best cpu for $350 budget?

[Skrillexpig]

hey guys i have a fx 6300 and i want to upgrade it to an intel processor. im obviously gonna have to get another motherboard so do you guys know what the best intel cpu and motherboard i can get with a budget of $350?

 

[N3rdR4ge]

xeon e3-1231 v3 = i7-4770 with no integrated graphics
no overclocking needed. stock cooler is fine, grab a cm hyper 212 evo later if it's too loud for your tastes.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($242.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H97 PRO4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($83.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $326.88
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-12-01 22:24 EST-0500

 

[BadActor]

Processor comes with a cooler and you can use your existing RAM. It would be a huge improvement over your current CPU.

 

[HowNowBrownCow]

I like the i7-4790K. 8 threads is plenty for me, stock speeds at 4 GHz with turbo boost. Runs around $300 if you look for sales, $250 if you can pick it up at a Micro Center.

 

[N3rdR4ge]

I like the i7-4790K. 8 threads is plenty for me, stock speeds at 4 GHz with turbo boost. Runs around $300 if you look for sales, $250 if you can pick it up at a Micro Center.

but then he needs a z97 motherboard with a good power design and a decent cooler (not the 212 evo). thats way more than 350 at that point, even if he gets the chip for $250.


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($319.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H5 Universal 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($42.25 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI Z97-GAMING 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($124.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $487.23
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-12-01 23:21 EST-0500

 

[wicked_sticky]

you dont need aand MSI gaming board unless youre overclocking ike crazy with a mild overclock 500-800mhz a $60 ASRock Z97 PRO4 with $25 Hyper 212 Plus (or any of the of 120mm heatsinks <$20 on newegg) will do just fine. A 4790k is available for $260 (if you but the cpu and mobo bundled at microcenter you get another $20 off).

4790k $269
Hyper 212 Plus $25 on ebay
Asrock Z97 Pro4 $60
Total= (with bundled discount - $20) =$334

You can keep checking slickdeals for sales on the 4790k if you are too far from a microcenter same with the motherboard any Z97 by gigsabyte, asus, msi, asrock is fine (sure there are better boards that can eek out another 5% overclock, maybe even $10... but on a budget that extra 5% wont be worth the extre $100 plus you need pretty expensive cooling to take advantage of it.


If you dont want to wait for a sale or go to microcenter you can get the plents of Z97 motherboard on newegg for $100-129 some offering $20 or $30 rebate, and an I5 4690k just about anywhere for $180-220.

 

[HowNowBrownCow]

I like the i7-4790K. 8 threads is plenty for me, stock speeds at 4 GHz with turbo boost. Runs around $300 if you look for sales, $250 if you can pick it up at a Micro Center.

but then he needs a z97 motherboard with a good power design and a decent cooler (not the 212 evo). thats way more than 350 at that point, even if he gets the chip for $250.


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($319.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H5 Universal 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($42.25 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI Z97-GAMING 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($124.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $487.23
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-12-01 23:21 EST-0500

Ah I didn't see the under $350 price point. My bad