Intel's X79 Chipset, Core i7 3960X & DX79SI Motherboard

RSS_Poster · 11-14-2011, 08:32 AM

With the latest X79 chipset and Intel's latest Core i7 3960X 6-Core Extreme processor running on the SandyBridge-E architecture, you'll be zipping through processing times in no time!

More...

**PP Mguire** · 11-14-2011, 08:44 AM

This sums up my opinion quite nicely.

**peti1212** · 11-14-2011, 09:12 AM

lol PP! Good one!

**Frag Maniac** · 11-14-2011, 09:25 AM

Pci-Ex 2.0 and only 2 SATA III ports? There are Z68 MBs you can get right now for $190 with Pci-Ex 3.0 and 4 SATA III ports, not to mention Smart Response, which boosts system and app performance up to 40%.

**PP Mguire** · 11-14-2011, 09:42 AM

Would you expect anymore from a Intel board? The aftermarket boards from Asus and such are LOADED.

**bumbleblee** · 11-14-2011, 10:16 AM

My poor i7 920 is already a dinosaur...These new chips are impressive.

**PP Mguire** · 11-14-2011, 10:52 AM

Originally Posted by bumbleblee

My poor i7 920 is already a dinosaur...These new chips are impressive.

Your 920 should be just fine for at the least a few more years if you don't feel like upgrading (or can't afford it). Even my little i5 750 should be good for a long while. Rest assured, as long as these current consoles dominate the gaming scene us PC users have nothing to worry about for a while.

**Joshua_Mahr** · 11-14-2011, 04:50 PM

Why are there no Gigabyte Boards on NewEgg??? Argh!! Thats ok I can still wait a few day. I still have to figure out if its worth going with the 3960 over the 3930... Choices...

**PP Mguire** · 11-14-2011, 06:24 PM

The extra cache probably just uses more power with very little real world gain.

**peti1212** · 11-14-2011, 08:46 PM

Z68 might have all those features for much cheaper, but you cannot run 6-core on Z68. X58 doesn't have native SATA III support so performance will suffer greatly when using SATA III, and X79 supports new LGA 2011 socket for 6-core processors and SATA III ports that won't suffer in performance.

**PP Mguire** · 11-15-2011, 12:47 AM

Last time I checked the latest X58 boards have SATA 3 and USB3 controllers and still get advertised speeds from SATA 3 SSD's. Z68 also uses these controllers and seems to be doing fine as well. 6 cores really aren't necessary for gaming at all and I believe it shows even in these benchmarks. Clock speed is where it's all about and if you game then the 1155 platform is where it's at (hence why I have 1156 vs 1366).

**peti1212** · 11-15-2011, 01:55 AM

This is a bit old, but Legit Reviews also shows same results: http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1547/6/

**PP Mguire** · 11-15-2011, 02:25 AM

Look at the test systems and click on their X58 testing board. That Asus board doesn't have a SATA3 controller. There are a lot of X58 boards out there now with SATA3 and USB3 controllers. You will find they yield the same results. They are using a card on that Asus board and they are known to not give the same speeds as a native controller on the board itself. Not to mention, they are using one of the cheapest you can get out there.

**Frag Maniac** · 11-15-2011, 04:05 AM

Originally Posted by PP Mguire

The aftermarket boards from Asus and such are LOADED.

And expensive as hell no doubt. IMO MSI is the leading MB brand anymore when you factor in quality, features and price.

Right now I'm liking this one. It has a military spec circuit board, supports Sandy Bridge AND Ivy Bridge, is 3TB HDD ready, Pci-Ex 3.0 ready, and has 4 SATA III ports and Smart Response SSD caching, which boosts system performance at least 40%. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130611

From what I've seen so far the consumer level 2011 MBs don't even support octo core, or am I mistaken?

**PP Mguire** · 11-15-2011, 04:35 AM

All 1155 boards are Ivy ready. It will be a simple bios update much like current AMD setups.

I doubt they are ready for Octo, as there aren't any Octo chips ready for launch that I know of for the desktop platform.

Thread: Intel's X79 Chipset, Core i7 3960X & DX79SI Motherboard

Thread Tools

Display