i7, is there a point for my stuff?

#1

so I’m currently using an i7 920 for the last few years and was thinking of getting an i7 3770 or the new i7 4770. Then I thought "I do rigging, all of those extra processors get wasted, what’s the point? Maybe I should get a i5 ". So tell me, is there a point or should I just take that extra $100+ and stick it into a better GPU? I just hate seeing all of those cores go to waste.
Thoughts?

#2

If you do rigging, is there anything wrong with your 920? It still has plenty of years left in it and Id be surprised if its slowing anything down.

#3

I guess it depends on how often you spend waiting for the computer to calculate whatever you’re rigging and how much money you’re willing to spend on it.

the 4670k and 4770k will probably speed those calculations up somewhere between 60-80% compared to the 920

overclocking the CPU might be something to also consider since single-threading doesn’t stress the CPU all that much

#4

For rigging buy a 4670K, a half decent cooler, watch it clock itself at 4.2-4.6 Ghz in turboboost, and save yourself the difference in price.

I’ve recently pushed through A LOT both a 4670K and a 4770K. For single tasking poorly threading things such as rigging/animation in Maya you have not a reason in the world to bother with hyperthreading and a bigger cache that is starved all the time, which is basically the only thing the i7 brings over an i5.

I kept the 4770k because I do a fair bit of rendering too some times, but had that not been the case I would have kept the 4670K without a thought.

I also upgraded from a 920, and the gap is considerable, upwards of 2x the framerate against the same exact graph at just 4Ghz, and always above 1.5x, something that any 4670K will reach out of the box air cooled without a hitch or a tweak other than a multiplier bump.

At 4.625 with 1.25 strapping (which is a fairly lucky roll of the dice with Haswell, but 4.5 is something two thirds or more of the CPUs will hit) it’s a pleasure to watch churning.

#5

Also, it’s a must to TURN OFF INTEGRATED GRAPHICS in the BIOS!!!
…
you temps will be much lower…
for the haswell i7-4xxx series of intel CPUs

#6

You can overclock a i7 920 D0 stepping on air, without too much hassle, to 4ghz.

This means you might only have to buy a proper heatsink/fan for a spectacular increase in performance as the 920 is clocked at 2.66 ghz.

#7

Oh yeah that, I always assumed everyone did by default. Ive had mine running at 3.8GHz for… works it out, holy crap, I havent upgraded my desktop for almost 5 years :o

The worst thing is, I dont even feel much need to do it.

#8

The fact that 5 year old tech can still hold its own in some aspects is disturbing in IT terms
(and yet another sign that the rate of innovation on the current paradigm is declining).

I also had it gathering dust and then i remembered it was a 920.

#9

if I didn’t do so much rendering or have a need for more memory with the 3930k, I’d still be using my 930 i7@4.2ghz

#10

The 920 was a ridiculously good and longeve CPU.
I’ve only upgraded mine recently due to a particular set of circumstances, otherwise I would have kept it for longer, and I also got it about five years ago.

#11

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