i5 4670k vs E3-1230 V3 for future proofed gaming?

[Vindaloovians]

I will be using a cheap SLI motherboard anyway (Gigabyte GA-Z87X-D3H) so the prices of the i5 4670k + Hyper 212 EVO are the same as that of a Gigabyte GA-Z87X-D3H. I don't want my components to die sooner though, this needs to last 5 years!!

 

[Dylzan]

The Xeon is basically an i7 4770 with a slightly lower clock speed, however it cannot be overclocked and you have a Z87 processor. I'd say go with the 4670K and then overclock it to 4 or 4.2GHz. You could always save up an extra £80 and get the 4770K instead.

 

[geofelt]

The value of a "K" is that it can be overclocked. With a aftermarket cpu cooler, you can safely get 20% more performance.

I would buy a Z97 based motherboard today. They are no more expensive than Z87 based motherboards.

Here is my canned rant on planning for dual cards:
-----------------------------Start of rant----------------------------------------------------
Dual graphics cards vs. a good single card.

a) How good do you really need to be?
A single GTX650/ti or 7770 can give you good performance at 1920 x 1200 in most games.

A single GTX660 or 7850 will give you excellent performance at 1920 x 1200 in most games.
Even 2560 x 1600 will be good with lowered detail.
A single gtx690,7990, GTX780ti or R9-290X is about as good as it gets for a single card.

Only if you are looking at triple monitor gaming, or a 4k monitor, might sli/cf will be needed.
Even that is now changing with triple monitor support on top end cards and stronger single card solutions.

b) The costs for a single card are lower.
You require a less expensive motherboard; no need for sli/cf or multiple pci-e slots.
Even a ITX motherboard will do.

Your psu costs are less.
A GTX660 needs a 430w psu, even a GTX780 only needs a 575w psu.
When you add another card to the mix, plan on adding 200w to your psu requirements.

Even the most power hungry GTX690 only needs 620w, or a 7990 needs 700w.

Case cooling becomes more of an issue with dual cards.
That means a more expensive case with more and stronger fans.
You will also look at more noise.

c) Dual gpu's do not always render their half of the display in sync, causing microstuttering. It is an annoying effect.
The benefit of higher benchmark fps can be offset, particularly with lower tier cards.
Read this: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-geforce-stutter-crossfire,2995.html

d) dual gpu support is dependent on the driver. Not all games can benefit from dual cards.

e) dual cards up front reduces your option to get another card for an upgrade. Not that I suggest you plan for that.
It will often be the case that replacing your current card with a newer gen card will offer a better upgrade path.
The high end Maxwell and amd 8000 or 9000 series are due the end of the year or next year.
-------------------------------End of rant-----------------------------------------------------------

 

[Zircoben]

I will be using a cheap SLI motherboard anyway (Gigabyte GA-Z87X-D3H) so the prices of the i5 4670k + Hyper 212 EVO are the same as that of a Gigabyte GA-Z87X-D3H. I don't want my components to die sooner though, this needs to last 5 years!!

The i5-4670K will give you slightly better single thread performance (the figure that matters in games), and a pretty good bit better if you overclock. The Xeon 1230v3 is always my recommendation though because it has double the threads of the i5 (it's hyperthreaded), and therefore may be more futureproofed and will perform a lot better in games that use a lot of threads, like the upcoming Watch Dogs title.

I would therefore buy a Xeon 1230V3 for futureproofing. You will essentially be using an i7 instead of an i5.

Hope that helps!