[vasudeva]

Originally Posted by Punzabi

Is anybody else going (or planning) Sandy Bridge way??

From reviews, it seems that Sandy Bridge is a lot better than the previous core i series. I have a core i7 920 (6/2009) OC to 3.1 Ghz and was planning on i7-2600K with a new MB. Perhaps may wait for Ivy Bridge or successor to X58 architecture. That is due in late-2011 and makes sense for me since my CPU is less than 2 years, and during 2011 we should see more of SATA 6.0 Gbp/s, UEFI BIOS, USB 3.0 and new MBs based on this new architecture. That would be worth upgrading to. USB 3.0 is not of much use for frequent use since I rely on eSATA which is substantially faster than USB 2.0 and competitive with USB 3.0.

[anku94]

Originally Posted by Punzabi

I finished building my gaming rig last night and config goes as:

CPU: Intel i5 2400 3.10Ghz
Mobo: Gigabyte P67A-UD3
RAM: 4GB Kingston HyperX Blu
GPU: Inno 3D 1GB GTX460
PSU: Corsair HX650
Case: Antec 900
Monitor: Asus 21.5(wide screen) LED

Relying on stock cooling as of now. Will go after market cooling upon OC (and that's not any time sooner)

Is anybody else going (or planning) Sandy Bridge way??

Is the i5 'K-series' ? You are not gonna have a very good time overclocking it unless it is. Intel's more or less fixed it to stock settings.

EDIT : Found out that 2400 does not come in K-version. In that case, do check some forums for your overclocking options. Non K-series can only be given minor bumps of 100-200 Mhz AFAIK. You might be able to live with stock cooling.

[Punzabi]

Originally Posted by vasudeva

From reviews, it seems that Sandy Bridge is a lot better than the previous core i series. I have a core i7 920 (6/2009) OC to 3.1 Ghz and was planning on i7-2600K with a new MB. Perhaps may wait for Ivy Bridge or successor to X58 architecture. That is due in late-2011 and makes sense for me since my CPU is less than 2 years, and during 2011 we should see more of SATA 6.0 Gbp/s, UEFI BIOS, USB 3.0 and new MBs based on this new architecture. That would be worth upgrading to. USB 3.0 is not of much use for frequent use since I rely on eSATA which is substantially faster than USB 2.0 and competitive with USB 3.0.

IMO waiting for Ivy Bridge or later CPUs does make sense in your case. Since you already have an i7 920 and going for sandy bridge won't be much of a difference (unless you want benchmarking) but then again when Ivy Bridge is out you'll have slower/less better technology. I hope 3.1Ghz after OCing is a typo as AFAIK i7 960 can be OCed to 4+ GHz. Have you tried pushing it harder at all?

Originally Posted by anku94

Is the i5 'K-series' ? You are not gonna have a very good time overclocking it unless it is. Intel's more or less fixed it to stock settings.

EDIT : Found out that 2400 does not come in K-version. In that case, do check some forums for your overclocking options. Non K-series can only be given minor bumps of 100-200 Mhz AFAIK. You might be able to live with stock cooling.

Yeah mate, its a non K one. When I bought it K-series wasn't available (even today, K is sold out before it could hit the shop-shelves). I was pretty much happy to go for older i5 solely for the purpose of OCing (i5 760 to be precise) and even purchased it in December 2010 but the hardest part was getting a P55 mobo. None of the local hardware shops had it in stock at all or could procure it for me (incoming SB explained it why its not available). So I went ahead with locked SB as itch for gaming computer had gone past the limits and waiting anymore was simply not an option . I am gonna stick around to this one may be for another year or so then plan for better one's that can be OCed.

[Amey]

Was bored with my AMD Phenom II so thought of swapping to my other set.Here it is,

Intel Xeon W3570
EVGA Classified
4GB x 6 Corsair XMS3
ATI Radeon 5770
Seventeam 750W

I hope 3.1Ghz after OCing is a typo as AFAIK i7 960 can be OCed to 4+ GHz. Have you tried pushing it harder at all?

