Aurora R 2 X58 CPU upgrade ( 960 ) Level 1 OC speed ?

Question

Currently I have a 920 @ 3.2 which usually is fast enough.

But with so many consolized games requiring higher CPU speeds and not number of cores I feel I'm being left behind. I also feel my 5970 is being bottle necked by the 920

And the simple matter of fact is Socket 1366 is dying fast. And I won't have the money for a new rig until 2013...and Dell doesn't want to lose me a customer " wink " wink " ?

I read where the 960 only Turbo Boosts to 3.46 But I'm hoping with the Level 1 OC I can get it to at least 3.8...that's all I want...I can live with that. I don't need anymore then that and I'm not a big fan of OCing myself. Just hitting an option in Bios sounds cool..individually tweaking the voltages does not.

I can get a new one for about 250 dollars...still in the box. Can't afford the 6 core...but then again the 970s speed is no better then the 960...just 2 more cores..and I need speed not cores.

I know Dell will not help me out warranty wise if anything happens to my rig. They will only help me with the rig I bought. The CPU upgrade and OC is on my head.

I also feel the simple liquid cooling is insufficent for any CPU as I've seen simple tower air coolers keep a 920 cool at 3.6....cooler then mine at stock.

So does Level 1 OCing in bios work on the 960 and if so by how much is the gain ?

Level 1 OCing has worked just great on my 920, stable as a rock, temps could be better due to not well though out cooling system. But with supplemental case fans I keep it cooler then stock.

If this doesn't work..I'll be forced to buy and build my own rig this summer or replace the MB and processor in mine and throw away the rest of my warrant.

EDIT :

I guess from what I read the level 1 OC is for the 920 only and that I would have to OC by hand ( Not me but somebody who knows what the are doing )

I made a note of a fellow Auroras OC settings of his 960 to a stable 3.8

Guess I'll think about everything but that extra .6 g could keep me happy for awhile. 3.8 is closer to 4 then 3.2 is ...and for less then 250 bucks.

C_ronic · Answer

honestly like you said that socket is dying fast. I woudlnt put money into the new processor when you have a perfectly good 920. Overclocking it past the 3.2 is a pretty easy AND safe. You can figure out how to overclock it to what speed you want with a quick google search. 920s are like the most overclocked CPU around. I think you could get it to 3.6 easy. Im running mine at 3.4 now and its not any hotter than stock temp. I could go to 3.8 if needed. SO I say you at least try to run yours at the higher clock at least for practice before you OC your new 960. But as I said i think paying money for the 960 isnt a great idea. The socket is dying and if you OC the 920 enough itll get you to the same place. Most cpus are made from the same die, for example your 920 is actually a defective 980 or even higher. Intel or AMD will downlock or even lock cores after then test each processor depending on how stable it is. Which is why some of the exact same processors can OC higher than others. You might have one the can OC to 4.5 for all we know.

AAA737flyer · Answer

Upgrading a 920 to a 960 isn't much of an upgrade.

I replaced my 950 with a 990x and am very happy with it. The 950 was bottlenecking my two 6950's somewhat. The 990x also runs much cooler than the 920, 950, and 960 chip. My 990x runs about 10 - 15c cooler at idle and about 20c with prime95 at stock.

The new 3960 chip is on average only 12 percent faster than the 990x. Some apps are faster but on average just 12 percent faster (Toms Hardware I believe it was)

I chose to upgrade and wait another two years when better tech is incorported into systems. You can spend a 1000 on a 990x or 4000 for a new system that you will want to replace in two years anyway.

Just a matter of preference but I found over the years you get a better return by upgrading your system once before replacing. I usually wait at least five years before considering a replacement.

AAA737flyer · Answer

Tom's Harware review. www.tomshardware.com/.../core-i7-3960x-x79-sandy-bridge-e,3071-20.html

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Aurora R 2 X58 CPU upgrade ( 960 ) Level 1 OC speed ?

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