CPU upgrade questions.

[High-five]

I am going to purchase an Intel CPU/Mobo to upgrade from my AMD A8-3800. I am aware that Ivy Bridge is coming out in a few months, but I plan on building a second computer using my A8/mobo for my younger brothers birthday, which is march 20th.

That being said, I obviously can't hold out for the Ivy Bridge cpu's. I have come to terms with this (lol).

My question is which CPU. I only game, I don't use this computer for anything else. From what I've read, there isn't any games out that use the i7 to capacity, and if my focus is just gaming, it's a waste of money.

So i5 or i7?

i5 2550k?
i5 2500k?
i7 2600?
i7 2600k?

Thank you in advance for your feedback!

[anveena]

i5-2500k is the cpu you will want to get then. Make sure you pick up a p67 or Z68 motherboard so you can overclock it. Also don't forget about getting a heatsink/fan.

[chaud]

You could get something like this, and then sell it in a few months and upgrade to Ivy Bridge for a small extra cost. That CPU is actually likely faster than the one you have now!

[High-five]

Not even going to lie, I got a bit giddy when I saw Chaud post on my thread

Lets talk Mobo's real quick. I was looking at this ASUS Sabertooth P67

Thoughts?

[Deleted]

Thoughts?

That you shouldn't buy it. The BIOS are not what most people are used to and it doesn't really give any benefits over say, Asus P8P67 Pro Motherboard (which also will save you up to $50).

And also, Ivy Bridge is released April 8th, not "a few months".

[chaud]

It is overpriced and that heat shield thing is annoying. Go with what the above poster recommended if you are going P67, otherwise get a Z68 board.

[Linaver]

For Z68 I'd recommend http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...z68%20extreme3
Very recently built a computer with 2500K on it, no problems at all, tons of features (although only 2 sata3 6gb/s, but unless you plan to have more than 2 SSD's that means nothing) and very well priced.

[Mawaru]

If you're okay with the Sabertooth being open box, I'd pick it up. It's the same motherboard I bought recently and I like it quite a bit.

Yes, the BIOS is different than most, but who cares? Switch it to Advanced mode and it accomplishes the same thing other boards' BIOS do. I'm not quite sure what chaud is on about when he says the thermal armor is "annoying", either. I like the look of the thermal armor, and it isn't obstructing you from getting to anything. What's "annoying" about it?

The big plus, for me, is that the Sabertooth has a USB 3.0 header on the board; the other boards in this thread DO NOT have them. So if your case has USB 3.0 ports on the front panel, you can actually utilize them with the Sabertooth without using up the two ports on the back of your motherboard.