Intel 920 2.66ghz overclock @ 4.0ghz

[Nicotine]

i had an intel e8400 3ghz/evga ***i sli/4gb ddr2 mem as my pc.

i wanted to upgrade my mediabox which was an AMD 3ghz dual core, 2gb ram, asus m3n mobo.

but, instead of doing that, i movied my cpu/board/ram from my pc into the mediabox, and bought myself:

evga x58 3x sli classified motherboard
corsair 1600mhz 6gb ram (triple channel)
Intel 920 2.66ghz

so, doing some testing, stability testing - i slowly worked my way from 2.66ghz up to 4ghz

stable

using the thermalright 120 true black revision c heatsink and 2 sunon high cfm fans.

1000w power supply to feed it...

im running 2 8800gtx ultra video cards, but im not as much into gaming as i used to be, so im debating if upgrading them at this point is worth it - considering all i play is command and conquer red alert 3 currently...and my old cpu/board/ram ran the game full max settings/anti aliasing no problemo.

[t-gunz]

what did you use for bench marking?

[Nicotine]

3dmark 05, 06, vantage, core temp, cpuz, Linx, and a few others.

running ****in fast!

[t-gunz]

thanks

yeah i bet its fast lol

[Necrosaro]

Well done in overclocking it that far....what is your heat levels at?

[Nicotine]

idle 43
%100 load across all 4 cores for 1 hr, 72

voltage is 1.352 volts

which is acceptable.

MAX for the i7s is 80 degress tops, and max voltage is 1.375

so im well under for both.

but runnning the 3dmark's and all the games - no game uses the cores %100. gaming all afternoon today, and my temps never went above 55degrees

[Necrosaro]

Very nice, is this stock cooling since I am thinking it isn't but you could surprise me :P

[Nicotine]

hell no :P
thermalright 120 true black revision c.

using a delta fan, pushes i believe 105cfm

[DSM4Life]

Windows 7 Pro x64
C2Q Q9550 @ 3.77
ZALMAN|9700 LED
GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3P rev1.6
4 Gig(2x2GB) CORSAIR DOMINATOR 1066 5-5-5-15 2T
XFX 8800GTX Extreme 768MB 600/1900
CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX

Air cooled and temps on all core never reach 50. CPU could def be pushed more with a little voltage bump but i am fine with it at 3.77.
The 8800's are already old school but before you buy anything either wait for Nvidia to release their DX11 cards or get a Ati DX11 card.

[Nicotine]

yah, that's why i still have the 8800s....

i dont like ati..the cards are good, but the drivers are horrid...

and i don't want nvidia's current offerings.

though, if i wait.....3 295's can be had cheap once nvidia's new line hits

[DSM4Life]

I don't see any real point in running SLI video cards. Its like having a heater in the middle of your PC. On top of that the power consumption is crazy.

Me personally i go with the "top of the line" card at the time and just OC it.

[Nicotine]

i've had good luck with SLI.

power isnt an issue really, and with really good case flow - heat hasnt been a problem

the new heatsinks design toss most of the heat out the back..not all, but most. it's not too bad.

rumour has it nvidia is gonna stop the graphics card business soon..i doubt it tho

[Necrosaro]

I agree with DSM with his post about the cards. I have a ati 4870 1 gig and overclocked it and it does everything I need.

[bladerunner9]

NVIDIA SUKS ... go for ATI ... I got two crossfire graphic cards hd 5750.. fuking awesome. and moreover ATI saves you some $$ as compared to NVDIA atleast some $$ for some nolva...LOL

[DSM4Life]

I have to give it to ATi they seem to have good DX11 cards but i am waiting for Nvidia to release theirs before i choose my upgrade. If anything after the release of the Nvidia card Ati will drop their prices (hopefully). I am a Nvidia guy at heart.

[Necrosaro]

Ati here as well and its awesome that they are stealing the crown from Nvidia and reasonable prices.

[DSM4Life]

Ati here as well and its awesome that they are stealing the crown from Nvidia and reasonable prices.

Yup, i love competition. Drives down prices. I am so tired of spending 500.00+ on a video every year and a half or so.

[bladerunner9]

Very right. I got HD 5750 and it supports DX11 good to go.