Best/Most Powerful 1366 Chip???

[Sin Stalker]

My current computer is an old i7 930. I can't buy a whole new computer but I can spend a bit to upgrade this one. I want to get the best CPU for this computer. I plan to overclock as well.

 

In my own research I've found the most cores is a six, with 12 threads. I think the top three options are the i7 990x, Xeon X5690 and the W3690. 

 

All three seem almost identical. I have this feeling that they are and Intel just disables certain features per model number. But that's just a suspicion.

 

Which one of those is better or is there another that's better? 

 

 

[Enderman]

Save your money until you have enough to buy something current.

[emosun]

I use two x5679's and unless you are going to install TWO of these x5690's  , then don't bother.

Go with a newer platform , maybe a cheapo dual socket 1366 or 2011 xeon rig instead.

[kelvinhall05]

3 minutes ago, emosun said:

I use two x5679's and unless you are going to install TWO of these x5690's  , then don't bother.

Go with a newer platform , maybe a cheapo dual socket 1366 or 2011 xeon rig instead.

2011 Xeons are great, but motherboards can cost as much (if not more) than modern, new, 2011-V3 motherboards.

[emosun]

2 minutes ago, kelvinhall05 said:

2011 Xeons are great, but motherboards can cost as much (if not more) than modern, new, 2011-V3 motherboards.

Definitely gotta exorcise your hardcore shopping skills to the max for them.

I always include boards that have strange form factors in my search as they are just as fast but cost less than atx variants. You can find some cheapo dual socket 2011 boards and and e-5 2670's for a good deal.

My secondary machine is still an i7-930 and I know it's great for games and normal tasks but real rendering work is a struggle on it.

[Damascus]

Just get an x5650 for 25 bucks and then save for a new platform.

[asand1]

Get a x5680 for less than $100 and make sure you have 16gb RAM. search me recent posts for performance ideas. Don't listen to everyone saying to wait and not bother, mostly that's just them not being familiar with the chips.

[Sin Stalker]

18 minutes ago, Damascus said:

Just get an x5650 for 25 bucks and then save for a new platform.

 

13 minutes ago, asand1 said:

Get a x5680 for less than $100 and make sure you have 16gb RAM. search me recent posts for performance ideas. Don't listen to everyone saying to wait and not bother, mostly that's just them not being familiar with the chips.

 

44 minutes ago, Enderman said:

Save your money until you have enough to buy something current.

 

41 minutes ago, emosun said:

I use two x5679's and unless you are going to install TWO of these x5690's  , then don't bother.

Go with a newer platform , maybe a cheapo dual socket 1366 or 2011 xeon rig instead.

 

 

1. Yeah, I'm not getting a new system for at least a year. Likely longer. So I'm not going to upgrade my 1366.

 

 

2.Not switching MOBO. Getting a better CPU.  

 

 

3. I've always wanted to upgrade my system components to max out what my system can be. So I don't want to simply get a 5650. Plus I really want a +4.0 GHz speed and I'm worried the sub 3.0 stock speed will mean I have to apply more voltage than I'd have to with the CPU with a stock speed of over  4 ghz. 

 

4. It's about maxing out what my system can be. I may not do the best though, cause of money. For example the 990 is like $250 bucks. At that price I'm not doing it, however that would mean I'd watch and see if I can get a deal or snag some once the price drops.

 

 

5. My budget is ~$100. So if it's a x5690, I can watch and I'm sure I can get it within my budget. I'm good at getting deals. 

 

 

So not asking what I should get. I am asking which is the most powerful? If all CPUs were same price, or I had a coupon for one free one, which one should I get?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[emosun]

I understand what you're saying when you say you want to "max out" your current system. I get it. I also want to max out my old 1366 system.

It's a stupid dumb thing to do and a massive waste of money for slow old tech , but I get it.

If your board has support for the x5690 then that would be your best bet. Keeping in mind you aren't going to be happy with it's performance , but it's about as fast as any 1366 will ever get.

[asand1]

 

 

22 minutes ago, emosun said:

I understand what you're saying when you say you want to "max out" your current system. I get it. I also want to max out my old 1366 system.

It's a stupid dumb thing to do and a massive waste of money for slow old tech , but I get it.

If your board has support for the x5690 then that would be your best bet. Keeping in mind you aren't going to be happy with it's performance , but it's about as fast as any 1366 will ever get.

He will be happy, and you probably would be too, unless you just need the biggest e-penis. A 6 core 12 thread 1366 Xeon running at 4ghz+ is nothing to scoff at. 

[Damascus]

Get an x5690 then, sounds like an excellent choice for you.

