I7-3930k still a viable option for a cheap video editing and 3D rendering rig?

[Chriscaruso]

Im trying to build a cheapish computer for my son who is going into his 2nd year of college and was looking at a CPU that could be overclocked but would still have good performance with its 6 cores and hyper threading. I know Sandy Bridge is about 5 years old know but its the modern socket and I figured that it could be upgraded to one of the Icelake when they come out or a Broadwell. Trying to keep the costs low since we just got him a new car. If you guys think its gonna be subpar if you could give a suggestion that would be much appreciated

Thanks

 

[1LiquidPC]

The CPU should be fine for your son's needs if you can get one cheap along w/ an X79 board. However, it cannot be upgraded to anything modern. It's the older socket 2011, not 2011v3. I have both so I'm sure of that. 3930k is Sandy Bridge-E, which could only be upgraded to Ivy Bridge-E on that socket. Haswell-E and Broadwell-E are the newer 2011v3 socket. What kind of budget are you looking at for this project? With that said, I had my 3930k overclocked from 3.2Ghz up to 4.5Ghz and never had a problem.

 

[Chriscaruso]

The CPU should be fine for your son's needs if you can get one cheap along w/ an X79 board. However, it cannot be upgraded to anything modern. It's the older socket 2011, not 2011v3. I have both so I'm sure of that. 3930k is Sandy Bridge-E, which could only be upgraded to Ivy Bridge-E on that socket. Haswell-E and Broadwell-E are the newer 2011v3 socket. What kind of budget are you looking at for this project? With that said, I had my 3930k overclocked from 3.2Ghz up to 4.5Ghz and never had a problem.

Ah I see I completely missed the fact it wasnt v3, thanks. Thats kind of where im looking to overclock too with that chip around the 4.1 area and the budget is to get the CPU used for like 125 bucks from a buddy of mine whos looking to upgrade. Probably looking for something like this

CPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/list/MMNBcc
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/list/MMNBcc/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i7-3930K 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor ($120.00)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H80i GT 70.7 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: X97 Type
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($33.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($44.88 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($87.88 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: GeForce GTX 970
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 600W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($36.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $393.73

trying to keep the budget around 650 ish so ill look to pick up a GTX 970 used and take you up on your recommendation of x79 type board

 

[1LiquidPC]

I've almost exclusively used ASUS boards for about the past 10 yrs with minimal complaints, nothing deal breaking. I'd also recommend Gigabyte as I'm using my first one for a HTPC I have and it's working fine as well. These are my go-to brands personally, though others are welcome to their opinions. I personally have a Rampage IV Extreme X79 board, which I recently dug out w/ my 3930k to test my GTX 1080. It ran like a champ for being 2011 parts. The problem is going to be finding an X79 board at a decent price, as they've been out of production for years. Generally, since you plan to OC, I'd just stay away from the entry level boards, as they tend to be limited with VRM quality, cooling, and power phases geared to OCing to get their price points. Since your buddy is selling the 3930k to you, what board was he using, as I'd imagine he's selling it too. Cooler should be ok for a mild OC, as these can get hot when OC'd.

 

[Chriscaruso]

I've almost exclusively used ASUS boards for about the past 10 yrs with minimal complaints, nothing deal breaking. I'd also recommend Gigabyte as I'm using my first one for a HTPC I have and it's working fine as well. These are my go-to brands personally, though others are welcome to their opinions. I personally have a Rampage IV Extreme X79 board, which I recently dug out w/ my 3930k to test my GTX 1080. It ran like a champ for being 2011 parts. The problem is going to be finding an X79 board at a decent price, as they've been out of production for years. Since your buddy is selling the 3930k to you, what board was he using, as I'd imagine he's selling it too. Cooler should be ok for a mild OC, as these can get hot when OC'd.

Ah one of the reasons why hes upgrading is the mobo is dead since he snapped off a capacitor when he was messing around in there( hes a idiot, but hes my buddy). So im hoping the processor is going to work but he will give me the money back if it wasnt, and what cooler do you recommend

 

[1LiquidPC]

Well, since your OCing, maybe a dual 120mm version AIO if your going that route, or a larger aircooler. I had a Noctua NH-U14S on my current 5820k when testing OC @ 4.4ghz. It wasn't good enough tempwise at full bore max load stresstests for longterm use, but everday use/gaming was fine.

 

[Chriscaruso]

Well, since your OCing, maybe a dual 120mm version AIO if your going that route, or a larger aircooler. I had a Noctua NH-U14S on my current 5820k when testing OC @ 4.4ghz. It wasn't good enough tempwise at full bore max load stresstests for longterm use, but everday use/gaming was fine.

Alright sounds good def something I will check out

Thank you so much you have been extremely helpful!