasonably priced and just so happens to have an IDE port. So, my thinking was that I might as well take advantage.

I will of course be getting a new SATA drive as the main device (Looking along the lines of something like this) and then use the IDE device purely as back-up.

gonzo127 wrote: »

now are you going to over clock or not, as not being funny you really should make the choice first and buy around that as there is no point spending out on parts which can be overclocked if you are not going to bother,

if you over clock you need a 'k' chip and a p67 board, if you will not overclock save money and get a non k CPU and the H67 board and spend the savings on your other parts,

also remember if overclocking you need some good ram, not the generic or value stuff which of course will increase the price a little

No intention to overclock. I did think about it but, to be honest, given the leap in performance that I will get anyway I don't see the need.

gonzo127 wrote: »

anyways as ever what sort of budget you looking at and what do you actually want to do with it, and be honest with yourself as there is no point spending money on a system which is designed to do things you wont bother with

The machine is used for everyday office stuff (Word, Excel, MS Projects, etc), a bit of photo editing and video work (Not to extreme, but don't like it when I have to sit around for a few hours as my current machine chugs away), a bit of coding (For my own use) and general internet stuff.

I do play some games (FarCry, Half-Life, etc) and there is always the possibility of me getting more (might give Crysis a go). Again, I'm not a hardened gamimg man, but would like a bit of umph behind the system (Hence undecided wether I will need a Graphics Card or not)

As for budget - was thinking £350 (Without Graphics card) - £500 (max) would give me what I needed.

PS: Have a full tower case and a 650W PSU (also an IDE HDD and CD/DVD Writer)

Toxteth_OGrady

Have you considered maybe a pre-built (and compatibility tested) bundle?

The pre-overclocked ones are guaranteed stress-test stable so a little bit more bang for the buck.

http://www.aria.co.uk/Systems/Bundles/

One of these withoin your budget plus a GTX 460 would I think meet your use.

:cool:

TOG

gonzo127

phoodless wrote: »

I do agree with the statement. I did look at SATA to IDE devices and these seem relatively cheap at £5 - £6 (Although they do take a power connection)

However, the board is reasonably priced and just so happens to have an IDE port. So, my thinking was that I might as well take advantage.

I will of course be getting a new SATA drive as the main device (Looking along the lines of something like this) and then use the IDE device purely as back-up.

No intention to overclock. I did think about it but, to be honest, given the leap in performance that I will get anyway I don't see the need.

The machine is used for everyday office stuff (Word, Excel, MS Projects, etc), a bit of photo editing and video work (Not to extreme, but don't like it when I have to sit around for a few hours as my current machine chugs away), a bit of coding (For my own use) and general internet stuff.

I do play some games (FarCry, Half-Life, etc) and there is always the possibility of me getting more (might give Crysis a go). Again, I'm not a hardened gamimg man, but would like a bit of umph behind the system (Hence undecided wether I will need a Graphics Card or not)

As for budget - was thinking £350 (Without Graphics card) - £500 (max) would give me what I needed.

PS: Have a full tower case and a 650W PSU (also an IDE HDD and CD/DVD Writer)

oki doki - well i still think the ide connection on the motherboard could be money spent on other things but as ever does depend on the board

Samsung F3 is a great hard drive

ok no overclocking, no need for a 'K' chip or the p67 boards, and you can even look at the value ram (still get a good brand such as corsair)

ok so no extream needs, 4gb 1333 ram would be fine - although look at getting a motherboard with 4 ram slots so if you ever need to upgrade the ram you have the ability to add another 4gb with minimum fuss

and FPS gaming, hm hard one, i am tempted to suggest going down the crossfire/sli route for graphics card and getting a slightly cheaper card to start off with to see how things run/feel and have the ability to add another one at a later date if you need the extra power

old parts - is your PSU a good quality one and what are the rail ratings? do not just go on the wattage as a good power supply needs to provide stable power - even more so when spending a decent amount of money on a system

PZH

Toxteth_OGrady wrote: »

Have you considered maybe a pre-built (and compatibility tested) bundle?

The pre-overclocked ones are guaranteed stress-test stable so a little bit more bang for the buck.

http://www.aria.co.uk/Systems/Bundles/

One of these withoin your budget plus a GTX 460 would I think meet your use.

:cool:

TOG

Yes - I did consider it. But, I like to recycle as much as possible and I already have a case and PSU - so looked at motherboard/CPU/RAM combo's

I do tend to find pre-built bundle a bit of a compromise though and not what I want (NB - what I want - not what I need :rotfl:)

PZH

gonzo127 wrote: »

ok so no extream needs, 4gb 1333 ram would be fine - although look at getting a motherboard with 4 ram slots so if you ever need to upgrade the ram you have the ability to add another 4gb with minimum fuss

Agreed

gonzo127 wrote: »

and FPS gaming, hm hard one, i am tempted to suggest going down the crossfire/sli route for graphics card and getting a slightly cheaper card to start off with to see how things run/feel and have the ability to add another one at a later date if you need the extra power

Yes - I think this is more the dilema for me. Hence the "wait and see" approach with the on-board graphics. Not really looked into crossfire - but I assume that adding extra card would allow the main Graphics Card to share resources? (Will do some reading ont his)

gonzo127 wrote: »

old parts - is your PSU a good quality one and what are the rail ratings? do not just go on the wattage as a good power supply needs to provide stable power - even more so when spending a decent amount of money on a system

To be honest, not really

But, it is a fairly new one as my old (High quality branded) PSU failed after just 3 years. However, at this stage I am a bit loath to splash out on another PSU