CPU i7-3930 vs i7-4930

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salm
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CPU i7-3930 vs i7-4930

Post by salm »

Hi,

i´m thinking about getting a new Computer and have a question concerning the CPU.

If I understand correctly the i7-3930K Sandy Bridge and the i7-4930K - Ivy Bridge are pretty much the same with the sole exception of the Ivy Bridge running with a couple of Mhz faster.

I´m a bit confused about this because the Sandy Bridge is more expensive than the slightly better Ivy Bridge. I can get the Sandy Bridge for €529 and the Ivy Bridge for €519. Granted the Sandy Bridge comes with w a boxed fan but if I understand correctly these fans are useless anyway.

So is there something I´m missing and the Sandy Bridge is actually worth 10 bucks more than the Ivy Bridge or is this just silly pricing?
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Re: CPU i7-3930 vs i7-4930

Post by DaveJB »

The stock coolers aren't really useless per se, they're just not suited to the type of insane overclocks that certain enthusiasts like to apply to high-end unlocked CPUs.

The Ivy Bridge core's main advantage is more the fact that it uses less power (and thus generates less heat) than its Sandy Bridge forerunner. If you don't intend on using the stock Intel cooler there's really no reason not to get the 4930K, though obviously you need to make sure your motherboard can support an Ivy Bridge CPU out of the box.
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salm
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Re: CPU i7-3930 vs i7-4930

Post by salm »

Cool, thank you.

For the mainboard I´m looking at the Asus ASUS P9X79 WS and the MSI Big Bang XPower II.
I´d like to fit in at least 3 graphics cards of the size of a GeForce GTX 770 which are quite large. These two boards look like they could hold them.

But you bring up a good point I didn´t know about. These mainboards BIOS might have to be updated to support Ivy Bridge. This, if I understand correctly, is only possible if you have access to a Sandy Bridge. So I´d first have to install a Sandy Bridge, update the BIOS and, disassemble the Sandy Bridge and then install the Ivy Bridge.

Quige an annoying process.
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DaveJB
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Re: CPU i7-3930 vs i7-4930

Post by DaveJB »

You're probably as well going with a Sandy Bridge then, as the power savings from an Ivy Bridge would be completely insignificant next to those three monster graphics cards you're going to be using.
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Re: CPU i7-3930 vs i7-4930

Post by Executor32 »

No need to worry about that on the ASUS, since you can flash the BIOS without even booting the machine, or having anything other than the motherboard and power supply installed in the case.
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salm
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Re: CPU i7-3930 vs i7-4930

Post by salm »

Oh, wow, thanks for the information. :D
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Re: CPU i7-3930 vs i7-4930

Post by Sea Skimmer »

Building a rendering farm or a bitcoin mine with those cards?
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salm
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Re: CPU i7-3930 vs i7-4930

Post by salm »

It will be a GPU farm and in combination with my older and hopefully one or two more new PCs in the course of the year also a CPU render farm.

I was looking into getting one of these server racks to put in whatever I need when I want to upgrade but they seem absurdly expensive.
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Re: CPU i7-3930 vs i7-4930

Post by Beowulf »

salm wrote:It will be a GPU farm and in combination with my older and hopefully one or two more new PCs in the course of the year also a CPU render farm.

I was looking into getting one of these server racks to put in whatever I need when I want to upgrade but they seem absurdly expensive.
One of the Ikea tables has legs 19" apart, just like a server rack...
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salm
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Re: CPU i7-3930 vs i7-4930

Post by salm »

Beowulf wrote:
salm wrote:It will be a GPU farm and in combination with my older and hopefully one or two more new PCs in the course of the year also a CPU render farm.

I was looking into getting one of these server racks to put in whatever I need when I want to upgrade but they seem absurdly expensive.
One of the Ikea tables has legs 19" apart, just like a server rack...
Yeah, I found that during my research and it looks interesting but I´m a bit reluctant to put high powered stuff into a metal case that´s not really designed for the purpose. It probably works but I´m not really that great of a tinkerer, so I´d rather go with something that I can´t mess up that easily due to idiocy on my part. :)
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