General Intel HEDT Xeon/i7 Discussion

[Pasi123]

1 minute ago, Glorious_LDR92 said:

I have an Asus P6-X58D-E motherboard and am looking for an upgrade. I have a Core i7 950 right now that has been working fine for the most part. But for work I am going to be doing more video editing, and I'm just getting into streaming when I play games(just as a hobby, nothing serious at all). The streaming is more so I can share video easier with my friends. I'm asking here, because  I've come across some very tantalizing deals for the Xeon X5680.

1. Is it even possible or worth while? 

2. Do I need to change my RAM?

3. If I do go forward with this, is there a noticeable difference? I'd be using Adobe Premier for the editing. 

4. Would I need to change my cooling solution? I have a Corsair AIO H50

 

Lastly, I'm like the last person on earth to join the forums I feel like, so hi. I like cats, videogames and computers. 

1. Yes

2. No

3. Yes

4. No

[Zando_]

2 minutes ago, Glorious_LDR92 said:

I have an Asus P6-X58D-E motherboard and am looking for an upgrade. I have a Core i7 950 right now that has been working fine for the most part. But for work I am going to be doing more video editing, and I'm just getting into streaming when I play games(just as a hobby, nothing serious at all). The streaming is more so I can share video easier with my friends. I'm asking here, because  I've come across some very tantalizing deals for the Xeon X5680.

1. Is it even possible or worth while? 

2. Do I need to change my RAM?

3. If I do go forward with this, is there a noticeable difference? I'd be using Adobe Premier for the editing. 

4. Would I need to change my cooling solution? I have a Corsair AIO H50

 

Lastly, I'm like the last person on earth to join the forums I feel like, so hi. I like cats, videogames and computers. 

Howdy. As far as Xeon compatibility goes, I'm pretty sure they work with any LGA1366 mobo and normal DDR3 (Only need ECC for dual socket rigs). And a newer Xeon like the X5680 will be a bit faster, and has two more cores/four more threads, so it should be a good upgrade for speed in editing as well. 

[Glorious_LDR92]

Just now, Zando Bob said:

Howdy. As far as Xeon compatibility goes, I'm pretty sure they work with any LGA1366 mobo and normal DDR3 (Only need ECC for dual socket rigs). And a newer Xeon like the X5680 will be a bit faster, and has two more cores/four more threads, so it should be a good upgrade for speed in editing as well. 

Awesome. Thanks for the reply. Seeing them for $60-$70 on Ebay is pretty tempting. 

[Zando_]

1 minute ago, Glorious_LDR92 said:

Awesome. Thanks for the reply. Seeing them for $60-$70 on Ebay is pretty tempting. 

If you can overclock though, you can get something like an X5650 for much cheaper. It's still 6c/12t, but only a 2.66GHz base clock. I got one for $17. 

[Ground]

8 minutes ago, Glorious_LDR92 said:

I have an Asus P6-X58D-E motherboard and am looking for an upgrade. I have a Core i7 950 right now that has been working fine for the most part. But for work I am going to be doing more video editing, and I'm just getting into streaming when I play games(just as a hobby, nothing serious at all). The streaming is more so I can share video easier with my friends. I'm asking here, because  I've come across some very tantalizing deals for the Xeon X5680.

1. Is it even possible or worth while? 

2. Do I need to change my RAM?

3. If I do go forward with this, is there a noticeable difference? I'd be using Adobe Premier for the editing. 

4. Would I need to change my cooling solution? I have a Corsair AIO H50

 

Lastly, I'm like the last person on earth to join the forums I feel like, so hi. I like cats, videogames and computers. 

Well, first off - don't get the X5680. If you are willing to spend as much as you have to for best results and easier overclocking, get the W3680. Unlike the X5680 it is unlocked, and both are about the same price. If you want to spend less, get anything from X5650 to the X5675 - all those are cheaper and overclock similarly, but overclocking may require more tuning (max OC is, most of the time, limited by cooling and not by the motherboard and CPU). 

You don't have to change the RAM.

Well, 2 more cores and you'll probably get a bit more headroom in overclocking so you get a bit more Single Core performance too. So... Probably yes, especially since you have usecases for more threads.