It can be clocked to 4G but not with the stock cooler.

[vasudeva]

Originally Posted by Punzabi

IMO waiting for Ivy Bridge or later CPUs does make sense in your case. Since you already have an i7 920 and going for sandy bridge won't be much of a difference (unless you want benchmarking) but then again when Ivy Bridge is out you'll have slower/less better technology. I hope 3.1Ghz after OCing is a typo as AFAIK i7 960 can be OCed to 4+ GHz. Have you tried pushing it harder at all?

I have a i7-920 and not i7-960. I OC-ed to 3.1 Ghz since I felt comfortable with that even though BIOS auto settings can easily push it to 3.3-3.4 Ghz. The problem is that if I increase bclk from 155*20 (or 3.1 Ghz) to 156 (or higher), the memory multiplier goes from 2:8 to 2:6 in auto settings (MSI X58M motherboard). So at 155 bclk, memory freq is 1240 Mhz but at 156 it is 936. Can I change the memory multiplier to 2:8 even at 160 bclk. That would give me 3.2 GHz and memory at 1280, at auto settings. Can you help me out here. I do have a Coolermaster Hyper N620 cooler just bought for this purpose and temps now are 55-60C at my full load (but in Delhi winters). Idle stands at 40-45C which should touch 50-55 in summers.

As to Sandybridge, the only thing holding me back is the 4 memory lanes plus holding out for what Ivy Bridge/X58 successor has to offer. Seeing from various reviews shows that i7-2600K easily beats out all i7 series except the extreme series. Memory lanes is not big an issue considering that 4 GB sticks are out, but I have legacy 1333 Mhz sticks totaling 10 GB (2 GB*4+1GB*2), and Ivy Bridge is supposed to have 6 lanes. Do need 8+ GB memory for my needs.

Even now getting a i7-2600K and a compatible MB is a cost of Rs. 30-40K (based on market and availability). With that cost, it perhaps makes sense to OC my i7-920 for a year (+get an SSD in a few months) and invest in late-2011 CPUs.


I think even non-K series can be OC to a reasonably high addition (just not as much as K series). Just check the various reviews.

[IronH4WK]

Originally Posted by Punzabi

I finished building my gaming rig last night and config goes as:

CPU: Intel i5 2400 3.10Ghz
Mobo: Gigabyte P67A-UD3
RAM: 4GB Kingston HyperX Blu
GPU: Inno 3D 1GB GTX460
PSU: Corsair HX650
Case: Antec 900
Monitor: Asus 21.5(wide screen) LED

Relying on stock cooling as of now. Will go after market cooling upon OC (and that's not any time sooner)

Is anybody else going (or planning) Sandy Bridge way??

OT:
were you playing BC2 last night on the India RCDC server by any chance?

[Punzabi]

Originally Posted by vasudeva

I have a i7-920 and not i7-960. I OC-ed to 3.1 Ghz since ...........

As to Sandybridge, the only thing holding me back is the 4 memory lanes plus holding out for what Ivy Bridge/X58 successor has to offer. Seeing from various reviews shows that i7-2600K easily beats out all i7 series except the extreme series. Memory lanes is not big an issue considering that 4 GB sticks are out, but I have legacy 1333 Mhz sticks totaling 10 GB (2 GB*4+1GB*2), and Ivy Bridge is supposed to have 6 lanes. Do need 8+ GB memory for my needs.

I think even non-K series can be OC to a reasonably high addition (just not as much as K series). Just check the various reviews.

Sorry, my bad!!!! I read 920 as 960. I think I need to go back to elementary school to learn my basic maths . To be honest, i am still new to OCing and being a noob not in a capacity to answere your query. But yeah can point you to some websites where you can get your query answered (or atleast get some ideas) . Check this link out.Core i7 Overclocking - Overclockers Australia Forums people on this thread have been able to churn out 3.8\3.9 from i7 920. Also, try this as well 3 Step Overclocking Guide – Bloomfield and Gulftown | TechREACTION . If my memory serves me right, wouldn't Ivy Bridge require 1600Mhz or 2000Mhz RAM (I may be wrong here), since you have 1333MHz and with socket 2011 you may be up for faster memory!!!!

