[SyphonPayne]

I was just saying that IB is not really a "fair" upgrade from SB. It's performance advantage is mediocre and it's hotter temps require more expensive cooling in order to reach the same clocks as SB, thus negating any performance advantages, and lower performance for the dollar. PCIe 3.0 is the only reason that IB would be more appealing to any enthusiast. Even then the advantages if PCIe 3.0 are mediocre even with x8 PCIe 2.0 on SLI GTX 680. In the future cards may need more bandwidth but hopefully by then Haswell will be out anyway.

Now, if you're running stock, IB is fine, but more costly than SB. Not to mention if you're running stock, it is pointless to run on a "K" chip unless you plan on overclocking at some point.

[Otter]

I thought IB was inherently cooler and less power hungry. Pretty much thought that was major design advantage, no? Perhaps I'm just looking at the mobile benefits.

[SyphonPayne]

On the mobile side of things, IB will be a decent upgrade over SB if you are using the integrated graphics. Other than a small decrease in heat and power usage no real big upgrade on the CPU side of things.

[finn4life]

QUOTE (Stinky12 @ Friday, May 11 2012, 00:52)

QUOTE (PrometheusX @ Thursday, May 10 2012, 09:23) @Stinky: That build is imbalanced, so I made an "improved" version of it. How imbalanced is it? By 10 degrees or 90 degrees. Anyway, OP sets a max budget of $1200, when I configure a build, I always try to fall below budget (not including shipping). Also I added a Blu-ray as how OP has a DSLR, he may want to burn to a Blu-Ray disc or something (it's also because one of the new build he picked has a Blu-Ray drive) If Blu-Ray drive isn't needed, it can go towards a better GPU and PSU.

I wouldn't say it was imbalanced at all, just needed some slight improvements, the faster SSD is good and the GFX card prometheus suggested may be overkill, so revert back the graphics card since the budget was $1200.

Imbalanced was the wrong word.

[PrometheusX]

QUOTE (finn4life @ Friday, May 11 2012, 14:52)

QUOTE (Stinky12 @ Friday, May 11 2012, 00:52) QUOTE (PrometheusX @ Thursday, May 10 2012, 09:23) @Stinky: That build is imbalanced, so I made an "improved" version of it. How imbalanced is it? By 10 degrees or 90 degrees. Anyway, OP sets a max budget of $1200, when I configure a build, I always try to fall below budget (not including shipping). Also I added a Blu-ray as how OP has a DSLR, he may want to burn to a Blu-Ray disc or something (it's also because one of the new build he picked has a Blu-Ray drive) If Blu-Ray drive isn't needed, it can go towards a better GPU and PSU. I wouldn't say it was imbalanced at all, just needed some slight improvements, the faster SSD is good and the GFX card prometheus suggested may be overkill, so revert back the graphics card since the budget was $1200. Imbalanced was the wrong word.

Actually, I said that mainly because the GPU was the problem. I mean if you're paying $1200 for a build, you should expect more than 7850. the 7950 isn't an overkill at all.

[finn4life]

QUOTE (PrometheusX @ Saturday, May 12 2012, 18:53)

QUOTE (finn4life @ Friday, May 11 2012, 14:52) QUOTE (Stinky12 @ Friday, May 11 2012, 00:52) QUOTE (PrometheusX @ Thursday, May 10 2012, 09:23) @Stinky: That build is imbalanced, so I made an "improved" version of it. How imbalanced is it? By 10 degrees or 90 degrees. Anyway, OP sets a max budget of $1200, when I configure a build, I always try to fall below budget (not including shipping). Also I added a Blu-ray as how OP has a DSLR, he may want to burn to a Blu-Ray disc or something (it's also because one of the new build he picked has a Blu-Ray drive) If Blu-Ray drive isn't needed, it can go towards a better GPU and PSU. I wouldn't say it was imbalanced at all, just needed some slight improvements, the faster SSD is good and the GFX card prometheus suggested may be overkill, so revert back the graphics card since the budget was $1200. Imbalanced was the wrong word. Actually, I said that mainly because the GPU was the problem. I mean if you're paying $1200 for a build, you should expect more than 7850. the 7950 isn't an overkill at all.

Well now trim the price back so its under $1200 if you want the gfx.

How about we meet in the middle?
7870 Review for GTA IV.
You can view from the drop down tap there all the other games too, the 7870 manages to only fall 1-5FPS below the 7950, it even beats it out in IV for some reason.

From Newegg:
7870 Factory overclocked $359.99
- 1050Mhz Core clock
- Effective Memory clock 1250 Mhz (5.0Gbps)

Regular 7970 (Not Factory Overclocked) $334.99
-1010Mhz Core clock
-Effective memory clock 1210MHz (4.84 Gbps).

I also believe the review was for the Non overclocked 7870, so the Over Clocked version would probably be just about even with the 7950 but still $40 cheaper.

The 7870's also come with the Dirt Showdown Coupons.
---
THis card is a good balance between 7850 and 7950 and will come into the budget quite neatly.
------------

Also found a pre-built if he is still looking to buy one with similar specs.
$1159
-1TB HDD,
- Windows already installed
- i5 3570k 3.4Ghz
- 8GB 1333MHz Ram
- 7870 2GB
Also for $1239 you get Adobe Premier Pro and Photoshop included in a combo pack, that must certainly be the best pre-built offer i have seen and seems to fit your needs perfectly.

