mid level i7 (CPU) and best graphics card strategy (HD 4870 X2)?

I know very little about computers, but just read an article saying that for video gaming purposes, a cpu like the i7 is not NEARLY as important as a great video card, but I still want to be ready when games start using the i7 to its capacity (and not buy a core duo now which will not be as good as having an i7 a couple years from now).

- is that true? I thought maybe I could just buy the mid-level i7 (and not the $900 one), thinking that games won't reallly use its i7 capability for another couple years anyway. I could buy the HD 4870X2 and have a top knotch computer. Is this a good strategy?

- does it matter which HD 4870X2 card to get? it seems that the ones with more ram (?) are MUCH more expensive--is it worth it or just buy a standard HD 4870X2 card? when do you think the $500 price tag will go down to about $350? Are other cards coming out that will make it much cheaper?

- if I buy the mid level i7 card, I assume I won't have to buy more memory or another motherboard for 4 or so years, even if I upgrade to a better cpu at that time? (I know the i7's require a different type of memory and motherboard)

- also the article said it doesn't expect i7 cost to go down anytime soon do you agree? will the $500 mid level card go down much in 4 or so months?

thanks!

Like kaz said, there is no significant boost with the $300~ i7 core Processor and the $900~ one.

Although the 4870 is receiving a lot of hype for it's benchmark scores, you have to realize that it is still a multi-GPU graphics card, and you might run into driver issues and game compatibility making it use only one of it's cores. If this becomes the case, then the single-GPU graphics cards from Nvidia still outrun the ATI counterparts.

What is your budget?

-Betta

thanks for your response.

I understand that the i7 may be no better than a high end duo core or quad core now (actually, is that true or is it slightly better? how good is the i7 for gaming compared to high end duo core?). I very rarely to upgrades, and therefore i am trying to 'future proof' as much as possible. I don't want to buy another comp for another 4-5 years.

Also, I thought if i do upgrade the cpu before then, I won't have to upgrade the motherboard and DDR3 (sp?) memory--whereas I would for a duo core or non i7 quad core.

I therefore thought that getting an i7 would be best for FUTURE gaming, and the high end duo core (even if it is better now) may become obsolete in a couple years compared with the i7.

My budget is around $2000. Also, is 3 or 6 megabytes (or whatever they call it) of DDR3 ram enough with the i7? thanks!

In short, the Core 2 Quad series of processors by intel are going to be phased out by the i7 core. Core 2 was meant for their dual core processors, i7 is for quad core processors and is a LOT faster. If your budget is about $2000, then you should definitely look into getting an i7 based system. Here is a wish list I'm putting together for my friend. If anyone on here wants to find me a good PSU for that hardware, that'd be good http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=5546409

-Betta

thanks betta,

if anyone else has any opinions about my detailed questions, i would appreciate it (including if the high end video card i mentioned should be cheaper in next 3 or so months bc any new card coming out? how much cheaper than the $500 price now?)

thanks sordidus (your moniker looks scary!)

I assume the tri-SLI GTX280 doesn't exist yet? any chance when it will come out? If i bought a mid i7 and the video card I mentioned before in three months, I assume that this would be great for gaming until the tri-SLI GTX280 comes out in a year or two (or whatever) w/ a wait after its initial release so it gets cheaper?

Two questions: how much DDR3 memory should I get and what fan/coolant? do I need another power source than my typical home outlet? (I believe someone said before that I probably didn't, just want to make sure)

since people in anther thread told me ibuypower sucked and dell was a ripoff, I plan to have someone at best buy build this in 3-4 months after the price goes down (build is about $120.00) thanks

The standard for triple channel memory is either 3 or 6gb. Basically, something that is divisible by three.

I cannot imagine what games that are out now can even come close to needing any more than 1, much less 2 SLI'd GTX280's. Also, that would be crazy expensive.

-Betta

thanks sordidus (your moniker looks scary!)

I assume the tri-SLI GTX280 doesn't exist yet? any chance when it will come out? If i bought a mid i7 and the video card I mentioned before in three months, I assume that this would be great for gaming until the tri-SLI GTX280 comes out in a year or two (or whatever) w/ a wait after its initial release so it gets cheaper?

Two questions: how much DDR3 memory should I get and what fan/coolant? do I need another power source than my typical home outlet? (I believe someone said before that I probably didn't, just want to make sure)

since people in anther thread told me ibuypower sucked and dell was a ripoff, I plan to have someone at best buy build this in 3-4 months after the price goes down (build is about $120.00) thanks

ket222

TRI-SLI as been out ever since 780i and 8800GTX...

so to clarify everyone agrees that instead of buying the HD 4870X2 (which i thought was supposed to be the best graphics card on the market), I should go with the tri-SLI GTX280 to take full advantage of the i7? this is the best approach in the LONG TERM?

also, again i don't know computers well, but from a google search, I couldn't figure out how much the tri sli gtx280 costs or where it's sold (couldn't find in new egg). anyone know? thanks

so to clarify everyone agrees that instead of buying the HD 4870X2 (which i thought was supposed to be the best graphics card on the market), I should go with the tri-SLI GTX280 to take full advantage of the i7? this is the best approach in the LONG TERM?

also, again i don't know computers well, but from a google search, I couldn't figure out how much the tri sli gtx280 costs or where it's sold (couldn't find in new egg). anyone know? thanks

ket222

I just tried to explain that if generally you'll not see much better performance on today games with i7, isn't the processor's fault. Here, a comparison between an i7 and a fast Core 2 Duo: http://www.guru3d.com/article/core-i7-multigpu-sli-crossfire-game-performance-review/7

thanks sordidus,

to summarize I can buy the mid level i7 in three months (a bit cheaper than now), and MUCH later I will see much improved results once GPUs catch up. would you advise me to buy the video card i mentioned earlier (HD487X2 or whatever it is called)? Is there a better card to buy if I buy in the next three months? (Again, that triple GTX card is for the future, it's really three separate GTX cards, and prohibitively expensive now from what I understand?)

thanks

I understand that you might want to future proof yourself at the moment but IMO, you should get the best Core 2 system you can at the moment for now. Not only will you be getting better performance in current games but the Core 2 line has enough power for at least a year more or two. By then when the Core 2 no longer can hold up to the standards THEN I would suggest getting a Core i7, by that time the 920 will also be low end and the amount of memory won't be enough. AND most importantly LGA 1366 boards will be dirt cheap.