Yeah I read that I can OC i5 2400 to a certain extent (surely not as far as K-series) but then OCing memory would help a bit too.

Originally Posted by IronH4WK

OT:
were you playing BC2 last night on the India RCDC server by any chance?

Indeed, I was playing BC2 yesterday but only the single player standalone game (and that was day time here in Auss, which was early morning in India).

[IronH4WK]

Originally Posted by Punzabi

Indeed, I was playing BC2 yesterday but only the single player standalone game (and that was day time here in Auss, which was early morning in India).

hmm.. last night (IST) i was on the India RCDC server playing BC2 and there was this guy Punjabi there. we were on the same squad. i thought it might have been you

[Sahil]

Whats the verdict on All-in-One PCs v/s assembled machines ?

I did some minor research and figured that the cost difference between the two is not much. The All-in-One's look better and save a lot of space.
I'm looking for a basic computer(mainly email checking and microsoft word/excel usage).
Reliability and longetivity is important. How easily repairable & upgradeable are the all-in-ones?

Please advice basic models and prices if possilbe...

[vasudeva]

All-in-Ones typically have a pretty basic CPU (is it now migrating to Duo range???) and very little upgradability. Why do you not check what CPU you are getting.

I wanted to buy one for my son as a laptop replacement but simply not worth the price. For those prices, one can easily assemble a high end desktop PC. Laptops are anyway not for me. However, a laptop should be much better at all-in-one prices, except for the screen sizes.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by Sahil

Whats the verdict on All-in-One PCs v/s assembled machines ?

I did some minor research and figured that the cost difference between the two is not much. The All-in-One's look better and save a lot of space.
I'm looking for a basic computer(mainly email checking and microsoft word/excel usage).
Reliability and longetivity is important. How easily repairable & upgradeable are the all-in-ones?

Please advice basic models and prices if possilbe...

For basic computer get an inexpensive laptop. That will give you reliability as well as portability. Additionally you need no UPS and minimal desk space.

[Thad E Ginathom]

I've said this many times: Unless portability (even around the house) is required, do not buy a laptop.

It will not be as potentially reliable or as long-lived as a desk-top/side. It is not easily upgradeable, and when something needs repair/replacement you loose the whole machine. Finally, it will be more expensive than the desktop of equivalent specification.

Is there anything going for a laptop, except portability? No: that is their sole reason for existence.

Style, maybe, but hey, it is an expensive fashion statement!

[anku94]

Originally Posted by vasudeva

So at 155 bclk, memory freq is 1240 Mhz but at 156 it is 936. Can I change the memory multiplier to 2:8 even at 160 bclk. That would give me 3.2 GHz and memory at 1280, at auto settings. Can you help me out here.

What you need is TomsHardware OCing forums. The guys there are pros. So if the multiplier is locked or something, or if there's a BIOS patch or something that can fix this, someone there will know.

Although AFAIK, i7 920s themselves limit the memory to 1066 MHz. It's only the 965 that supports 1333 MHz. Oh, but you're still losing 133 MHz.

Create a new topic on TomsHardware OCing forums.

Originally Posted by Sahil

Whats the verdict on All-in-One PCs v/s assembled machines ?

Please advice basic models and prices if possilbe...

I see what you mean. All-in-ones look pretty and compact and all. but you should be able to do something similar with a Micro-ATX form factor board. Add to that the flexibility of choosing your own configuration.

[NetfreakBombay]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Is there anything going for a laptop, except portability? No: that is their sole reason for existence.

It works for couple of hours in a power-cut

[Neilguy]

Is there a cheaper option than the Dell Zino mini-desktop (without monitor)? It was available for Rs. 12K, but is no longer found on the Dell India site. I'm looking for a small machine (preferably nettop) which I can use as a media center hooked up to my tv!