CPU = 4K Gaming

[KHansen]

Which CPU is the best for 4K gaming?

 

[theonerm2]

You can use a weaker CPU for 4K gaming. You don't have to get the best. The graphics card takes on more load at 4K. You need a GTX 1080 ti preferably for good 4K settings and frame rates. I'd worry about getting a GTX 1080 ti or better above all else.

 

[Hellfire13]

If you are talking about gaming with the CPU only, then none.
CPU has little relevance to resolution other than being capable enough to run the 4k card without limiting it. The major chunk of the frame scaling is done by your card. The weaker the cpu, the more load it has to bear to offset the GPU compute, and hence the bottleneck.

 

[KHansen]

If you are talking about gaming with the CPU only, then none.
CPU has little relevance to resolution other than being capable enough to run the 4k card without limiting it. The major chunk of the frame scaling is done by your card. The weaker the cpu, the more load it has to bear to offset the GPU compute, and hence the bottleneck.

I have a AMD 1950x will it work for 4K gaming, for the next 5 years?

 

[Phaaze88]

If you are talking about gaming with the CPU only, then none.
CPU has little relevance to resolution other than being capable enough to run the 4k card without limiting it. The major chunk of the frame scaling is done by your card. The weaker the cpu, the more load it has to bear to offset the GPU compute, and hence the bottleneck.

I have a AMD 1950x will it work for 4K gaming, for the next 5 years?

Oh, wow. TR 1950x, eh?
The problem with gaming at 4k isn't your cpu, but the GPU. That 1950x will pretty much be laying back in a hammock at that resolution. What video card do you have, as nothing short of a 1080ti will do, at the moment.

If you were rendering videos or the like at 4k, then that 1950x would get to flex its muscles. But if this is just gaming... #flabby muscles

 

[KHansen]

Yeah i have a 1080 Ti

 

[Hellfire13]

If you are talking about gaming with the CPU only, then none.
CPU has little relevance to resolution other than being capable enough to run the 4k card without limiting it. The major chunk of the frame scaling is done by your card. The weaker the cpu, the more load it has to bear to offset the GPU compute, and hence the bottleneck.

I have a AMD 1950x will it work for 4K gaming, for the next 5 years?

1950x with 1080ti, oh yeah...it will definitely work for 5 yrs.

 

[ArchitSahu]

But beware, for 4k you will still need to lower settings if you want to hit a constant 60 FPS through the 1080Ti.

 

[Darkbreeze]

That depends on the demands of the title. Obviously, some games are going to be a lot more demanding at 4k than others, same as they are at any other resolution.

I might not be willing to say the 1080ti is a 5 year 4k card, because games have been getting increasingly complex and more resource intensive in just the last two years than in the previous five before that. If that pattern holds true then what works at 4k ~40-70FPS THIS year, may not in the next release.

We saw this happen initially when games like Witcher 3 came out. Everybody was saying the 980ti was a five year card. Guess what, it wasn't. People had to drop a lot of settings down to achieve playable frame rates until Pascal came along. There is nobody on this or any other forum who can tell you for sure that you're not going to want to upgrade the GPU card at some point during the next 5 years if you plan to play at 4k, although as mentioned your choice of settings will be a big factor.

Your CPU however, is not going to be the limiting factor for you in any scenario I can imagine during that period of time regardless of what anything else may or may not do.

 

[KHansen]

What will happen when we get better and better GPU's and the frame rate increases. Will a high Clockspeed for the CPU matter?

 

[Hellfire13]

Most games still benefit from higher clock speeds and will continue to do so into the future. It is why unlocked processors are more in demand among gaming enthusiasts, so that the clock speeds can be bumped for better performance.

 

[KHansen]

Even in 4K?

 

[Darkbreeze]

A higher clock speed will always matter so long as it equals higher performance and doesn't incur any throttling penalties from thermal issues. You'll never be likely to hear anybody say, ever, that "My CPU is too fast, how do I slow it down"?

 

[theonerm2]

I expect there to be at least double the GPU power in 5 years compared to now. Developers will take advantage of that power and games will become harder to run on a GTX 1080 ti. I'd say in 5 years the GTX 1080 ti will still be a solid 1440p card. You can't ask for much more than that out of a graphics card. Of course I'm no fortune teller. I'm only guessing.

 

[Hellfire13]

Even in 4K?

As i mentioned earlier, 4k resolution has very little semblance to CPU clock speed. The clock speed is necessary so that it can complement and support the capability of the card.

 

[theonerm2]

Even in 4K?

At any resolution the CPU generally does the same amount of work as long as the frame rate is the same. The CPU doesn't process the video. That's the GPU's job. So the higher the resolution the harder it is for the GPU. Every time a frame is rendered the CPU does do something though. So the more FPS you have the harder it is on the CPU. Imagine then a GTX 1080 ti at 1080p. It would push out 180fps for example that's harder for the CPU than let's say 4K at 60FPS. So if you have a super powerful graphics card it's easier on the CPU to go for higher resolutions where there will be lower fps. So if you want high FPS and high resolutions you need both a great graphics solution and a good CPU too. Your CPU is plenty good enough for 4K 60hz but I think it's lacking a bit for 144hz.

 

[KHansen]

If not the 1950x, which CPU will be the best for 144hz 4K when the time comes for that? And can help me with 4K video production. I want a workstation and a gamer two in one computer. It okay for me if only get 50-60 in 4k. I can change some settings to get a little more. And the price I have to pay for hardware is okay. I just don't want to have two computer If it's possible. I want to render 4K RAW fast and play som games with a high framerate.

 

[theonerm2]

If not the 1950x, which CPU will be the best for 144hz 4K when the time comes for that? And can help me with 4K video production. I want a workstation and a gamer two in one computer. It okay for me if only get 50-60 in 4k. I can change some settings to get a little more. And the price I have to pay for hardware is okay. I just don't want to have two computer If it's possible. I want to render 4K RAW fast and play som games with a high framerate.

You really can't have both in 1 computer. Not yet anyway. Besides 144Hz 4K monitors aren't even out yet. I'd say you'll definitely need another GTX 1080 ti in sli to make it anywhere close to 144 fps. Also you would need a Core i7 8700K to maximize your framerate. I'd personally just keep the computer the way it is for now and worry about 4K 144Hz when it comes.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Your current CPU with a 1080ti is probably the closest your going to get anyhow, at least without a high end dedicated workstation card and then you essentially lose the gaming aspect. Plenty of people are doing exactly the same tasks as you want to do, with substantially less capable systems, it just takes a little longer, so with what you have you can feel pretty confident that at least for now there isn't much else you could change that would conclusively and dramatically improve being able to render/encode and game at 4k at a much higher level.

Sometimes, the question to how do I do this or what can do this better, is, you can't/there's not. What you have now, or is proposed if you don't actually have it already, is probably the best option available within reason for what you want to do.

 

[KHansen]

If not the 1950x, which CPU will be the best for 144hz 4K when the time comes for that? And can help me with 4K video production. I want a workstation and a gamer two in one computer. It okay for me if only get 50-60 in 4k. I can change some settings to get a little more. And the price I have to pay for hardware is okay. I just don't want to have two computer If it's possible. I want to render 4K RAW fast and play som games with a high framerate.

You really can't have both in 1 computer. Not yet anyway. Besides 144Hz 4K monitors aren't even out yet. I'd say you'll definitely need another GTX 1080 ti in sli to make it anywhere close to 144 fps. Also you would need a Core i7 8700K to maximize your framerate. I'd personally just keep the computer the way it is for now and worry about 4K 144Hz when it comes.

okay, thx for the help.