2015 Computer Refresh Questions

[Technocrat]

Hi everyone, I'm trying to upgrade my computer but wanted some advice. I've listed what I have and what I'm considering upgrading to. I currently do a lot of Handbrake encoding as well as Adobe Photoshop use. I also have dual 24" monitors as well which are important in my line of work. Do you have any suggestions?

Current System
Intel i7 950 @ 3.06
12GB memory PC3 12800
Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R rev 2 motherboard
480GB Sandisk Extreme Pro SSD
2TB Storage Disk
Sapphire Dual-X Radeon R7 265 Video Card
Corsair Obsidian 650D case
Corsair H100 CPU Cooler
Corsair AX850 Power Supply

Proposed System
Intel i7 4790K
16GB of memory, although not sure of speed (2 x 8GB sticks)
Gigabyte GA-Z97X-UD5H motherboard
Same 480GB Sandisk Extreme Pro SSD
Same 2TB Storage
Same Sapphire Dual-X Radeon R7 265 Video Card
Same Corsair Obsidian 650D case
Corsair H100i CPU Cooler
Same Corsair AX850 Power Supply

Thoughts?

 

[Burpo]

Seriously? You have a great board already. Change out your cpu to a Xeon hexcore CPU like an X5650 or higher. Overclock it and you're good to go, especially for muti threaded applications & transcoding. They can be had for around $75 & up..
You can double your current throughput with a simple chip change and some overclocking (your board overclocks great btw).

"The Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R includes Gigabyte's 333 Onboard Acceleration features. Incorporates USB 3.0, Serial-ATA Revision 3.0 (6Gbps) and a 3x USB Power Boost, as well as multi-GPU support for NVIDIA 3-Way SLI and ATI CrossFireX and support for Intel's high performance processors. With the memory controller integrated directly into the processor die, the Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R also supports triple channel DDR3 memory for blazing fast memory performance."

Save your money until a better upgrade's available. For what you do, a 4790K can't touch an overclocked Xeon hexcore..

 

[Technocrat]

I guess I feel like it's too slow. I've also not wanted to overclock

 

[inachu]

I agree with Burpo nice specs.
You just need the red carpet treatment to get it back up to speed. You know:
Delete junk,uninstall junk you no longer use,optimize swap file,defrag

I have optimized how I use my pc at home and use profiles based on the function so I do not get lost in thoughts to do various stuff.
Log in as games to play games, log in as work to do work, Log in as photos to do just photo related stuff. Some say that is pointless to do but for me it helps.

 

[Burpo]

I guess I feel like it's too slow. I've also not wanted to overclock

Ok, well spend a bit more and get the X5690.. 6 cores @ 3.5Ghz gets things done quick! Don't over clock, but use the xmp settings of your memory and enable all cores.. Better for transcoding than 4790k & easy to do a CPU swap. You already have the cooling..

FYI, your Cinebench scores (similar to rendering) for that i7-950 are about 1/2 what the X5690 will do..

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Intel-Xeon-...993?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item567188c439

 

[Ketchup]

Close to 6 years, I don't think an upgrade is out of line. The X5690 is a great idea for you since you aren't going up in cores/threads with the 4790. The 4790 would be a nice speed boost, but you would still be staying with the same number of cores.

When you say "feels slow," are you talking everything, or just during demanding tasks?

 

[Technocrat]

Well this computer is my work/personal computer and I multitask alot. I reinstall the OS about once every 6-8 months as well. I do a lot of Handbrake encoding and during Handbrake encoding a 1080P video I typically max the CPU out 100% and my temps for he CPU hover around 57 C. I guess I just feel I should be able to encode faster!

If I upgrade to the new board and cpu, you think I could just sell the motherboard, cpu and memory and probably the H100? Is there much market for an older product like mine?

As for the used CPU, I just hate to invest in used CPU's especially if I'm paying $200. I also do not see the X5690 on the Gigabyte supported CPU List:

http://www.gigabyte.com/support-downloads/cpu-support-popup.aspx?pid=3449

 

[Burpo]

It works fine with your Gigabyte board.. The chip came out after the board is why it's not on the list..

http://ark.intel.com/products/52576/Intel-Xeon-Processor-X5690-12M-Cache-3_46-GHz-6_40-GTs-Intel-QPI

And take a look at stock performance of that CPU & what it cost ($1758.99)..

http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Xeon+X5690+@+3.47GHz

It would breeze thru your encodes at twice the speed you're used to. It's Enterprise grade 32nm silicon.
Your i7 950 is 2 yrs older and is 45nm silicon..
http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i7+950+@+3.07GHz

Even better value is the X5670 hexcore for $105
http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Xeon+X5670+@+2.93GHz

http://www.ebay.com/itm/SLBV7-INTEL...551?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1e8c8e3bd7

Use XMP memory profile & with the extra cores, it'll impress you too

BTW, I have GA-X58A-UD7 & the X58A Giga boards are impressive! You could sell it, but I wouldn't.. not yet anyway.

 

[Burpo]

From the handbrake thread..
My X5650 overclocked to 4.6Ghz
http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=35963972&postcount=350

4790K at 4.6Ghz
http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=36788944&postcount=398

Upgrade cpu, board & RAM if you want to (it is a nice platform), but for what you do a simple cpu change will give you similar results. 4790K makes sense for gaming tho if that's a consideration, and YES your old stuff is still worth $$ on ebay if you want to sell it.. You could move to the new platform for probably $300-$350 difference.. Your call.. Just saying you have other options. You can drop in a $100 cpu & ride out another yr or 2.. X58 isn't dead yet..

 

[Technocrat]

Well I'm seriously considering upgrading mainly because I can get rid of my wife's old Dell desktop and give her my computer.

Question if I got the Gigabyte MB, i7 4790K, and 16GB of memory, what speed of memory should I get? I am confused about what speed to purchase.

 

[mikeymikec]

If you don't want to overclock, then I'd suggest saving a bit and not bothering with an Intel 'K' processor.

 

[Ketchup]

Well I'm seriously considering upgrading mainly because I can get rid of my wife's old Dell desktop and give her my computer.

Question if I got the Gigabyte MB, i7 4790K, and 16GB of memory, what speed of memory should I get? I am confused about what speed to purchase.

1600 works for me. I have this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820233246

 

[Burpo]

Question if I got the Gigabyte MB, i7 4790K, and 16GB of memory, what speed of memory should I get? I am confused about what speed to purchase.

2133 seems to be the sweet spot for Haswell..

 

[corkyg]

Well I'm seriously considering upgrading mainly because I can get rid of my wife's old Dell desktop and give her my computer.

All kidding aside - the real reason comes out! Technolust rules! Go for the upgrade.

 

[Technocrat]

All kidding aside - the real reason comes out! Technolust rules! Go for the upgrade.

She actually has an old dell Optiplex 755

 

[Technocrat]

Well I bought a new board, ram, case, cpu and cooler. Now considering selling my the board, cpu, ram and a new cooler. Just need to figure out a price.