Intel to Cannibalize Core i7 920 / 940

[Deleted member 3]

LGA1366 can handle both (DP Skulltrail/SP Extreme Edition). The only difference is the number of QPI links (one per socket).

The socket name can yes, the socket isn't pin compatible though and the chipset is different. So apart from having the same amount of pins (well, balls) they are not the same.

 

[TAViX]

The question is, it will be better than any Core 2, either Quad or Duo, out there?! Somehow I doubt it...

My bet is that any Core 2 o.c. > 4Ghz is better. Maybe I'm wrong...

 

[FordGT90Concept]

The chipset has to be different in order to support the extra QPI link. Additionally, the pins were made incompatible so idiots don't try to run a dual QPI link processor in a single QPI link board.

Regardless, we'll see when the Skulltrail board/processors come out. Ditto for the two-way Xeons.

 

[grunt_408]

Just buy a cpu and wait till you get a mobo

lol the thought did cross my mind at the time And may consider doing this very soon.
I have my E8500 @3.8 GHz close enough to 4GHz and happy with its performance. I did build an I7 920 based rig for my dad and it feels a snappier machine but not by much.

 

[DrPepper]

The question is, it will be better than any Core 2, either Quad or Duo, out there?! Somehow I doubt it...

My bet is that any Core 2 o.c. > 4Ghz is better. Maybe I'm wrong...

4ghz core 2 will be faster than a core i7 or i5 at stock but they can also reach 4ghz.

 

[qwerty_lesh]

hah reach? if you get a well binned one with a very tolerant memory controller you can go well beyond the 4ghz mark with the 920. Plus with some D0 ones you can do that and you dont need to give it as much voltage to do so.

 

[lemonadesoda]

http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=3570&p=1

Nice review of Lynnfield i5 on Anantech. Link is above.

Notice that clock-for-clock the i5 is *just as good* as the i7-920. Occasionally, it is slower but by not more than 5% and there is an argument that the ES tested is underperforming the release version of i5 that will have an impressive Turbo feature.

The anandtech benchmarks go to show that DDR3 dual channel and dropping QPI but putting 16 PCIe lanes onboard is more than sufficient bandwidth even for Nehalem.

It is becoming evidently clear that i7 architecture (QPI, tripple channel DDR3) is overkill for the i7-920 with *just* 4 cores+HTT. This bandwidth probably DOES make sense for the 6 core edition to be released in 2010, and for the multi-socket Xeon Nehalems with 2 or more CPUs. But for the one chip retail i7 something simpler is more than enough.

There is also an argument that as a gaming rig, i5 is better, due to the 16x on-CPU-die PCIe lanes. Latency will be lower compared to being routed through a northbridge... and we all know that the GPU is the bottleneck with gaming... so every bit helps.

 

[TheMailMan78]

There is also an argument that [B... faster. I wonder if the i5 will change this.

 

[gumpty]

My vague plan (bank-manager allowing) was to wait till next year to go to an i7 platform, but this gives me pause because I would not have gone any further than the 920 processor. If they don't have a processor at that price then I wont do it. :shadedshu

However ... I will be watching those stock-levels of i7 920's very closely. If they start to drop rapidly I might just grab one. Then, once they're all out of stock, I can always sell a nice Intel Core i7 920 D0 retail-boxed processor on eBay for a small profit.

 

[TAViX]

4ghz core 2 will be faster than a core i7 or i5 at stock but they can also reach 4ghz.

Hmm...The price here is the main isue. i7 is a good proc, but ridiculous priced.

 

[bogie]

I still see no need to upgrade. Happy with my Core 2 Quad Q9650 @3.6Ghz and HD4870 X2.
i7 will not improve my game framerates.

i7 and i5 are waste of upgrade money. Will only be worth upgrading when 8 cores come out.

 

[zAAm]

I still see no need to upgrade. Happy with my Core 2 Quad Q9650 @3.6Ghz and HD4870 X2.
i7 will not improve my game framerates.

i7 and i5 are waste of upgrade money. Will only be worth upgrading when 8 cores come out.

They are a waste of upgrade money for YOU. But for mainstream users who want more performance the i7 will give them that and more. It is expensive yes, but as they say, you get what you pay for.

