I5-2500k vs I7-2600k Vs I7-2700k plus "Unlocked Mobos"

[EddieTripod]

Hi, I've seen all over that if you don't run a lot of threads that you're better off getting the i5-2500k, as it's "the same" as a i7-2600k or i7-2700k. If the price was exactly the same on all 3 cpu's, and you were using your PC about 70% of the time for gaming and the other 30% for day trading, video editing, photo editing, would you take the 2600k or 2700k over the 2500k, or are the 3 about the same for gaming?

I do run programs where I need a lot of threads, so I'll go with the Ivy version of the 2600k or 2700k. I see that the i5-2500k has 6mb cache, and the 2600k and 2700k each have 8mb cache. Is that a big factor in the overall speed of the cpu?

I found a couple charts with the equivalent Ivy to the existing sandy cpu's. I see that a lot of the "k" cpu's, which I think mean that they can be overclocked, have new equivalents which don't have a the SAME suffix k,s,t etc.. e.g. the i5-2500K $216 / i5-3750T $216 and the i7-2600 $294 / Core i7-3770K $294. Also the i7-2700K $332 / Core i7-3770S $332.

If I want an over-clockable cpu equivalent to to 2600k or 2700k, would you agree I should be choosing the Core i7-3770K ? I don't see a "k" version of the Ivy 2700k equivalent.
I want to be able to overclock my new Ivy cpu, so is the"k" still what I should be looking for, like say the i7-3770K, or is the new version still over-clockable if the previous version had a "k", like say the i7-2700K $332 / Core i7-3770S ?

I'm picking out a LGA1155 z77 mobo. I was watching a video review of a Gigabyte mobo, and it made a big deal about being "unlocked", so that the cpu could be overclocked if you have a "k" cpu. Is this feature, being able to overclock a "k" series cpu, not available on the other LGA1155 z77 mobos, or can I overclock any "k" cpu on most new mobos? Is there a chart or bulletin anywhere on Tom's or elsewhere where this is laid out?

Thanks

 

[o1die]

I would just download the board manual before ordering and check the bios settings. "k" cpus can be overclocked on many boards, including inexpensive biostar and asrock boards. I wouldn't get too greedy on the overclocking; Intel won't honor their warranty for overclocking unless you purchase their warranty. And the performance difference is mostly for benchmarks, not everyday gaming. The new letter designations are mostly for cpus that have the graphics portion disabled; I prefer having onboard for backup (boards with vga and dvi ports) along with regular cpus, but you may not need it. The s cpus are energy saving, locked at a lower speed, so unless you are leaving your computer on 24/7, I would skip those.

 

[EddieTripod]

Best answer selected by EddieTripod.

 

[jewie27]

Games don't take advantage of hyperthreading, so four physical cores is all you need. If you do more than gaming, such as photo/video editing go with a 2700K or 3770K. Otherwise you will see no difference in gaming performance between a standard Quad -Core vs a Hyperthreaded Quad-Core.