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Upgrading CPU and Mobo (Ivy vs. Sandy)

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HomerPepsi

Registered
Joined
Feb 12, 2002
Location
canada
So with the release of the Ivy Bridge cpu's, I've decided to upgrade my Phenom II x4 965 BE as it's starting to show it's age.

Here's my existing system (most components will be migrated):
AMD Phenom II x4 965 BE
Noctua NH-C12P SE14 Heatsink
Gigabyte GA-MA790FXT-UD5P
8GB (4X2GB) of G.SKILL F3-12800CL9D-4GBNQ PC3-12800DDR3-1600 CL9-9-9-24
XFX HD 6950 reference (unlocked shaders)and
XFX HD 6950 non-reference Crossfired
Antec NEOPower 650 watt
Creative XFI Fatal1ty (PCI - original card, I keep it because of the bay)
lotsa HDD
DVD drive
multi reader
etc.

Here's my available options (By Socket / Proc / Prices in CAD):

LGA2011
i7 3820 3.6GHZ Sandy Bridge E 10MB - $349.98

LGA1155
i7 3770K 3.5GHZ Ivy Bridge 8MB - $379.98
i7 2700K 3.5GHZ Sandy Bridge 8MB - $319.99
i7 2600K 3.4GHZ Sandy Bridge 8MB - $341.98
i7 2600 3.4GHZ Sandy Bridge 8MB - $329.07
i5 3570K 3.4GHZ Ivy Bridge 6MB - $238.99
i5 2550K 3.4GHZ Sandy Bridge 6MB - $239.99
i5 2500K 3.3GHZ Sandy Bridge 6MB - $239.99
i5 2500 3.3GHZ Sandy Bridge 6MB - $214.87

Considerations:
-Trying to future proof for at least 2-3 years
-Prefer highest performing (in terms of budget)
-Limited budget (for CPU and Mobo) ($600 - $800 preferably)
-Would like lots of OC headroom
-Primarily gaming use (ARMA II and ARMA III (when released), BF3, STALKER, etc.)
-Would like to avoid swaping PSU
-If purchasing LGA2011, may purchase additional RAM

LGA2011 points
-Expensive
-Offers most upgradability (8 DIMM slots, Quad Channel)
-PCIE 3

LGA1155 points
-Cheap
-Proven reliability and OC-ability


So what I am asking of OC Forums for is a suggestion of a the best proc/mobo combo given the criteria.

Thanks
 
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Are you only gaming with this computer? Do you do any other CPU intensive work?

I ask because price variance from i5 to i7 is 100 dollars but the performance boost in gaming applications just looking at FPS benchmarks is not significant and not with in human visual range to see the difference.

However, if your like me and also do intensive CPU task, for example financial analysis thru Excel/Access links to external server databases and other software the extra threading capabilities of the i7 and even the 4 channel LGA 2011 is noticeable.
 
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Very little

Occasional video encoding, thats about as heavy as it gets. The rest, all gaming.
 
PCI-E 3.0 is actually available on Z77 LGA1155 boards. I went with the i7 3770K for my upgrade because I do a fair amount of audio, video, and photo editing work, and the extra threads can be put to good use. Otherwise I would have gone with the 3570K and saved some money. I think 4 DIMM slots should be plenty for the foreseeable future given that 8 GB sticks are very reasonably priced these days. I picked up a a 2x8GB DDR3 1600 kit for $95 the other day.
 
If it were me and I was being a bit conservative on spending. I would go with the GIGABYTE GA-Z77X-UD5H LGA 1155 Intel Z77 and the IB i5 3570K currently be about $418 US Dollars together. That has excellent PCIe spacing for your CF setup and is PCIe 3.0 ready with the IB i5. You should be able to salvage your PSU and RAM with no issues.

Now if I was being a bit more adventurous I would go LGA2011 and the 3820 which is on sale for $289 currently on Newegg grab some Ram and maybe move to an 850W PSU and wait for the IB-e with six or eight cores to come out above the 3770K. Still should be able to hit below you 800 dollar range.
 
Question of week...

check out the similar threads below and check out what others who asked the same question found! :)
 
in terms of temps after OC,

will the i5 3570K last as long as i5 2500k? Looking at results and seeing the temps jump so quick with IB, makes me wonder if IB is the direction to go..
 
Only time will tell, but as long as you aren't running at/near tjmax (105c) 24/7 you should be fine
 
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