Date:
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Author:
Kyle Bennett
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Intel Core i7 and Gaming

We take our Intel Core i7 processors ranging from 2.66GHz all the way up to 4GHz and turn them loose on Ubisoft’s FarCry 2. It is a great game but does it need a new CPU to give you a better gaming experience? The results even surprised us.

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Overclocking the Core i7

Overclocking CPUs is the only reason HardOCP is around today. We have been overclocking CPUs for over a decade now and we have to say that over the years as OCing has become mainstream, it has gotten hell of a lot easier to successfully accomplish. There was a ton of the usual DOOM and GLOOM about “Nehalem will kill overclocking for good!” and the like. The fact of the matter is that overclocking the Core i7 920 (which is supposed retail for around $284) was one of the easiest overclocks I have ever experienced. It went like this. Set BCLK from 133MHz to 190MHz. Set Vcore to 1.35v. Set RAM speed to 1520MHz. Reboot. And that was it. I was off and running at 3.8GHz; the easiest 1.14GHz I ever got. I remember when 450MHz cost your around a grand!

So what does all of this get you in terms of our FarCry 2 gaming? (Do be aware that our ASUS P6T Deluxe motherboard review will be published in a day or two and will contain 4GHz Core i7 application overclocks and synthetic benchmarks.).

Below we are showing you our gaming results comparing a 2.66GHz (20*133) stock clocked Core i7 920 and one overclocked to 3.8GHz (20*190).

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While I wish we had a better story to tell about Core i7 and FarCry 2, try as we might to spin it in a positive light, there is just little if any realworld benefit to the massive overclock we go in this instance. It is worth saying that will surely be instances where the extra clock speed will be of benefit, just not in this game. The Core i7 920 at 3.8GHz was ROCK SOLID on the ASUS P6T Deluxe. If you are buying an i7 and you are a hardware enthusiast, the 920 is likely going to be your CPU this year.