[bimmerman]

Few things.

 

The i7-990/980x and the w3690/80 are fundamentally the same. Both have unlocked multipliers, both are Gulftown architecture 130W parts, with the i7s costing a lot more on eBay. Same chip. The lower tier i7-9x0 and w36x0 chips do NOT have unlocked multipliers.

 

The x5690/80 are Westmere 130W chips, which run a smidge cooler than Gulftown and are not unlocked multiplier. This isn't an issue since you can overclock with BCLK instead, just makes it more time consuming. Rated speeds are the same as the i7 and w series, but the x56xx chips were designed for dual socket use so there are both more of them and cheaper.

 

The x5650/60/70 are 95W (or thereabouts) chips that overclock really well, run cooler than the 130W units, and are silly cheap. The x5675 has the highest multiplier (25) of these Westmere-EP set.

 

I am running the x5675 due to the cooler load temps and the fact it was $60. I have a stable OC at 4.5ghz using a BCLK of 215 and a multiplier of 21. The system performance seems snappier to me with higher BCLK and lower multiplier, so I wouldn't personally be too caught up on getting an unlocked chip (price dependent, obv).

 

The x56xx chips seem to hit 4.2 to 4.5 ghz pretty routinely depending on max multiplier and how stable your motherboard/cpu are at high BCLK. Much above that range doesn't seem that common or requires absurd voltage. You may not be able to go above 200 or even that high, so having a higher multiplier available gives some wiggle room. I lucked out a bit.

 

Hope that helps!

[emosun]

1 hour ago, asand1 said:

He will be happy, and you probably would be too, unless you just need the biggest e-penis. A 6 core 12 thread 1366 Xeon running at 4ghz+ is nothing to scoff at. 

well for me I'd have to get two of them if I wanted to upgrade the x5679's I use but the speed increase wouldn't be too much from what i have now lol

[Sin Stalker]

2 hours ago, Damascus said:

Get an x5690 then, sounds like an excellent choice for you.

But what about that "will be slower if not using two"?

 

 

 

 

1 hour ago, bimmerman said:

Few things.

 

The i7-990/980x and the w3690/80 are fundamentally the same. Both have unlocked multipliers, both are Gulftown architecture 130W parts, with the i7s costing a lot more on eBay. Same chip. The lower tier i7-9x0 and w36x0 chips do NOT have unlocked multipliers.

 

The x5690/80 are Westmere 130W chips, which run a smidge cooler than Gulftown and are not unlocked multiplier. This isn't an issue since you can overclock with BCLK instead, just makes it more time consuming. Rated speeds are the same as the i7 and w series, but the x56xx chips were designed for dual socket use so there are both more of them and cheaper.

 

The x5650/60/70 are 95W (or thereabouts) chips that overclock really well, run cooler than the 130W units, and are silly cheap. The x5675 has the highest multiplier (25) of these Westmere-EP set.

 

I am running the x5675 due to the cooler load temps and the fact it was $60. I have a stable OC at 4.5ghz using a BCLK of 215 and a multiplier of 21. The system performance seems snappier to me with higher BCLK and lower multiplier, so I wouldn't personally be too caught up on getting an unlocked chip (price dependent, obv).

 

The x56xx chips seem to hit 4.2 to 4.5 ghz pretty routinely depending on max multiplier and how stable your motherboard/cpu are at high BCLK. Much above that range doesn't seem that common or requires absurd voltage. You may not be able to go above 200 or even that high, so having a higher multiplier available gives some wiggle room. I lucked out a bit.

 

Hope that helps!

 

I would love 4.5. I figured a higher base would make it easier to get near or above that. 

 

I have a gigabyte x58a. I'm told it's a good board. I also bought a Noctua NH-D15 just to help keep temps down. I am worried about burning out the board, more than the CPU. I watched a vid by Tech Yes City recently, where someone sent him a board that had obviously been OCed too far and is ruined. If that happened to my system, I'd probably not replace the mobo.

 

I don't know how to OC, yet. I try looking for a step by step tutorial or YouTube video, but anything of good use is with UEFI and not BIOS.  Mulitplers seem straight forward, as opposed to BCLK. I've read some recommend general info on it but I learn by doing. 

 

So I'm still not sure what the the most powerful CPU is for the 1366.

[bimmerman]

I'd suggest an x5675 or 5680 if you have a good cooler. I have mine cooled by a 240mm coolermaster closed loop cooler. I would buy based on price and seller trustworthiness, but if your cooler is an air cooler then I'd vote 5670 or 5675 due to heat output.

 

I have the x58a ud3r board. It's solid!

