I will seriously laugh my &@($* off if IB doesn't provide some serious increase. Let's put this serious into numbers = >10%.I know it's backward logic, but if it doesn't, then it's not going to be so irrational to buy SB.

No one has claimed serious increases. What is being said is that IB is right around the corner. April, if the rumors are correct (typically they are). So with that bit of logic, it seems more fool hearty to pull the trigger on a SB system from this date on. That being said, if you were in the same shoes --two months until IB release with a possible 10-20% increase in performance-- wouldn't it make sense to hold out for those two months? Going by your comments in the braided Cable thread, you want to be economical! Yet you condone grabbing up a SB system knowing that IB will, in some way, provide better performance at comparable prices?What seems illogical is urging someone to !!!buy buy buy!!! with new tech so close to launch. It's not like SB prices have dropped in anticipation. The only thing the OP stands to lose is waiting a month or two and standing bad FSX performance. But he's made it this far! What's two more months?! (or less)

Everyone keeps mentioning IB and saying to wait for it, but currently these i5 and i7 processors are still top, top notch, however you look at it. And perhaps people don't want to wait?Also, bringing up the topic of how SB is going to be "out-of-date" when IB is out... well, yes, it will be, but only in a wider sense. I'm certainly not going to consider my PC out-of-date in a few months just because there's a new, better processor out...Anyway, I think those specs look mighty fine OP :-)

No one said SB will be "out dated, ousted, obsolete, etc." No one. But it will be slower than IB. You're basically repeating the points I'm mentioning above.

Edited February 5, 201214 yr by ZachLW

As you are in the need for a new desktop now I don't see any problem with gettin a Sandy Bridge now and not waiting for Ivy.I don't think Ivy will offer much CPU performance increase clock for clock in FSX. It's just a die shrink. Sandy is already an excellent overclocker. Sure, Ivy might be even better but I doubt it will be by that much. (And if it turns out it will be you could just drop one in later anyway)I would go for the GTX580 as the 7970 has not proven to be any better in FSX yet.Remember to go for dual channel RAM for Sandy.I would put in a SSD as system disk for sure unless you plan to use your computer only for FSX. But I would go for proper 7000rpm HD as storage disk.

No one said SB will be "out dated, ousted, obsolete, etc." No one. But it will be slower than IB. You're basically repeating the points I'm mentioning above.

Slower, but not by a groundbreaking mark, SB is still going to be a fantastic processor when IB's out, and I'd assume (although I'm hardly educated in the matter) that to start IB will be very pricey, then make it's way down. But perhaps I'm wrong.I just don't understand why everyone is raving about this new processor when honestly, you can get something that's pretty much as good as you could hope for, right now.

 

Slower, but not by a groundbreaking mark, SB is still going to be a fantastic processor when IB's out, and I'd assume (although I'm hardly educated in the matter) that to start IB will be very pricey, then make it's way down. But perhaps I'm wrong.I just don't understand why everyone is raving about this new processor when honestly, you can get something that's pretty much as good as you could hope for, right now.

That is how I see it too.

Slower, but not by a groundbreaking mark, SB is still going to be a fantastic processor when IB's out, and I'd assume (although I'm hardly educated in the matter) that to start IB will be very pricey, then make it's way down. But perhaps I'm wrong.I just don't understand why everyone is raving about this new processor when honestly, you can get something that's pretty much as good as you could hope for, right now.

Just to drive my point home. One last time. No one has said it would be groundbreaking. Especially me. But why not wait and see?

No one has claimed serious increases. What is being said is that IB is right around the corner. April, if the rumors are correct (typically they are). So with that bit of logic, it seems more fool hearty to pull the trigger on a SB system from this date on. That being said, if you were in the same shoes --two months until IB release with a possible 10-20% increase in performance-- wouldn't it make sense to hold out for those two months? Going by your comments in the braided Cable thread, you want to be economical! Yet you condone grabbing up a SB system knowing that IB will, in some way, provide better performance at comparable prices?What seems illogical is urging someone to !!!buy buy buy!!! with new tech so close to launch. It's not like SB prices have dropped in anticipation. The only thing the OP stands to lose is waiting a month or two and standing bad FSX performance. But he's made it this far! What's two more months?! (or less)No one said SB will be "out dated, ousted, obsolete, etc." No one. But it will be slower than IB. You're basically repeating the points I'm mentioning above.

Just to clarify. Never said ground breaking. Never said extreme benefit. I'm done now.And with Intel's new strategy, it would seem releasing affordable main stream unlocked chips capable of very good overclocks at a reasonable price is becoming the norm'! (Hopefully we'll see more and more of this)One last time: Not an extreme improvement, but an improvement.

Edited February 6, 201214 yr by ZachLW

It's not like SB prices have dropped in anticipation.

