# which one to choose ? core i 7 900 series  vs core i 7 800 series



## Master (Sep 29, 2009)

*which core i 7 to choose ? Bloomfield vs Lynnfield*

hello all, im planing to build a new system , but im extremely confused which socket to go for , 
i dont want to upgrade the motherboard in the near future and the only thing i would upgrade , would be cpu or adding more ram to the system , 
there are some issues that worries me , 
i present them them in the question form , and i would appreciate if any of you gentlemen help me out . 
1.if i build a core i7 900 series (with X58 chipset ) based system , would i be able to add the next Intel's sexa core cpu ? on my current motherboard ( Asus P6T deluxe v2 for example ) ?  
(because i heard it would use the i1366 socket! just like the core i 7 900 series, but again i heard that it is 32n so it worried me that would a 32n cpu be supported on my mb in the future? would a bios upgrade solve the problem or it just needs a new mb? )

2.if i build a core i 7 900 series system , would it last for atleast 3 to 5 years ? ( by saying last i mean i'd be able to upgrade with no worries, adding a different cpu from the same socket ( e.g a sexa core cpu), adding more ram, and stuff like that , simply would it die atfter 3 to 5 years later or not ? ( in case new intel's cpu come out and intel forgets about the current core i 7 and i1366? ) 

3.what if i go about the core i 7 800 series ? the same questions are repeated again ! would this system die after 3 to 5 years ? would i be in trouble for finding cpu for this socket (i1156 ) in the future ? would i be able to install intel's new sexa core cpu on this platform ? ( i mean will intel release its  sexa ( and more) cores cpu on this i1156 socket too?

what is the big difference between the two series ? the cons and pros of going with one of these ? 
which one  should i choose to be able to upgrade with no worries in future with the latest intels cpu ? 
( i didnt have this kind of worries on Core 2 platform , there was only one lga 775 socket and i would choose any kind of dual , core 2 duo or core 2 quad cpu i desired , i want to have the same power of selection in this very platform , i just dont want to be limited !while  spending more than a 1000 $ for a platform . 

thanks in advance


----------



## BraveSoul (Sep 29, 2009)

i7 this i5 that, LGA 1156 here LGA 1366 there, triple and dual channel ddr. ever looked at amd?  its much more simpler, get 790FX motherboard, AMD Athlon II X2 240 Regor 2.8GHz cpu(60$), this would be a good upgrade for u right now,, and maybe like a year later get quad 3.6ghz AMD PhenomII (if it comes out) or 3.4ghz which is available right now, im sure u wont have any problems especially if u get gigabyte motherboard with their dual bios, which makes bios updates safer, i dont even think u will need a bios update for a 3.4 phenomII a year from now


----------



## ThorAxe (Sep 29, 2009)

X58 will support the 6 core Gulftown cpu, P55 will not.


----------



## orionbg (Sep 29, 2009)

I'm with the same dilema right now!
I'm positevly sure that there is no platform, Intel or AMD that will last so many years! You will be able to upgrade but maybe not to the latest and greatest at that time!


----------



## BradleyKZN (Sep 29, 2009)

I would get the i7 900 series, triple channel RAM as well. Then you should be good for 6 cores


----------



## Master (Sep 29, 2009)

i found sth that might interest you guys too, 
http://www.firingsquad.com/hardware/intel_core_i7_core_i5_lynnfield_performance/default.asp
it just said pretty much everything that i wanted to know, pros and cons of sticking with one of these two series and alot more . 
but still there is sth that i cant assure myself to go with i7 800 series , and that is , it is said that the core i 7 870 will be the highest core i 7 800 series processor for a while ! meaning there wont be any upgrade for this socket in the near future . ,but in the other hand ,we face a contrary policy for 1366 socket (Bloomfield ),the next year the core i 7 900 series and specifically the 1366 socket will see the 6 core cpu's and the current x58 motherboards are going to support that kind of cpus by just a bios update (core i 9 series ) .

so i would wait a couple of month to actually see what are to change .


