# i5-2500K vs. Xeon W3520



## Troy210 (Mar 22, 2011)

I have an opportunity to buy one of these from a friend for $150.
Intel Xeon W3520 Bloomfield 2.66GHz 4 x 256KB L2 C...

But I'm considering buying this one brand new.
Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Tu...

Which would you choose? I am a gamer and I do render video with Sony Vegas and After Effects, but not on a production basis. 

Thanks.


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## Feänor (Mar 22, 2011)

Hi. If you already have the x58 mobo+triple channel ram combo, buy the w3520. GREAT clocker, and not too much expensive. A huge plus is the hyper-threading versus the 2500k.

if you're going from scratch, i'd say go for the sandy bridge. You'll save a lot on each of the mobo and ram, and in games you'll not see huge differences. In the video rendering program, i think the sandy will perform under the w3520, because of the loss of the hyper-threading.

in conclusion, i'd say go for the least expensive option.

Just saw your system's spec and realized you're starting from nothing. Then go for the sandy and oc it to hell! Don't forget to fold when you're not gaming, if the electricity bill is affordable!


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## Troy210 (Mar 23, 2011)

Heat is an issue with me, as I live in a very humid and hot environment. I doubt I'd be overclocking the snot out of it. 

Thx for the advice.


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## brandonwh64 (Mar 23, 2011)

I think the 2500K would be cooler temps due to not having HT. but as they say, you loose performance in certain things without HT


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## Troy210 (Mar 23, 2011)

Like the kind of raw horsepower I'm looking for to render videos. Hmm..good point. Thanks.


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## Benetanegia (Mar 23, 2011)

Sandy Bridge is better on those tasks even without HT. Take a look:

http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/...deo-Editing-Adobe-After-Effects-CS5,2427.html

It's also typically faster on games:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/4083/...core-i7-2600k-i5-2500k-core-i3-2100-tested/20

Unless you already have a board for that Xeon, I would go with the 2500k, it's way better all around, for your needs (and mine lol).


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## xenocide (Mar 24, 2011)

Assuming you still need to buy the Motherboard for either, the 2500k is a better value.  It outperforms the Xeon in just about everything and even though you would be getting the CPU at half price (and potentially with unknown defects since it is pre-owned) the cost of a quality 1366 motherboard over a quality P67 1155 motherboard will probably equal out the cost.  Not to mention if you go with the i5-2500k later on a Z68 Motherboard might become a great alternative since you do video rendering.


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