 

[Kitkat]

I still see no need to upgrade. Happy with my Core 2 Quad Q9650 @3.6Ghz and HD4870 X2.
i7 will not improve my game framerates.

i7 and i5 are waste of upgrade money. Will only be worth upgrading when 8 cores come out.

They are a waste of money all together.

 

[btarunr]

The anandtech benchmarks go to show that DDR3 dual channel and dropping QPI but putting 16 PCIe lanes onboard is more than sufficient bandwidth even for Nehalem.

QPI has gone nowhere. It is still the processor interconnect. It's what connects the CPU die to the northbridge die, inside the processor package. (if that's what you meant by "dropping"). Otherwise, they just dropped its multiplier (and probably rose its base clock). more

 

[n-ster]

So that means i5 may have a chance to perform as well if not better than the i7?

 

[kid41212003]

I know I'm beating a dead horse but the Phenom II is just as fast as an i7 when used as strictly a gaming platform. In some cases faster. I wonder if the i5 will change this.

Games don't need super fast cpu.


If you ask me why in same cases, sometime Phenom II is faster, then here are the answers:

-Vista/XP think 8 thread = 8 cores. So, if your game support 2 threads, that's mean it will run only on 1 core, or even worse 2 "not real" cores. But Windows 7 will fix this.
-The slowest Phenom II has higher frequency than the slowest Core i7 (disregard the prices, we're talking about performance here).
-Everyone knows this, put on a faster cpu when your CPU is already fast won't give you significant boost.
-Games don't run on 8 threads, or the needs for super high memory bandwidth (triple channels).

Core i5 is built for casual users and gamers (not workstation), take away things that not needed for games from an Core i7 and it will become and i5. And that's why there is no (or lil) different between them in benchmarks.

I'm really glad that I bought this Core i7 920, probably will last me until Intel/AMD release the 8 cores 22nm (2-3 years more), and I will have option to go CrossFire later in case AMD release something surprising.

 

[DrPepper]

Hmm...The price here is the main isue. i7 is a good proc, but ridiculous priced.

£210 is not rediculous. There are still core 2's going for £500.

 

[Nick89]

This is why I dislike intel.

 

[Wetbehindtheears]

That's true ... I remember paying more for an E8500 than I did for, my soon to arrive (I hope) D0 920.. ..

 

[n-ster]

Is it really worth buying an i7 920 now though???

 

[Wetbehindtheears]

Not sure, but I sure hope so... I ordered before all this came out!!

 

[PaulieG]

Hmm...The price here is the main isue. i7 is a good proc, but ridiculous priced.

Really? Current i7 920 pricing is between $200-285 new, and the newly released Phenom II 955 is running $230-$250. Board prices have dropped too. A new x58 board can cost you as little as $165 new, very comparable to higher range AMD boards. As far as i5 goes, a comparable chip will cost $196 in 1000 units. Retail will be higher. The boards will also be just slightly cheaper than many of the x58 boards currently available. The price difference is much smaller than most people think.

 

[Assassin48]

I think intel is taking out the 920 because its much better chip for what you pay and they don't want the more expensive i5 to lose to a sub $280

So what are they going to do, cut they lowest i7 and jack up the price on the i5 that gives you almost same performance as the 920

IMO I would get the 920 before they sell out

 

[PaulieG]

I think intel is taking out the 920 because its much better chip for what you pay and they don't want the more expensive i5 to lose to a sub $280

So what are they going to do, cut they lowest i7 and jack up the price on the i5 that gives you almost same performance as the 920

IMO I would get the 920 before they sell out

This is the truth, as far as I'm concerned.

 

[lemonadesoda]

QPI has gone nowhere. It is still the processor interconnect. It's what connects the CPU die to the northbridge die, inside the processor package. (if that's what you meant by "dropping"). Otherwise, they just dropped its multiplier (and probably rose its base clock). more

"dropping", as in, no longer an external point to point interface available to scale performance further.

QPI is no longer available to the "external" chipset to provide full-speed-full-bandwidth-low latency PCIe lanes, additional processors, accelerators or memory controllers. On x58, external QPI allowed vendors to build systems with multiple PCIe x16 lanes. On x55 this isnt possible. Only one set of x16 lanes is available directly off the CPU; if a vendor wanted more, they would have to put them on the DMI bus. But that would be slow and there would be latency issues. Therefore QUADFIRE/SLI is out, and crossfire/SLI is limited to 2x x8 lanes.