This post has been edited by finn4life on Saturday, May 12 2012, 11:26

[Stinky12]

In the beginning I really wanted to add a 7950, it won't allow me as other parts ate up most of the budget (Blu-Ray). Not even a 7870 can go into the build.
The prebuild is good for that price along with the bundles. But I always facepalm at those free full Adobe softwares because there is no
way buyers will get the full feature set at that price. And I was right, it's Adobe XXXXX Elements. Elements for Adobe is at the very bottom of their product line up.
Adobe Photoshop and Premiere together is way more than OP's budget, $1436 vs $1200.
The price of Photoshop Extended can get you a pair of GTX 670's

This post has been edited by Stinky12 on Saturday, May 12 2012, 13:35

[finn4life]

QUOTE (Stinky12 @ Sunday, May 13 2012, 00:32)

In the beginning I really wanted to add a 7950, it won't allow me as other parts ate up most of the budget (Blu-Ray). Not even a 7870 can go into the build. The prebuild is good for that price along with the bundles. But I always facepalm at those free full Adobe softwares because there is no way buyers will get the full feature set at that price. And I was right, it's Adobe XXXXX Elements. Elements for Adobe is at the very bottom of their product line up. Adobe Photoshop and Premiere together is way more than OP's budget, $1436 vs $1200. The price of Photoshop Extended can get you a pair of GTX 670's

If the 7870 goes into the build and the standard non OC version is bought (Wise decision, you can always overclock yourself) that is $65 below Prometheus's build, that comes in around $1163 i think? too tired to do the math right now.

[PrometheusX]

He wants a PC that will play V in the future. So I thought that it's better for him to get a 7950, to play at least at High settings. It's $50-$60 more, but on the long run it's worth it.

[Boulevard]

But in basic words... it all comes down to the graphics card in order to run 1080p videos? Right?

[finn4life]

QUOTE (Boulevard @ Sunday, May 13 2012, 07:50)

But in basic words... it all comes down to the graphics card in order to run 1080p videos? Right?

Wait, you are not worried so much about the gaming aspect?
Oh those cards will both comfortably run the video editing for you very smoothly.

Prometheus, i still think that the 7950 is not going to have much of a lead on the 7870 and there is a budget, i think it's important we ask Boulevard what he wants.


Boulevard what do you want to do? Couple questions.
1. Build your own PC and save some dollars?
2. Purchase the Pre-Built i listed or something similar?
3. Is the computer primarily for your videos and some gaming on the side or the other way around?

[Slamman]

You can game on an i3 for 1156 socket, but it won't be a better choice then a Core2quad on 775, so says resident PC expert Mkey82 here, Charming Charlie should weight in on this too, but that's the system I'd setup and I felt it was a bit too dated now that Intel has moved on from those old system boards, it's hard to see it lasting long enough to expand well enough into the future
i5 and i7 Sandy Bridge and Ivy Bridge, or SB-E should all be systems you can safely invest in

[PrometheusX]

QUOTE (Slamman @ Sunday, May 13 2012, 02:19)

You can game on an i3 for 1156 socket, but it won't be a better choice then a Core2quad on 775, so says resident PC expert Mkey82 here, Charming Charlie should weight in on this too, but that's the system I'd setup and I felt it was a bit too dated now that Intel has moved on from those old system boards, it's hard to see it lasting long enough to expand well enough into the future i5 and i7 Sandy Bridge and Ivy Bridge, or SB-E should all be systems you can safely invest in

He wants to play IV and V w/ the PC as I said before, so it's better for him to get a PC which can max out IV.

[Slamman]

Well, I'm speaking about the main board and CPU, the GPU issue is more complex, of course

[SyphonPayne]

f*ck!!! You're unbanned again?

[Slamman]

Yes, I broke a rule, it was pointed out to me, LIVE WITH IT, BUDDY, get off my back

As for GPUs, I find shopping for them as confusing as any layperson because you can't just assume a higher number is the right one for your needed application.

No one here is an expert on all things nVidia or ATI, though we, er, I, will speak from what I've read and tested, personal opinion based on my experience, but the key is also in the GPU, we can say what a GPU from ATI or nVidia offers, but the card builds on to that particular chip with it's full circuit, so not every feature will be the same

This post has been edited by Slamman on Sunday, May 13 2012, 18:50

[Boulevard]

QUOTE (finn4life @ Sunday, May 13 2012, 00:40)

Boulevard what do you want to do? Couple questions. 1. Build your own PC and save some dollars? 2. Purchase the Pre-Built i listed or something similar? 3. Is the computer primarily for your videos and some gaming on the side or the other way around?

1. Yeah, build my own PC and wouldn't mind going over a few hundreds from $1200, but of course the less I spend the better.
2. Reason I kinda want to go the way I've listed myself is because they are packages and dont' want to wait ordering parts to arrive at my house as I'll need everything ready to go by mid June.
3. It's primarily for 1080 videos and editing them. Since I'll be buying a custom PC, I might as well add a few what's also needed to get GTA IV and V running. Gaming as a side.

[PrometheusX]

QUOTE (Boulevard @ Sunday, May 13 2012, 14:25)

QUOTE (finn4life @ Sunday, May 13 2012, 00:40) Boulevard what do you want to do? Couple questions. 1. Build your own PC and save some dollars? 2. Purchase the Pre-Built i listed or something similar? 3. Is the computer primarily for your videos and some gaming on the side or the other way around? 1. Yeah, build my own PC and wouldn't mind going over a few hundreds from $1200, but of course the less I spend the better. 2. Reason I kinda want to go the way I've listed myself is because they are packages and dont' want to wait ordering parts to arrive at my house as I'll need everything ready to go by mid June. 3. It's primarily for 1080 videos and editing them. Since I'll be buying a custom PC, I might as well add a few what's also needed to get GTA IV and V running. Gaming as a side.

So, I guess it's the 7950 finn?

[Slamman]

Anything over $1200, you've got a PC with some muscle, me thinks. Most are trying to come in under $700 or more USD