Should I get the i7 920 or i7 860? (Thread)

[EastCoasthandle]

Ok, I know this will be something that's going to be asked once prices start to go down on these CPUs. So I want to provide some basic information on the differences. The i7 800 series for the most part has some limitations that the i7 900 series does not. So let's get that out of the way.

i7 860 limitations:​

1. This series of cpus can only do crossfire/sli in x8/x8. The i7 920 can do 16x/x16.
2. Once USB 3.0 and Sata 6.0 are standard you want to make sure that the MB chipset supports the feature through some sort of PCIE bridge chip. If it doesn't it will reduce your PCIe x16 lane to a x8 using 1 video card. For example the ASUS P7P55D-E PRO which uses a PLX solution prevents this from happening.
3. 1136 will be limited to 4 cores while there are plans to use 6 cores on the 1366.
4. Some i7 860 may require a lot more voltage to get 4.0GHz then with a i7 920.


These are the only 2 that I know of that are true limitations. Another thing is that some of the 1156 socket motherboards appear to cost as much as 1366 socket motherboards that offer more features. So, you may have to do some research to find a good deal.

The Pros for the i7 860​

1. 860 has a higher Bus/Core Ratio (21 vs 20 for the 920)
2. 860 has a lower Max TDW (85W vs 130 W for the 920)
3. 860 has a higher Max Turbo Frequency (3.46Ghz vs 2.93Ghz on the 920)
More spec here
4. P55 only has QPI of 2.5 GT/s. The P65 will have QPI of 5.0 GT/s.


The price between the 2 will depend on who you buy from. A quick glance at Newegg has the 920 a tad more (about $10) then the 860. Which is not a big deal IMO. As far as overclocking goes I've read good reports on both CPUs doing very well so that's IMO is also a wash. As for performance the i7 870 does appear to performe a tad better then the i7 920 at stock clocks from the review(s) I've read so far. Perhaps someone else can provide more insight if there are any other points of interest between CPUs. However, between the two the incentive of the 860 is power consumption and cost. However, not everyone cares for this. Other's pick the 920 as they beleive it's more future proof and overall a higher end upgrade to the 860 do to the ram and socket design.

So in the end the choice is yours to make.

 

[TIGR]

The 860 seems like a good choice. The limitations are not without workarounds; pop in a couple NF200 chips to up the PCI-Express lanes, as as motherboard manufacturers are increasingly doing (Asus, EVGA), and you've made up for them.

 

[Binge]

The NF200 generates a lot of heat and gives really poor performance in comparison to a simple x58 chipset. I can not consider that a viable solution for CF/SLI users.

 

[FuzzyDunlop]

the x8 vs x16 crossfire perf difference is very small, about 2-4 fps afaik.
saw some review about it...

 

[eidairaman1]

So the 800 series is PCI E bus limited!? What a joke intel is pulling.

Ok, I know this will be something that's going to be asked once prices start to go down on these CPUs. So I want to provide some basic information on the differences. The i7 800 series for the most part has some limitations that the i7 900 series does not. So let's get that out of the way.

i7 860 limitations:​

1. This series of cpus can only do crossfire/sli in x8/x8. The i7 920 can do 16x/x16.
2. Once USB 3.0 and Sata 6.0 are standard you want to make sure that the MB chipset supports the feature through some sort of PCIE bridge chip. If it doesn't it will reduce your PCIe x16 lane to a x8 using 1 video card. For example the ASUS P7P55D-E PRO which uses a PLX solution prevents this from happening.


These are the only 2 that I know of that are true limitations. Another thing is that some of the 1156 socket motherboards appear to cost as much as 1366 socket motherboards that offer more features. So, you may have to do some research to find a good deal.

The Pros for the i7 860​

1. 860 has a higher Bus/Core Ratio (21 vs 20 for the 920)
2. 860 has a lower Max TDW (85W vs 130 W for the 920)
3. 860 has a higher Max Turbo Frequency (3.46Ghz vs 2.93Ghz on the 920)
More spec here

The price between the 2 will depend on who you buy from. A quick glance at Newegg has the 920 a tad more (about $10) then the 860. Which is not a big deal IMO. As far as overclocking goes I've read good reports on both CPUs doing very well so that's IMO is also a wash. As for performance the i7 870 does appear to performe a tad better then the i7 920 at stock clocks from the review(s) I've read so far. Perhaps someone else can provide more insight if there are any other points of interest between CPUs. However, between the two the incentive of the 860 is power consumption and cost. However, not everyone cares for this. Other's pick the 920 as they beleive it's more future proof and overall a higher end upgrade to the 860 do to the ram and socket design.

So in the end the choice is yours to make.

 

[TIGR]

The NF200 generates a lot of heat and gives really poor performance in comparison to a simple x58 chipset. I can not consider that a viable solution for CF/SLI users.

Binge, I haven't seen tests comparing NF200 performance—can you provide a source of info?

 

[Binge]

Binge, I haven't seen tests comparing NF200 performance—can you provide a source of info?

No. I don't feel I need to site it because google exists and you can do your own research. I own a few X58s as well as 2 different classified boards the 758 and 760, and I've benched a quite a few socket 1156. The lga 1156 w/ NF200 present in those boards gives x16/x8 perf, which would be less than a standard x58 which gives x16/x16 without extra nf200 chips.

Seeing as I don't archive a bunch of sources/screenshots for the purpose of debate I probably would have gone to google first anyway.