If it kept the i7 950 cool, it should keep the Xeon cool too. I had an i7 930 before that managed 3.8 GHz with my current solution; my Xeon manages 4.6 with the same cooler. I recommend keeping it for now and, if you decide you want more, get a better one afterwards. 

 

Well, and hi to you too

[Glorious_LDR92]

I am not experienced with overclocking, as I've avoided it to hopefully prolong the life of the i7 950 since I've heard it runs like a furnace if you're not careful. With that being said, i'm sure there are troves of forum posts and instructions on how to do it for a Xeon. I'm guessing that's not something that can be done through a UEFI is it? 

[NoxiousOdor]

Just now, Glorious_LDR92 said:

I am not experienced with overclocking, as I've avoided it to hopefully prolong the life of the i7 950 since I've heard it runs like a furnace if you're not careful. With that being said, i'm sure there are troves of forum posts and instructions on how to do it for a Xeon. I'm guessing that's not something that can be done through a UEFI is it? 

Xeons overclock the same way as any other cpu  

[Zando_]

Just now, Glorious_LDR92 said:

I am not experienced with overclocking, as I've avoided it to hopefully prolong the life of the i7 950 since I've heard it runs like a furnace if you're not careful. With that being said, i'm sure there are troves of forum posts and instructions on how to do it for a Xeon. I'm guessing that's not something that can be done through a UEFI is it? 

It's done through the BIOS. But Xeon shouldn't have their life shortened noticeably, they're designed to take the tress of 24/7 usage for years and years. And they don't make as much heat as you'd think. 

[IKnight]

32 minutes ago, Zando Bob said:

It's done through the BIOS. But Xeon shouldn't have their life shortened noticeably, they're designed to take the tress of 24/7 usage for years and years. And they don't make as much heat as you'd think. 

I idle at 31*C.  Granted, it have pretty much the biggest air cooler you can get. 

[Glorious_LDR92]

1 hour ago, Ground said:

Well, first off - don't get the X5680. If you are willing to spend as much as you have to for best results and easier overclocking, get the W3680. Unlike the X5680 it is unlocked, and both are about the same price. If you want to spend less, get anything from X5650 to the X5675 - all those are cheaper and overclock similarly, but overclocking may require more tuning (max OC is, most of the time, limited by cooling and not by the motherboard and CPU). 

You don't have to change the RAM.

Well, 2 more cores and you'll probably get a bit more headroom in overclocking so you get a bit more Single Core performance too. So... Probably yes, especially since you have usecases for more threads.

If it kept the i7 950 cool, it should keep the Xeon cool too. I had an i7 930 before that managed 3.8 GHz with my current solution; my Xeon manages 4.6 with the same cooler. I recommend keeping it for now and, if you decide you want more, get a better one afterwards. 

 

Well, and hi to you too

What about the W3670? 3.2ghz & 6 cores for around $40-$50? 
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Intel-Xeon-W3670-SLBVE-6-Core-3-2GHz-LGA-1366-Processor-CPU-/253189212763?hash=item3af340ca5b:g:MyYAAOSwaZdZ07fU

[NoxiousOdor]

Me and @Zando Bob have officially dragged our friend Colton into the xeon master race. We are multiplying 

[Zando_]

13 minutes ago, WhisperingKnickers said:

Me and @Zando Bob have officially dragged our friend Colton into the xeon master race. We are multiplying 

Hehe. He's on here as @Coltonw023456, IDK how often he's online though. 

[IKnight]

3 minutes ago, Zando Bob said:

Hehe. He's on here as @Coltonw023456, IDK how often he's online though. 

 

17 minutes ago, WhisperingKnickers said:

Me and @Zando Bob have officially dragged our friend Colton into the xeon master race. We are multiplying 

*Chanting begins* ONE OF US. ONE OF US. ONE OF US....

[Zando_]

1 minute ago, ImadKnight said:

 

*Chanting begins* ONE OF US. ONE OF US. ONE OF US....

And the Xeon will rise, more powerful than ever, until it's many threads entwine the earth in the wonderfulness of multi-core computing...

[IKnight]

Just now, Zando Bob said:

And the Xeon will rise, more powerful than ever, until it's many threads entwine the earth in the wonderfulness of multi-core computing...