Haha, and they never will! Here's a prime example. Intel kills old chips by cutting supply, not price.I completely understand wanting to buy now and I'm not trying to push you one way or another. I'm just saying that if it were me, a couple months goes by pretty fast and if I was going to build a new machine from scratch, I would want it to be the very latest and greatest. There's no need for bashing those of us who feel this way.Two months could be spent waiting for the best prices on all the other components - though I think that's an American thing...

Edited February 6, 201214 yr by cmeeks

The folks insisting on SB will likely be the first to go for IB when it's released! :LMAO:

I will seriously laugh my &@($* off if IB doesn't provide some serious increase. Let's put this serious into numbers = >10%.I know it's backward logic, but if it doesn't, then it's not going to be so irrational to buy SB.

One more time, a 10% performance increase is what you get just from the die-shrink (a very, very costly investment for Intel, BTW). And in addition to the die-shrink, IB sports Tri-Gate. And in addition to the die-shrink and Tri-Gate, IB sports PCIe 3.0 (2x the BW of PCIe 2).So if you want top of the line FSX performance, it's foolish to buy SB now when IB is just around the corner.Cheers,- jahman.

Remember when SB was first released and there was the crowd of people telling others to go 1366? IB obviously isn't going to be that much of a difference, or even close to it, but I don't know why you wouldn't want every little bit of performance improvement you could get. I realize SB pretty much revolutionized FSX performance, but I'm never content to just settle. I suppose I find PC hardware to be too much of a hobby.

Edited February 6, 201214 yr by cmeeks

Remember when SB was first released and there was the crowd of people telling others to go 1366?

Yes! Now if you recommend IB to others you have to admit your own SB is outdated. Yikes!My FSX PC is so fat out of date I already know it's obsolete, so I am free to recommend the latest and the greatest to others, even before the hardware is released.

I suppose I find PC hardware to be too much of a hobby.

Tell me about it :Big Grin:Cheers,- jahman.

Either way, I think the poster gets the point and can gather the appropriate route of upgrades from here. Patience vs. Instant gratification. The latter of which I suffer from on a daily basis. Good luck OP, and may you choose correctly! I'd hate for you to envy the IB rigs when they hit shelves.

No one here, including me of course, knows for a fact how much better IB will be, so don't jump the gun guys. I don't think PCIe 3.0 is gonna have that huge of an impact. It's certainly not going to double your FPS especially with complex addons (more CPU demanding).If that's the case I may very well skip IB altogether and wait for Haswell if IB doesn't overclock at least to 6GHz, which is quite unlikely.Time will tell.Wether someone should wait or not at this point is up to each one. Keep in mind that IB will be released by April, but what about Kepler? That could leave you waiting till the summer

I don't think PCIe 3.0 is gonna have that huge of an impact. It's certainly not going to double your FPS especially with complex addons (more CPU demanding).

Nobody is saying PCIe 3 will double your FPS! But PCIe 3 does have 2x the BW of PCIe 2. And given FSX is an old program that instantiates scenery objects at the CPU rather than the GPU, PCIe BW is important, says Phil Taylor.

I may very well skip IB altogether and wait for Haswell

Unless you have money (and time) to burn, it always makes sense to skip a generation. But given the imminence of IB, all new PC builders shoud be steered in that direction.

Keep in mind that IB will be released by April, but what about Kepler?

Kepler can be installed when available, but you will only be able to use PCIe 3 if you have IB installed in a PCIe 3 enabled MB. That's why IB is "non-negotiable".Cheers,- jahman.

One thing that needs correcting that I keep seeing is this idea that IB is "just a die shrink" of the Sandy Bridge CPUs. No, it's not. The new tri-gate transistor matrix is far more than just a smaller 22nm version of the current 32nm circuit. The microcode is going to be mostly the same, but the physical configuration is vastly different. And because it's so different, we really don't know how the tri-gate CPUs will do in the overclocking department just yet.Also, assuming the IB CPUs do hit the streets in April, it's always risky to be an early adopter. A number of folks smoked their new SB processors early in the game before a good body of corporate knowledge on the SB's sensitivity to voltage was developed. The IB CPUs, again, are something of an unknown. If you want to be a pioneer...great. But if you're saving your pennies for a good reliable FS machine, you could have a disaster on your hand by being the first to tinker with the new chips. So that said, I'm thinking that June is a more realistic target date for a new IB build--let the extreme overclockers be the guinea pigs!

Edited February 6, 201214 yr by w6kd

So that said, I'm thinking that June is a more realistic target date for a new IB build--let the extreme overclockers be the guinea pigs!

Being an early adopter to new CPU tech doesn't necessarily mean I'm going to overclock the hell out of it! Just my .02

Edited February 6, 201214 yr by ZachLW

A 4.55GHz 45nm Bloomfield + 975MHz GTX580 both watercooled qualifies as extreme overclock to me Bob :biggrin:But yeah, early adopting is a bad idea.