There's also the possibility(almost certainly) that VGA cards won't be using a PCI-Ex16 interface soon so the Motherboard upgrade will be necessary anyways.

The fact is that this is a horrible time to buy a new computer, we're actually changing generations at the moment, like consoles do so it's difficult choosing over system at the moment.

well now I'm DEFINITELY confused! Oh well, I know there are always opposing opinions when it comes to computers...

thanks for everyone's input...sigh

I understand that you might want to future proof yourself at the moment but IMO, you should get the best Core 2 system you can at the moment for now. Not only will you be getting better performance in current games but the Core 2 line has enough power for at least a year more or two. By then when the Core 2 no longer can hold up to the standards THEN I would suggest getting a Core i7, by that time the 920 will also be low end and the amount of memory won't be enough. AND most importantly LGA 1366 boards will be dirt cheap.

There's also the possibility(almost certainly) that VGA cards won't be using a PCI-Ex16 interface soon so the Motherboard upgrade will be necessary anyways.

The fact is that this is a horrible time to buy a new computer, we're actually changing generations at the moment, like consoles do so it's difficult choosing over system at the moment.

nintendog66

Since when has a Core 2 Duo better performance on current games than an i7...?

[QUOTE="nintendog66"]

I understand that you might want to future proof yourself at the moment but IMO, you should get the best Core 2 system you can at the moment for now. Not only will you be getting better performance in current games but the Core 2 line has enough power for at least a year more or two. By then when the Core 2 no longer can hold up to the standards THEN I would suggest getting a Core i7, by that time the 920 will also be low end and the amount of memory won't be enough. AND most importantly LGA 1366 boards will be dirt cheap.

There's also the possibility(almost certainly) that VGA cards won't be using a PCI-Ex16 interface soon so the Motherboard upgrade will be necessary anyways.

The fact is that this is a horrible time to buy a new computer, we're actually changing generations at the moment, like consoles do so it's difficult choosing over system at the moment.

Sordidus

Since when has a Core 2 Duo better performance on current games than an i7...?

As you wish,

More reviews

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2008/11/03/intel-core-i7-920-945-965-review/5

There are some benchmarks in which the 920 performs a bit better than then Quad and Duo processors but the difference is so small it's unnoticeable, like a 1-2FPS increase and that's not saying much...

As you wish,

More reviews

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2008/11/03/intel-core-i7-920-945-965-review/5

There are some benchmarks in which the 920 performs a bit better than then Quad and Duo processors but the difference is so small it's unnoticeable, like a 1-2FPS increase and that's not saying much...

nintendog66

You do know, when you compare CPU in gaming, you need to do it in lower resolution?

That's only two games and doesn't has nothing to do with the E8600 being faster than the i7 920, it isn't. The i7 920 is even faster generally than the Core 2 Q9770 3.2, so it's something to do with game itself and not with the processor.Sordidus

Not in games, maybe for other application... the new i7 core barely shows any advantage over previous CPU.

[QUOTE="Sordidus"]That's only two games and doesn't has nothing to do with the E8600 being faster than the i7 920, it isn't. The i7 920 is even faster generally than the Core 2 Q9770 3.2, so it's something to do with game itself and not with the processor.Bebi_vegeta

Not in games, maybe for other application... the new i7 core barely shows any advantage over previous CPU.

The Core i7 it's much faster clock per clock than a Core 2 so how can it not be better for games...?

As you wish,

More reviews

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2008/11/03/intel-core-i7-920-945-965-review/5

There are some benchmarks in which the 920 performs a bit better than then Quad and Duo processors but the difference is so small it's unnoticeable, like a 1-2FPS increase and that's not saying much...

nintendog66

[QUOTE="Bebi_vegeta"]

[QUOTE="Sordidus"]That's only two games and doesn't has nothing to do with the E8600 being faster than the i7 920, it isn't. The i7 920 is even faster generally than the Core 2 Q9770 3.2, so it's something to do with game itself and not with the processor.Sordidus

Not in games, maybe for other application... the new i7 core barely shows any advantage over previous CPU.

The Core i7 it's much faster clock per clock than a Core 2 so how can it not be better for games...?

http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/intel/showdoc.aspx?i=3448&p=19

quote from from review :

"Overall in gaming tests the situations where Nehalem was faster than Penryn outnumbered those where it didn't, but upgrading to Nehalem for faster gaming performance doesn't make sense. We were entirely too GPU bound in all of these titles, if you want Nehalem it should be because of its performance elsewhere."

Clearly it depends of the game. But this is not as good as pentium to core duo transition.

Lol at the performance difference on GRAW2, yeah i7 it's not better for games lolSordidus

hard to believe the upgrade from i7 940 from 920 is so expensive for just a bit extra power.

also, anyone test a 4870x2 on a i7 rig? or dual 4850s? Id love a review on that for gaming on 1600x1200

Lol at the performance difference on GRAW2, yeah i7 it's not better for games lolSordidus

LOL, who plays graw anyway...