 

I'm at 1.35ish volts on the CPU and 1.3 ish on the qpi. I'm on my phone so I can't find it, but a recent post I made linked to a couple thorough guides I followed to get my OC working. Take a look!

[asand1]

http://ark.intel.com/Search/FeatureFilter?productType=processors&FamilyText=Intel® Xeon® Processors&SocketsSupported=FCLGA1366&CoreCountMin=4&ClockSpeedMhzMin=3200

 

For 6 cores and 12 threads the fastest base clocks are the X5690 and W3690 at 3.46Ghz Stock. The Difference between these two is that the X series CAN run in tandem, but they will run singly with no problem at all.

 

For 4 cores and 8 threads the X5687 is the fastest at 3.60Ghz.

 

It depends on what your use case is and what you want/need.

[Emberstone]

The most powerful LGA 1366 CPU is an i7-980X or Xeon X5680, or their later-released versions which are slightly overclocked, the i7-990X or Xeon X5690 (they're literally the same silicon, so it's not worth to buy them over their predecessors unless the price difference is negligible).

 

I recently replaced an i7-980X with a Ryzen 5 1600X, and can say that the 980X has served me faithfully over the last seven years. It's a good chip (I got 927 CB in Cinebench R15), but I wouldn't continue investing in X58 any longer considering it's age makes it lack newer features, and it's still somewhat pricey on the secondhand market.

 

I'd save up for Ryzen, tbh.

[Sin Stalker]

12 hours ago, bimmerman said:

I'd suggest an x5675 or 5680 if you have a good cooler. I have mine cooled by a 240mm coolermaster closed loop cooler. I would buy based on price and seller trustworthiness, but if your cooler is an air cooler then I'd vote 5670 or 5675 due to heat output.

 

I have the x58a ud3r board. It's solid!

 

I'm at 1.35ish volts on the CPU and 1.3 ish on the qpi. I'm on my phone so I can't find it, but a recent post I made linked to a couple thorough guides I followed to get my OC working. Take a look!

Any chance you could find those or record a video on your phone, of your BIOS and what you did?

 

 

12 hours ago, asand1 said:

http://ark.intel.com/Search/FeatureFilter?productType=processors&FamilyText=Intel® Xeon® Processors&SocketsSupported=FCLGA1366&CoreCountMin=4&ClockSpeedMhzMin=3200

 

For 6 cores and 12 threads the fastest base clocks are the X5690 and W3690 at 3.46Ghz Stock. The Difference between these two is that the X series CAN run in tandem, but they will run singly with no problem at all.

 

For 4 cores and 8 threads the X5687 is the fastest at 3.60Ghz.

 

It depends on what your use case is and what you want/need.

I'm wanting 6 cores and 12 threads. I multitask and content create a little here and there.

 

 

My main concern is with overclocking. If the 75 or 990 can clock higher than  the 5690 or 3690, then it may be better to go with that, as I'd have a faster CPU in the end. 

 

9 hours ago, Emberstone said:

The most powerful LGA 1366 CPU is an i7-980X or Xeon X5680, or their later-released versions which are slightly overclocked, the i7-990X or Xeon X5690 (they're literally the same silicon, so it's not worth to buy them over their predecessors unless the price difference is negligible).

 

I recently replaced an i7-980X with a Ryzen 5 1600X, and can say that the 980X has served me faithfully over the last seven years. It's a good chip (I got 927 CB in Cinebench R15), but I wouldn't continue investing in X58 any longer considering it's age makes it lack newer features, and it's still somewhat pricey on the secondhand market.

 

I'd save up for Ryzen, tbh.

Thanks but no thanks. I wouldn't build a computer anytime soon, anyways. Not until AMD has taken back more market share, to allow prices to come down, plus either etherium to crash or those new GPUs for just mining to come out.

 

I'm pretty happy with my current computer. I think the main issue is with the GPU at this point, but now isn't the time to buy. But I can do the CPU, as its all used and cheap.

[bimmerman]

49 minutes ago, Sin Stalker said:

Any chance you could find those or record a video on your phone, of your BIOS and what you did?

 

Guides are linked in this post:

For bios, sure, can do. Probably will be a couple days until I get a chance to boot it up, I haven't used it in a week or so. The screenshots in that post are not mine.

 

I don't think the top tier i7 or Xeons will overclock any better than the mid tier ones, just easier since you have the unlocked multiplier to use. They absolutely will be hotter due to their ~35W greater TDP i.e. this may be too aggressive for your cooler once OCd (I'm not familiar, at all, with yours, so I'm being overly cautious).

