Intel i7 920 do stepping 3.6

[ladcrooks]

As you know the Socket 1366 with a I7 920 DO was and still is a brilliant piece of engineering. A legend to be. I have mine clocked at 3360.
Could clock higher, but then the ole 50p's would be going in the meter quicker! (joking about the meter!)

Does my rig hold me back in frame rates for games out there? And if it did, would another 2 - 4 frames be worth it? I don't think so.
I'm sure there are others in the same boat, hiya!

[ryandigweed]

That Processor is a bit old, so it must not be using your card to it's max potential.

Actual for a couple of frames, i don't think putting much stress on your processor is worth it, especially if it's your primary system and you want it to run a couple of years.


I've got a GTX560 hooked to a Core2Duo, and that's bottlenecking like hell

[ladcrooks]

I'm waiting for the next Intel generation, Haswell, maybe! If not OC the i7920 a bit more. ha!

[Mythblaze]

I'm waiting for the next Intel generation, Haswell, maybe! If not OC the i7920 a bit more. ha!

My i7 920 is at 3.8 ghz. I used to have it at 4.2 ghz. I'm in the process of moving to the 2600k. Going for 5.0 ghz.

[marshalex]

My i7 920 is at 3.8 ghz. I used to have it at 4.2 ghz. I'm in the process of moving to the 2600k. Going for 5.0 ghz.

same, mines currently sat at 3.8GHz and flys along quite nicely!

[kalniel]

As you know the Socket 1366 with a I7 920 DO was and still is a brilliant piece of engineering. A legend to be. I have mine clocked at 3360.
Could clock higher, but then the ole 50p's would be going in the meter quicker! (joking about the meter!)

Does my rig hold me back in frame rates for games out there? And if it did, would another 2 - 4 frames be worth it? I don't think so.
I'm sure there are others in the same boat, hiya!

What game, what resolution, what graphics card?

Some games are CPU limited even with the latest and greatest, but you have to ask if you could tell the difference between 120 and 126 fps.. (ie don't get hung up on the phrase CPU limited).

[Samwood]

A good way to test where you have a bottleneck is to adjust your overclocks for your GPU and CPU.

i.e.
1) keep CPU clockspeed as it currently is, and run a benchmark with your GPU at 3 settings: a) stock, b) 10% overclock, c) 20% overclock
2) keep GPU at stock clockspeed (or whatever speed you usually run it at) and run the same benchmark with your CPU at 3 settings: a) stock, b) 10% overclock, c) 20% overclock
note: if you cant reach a 20% OC, on either component try a 10% underclock or do 0%-5%-10%.

If you have a CPU bottleneck, changes to GPU clockspeed will make next to no difference. With a GPU bottleneck, changes to CPU clockspeed will make next to no difference.
Edit: On a balanced system, GPU clockspeed changes should cause at least double the increase/decrease in FPS.

As for which benchmark to run, use whatever game (or type of) you play the most. If you want to be a bit more scientific about it, and get more accurate results, you'll need to run the tests on a set of 3-5 games. With at least 1 of these 3-5 games being CPU intensive, and 1 being GPU intensive.

This video (skip to 5:30, first half it a v.slow intro) gives an example of of CPU/GPU bottlenecks, so you'll have a rough idea what to expect: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGdo75gasaQ

[ladcrooks]

kalniel - I game at 1080p and have a Hd7970 - thanks for all the answers so far!

[kalniel]

kalniel - I game at 1080p and have a Hd7970 - thanks for all the answers so far!

OK, so some games will be CPU limited, and some will not. If you upped the CPU, some games will still be CPU limited, and some will not.

[Obraxis]

I still have a 920, got it clocked @ 3Ghz. Starting to feel the need to either push it higher. I think I'd rather wait for the 'next' gen though as the bump between Sandy and Ivy wasnt THAT great.