Question Core i5 2400 underperforming?

[Unfatigued]

I found a Optiplex 990 MT Core i5 2400 3.10 GHz for cheap so I decided to upgrade it to gaming rig. I upgraded the graphics card to a RX 570, now I have noticed the huge CPU bottleneck as it would reach 100% and my GPU reaching 40%-50% while gaming. I'm wondering if my CPU is under performing. If so how would I fix it or should I buy a new one. Thanks for listening.

 

[k1114]

The cpu is too weak for a rx 570. The only way 2nd gen i5 can keep up is if it is oced which you can't do. Even upgrading cpu on that pc may not be enough for certain games as the socket has been dead for 7 years. You may want to return something to not have such an unbalanced system or it's just a waste of a gpu.

 

[NightHawkRMX]

Your CPU came out 9 years ago and was only mid range then.

You need an upgrade.

I would upgrade to an i7 2600 for around $60. It offers higher clockspeeds and importantly hyperthreading.

An i7 3770 costs a lot more for a couple of percent more performance, plus your system would need a bios update first.

 

[Unfatigued]

The cpu is too weak for a rx 570. The only way 2nd gen i5 can keep up is if it is oced which you can't do. Even upgrading cpu on that pc may not be enough for certain games as the socket has been dead for 7 years. You may want to return something to not have such an unbalanced system or it's just a waste of a gpu.

That is extremely unlucky as I cant return my gpu. Is there any other way that I can balance out the system. If not what's a better choice for a cpu? Thanks I have been very confused.

 

[Unfatigued]

Your CPU came out 9 years ago and was only mid range then.

You need an upgrade.

I would upgrade to an i7 2600 for around $60. It offers higher clockspeeds and importantly hyperthreading.

An i7 3770 costs a lot more for a couple of percent more performance, plus your system would need a bios update first.

Thanks very helpful.

 

[Unfatigued]

I just made a thread about this but I bought a Optiplex 990 MT and upgraded it (almost). I found out that there was a huge bottleneck with the core i5 2400 and the rx 570. So the obvious answer to this would be to buy the i7 2600 but that's only a quad core cpu. I looked into it and found the Xeon x5680 which was 6 cores and seemed a lot better and cheaper than the i7. I was wondering if the Xeon would work with the motherboard even though its not listed on the compatibility list.

Thank you.

 

[k1114]

An i7 2600 will still bottleneck with that game. For other games it shouldn't be so bad. You're just adding ht and a tiny speed boost, maybe 25% better performance. If the gpu is at 40-50% now, you'd still be behind quite a bit. 3770 is hardly better. There's no more ways to improve if you get the top cpu for the mobo.

 

[Unfatigued]

An i7 2600 will still bottleneck with that game. For other games it shouldn't be so bad. You're just adding ht and a tiny speed boost, maybe 25% better performance. If the gpu is at 40-50% now, you'd still be behind quite a bit. 3770 is hardly better. There's no more ways to improve if you get the top cpu for the mobo.

What if I swapped the motherboard for one that supported a better cpu?

 

[Karadjgne]

Go to your in game preferences. In graphics, don't run a standard ultra preset, but look through for the cpu bound settings. Those will be stuff like viewing distance, grass detail etc. Those you turn to low. All the actual graphics settings keep at ultra. You want to load down the gpu and relax cpu bound settings. Best you can do.

By running ultra preset, you maximize gpu, but more importantly maximize cpu usage, which is bad. Setting everything to low has the same but opposite affect by placing higher demand on the cpu. So balance becomes important.

 

[k1114]

You would need mobo, ram and cpu. You already upgraded gpu and assuming psu too so that's already pretty much an entire pc. If you just found the 990 for cheap recently then it was a complete waste of money.

 

[Karadjgne]

It's a Dell. You aren't going to be able to do much in the way of core component upgrades. Honestly, I'd returm/sell the whole thing minus the gpu and start over clean. Or live with what you have, because Dell is historically proprietary about their pc's, they feel if you want better performance, you don't buy the cheapo models and aftermarket upgrades, you buy the more expensive model that doesn't need upgrading.

 

[Unfatigued]

It's a Dell. You aren't going to be able to do much in the way of core component upgrades. Honestly, I'd returm/sell the whole thing minus the gpu and start over clean. Or live with what you have, because Dell is historically proprietary about their pc's, they feel if you want better performance, you don't buy the cheapo models and aftermarket upgrades, you buy the more expensive model that doesn't need upgrading.

Yea im already in the process of selling it thanks.

 

[Nizmoboy8o8]

If you haven’t sold the computer yet. Check to see if your motherboard is compatible with e3 Xeon v1 (sandybridge) or v2 (ivybridge )
.i have a e3 Xeon 1265L V1 (4c/8t) on a Intel db75en mobo with gtx 1650 super . And that setup my gpu usage while playing Overwatch is 80%-99% and cpu usage is around 70%-80% usage.
Do not go to dell customer service and ask them if it’s compatible they will say no . A mobo can support a cpu not on the support list . I have a dell that came with a 2400 I can try and test to see if it compatible with an e3 v1 Xeon . The motherboard chipset in that dell is a q77 check to see what chipset is on yours and if it’s the same as mines I’ll try it out when i get home from work and post CPuz pics .

 

[k1114]

That's worse than i7 2600. Whatever game he is playing is cpu heavy and the expected results of a faster 4c/8t was explained.

 

[marthaneilson]

The only way to keep the second generation i5 is to oxidize it, you can't do that. CPU upgrades may not be enough in some games because the plug is dead for 7 years. You may have an unbalanced system or GPU loss, so you may need to recover something.