 

The issue I found was that I needed a crap ton of voltage (1.4+) to go above 4.5. Temps on my cooler under load were high 70s to low 80s, so I was not approaching thermal issues.

 

To get a reasonable overclock, figure your board can probably do 200 BCLK stable, maybe 210. A very healthy OC would be 4.2-4.4, which requires a multiplier in the 20-22 range. The X5680/5690s have a multiplier well over that (26, 27) and there's next to no chance you'll be able to utilize those multipliers at that BCKL on air cooling (remember, those two are hot!) unless you get a golden chip. The X5675 that I have is overkill, multiplier-wise, for the BCLK I was able to get, but I picked it specifically due to its lower TDP and thermal performance.

 

The only reason I would go for a high or unlocked multiplier chip is if you cannot get a high (200+) and stable BCLK.

 

What you can do now, with your existing chip, is follow the guides in the post I linked to see how high your BCLK can go irrespective of the multiplier. That won't translate to the Xeon 100% perfectly but will let you know your ballpark.

 

I'll be honest, I'm somewhat curious to pick up an unlocked multiplier chip and mess around for a max stupid OC, but...that's money I'd rather spend on gas and tires and beer. Or put towards a 1080ti/Vega equivalent. Probably tires and beer.

[NoxiousOdor]

I have two x5690's in my system and I love them. Even without turning off all the dumb windows crapware I idle at 0% cpu usage haha. I know you would only have one but that could be good. As much as I love xeons it might be better to do what other people are saying  and get a cheap cpu and save for a better system. If you don't mind limiting your upgrade-ability then the 5690 would probably be a good choice imo

[Sin Stalker]

On 7/7/2017 at 11:12 AM, WhisperingKnickers said:

I have two x5690's in my system and I love them. Even without turning off all the dumb windows crapware I idle at 0% cpu usage haha. I know you would only have one but that could be good. As much as I love xeons it might be better to do what other people are saying  and get a cheap cpu and save for a better system. If you don't mind limiting your upgrade-ability then the 5690 would probably be a good choice imo

 

On 7/6/2017 at 6:42 PM, Damascus said:

Get an x5690 then, sounds like an excellent choice for you.

 

On 7/6/2017 at 9:18 PM, asand1 said:

http://ark.intel.com/Search/FeatureFilter?productType=processors&FamilyText=Intel® Xeon® Processors&SocketsSupported=FCLGA1366&CoreCountMin=4&ClockSpeedMhzMin=3200

 

For 6 cores and 12 threads the fastest base clocks are the X5690 and W3690 at 3.46Ghz Stock. The Difference between these two is that the X series CAN run in tandem, but they will run singly with no problem at all.

 

For 4 cores and 8 threads the X5687 is the fastest at 3.60Ghz.

 

It depends on what your use case is and what you want/need.

 

On 7/7/2017 at 11:04 AM, bimmerman said:

 

Guides are linked in this post:

For bios, sure, can do. Probably will be a couple days until I get a chance to boot it up, I haven't used it in a week or so. The screenshots in that post are not mine.

 

I don't think the top tier i7 or Xeons will overclock any better than the mid tier ones, just easier since you have the unlocked multiplier to use. They absolutely will be hotter due to their ~35W greater TDP i.e. this may be too aggressive for your cooler once OCd (I'm not familiar, at all, with yours, so I'm being overly cautious).

 

The issue I found was that I needed a crap ton of voltage (1.4+) to go above 4.5. Temps on my cooler under load were high 70s to low 80s, so I was not approaching thermal issues.

 

To get a reasonable overclock, figure your board can probably do 200 BCLK stable, maybe 210. A very healthy OC would be 4.2-4.4, which requires a multiplier in the 20-22 range. The X5680/5690s have a multiplier well over that (26, 27) and there's next to no chance you'll be able to utilize those multipliers at that BCKL on air cooling (remember, those two are hot!) unless you get a golden chip. The X5675 that I have is overkill, multiplier-wise, for the BCLK I was able to get, but I picked it specifically due to its lower TDP and thermal performance.

 

The only reason I would go for a high or unlocked multiplier chip is if you cannot get a high (200+) and stable BCLK.

 

What you can do now, with your existing chip, is follow the guides in the post I linked to see how high your BCLK can go irrespective of the multiplier. That won't translate to the Xeon 100% perfectly but will let you know your ballpark.

 

I'll be honest, I'm somewhat curious to pick up an unlocked multiplier chip and mess around for a max stupid OC, but...that's money I'd rather spend on gas and tires and beer. Or put towards a 1080ti/Vega equivalent. Probably tires and beer.

