3930k quad channel or 3770k PCI 3.0

[3lgringo]

So im getting readdy to build a new rig! Saved up a hefty 3000€ but am not quite sure if I should get a x79 rig or ivy bridge.

What will games benifit more from quad channel memory(3930k) or pci 3.0(3770k ivy bridge)?

At the moment I'm inclined to the x79 because ivy bridge E will be socket 2011 right? So I can upgrade latter on...

But then again when ivybridge-E comes out better boards will probably be available.

Suggestions and advice would be apreciated!

 

[Stevo]

if its primaraly for gaming I'd say save your money and get the ivy bridge and then maybe spend your extra cash on the best gpu money can buy / SLi setup. you wont see any gains from 2011 socket.

 

[3lgringo]

Either way I'm planning on getting 2x 680's.

I'm just not sure yet which is best PCI 3.0 or quad chan memory but then again without ivybridge cpu's to really test PCI 3.0 we can't be sure yet right?

 

[Stevo]

Either way I'm planning on getting 2x 680's.

I'm just not sure yet which is best PCI 3.0 or quad chan memory but then again without ivybridge cpu's to really test PCI 3.0 we can't be sure yet right?

The yea, get Ivy bridge, the only difference you would see from 1155 vs 2011 is if you were to run a cpu benchmark.

 

[3lgringo]

Thanks for the insight I'll start looking for Z77 boards now!

 

[8 Pack]

Hey remember that X79 has native support through the CPU also and much more PCI ex lanes. Quad channel memory is not the issue with your debate. Also something else to throw in is that Z77 is 8x x 8x SLI X79 is 16 x 16x SLI both are PCI 3.0 gen;. Just so your fully informed when yoru purchasing. memory controller on Ivy is a beast!!!!!

 

[3lgringo]

Either way I'm going to wait for some benchmarks before going Ivy but doing the math so far if I opt for Ivy brigde (even tough price is still speculation), opting for a Z77 allows me to get another 680gtx in my rig wich might give me more benifit than anything else right?

 

[Master&Puppet]

You've got it right, here's the maths.

Cpu performance wise an i5 2500k would be fine with 2x 680s however SB does not support PCI-e 3.0 and if you need PCI-e 3 you will need an IB or 2011 cpu to support it. This is important to a certain extent. Let me explain PCI-e bandwidth:

The greatest bandwidth is given by PCI-e 3.0 x16 which delievers 16gb/s

After this the relationships are linear so:

PCI-e 3.0 x8 and PCI-e 2.0 x16 = 8gb/s

PCI-e 3.0 x4 and PCI-e 2.0 x8 = 4gb/s

and so on.

The latest generation of cards are not able to saturate an 8 gb/s lane but will fill a 4 gb/s lane resulting in bottlenecking. (I'm unsure about the 7990 and 690 since they are not out yet)

If you take a look at the wiki for the 1155 and 2011 sockets you will see that they have the following lanes available:

x68 = PCI-e 2 x16 (total = 8 gb/s)

z77 = PCI-e 3 x16 (total = 16 gb/s)

x79 = PCI-e 3 x40 (total = 40 gb/s)

This means that if anyone is running a single 680/79xx card then a standard z68 mobo will be fine. However if you sli/xf on a x68 then the bandwidth would drop to 4 gb/s per lane which is potentially limiting the gpus depending on the game.

A z77 board with a IB processor supports PCI-e 3.0 so it's basically two z68s so you can run 2 x8 lanes each feeding 8 gb/s to 2x gpus.

An x79 is therefore only necessary if you are running more than 2 gpus and it will theorectically handle 5 gpus in sli/xf providing plenty of 8gb/s slots.

So there you have it, if you are running the latest gen gpus:

x68/i5 SB for single gpu.

z77/i5 IB for dual gpus.

x79/lga2011 for more than 2 gpus.

More info here

As for quad channel memory - well that allows you to put more RAM on the mobo, simple as that. Gamers only need 8gb though which all these support. RAM speed is irrelevent to gaming as well.

M&P

 

[3lgringo]

Wow thank you for clearing that up for me I confess I've been reading many reviews lately but never really understood the differences up until now.

Any recommendations on what ram I should go for on a Z77 platform brand wise? I will be gamming mostly but might have to occasionally do some photoshop work on my home rig as well.

I will be overclocking since I honestly see no reason not to with a 3000 € rig and I'm seriously considering water cooling too

Will a 850w Psu handle 2x 680s?

Sorry about all the questions but I'd really like to buy my hardware once and be sorted for the next couple of years without regret!

 

[Master&Puppet]

an 850 will handle that setup at stock but if you intend on overclocking and watercooling (where you will be adding a pump or two and more fans) then I'd jump up to the next level, something around the 1000W mark would be perfect.

I'll confess that one of my weak points is ram at the moment - I just stick anything in since as long as I have 8gb it makes no difference for gaming. You might be better of posting a new topic to get some responses on that one. Mushkin is a name that always comes up though...

 

[demonking]

great stuff here nice posts master&puppet