And we shall ignore the fact that we have practically 18core consumer CPUs?... I like that idea.

Seriously though, best bang for the buck possible is an old Xeon. 

[NoxiousOdor]

1 minute ago, ImadKnight said:

And we shall ignore the fact that we have practically 18core consumer CPUs?... I like that idea.

Seriously though, best bang for the buck possible is an old Xeon. 

Seriously yeah, I over paid for mine at about $300 and I have 12 cores 24 threads and that really isn't a bad price for that. Had I been a sensible buyer I could have gotten the same for $100

[IKnight]

Just now, WhisperingKnickers said:

Seriously yeah, I over paid for mine at about $300 and I have 12 cores 24 threads and that really isn't a bad price for that. Had I been a sensible buyer I could have gotten the same for $100

300$?? When was this? I'm sure the seller had one happy day. 

(Granted, each CPU was like $1000 new so that's still s great deal). 

[NoxiousOdor]

1 minute ago, ImadKnight said:

300$?? When was this? I'm sure the seller had one happy day. 

(Granted, each CPU was like $1000 new so that's still s great deal). 

The 5690s were $1700 new, I bought them for a pair at an auction and I got nervous and bid too high lol

[IKnight]

Just now, WhisperingKnickers said:

The 5690s were $1700 new, I bought them for a pair at an auction and I got nervous and bid too high lol

Oh damn. The x5650s were 1000*. We've all screwed ourselves over in auctions. Part of the learning experience I guess.

I got mine off a local guy who had been posting ads for months with no interest. Loweballed him and he straight away accepted.

[NoxiousOdor]

6 minutes ago, ImadKnight said:

Oh damn. The x5650s were 1000*. We've all screwed ourselves over in auctions. Part of the learning experience I guess.

I got mine off a local guy who had been posting ads for months with no interest. Loweballed him and he straight away accepted.

That is really cool, I have since bought several xeons at good prices but my favorite are the 5690s but they are always more expensive than the other ones. I have two in my dual socket system and I want to keep an eye out for another one for the new build I am doing. It will be more money than it should be but I want to keep a theme

[IKnight]

1 minute ago, WhisperingKnickers said:

That is really cool, I have since bought several xeons at good prices but my favorite are the 5690s but they are always more expensive than the other ones. I have two in my dual socket system and I want to keep an eye out for another one for the new build I am doing. It will be more money than it should be but I want to keep a theme

What's special with the 5690s besides the higher clock speed? I still need to inspect my OC problem, but im waaaaay too lazy. Just running at stock settings for now.

[NoxiousOdor]

6 minutes ago, ImadKnight said:

What's special with the 5690s besides the higher clock speed? I still need to inspect my OC problem, but im waaaaay too lazy. Just running at stock settings for now.

If I have several of them, all in different setups it makes it easy to compare the performance across different use cases. Also they are the most powerful xeon (albeit marginally) made for the x58 platform. If I get the 5690 then I don't have to tempt myself with wondering if I could use something better  For my own personal computers I am not super concerned with price/performance on xeons as they are still cheaper than modern cpus

[IKnight]

1 minute ago, WhisperingKnickers said:

If I have several of them, all in different setups it makes it easy to compare the performance across different use cases. Also they are the most powerful xeon (albeit marginally) made for the x58 platform. If I get the 5690 then I don't have to tempt myself with wondering if I could use something better  For my own personal computers I am not sure concerned with price/performance on xeons as they are still cheaper than modern cpus

Huh. I guess that's pretty smart. I'm always looking for cheap upgrades, even though I don't need the performance. And nothing newer gets even close. X58 is gonna stay for a while with me. 

[Vacras]

Yo I’m in guys! Why didn’t I see this earlier?! 

Xeon master race! 

[NoxiousOdor]

Just now, ImadKnight said:

Huh. I guess that's pretty smart. I'm always looking for cheap upgrades, even though I don't need the performance. And nothing newer gets even close. X58 is gonna stay for a while with me. 

the computer I had before I built this was a laptop with an AMD e-350 dual core at 1.6ghz. I had that laptop as my only computer for 7 years and if I can make that work for so long I plan to make my xeons last a long time too