Best CPUs (Archive)

Status
Not open for further replies.
If you're building a one-off, or rebuild new every two years, then the FX-8300 may not be a bad idea. For everyone else, especially those interested in future-resistance, particularly through upgrades, anything on AM3+ seems short sighted. One hundred ten dollars for eight threads might be a good deal if you need all those threads now (e.g. people who stream or record their games), but for most use-cases, fewer faster threads will be a better idea, and you won't find PCIe M.2 on any current AM3+ chipset boards and I've only seen one with USB3.1.
 

CerianK

Distinguished
Nov 7, 2008
260
50
18,870
Not that I would ever have 3 or 4 GPUs in a system, but there is a conflict in statements...

i7-5820K not good for 3 or 4 GPU (in i7-6700K section):
"Losing 12 lanes is painful for gamers rocking three- and four-GPU configurations. But for anyone with one or two graphics cards, the Core i7-5820K is plenty-quick."

i7-5820K good for 3 or 4 GPU (in i7-5820K section):
"... Intel’s Core i7-5820K positioned as our high-end CPU of choice, balancing lots of cores, overclockability, tons of I/O and a reasonable price tag. And while it remains an attractive choice for power users with three or four graphics cards..."
 

pocketdrummer

Distinguished
Dec 1, 2007
1,084
30
19,310
I have an old i5 3570k @ 4,4ghz. Is it worth upgrading to an i5 6500 now or is it just a waste of money?

Honestly, I upgraded from a i7-920 @ 3.67GHz to an i7-5820K @ 4.3GHz, and I didn't really notice a massive difference. The biggest change was going from 6GB of RAM to 32GB. Mind you, this is with the same nVidia GTX 570. I imagine it would be a different story if I had a GTX 980 Ti or two. Moral of the story is this, if you are looking at upgrading your gaming performance, upgrade the video card FIRST, then work out what kind of processor you'll need to feed it.
 

LtnObvious

Commendable
May 4, 2016
2
0
1,510
I have an old i5 3570k @ 4,4ghz. Is it worth upgrading to an i5 6500 now or is it just a waste of money?

Honestly, I upgraded from a i7-920 @ 3.67GHz to an i7-5820K @ 4.3GHz, and I didn't really notice a massive difference. The biggest change was going from 6GB of RAM to 32GB. Mind you, this is with the same nVidia GTX 570. I imagine it would be a different story if I had a GTX 980 Ti or two. Moral of the story is this, if you are looking at upgrading your gaming performance, upgrade the video card FIRST, then work out what kind of processor you'll need to feed it.

I have two EVGA GTX970 in SLi. I've had this cpu for ages. It just feels like I should have to upgrade now because it's so old. I was looking for something to upgrade over a year ago and I came to the conclusion that it wasn't really worth upgrading then. I'm not desperate to spend my money on worthless upgrades so I decided to hold off for another year. Now 12-18 months later it's still not worth upgrading. Have we really reached a peak CPU performance several years ago?
 

csm101

Distinguished
Aug 8, 2007
180
13
18,715
where is the chart? always want to know where my cpu is at so when it go down to level 3 i can start thinking of upgrading. i have i7 4770 at the moment and im guessing that its in the top tier with new gen cpu's. i have always used that chart to show less informed people to make up there own mind as well.
 
Interesting.
Seems like sticking with anything after the first I cores (2xxx,3xxx,4xxx,5xxx) still makes sense.
The 6600K in Poland is worth the same as a 2500K, a 4690K and 4670K.

This suggests that the increase in performance would be very small if any.
 

3ogdy

Distinguished
Your cores/threads for AMD are wrong. You have them setup like Intel's Hyperthreading.

The FX-8350 should actually be treated as a 4 core 8 thread CPU. They presented its specifications correctly.
Each pair of cores shares resources and whenever you put all 8 cores to 100% you will get lower performance than putting only 4 cores to full use. That's because they're constrained and have to wait on each other. This is a fake 8 core. Yes, call it an 8 core. The actually usable stuff inside it are 4 cores plus a bit of help from time to time from 4 other cores. Tom's Hardware is correct - what you're getting is 4 core performance marketed as 8 core stuff. Hyperthreading 2.0 / à la AMD.

If the FX is a true 8-Core, hey, there's a dual-core Pentium 4 we never knew was ever marketed and it's not the Pentium D.
i3s are also quad core, following that same logic.
 

morerice

Distinguished
Sep 29, 2010
90
0
18,660
I have an old i5 3570k @ 4,4ghz. Is it worth upgrading to an i5 6500 now or is it just a waste of money?

Honestly, I upgraded from a i7-920 @ 3.67GHz to an i7-5820K @ 4.3GHz, and I didn't really notice a massive difference. The biggest change was going from 6GB of RAM to 32GB. Mind you, this is with the same nVidia GTX 570. I imagine it would be a different story if I had a GTX 980 Ti or two. Moral of the story is this, if you are looking at upgrading your gaming performance, upgrade the video card FIRST, then work out what kind of processor you'll need to feed it.

I have two EVGA GTX970 in SLi. I've had this cpu for ages. It just feels like I should have to upgrade now because it's so old. I was looking for something to upgrade over a year ago and I came to the conclusion that it wasn't really worth upgrading then. I'm not desperate to spend my money on worthless upgrades so I decided to hold off for another year. Now 12-18 months later it's still not worth upgrading. Have we really reached a peak CPU performance several years ago?

The only benefit between an i5 3570k and the new offering of 6600k is support for DDR4 memory, better integrated graphics (lol), and a lower power draw. So I'd say there's no need for upgrade. These new CPUs seem to be more important for the mobile platform rather than for desktops.
 

pvgpvg

Commendable
May 11, 2016
3
0
1,510
Except when you take the Turbo into account those 500MHz the 6500 has over the 6400 are only 200MHz.
Want the best bang for the $, go 6400. Want a bit of extra performance, jump to the 6600.
The 6500 is just in nobody's land...
 
You mean i7 4790K i5 & 4690K right.

I myself have the i5 4460 so I don't know much about the 4690K, I'm not a fan of overclocking anyways.

The i7 4790K I have thought about getting myself at some point maybe as it is the best CPU for 1150. Thou the only problem I worry about is that it requires a very cool cooler as the i7 can get very hot. The i7 is an amazing CPU, its just a shame how hot it can get if you can not a afford or fit a decent cooler.
 

RSQViper

Commendable
May 11, 2016
2
0
1,510
I currently have an i7 4820K LGA 2011 socket. I am looking to upgrade the CPU without having to gut the MoBo and start over. I have the Fatal1ty x79 Professional Socket 2011 X79 ATX Intel Motherboard..

Seeing as I can't drop the 6700K or the 5820K since the are not 2011 socket, what would you recommend? I game AND stream so I need a high-end processor and mine is starting to cap out.

Or if I do need to or should upgrade my MoBo, what would you recommend? 2011-v3 or LGA 1151?
 

pvgpvg

Commendable
May 11, 2016
3
0
1,510


Drop a 4930K in there. Or a 3930K, if you find a really good deal. The 2 extra cores should help a lot with the streaming.
You can also try Shadowplay/Raptr GVR to reduce the load on the CPU.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

TRENDING THREADS