 

[TIGR]

No. I don't feel I need to site it because google exists and you can do your own research. I own a few X58s as well as 2 different classified boards the 758 and 760, and I've benched a quite a few socket 1156. The lga 1156 w/ NF200 present in those boards gives x16/x8 perf, which would be less than a standard x58 which gives x16/x16 without extra nf200 chips.

http://img.techpowerup.org/100118/nf200fail.jpg

Seeing as I don't archive a bunch of sources/screenshots for the purpose of debate I probably would have gone to google first anyway.

I wasn't about to debate or disagree with you. Was looking for any suggestions on where I and the OP (if interested) could learn more. I understand you're proud of your boards, benching, etc., and sincerely apologize for treading on your ego in the process of bringing relevant info to light for the OP.

(Edit for the humorless: come on, laugh a little and move on. The OP needs info, not a pissing contest. If you need an outlet for your e-anger, PM me.)

 

[Binge]

That's disgusting. You're obviously having a good time bringing up your opinions of my ego and mood. Just take it for what it is. The situation is that anyone can tell you a fact/opinion and you can do your part in researching a little bit. Obviously I'm not trying to be some hero for the sake of your laziness, but if the OP is considering Xfire/SLI he should look into the x58 and not the lga 1156 boards.

 

[TIGR]

EastCoastHandle:

http://enthusiast.hardocp.com/article/2009/01/06/nf200_true_3way_sli_preliminary_results

I also found that Google can find you quite a few other people asking the question of 860 vs 920 and you will find some good discussions there.

 

[EastCoasthandle]

I almost forgot to add that 1366 socket will support 6 core CPUS down the road. So that something to think about (unless that actually changes to another socket design).

 

[MRCL]

I myself chose the 860 over a "proper" i7 simply because of the price. It may be a local thing, but an 1156 system is significantly cheaper than a 1366 system (and even a PII one). Plus the low TDP is really astonishing. I was quite surprised.

I have to admit tho that I didn't know about that SLI/CFX issue.

 

[bpgt64]

If you can get an i7 920 for 200 bucks or around that at Microcenter, there D0 batches for the most part are great overclockers. I have one, and love it. If you couldn't get your hands on one of those, I'd say the 860 might be better then, as newegg.com wants like 350 for for the 920s, and a good bit less for the 860s

 

[theonedub]

Price and power did it for me. Went the 860 route- temps are great and no hot northbridge to worry about. Will have 2 GTX 275s running on it shortly as well

The only thing that lingers is the thought of 6 core CPUs, however I do believe they will be way out of my price range. By the time I am ready for another major upgrade they might be more affordable.

 

[sneekypeet]

I didnt see it mentioned, and I know its pretty lame, but there are P55 boards with 16x8 SLI and crossfire.

Aside from the dual channel memory limitation, it seems with my chips, the 750 and 860 take more volts to get to 4GHz than a typical 920 would.

 

[bpgt64]

Price and power did it for me. Went the 860 route- temps are great and no hot northbridge to worry about. Will have 2 GTX 275s running on it shortly as well

The only thing that lingers is the thought of 6 core CPUs, however I do believe they will be way out of my price range. By the time I am ready for another major upgrade they might be more affordable.

With the way there' planning on labeling the 6 cores, yea I can't see them being under 500 dollars. There calling them i9 985s or something like that.

 

[BarbaricSoul]

If you couldn't get your hands on one of those, I'd say the 860 might be better then, as newegg.com wants like 350 for for the 920s, and a good bit less for the 860s

The 920 is only $289 and the 860 is $280 on newegg-
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115214

 

[bpgt64]

Thank you BarbaricSoul for correcting me. So it's much closer than I originally thought. However I would still stand by, if you live near a Microcenter, and can get an 920 for 230USD, I'd do that, if not, I'd go with an 860. But I am driven by price a little too much.

 

[theonedub]

Good x58 boards are more expensive, at least when I was looking for them. The dual channel RAM limitation is something I did not consider, but I do not think for normal usage that is going to be a huge issue.

As far as 4ghz, I did see a lot more people able to get their 920s to 4ghz with ease. Whether or not an 860 is going to get there with low volts still is a matter of luck. My 860 only needed 1.18v to get to 3.5, so I doubt it will take 1.3 to get to 4, but thats most likely not the norm.

 

[DrPepper]

1. 860 has a higher Bus/Core Ratio (21 vs 20 for the 920)

My mobo lets my 920 run on the 21x multiplier. At least I think it does. Personally I'd get whichever cpu + motherboard + ram is cheaper. Performance is the same really.

 

[EastCoasthandle]

Yeah, it a hard decision which route to take as both CPUs are pretty much on the same playing field. I think when it comes down to it cost is going to play a factor for most. If you plan on overclocking the power consumption maybe closer between CPUs then they are at stock. However, I have to see a review to know for certain if that's true.

 

[BUCK NASTY]

the 750 and 860 take more volts to get to 4GHz than a typical 920 would.

More volts, but less amps with a lower TDP. I'm interested in total wattage with the rig running 24/7, thus I chose the 860.

 

[DrPepper]

Yeah, it a hard decision which route to take as both CPUs are pretty much on the same playing field. I think when it comes down to it cost is going to play a factor for most. If you plan on overclocking the power consumption maybe closer between CPUs then they are at stock. However, I have to see a review to know for certain if that's true.

If you go the X58 route at least you know those sweet 32nm babies are coming to it soon. Not sure about P55 how soon those 32nm will come out or if they are already out.

 

[EastCoasthandle]

True, hopefully by then an x58 setup will be considerably less then what it cost now.

 

[DrPepper]

True, hopefully by then an x58 setup will be considerably less then what it cost now.

I'd think that's unlikely. In the UK at least, the prices have stayed the same and looks that way until new tech come's out