 

After reading over this thread a few times and a few other forums, I'm now leaning towards the x5675, 70 or 60. They are half the price, plus I'll try to get one closer to $40, and I see alot of people have been able to overclock them higher than the x5680 and x5690. 

 

This would essentially be the final upgrade to this system, except for some new case fans and future GPU upgrades once the cryto market readjusts and theres alot of cheap used cards on the market.

 

Any additional thoughts? I appreciate everyones input.

 

 

[Intelfreak]

For about half a year a go, I upgradet from a I7 920 @ 4.1 Ghz to an I7 980X @ 4.3 GHz. Its been great.

 

But take my word for it. Just get the cheapest 6 core xeon like X5650/60 and then overclock the crap out of it. A friend of mine has a Xeon X5650 and that is running 4.2 GHz with out any problem and they are way cheaper than a i7 980X. I only got that I7 980X because it where in a bundle, if not i would have chosen a cheap xeon.

 

Some games you will deffently benefits from a 6 core like BF1 in a 64 player session.

 

A side note: If you realy want a sollid gaming exsperience i can reccomend getting a GTX 1070 aswell. Dont know what GPU you have now. But with that and a 6 core Xeon 4 GHz+ you will have a pretty great 1080P gamer. Dont forget an SSD, its tottaly worfh it.

 

I run as told a I7 980X with two GTX 970 in sli. That works really well. Al throw a new GPU is on the way cause GTX 970 4 GB vram is just not sufficiant for me any more and besides i want to out some light 4K gaming.

 

This is my daily clocks and a 3dmark fire strike score.

 

[DoctorZeus]

x5675 @ 4.398 GHz here. 

 

runs great so id throw my vote on that. they came out a year after the x5670 so theres that if it helps any. 

 

really they just are the same silicon with slightly better yields in manufacturing l believe

[Sin Stalker]

On 7/6/2017 at 6:42 PM, Damascus said:

Get an x5690 then, sounds like an excellent choice for you.

 

5 hours ago, Intelfreak said:

For about half a year a go, I upgradet from a I7 920 @ 4.1 Ghz to an I7 980X @ 4.3 GHz. Its been great.

 

But take my word for it. Just get the cheapest 6 core xeon like X5650/60 and then overclock the crap out of it. A friend of mine has a Xeon X5650 and that is running 4.2 GHz with out any problem and they are way cheaper than a i7 980X. I only got that I7 980X because it where in a bundle, if not i would have chosen a cheap xeon.

 

Some games you will deffently benefits from a 6 core like BF1 in a 64 player session.

 

A side note: If you realy want a sollid gaming exsperience i can reccomend getting a GTX 1070 aswell. Dont know what GPU you have now. But with that and a 6 core Xeon 4 GHz+ you will have a pretty great 1080P gamer. Dont forget an SSD, its tottaly worfh it.

 

I run as told a I7 980X with two GTX 970 in sli. That works really well. Al throw a new GPU is on the way cause GTX 970 4 GB vram is just not sufficiant for me any more and besides i want to out some light 4K gaming.

 

This is my daily clocks and a 3dmark fire strike score.

 

 

4 hours ago, DoctorZeus said:

x5675 @ 4.398 GHz here. 

 

runs great so id throw my vote on that. they came out a year after the x5670 so theres that if it helps any. 

 

really they just are the same silicon with slightly better yields in manufacturing l believe

I currently have a gtx 660 and an evo 850 as boot device.

 

Heres another side question related to this....

So assume I get a X5650 or 75 and I'm rocking it beyond 4ghz. Then I invest in a 1060 or 980 or better. Would this system be capable of running VR?

 

I've been drooling over VR ever since I tried an Occulus demo at a Best Buy 6 months ago. I know for sure that in a year I wouldn't be able to buy a new system and a VR system. So I'm wondering if, when the time comes, if getting a VR system is even an option given my soon-to-be-build.

 

 

[Sin Stalker]

On 7/6/2017 at 5:46 PM, Damascus said:

Just get an x5650 for 25 bucks and then save for a new platform.

 

On 7/6/2017 at 6:11 PM, emosun said:

I understand what you're saying when you say you want to "max out" your current system. I get it. I also want to max out my old 1366 system.

It's a stupid dumb thing to do and a massive waste of money for slow old tech , but I get it.

If your board has support for the x5690 then that would be your best bet. Keeping in mind you aren't going to be happy with it's performance , but it's about as fast as any 1366 will ever get.

 

So I'm not seeing the x56xx options as being supported by my board. Apparently just x55xx options and the two w3680 and 90...

 

 

I may reconsider my plans.