----------



## Azoriah (Oct 1, 2009)

What strikes me as the biggest difference would be the number of PCIe lanes.
the 900 series can connect to 2 GPUs at full x16 speed thanks to the separate x58 chipset. However the 800 series's integrated chipset can only connect to 1 GPU at x16 speed. If you put more than one in, it will split the lanes. so if you go crossfire or SLI later with 2 cards, it will connect to each at x8 speed. I'm not sure how big of a difference this makes on performance.
Everything I've read about triple channel memory versus double channel says that they perform about the same, so to me, that's not a selling point.


----------



## Master (Oct 2, 2009)

Azoriah said:


> What strikes me as the biggest difference would be the number of PCIe lanes.
> the 900 series can connect to 2 GPUs at full x16 speed thanks to the separate x58 chipset. However the 800 series's integrated chipset can only connect to 1 GPU at x16 speed. If you put more than one in, it will split the lanes. so if you go crossfire or SLI later with 2 cards, it will connect to each at x8 speed. I'm not sure how big of a difference this makes on performance.
> Everything I've read about triple channel memory versus double channel says that they perform about the same, so to me, that's not a selling point.



Lynnfield vs Bloomfield


> While Turbo Mode makes Lynnfield just as exciting as Bloomfield, with the obvious addition of the more affordable P55 platform, there’s still a couple of reasons why you may want to opt for a Core i7 rig based on Intel’s Bloomfield core.
> 
> For starters, Bloomfield’s X58 platform is going to give you full 16-lane operation for both GPUs (2x16) when running SLI or CrossFire. Lynnfield’s PCIe controller is limited to 8-lanes under the same scenario (2x8).
> 
> ...



-----------
to me considering the current situation and the fact that for using either of these series i would need a new mobo and cpu , and the fact that the x58 chipset and the lga1366 socket will be the home for the next 6core cpu next year while the 800 series will remain still in this situation , and also delivering a lower bandwidth , 
and finally both systems would cost me the same , so 
i hereby declare:d i will choose core i 7 900 series, ( bloom filed ) to go with . 
so that i wont need a new mob  to upgrade to 6 core cpus , and i would be happy with any kind of GPU and bandwidth consuming stuff .


----------



## Master (Oct 2, 2009)

by the way guys, do i have to stick 6G of rams in Ci7 system ? or a 3G triple ram would do it ?


----------



## Azoriah (Oct 2, 2009)

You should be able to use 3 Gb no problem. However, I would opt for 6 rather than 3 because: 1) RAM is fairly inexpensive. 2) the more RAM the more Win7 and WinVista will use, speeding things up slightly. and 3) if you like to multi task massively, you'll need more.


----------



## rpsgc (Oct 5, 2009)

Go with socket 1366. More future-proof upgrade (Hexacore CPUs) + triple-channel = win.



Azoriah said:


> You should be able to use 3 Gb no problem. However, I would opt for 6 rather than 3 because: 1) RAM is fairly inexpensive. 2) the more RAM the more Win7 and WinVista will use, speeding things up slightly. and 3) if you like to multi task massively, you'll need more.



Plus, with a 6GB kit he can easily add another one later for 12GB goodness


----------



## Chad Boga (Oct 7, 2009)

Master said:


> Lynnfield vs Bloomfield
> For starters, Bloomfield’s X58 platform is going to give you full 16-lane operation for both GPUs (2x16) when running SLI or CrossFire. Lynnfield’s PCIe controller is limited to 8-lanes under the same scenario (2x8).
> 
> *As GPUs become more powerful, with next-generation DX11 GPUs potentially shipping with twice the shaders and considerably more memory bandwidth than today’s DX10 cards, this could potentially become a bigger issue (especially as more next-gen games appear)*.


This will of course only be relevant if you are going to use more than one video card in your system.



> Also remember that all Core i7-900 CPUs not only feature QPI, *it’s also unlocked*.


What do they mean by this?



