Quote:
Originally Posted by DwarfTheMike
an upgrade to an i7 would be worth it but your Q9550 is still great.
There are a few differences between the core i7s and the Core 2s. First, there is no more Front Side bus.
The FSB essentially carried data between the CPU and memory controller hub but that didn't attribute itself to multiple cores very well. In its place is a new tech called QuickPath Interconnect that'll fix old bottlenecks and make going to multiple core (4+) much better. QPI uses direct point-to-point connections that have a bandwidth of about 25GB/s, much faster than an FSB. The downside is that it requires a new QPI-friendly motherboard.
i7 also has brought back hyper-threading. This pretty much makes parallel processing more efficient.
i7 uses a triple-channel RAM now too, so you'll be wanting to buy your RAM in groups of 3. This means 6 and 12GB will become common.
The memory interface is also on the same side die as the CPU cutting down latency.
Pretty much, if you want the next generation get the i7. The i7 will make future upgrades much more smooth and you will notice a difference. Also, the i7 has built in overclocking capabilities so.... yeah... its' great.
Before you upgrade your new rig, is there any specific reason you need to upgrade the entire rig? a Q9550 is still pretty great. A new GPU might be all you need. Also, DDR3 is a little bit pricy still, waiting might be the best bet.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jason
Core i7 is a fundamental revision in architecture for intel. No longer based on the FSB or front side bus system the i7 makes the jump to an onboard memory controller that AMD made a few years ago. This will lead to significantly reduced memory latency as well as increased computinig power due to that decrease. The i7 additionally has some power saving features over the older Conroe/Penryn processors.
In essence you could expect about a 10-15% jump in performance. If you already have a Q9550 processor and accompanying DDR3 rig I wouldn't suggest the change unless you just like spending cash. A better investment might be a raid setup or better video card. In terms of video card i would also suggest you hold off on that front as well until after the new year. Nvidia's annoouncement of the GTX 295 should drop prices on existing cards including the 4870.
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Thank you for your help guys. I'm still a little confused, but it makes sense to me now. Jason, (hope thats your real name...) where is the announcement of the GTX 295? i looked all over the site. Could you get me a link?
I have heard mixed things about the GTX 295 on other sites. Most of them make no sense and contradict themselves. They say that it is supposed to be the "GTX 280x2" so to speak and then say that its not...