[SOLVED] i5-7400 (Budget upgrade)

[derstroyer56]

So I have been waiting as long as I can for prices to drop on last gen cpus as intel 10th gen came out and i want to know the best budget(for performance) cpu upgrade as my i5 is bottle-necking in new AAA games. I know I will need a new motherboard for next gen cpus and I don't mind amd or intel. hoping for around the $500 aud mark but will spend the extra if needed.


CPU-i5-7400
MOBO-Asus Prime B250m-plus
GPU-RTX2060
RAM-24gb DDR4

 

[mdd1963]

The B250 tops out with the 7700K, which is normally still so expensive that one could buy a B550 and an R5-3600,... and still have change leftover...

Even the R3-3300X has been a beast in gaming comparisons, nearly matching the 3600 in many games...(A single CCX, minimizing latency, and giving the 4c/8t processor the performance to beat the 7700K readily)

 

[Quanticriver]

i agree with mdd, there is no upgrade within your socket that can justify an upgrade; performance and also pricewise

Given you budget and your needs (gaming) i would opt for a zen 3600 + 450 mobo and 16 gb ram (3200 cl 16)

ryzen is ram sensitive, get 3200mhz cl 16 specced ram or better

(some ppl will advise you to wait on 4000 gen, that's up to you)

 

[derstroyer56]

i agree with mdd, there is no upgrade within your socket that can justify an upgrade; performance and also pricewise

Given you budget and your needs (gaming) i would opt for a zen 3600 + 450 mobo and 16 gb ram (3200 cl 16)

ryzen is ram sensitive, get 3200mhz cl 16 specced ram or better

(some ppl will advise you to wait on 4000 gen, that's up to you)

I understand that I can't upgrade in my socket for perfomance as the 7700k is very outdated and not worth the cost for performance.

I was thinking of going for a 3600 and 450 but I will have to re install windows 10 right?

is it any good to go with a 9600k and a cheap z390? or even spend a bit more and get 10600k and z490

 

[John Chesterfield]

I understand that I can't upgrade in my socket for perfomance as the 7700k is very outdated and not worth the cost for performance.

I was thinking of going for a 3600 and 450 but I will have to re install windows 10 right?

is it any good to go with a 9600k and a cheap z390? or even spend a bit more and get 10600k and z490

The 7700k isn't that outdated, it's still a very worthy performer, especially at 1440p. It's just that its second hand price is ridiculous, hence people thinking it isn't worth the cost, and you can better do as you suggested and get a 3600 with good B450 board. At least you then also have a bit of an upgrade path and Ryzen is very impressive, you'd be happy with performance.

I'd certainly consider the 3600 and B450 board. Some people say "Windows is way better nowadays and can sort itself out without reinstalling" and while it may well work for them, best way to go is to reinstall Windows when doing a complete platform upgrade. Same would apply if you went with the Intel builds, which are also very good but would cost a little more and be slightly faster than Ryzen. But we're not talking by a lot here, especially at 1440p where it's virtually indistinguishable.

 

[Quanticriver]

ALSO:

the windows license is tied to your mobo, so a new mobo means a new license
There are tricks though - i would refer you to google for that