option one - i7 970 - £366 option two - i7 960 - £180 option three - sandy bridge 2600k - £215 option four- wait for amd bulldozer looking for - high end future proof for - vray rendering graphics design photo/ film editing gaming thanks in advance p.s i dont pay no VAT
I voted 970 as I was thinking about it recently but on second thought, Sandybridge would be better - it overclocks higher and does better per MHz.
If your programmes are going to make beter use of 6 cores then 970, if not then 2600k, but to be fair, the small amount of gain you'd get with 6 cores isn't really worth the extra you'd have to pay for the CPU and triple channel memory.
Phenom II x2 I am not a comedian. Why is this forum overrun with Intel devotees in search of faster, expensive more overclockable processors? There is virtually no space or encouragement for ordinary computer users.
While Phenom II's do have their place, and I would recommend them to people who want good performance on a tight budget, The current i5 and i7 range are significantly faster in most cases, especially for the type of apps the op has specified.
I know I'm asking a lot, but why don't you try READING the thread. The OP wants a high-end, future proof computer for rendering and other extremely intensive tasks. So he is not an ordinary computer user. That was difficult wasn't it?
For a normal everyday user with some gaming tendancies I would be going with RANA 450. However, the op clearly has intensive tasks and requires high end. For that reason the Sandy Bridge is the clear winner. Benchmarks for the Sandy Bridge against old i7 I don't think had the i7 970, but for the most part the i7 2600k only lost to the i7 980x which is hugely expensive, so a new Intel build should always be Sandy bridge (even over the i7 980x due to price)
To the socket 2011 It's not out yet so can't get it 980x and 990x seem to be the only thing to beat sandy bridge. But with the faults in hardware and number of pci lanes. I feel more comfortable with i7
Vray rendering takes ages on any Pc I find Its used for 3d objects. Mainly in magazines for watches and cars.
I'd go with the 970 for rendering. But that's mainly because there's so many teething problems with Sandy Bridge. The i7's are still awsomely powerful and triple channel memory might be a boon depending on what sort of file sizes you're dealing with. (I was hoping to upgrade my Phenon II x6 to sandy bridge, but for once, not having the money to first-adopt worked in my favour.).
if you are looking for buying advice, you've got the wrong thread title. asking which CPU the audience would buy is completely different from asking which CPU you should buy based on your needs. i'd buy sandy bridge for myself, it's soooo fast.
