Is an i7 950 worth it to me?

Belvadier

Posts: 28   +0
Hi all,

I currently (regrettably) own a hp pavilion 9150t and I'm trying to make the thing last a while.

I do a lot of gaming and have since upgraded the PSU to a corsair 650w along with adding in an nvidia 660TI. At this point I feel like the processor might be showing its age. With the limited cooling (GPU stays cool under load but is not going to handle any OCing) and the limited MOBO functionality, OCing my beloved i7 920 is very likely out of the picture.

My question: will the board support an i7 950 or 960? Same socket and memory type along with still being X58 or will the bios limitations of my motherboard make that a moot point. Additionally, do you think there are any real performance gains to be had with an upgrade such as this? Am I coming at it all wrong? My main goals are to run The Witcher 3 and Dragon Age Inquisition at reasonable settings on 1080p.

i7 950s can be had for around $120-$150 so I'm not sure how much better they perform in gaming with (albeit slightly) higher clock speed. Should I just save for a new build? (I'll never buy off the shelf again).

Thanks
 
Thanks for the link! putting in a 950 or 960 should then, in theory work? I know a new build is in order but the $$ is just not there right now. If I can get a better CPU for $150 and get another 3 years out of my PC, it's worth it to me I think. As it stands now only the RAM, CPU and MOBO are stock anymore anyways :) My current rig plays most current games without a hiccup but it's these "next gen" titles that worry me a little bit.
 
Yes putting a 950 or 960 in should work. Just keep in mine. This is a retail board . With a locked Bios. It may or may not read the new CPU. I have seen this happen . With Hp computers. Not so much with Dell. Good luck post back let us know how things go.
 
In the link you gave me actually it gave instructions on how to clear the CMOS settings and passwords settings. Should that not allow me access enough to replace the CPU and have it be recognized? I'm genuinely asking as I've never attempted something like this before with a retail PC.
 
In the link you gave me actually it gave instructions on how to clear the CMOS settings and passwords settings. Should that not allow me access enough to replace the CPU and have it be recognized? I'm genuinely asking as I've never attempted something like this before with a retail PC.
Yes it should allow you. What I was trying to say is Hp is known for locking their bios down pretty good. I have had a few say their board would support a certain CPU or ram . And end up not being able to do the upgrade. Due to the board would not allow changes in the bios. Even after clearing the CMOS. Now I am not saying it won't work. Just letting you know. Because their have been some HP I have had no problem with.
 
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Yes, you're doing it wrong. i7 920 is still fine even at stock speeds. Buy a $40 cooler and overclock it and you can skip the next couple of upcoming generations too.

660Ti is your problem, at 1920x1080.
 
That would be fine to over clock, But not in the computer he owns. Hp will have the bios locked. There is no way access the cpu settings. Upgrading the video card Or just waiting till he can afford a new build. Would be a better option.
 
Hi all,

I currently (regrettably) own a hp pavilion 9150t and I'm trying to make the thing last a while.

I do a lot of gaming and have since upgraded the PSU to a corsair 650w along with adding in an nvidia 660TI. At this point I feel like the processor might be showing its age. With the limited cooling (GPU stays cool under load but is not going to handle any OCing) and the limited MOBO functionality, OCing my beloved i7 920 is very likely out of the picture.

My question: will the board support an i7 950 or 960? Same socket and memory type along with still being X58 or will the bios limitations of my motherboard make that a moot point. Additionally, do you think there are any real performance gains to be had with an upgrade such as this? Am I coming at it all wrong? My main goals are to run The Witcher 3 and Dragon Age Inquisition at reasonable settings on 1080p.

i7 950s can be had for around $120-$150 so I'm not sure how much better they perform in gaming with (albeit slightly) higher clock speed. Should I just save for a new build? (I'll never buy off the shelf again).

Thanks
An i7-950 I'm 99.99% certain will work. The i7-960 was released later but I don't know any mechanism that would prevent it working. You won't get anywhere near the gain of a new CPU just jumping to a 950 or 960 - those i7 1366 socket chips are a bit dated now. If one fell off the back of a truck I wouldn't turn it down though ;)
 
Sure, and I have a core2 generation x5260 and let me tell you, I don't get CPU bottlenecked.
BF4 1080p multiplayer. Nuff said. That game is almost a year old now. You'll be lucky to get 40fps (min which is what counts in multiplayer) in Siege of Shanghai.
 
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