> to me considering the current situation and the fact that for using either of these series i would need a new mobo and cpu , and the fact that the x58 chipset and the lga1366 socket will be the home for the next 6core cpu next year while the 800 series will remain still in this situation , and also delivering a lower bandwidth ,
> and finally both systems would cost me the same , so
> i hereby declare:d i will choose core i 7 900 series, ( bloom filed ) to go with .
> so that i wont need a new mob  to upgrade to 6 core cpus , and i would be happy with any kind of GPU and bandwidth consuming stuff .


I would have to question if the 6 core CPU's will be a viable option.

Aren't Intel going to position the 6 core as an Extreme Edition CPU and charge $1,000+ for it?

Also for how many applications will your Quad Nehalem be so lacking that you would want to upgrade to a 6 core using the same platform?

I think most people would be better off avoiding the 6 core(unless it's priced much less than $1,000) and simply go from Quad Nehalem to Quad Sandy Bridge in 1H 2011.  At least you should get some significant IPC improvements.


----------



## Master (Oct 7, 2009)

Chad Boga said:


> This will of course only be relevant if you are going to use more than one video card in your system.
> 
> 
> What do they mean by this?
> ...


well first of all ., i recited that from the link i posted in that post ! its what which was said there ! 

and about coreI7 , as i have mentioned ,the prices are almost the same, while the functionalities are not! and to me thinking that some time in the future i will have the ability to actually use a 6 core cpu and so one is way more convenient to me compared to a situation in which i see myself completely paraplegic !!

and whats that? i mean would you give me more info on sandy bridge?


----------



## Chad Boga (Oct 7, 2009)

Master said:


> and whats that? i mean would you give me more info on sandy bridge?


Sandy Bridge is due out late Q4 2010, but perhaps more like Q1 2011 if Intel can keep up with their Tick Tock strategy.

Unlike Westmere which is a shrink and minor upgrade over Nehalem(similar to Penryn over Conroe), Sandy Bridge is Intel's next gen architecture to follow on from Nehalem.

Whilst we don't have clear info on how it will perform, safe to say that it will be an advance in probably every area, especially Power Management, which is of growing importance.

I think it was Pat Gelsinger who said that going from FSB and MCM to QPI and Native Quad is a one time/one off performance gain, and the key thing is what you do next to improve performance.

Sandy Bridge will let us know what direction Intel are taking to increase performance over their current offerings.  Suffice to say it will require a new motherboard and socket.


----------



## Kantastic (Oct 7, 2009)

I'm officially going X58. I JUST (5 seconds ago) submitted my order for the ASUS Gene II and some 2000MHz HyperX's. Picking up the 920 this Saturday at MC and I'm good to go!


----------



## 20mmrain (Oct 7, 2009)

Go for the Socket 1156 and the P55 Chip set. Yes the X58 will support the i9's but why spend the extra money. Money=Performance Ratio per dollar better with the P55's. 

Just get the 1156 (you'll still be able to upgrade in the future) and Overclock it and save up for SLI or Xfire of the DX11 cards. That's me just personally.

Either way it's a fun choice to have to make don't you think? Good luck on it!


----------



## Kantastic (Oct 7, 2009)

If you don't want to upgrade the motherboard then go X58.

That or wait and see if i5 boards improve over time (16/16 SLI/CFX).


----------



## 20mmrain (Oct 8, 2009)

> If you don't want to upgrade the motherboard then go X58.
> 
> That or wait and see if i5 boards improve over time (16/16 SLI/CFX).



What do you mean from the people I've talked with the p55 board is just great! The way I look at it is that it's the same situation with the P45 and X48 Boards.  Sure if you want to spend an extra 100$ to 200$ on your set up go with the X58. But if you want to still get a great board that will still be very solid then get a P55. But I've built systems for people on both the X58 set up and the P55 Set up. I'll tel you what Yes there's a difference but it's not that much of one let alone a 100$ to 200@ one.

But then again I am guilty too for buying bad performance Price Ratio stuff in the past just because I wanted it. So maybe I shouldn't talk


----------

