i7 8700 Coffee Lake 6-Core vs ryzen 1700 8-Core for Streaming and Gaming

[aircryplay]

Hey guys, I really need some help with my next build so I hope you can gimme a hand.

I need this build for Streaming AND gaming in a single PC, and the only things that Im gonna upgrade are my CPU, Mobo and Ram. (maybe cooler if is really needed)

saying that I'm having problems deciding which one is better for my stuff, because the
8700 has 6-Core 3.2 GHz (4.6 GHz Turbo) and the ryzen has
1700 8-Core 3.0 GHz (3.7 GHz Turbo)

Extra info: Right now I have a Gtx 970 and a intel i5 so either of the two options will be better for me, btw my budget is around $700 so you can suggest whatever you want in this budget.

edit: I also have a 144hz monitor


So what do you guys think? Should I go for the Intel to get these extra fps in-game? or the extra cores to stream without problems sacrificing some fps? or maybe should i get the 8700k or the 1700x for some reason?
PLZ HALP ME! Thanks in advance.

 

[Darkbreeze]

That's rather hard to answer since there are currently NO legitimate reviews of the i7-8700. Plenty of reviews of the 8700k because that's the flagship that released first and sites were given review samples before the stock shortage occurred but none of them must have received review samples of the i7-8700 because I don't see ANY testing data at all, except one Youtube video that I wouldn't trust as far as I could throw my desk.

You'll probably need to wait until stock gets replenished if you want hard numbers.

We CAN however surmise that by comparison the results MIGHT be very similar to the comparison of the 8600k to the Ryzen 1600, since they too are comparable. In that comparison the 1600 cannot beat the 8600k in almost any gaming titles aside from Civilization, however it does win out in multi-threaded application and synthetic benchmark testing. This PROBABLY would indicate that if you are going to be gaming AND streaming simultaneously, you might find you have a slight edge with the Ryzen 7 1700, but honestly, since there is currently no stock on any of the Coffee lake i5 or i7 processors, you can't get one anyhow so you might as well just wait for the hard data to come out so you have some actual review results to make a judgement with.

 

[photonboy]

The R7-1700 is not better in multi-threading for the most part, especially not for streaming.

The R7-1700 has 33% more cores (8 vs 6) however the i7-8700 has higher performance per core. If I assume you manage to setup to a SUSTAINED all-core frequency of 3.9GHz on Ryzen and 4.6GHz for the i7-8700 then it's 18% higher frequency and perhaps closer to 30% POTENTIAL better performance due to IPC advantage.

So basically the i7-8700 will win in almost every scenario and the R7-1700 can in some cases BARELY WIN or tie.

BOTH need a better cooler likely. The Intel cooler should be good to keep things in temp at 4.6GHz however it may be a bit too loud so something like a Cryorig H7 might be better.

Not all coolers work with the AM4 socket for Ryzen. You need an AM4 model, or an adapter if available. From all the videos I watched, you need a better AMD Ryzen cooler to overclock to max but even then you might be lucky to get 4GHz which in some cases was only going up from a previous overclock with STOCK cooler of 3.8 or 3.9GHz all cores.

 

[Darkbreeze]

How do you know that, when there are no dependable benchmarks or review data at this time? I've looked at all the major review sites and NOBODY has a review of the i7-8700 or any comparisons to the Ryzen 1700. If you know of one, please show me, because I don't see any at all, anywhere.

I've seen a couple of ESTIMATED comparisons, which are tenuous at best, but nothing concrete.

 

[photonboy]

$700USD (if no USD specify) is a lot of money still. You may want to spend as little as $500 plus tax (i.e. R5-1600 + mobo + 16GB 3000MHz, 2x8GB kit) then take the savings and put towards some other component, or put aside to save up for a better graphics card, or better monitor depending on what monitor you have.

If high FPS (especially at 1080p) is most important then you want the Intel CPU with the highest clock and at least 4-cores with hyperthreading or 6-cores without HT.

It's about $800USD + tax/ship for the i7-8700 parts (and $70 cooler):
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/QCQZtJ

The Ryzen R5-1600 build I did with the same DDR4 memory was $500 (no added cooler). Yes, lower FPS depending on game, resolution etc but again it's hard to put a VALUE on how much you'll spend on that especially with "only" a GTX970.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Now THAT is the real defining question. Given that you can get into a higher performing CPU and motherboard for significantly less money, with additional yet comparable core counts than with Intel, it certainly makes Ryzen look far more appealing even if they had equal performance. I also feel like with otherwise equal parts, Intel vs Ryzen, Ryzen tends to do better in threaded performance based on the 8600k vs Ryzen 7 1700 data.

Those are somewhat comparable in price, and in primarily single to four core optimized gaming the Intel system clearly distances itself from Ryzen but in the multithreaded benchmarks and synthetics I've looked at it was the other way around so if you want to game AND stream, and possibly record as well, might well be that Ryzen has an edge there especially with the additional cores.

 

[madmatt30]

I have no doubt that the 8700 WILL offer better fps while streaming (or without streaming) , it just has better IPC hands down.

That said if you're not running a 100htz+ screen even the ryzen 1600 will offer 80-100fps while streaming.

So to summise if you're running a 60-75htz monitor the ryzen is far far better value.

 

[aircryplay]

I also have a 144hz monitor! And I guess I'll wait for some benchmarks then? 🙁

 

[madmatt30]

Well you can wait for benchmarks but the fact is the 8700 is going to be better.
There is not a singular doubt in my mind about that.

& I'm one of ryzens (& amd in general) biggest fans at that.

There is minimal (as in pretty much none) difference between a ryzen 6c/12t & a 8c/16t when it comes to streaming.

A 6c/12t Intel with higher clocks & 20% better IPC is going to perform better - that's just an unavoidable fact.

On a personal level I'd still pick the ryzen but that's my choice.
Its £80 cheaper in the UK , a good board is £30 cheaper.

I'd drop from 120 to 100fps (a generalisation) for that price difference without a second thought.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Not so fast. I'm ENTIRELY not sure that any of the Coffee lake i7's are going to be better at all. Just as an aside, there is currently some conversation and some evidence to back it up, that there may be serious issues with VRM overheating on all of the 6/12 Coffee lake products. Even the very highest end Z370 boards like the MSI Godlike and Gigabyte Aorus Ultra gaming are showing serious problems with VRM overheating and throttling in some cases.

That speaks poorly to what the lower end boards in this family will be showing as we already know that higher end boards always have the best configurations and designs intended to handle high end overclocking yet these boards are showing problems EVEN AT STOCK CONFIGURATIONS.

This is a suspicion that the lack of availability for these products does not stem from a lack of product that could be delivered to the market but instead is an attempt to allow Intel time to iron these issues out by working with partners to release redesigned boards with better VRM cooling. Just speculation on that part of course, but the issues with the throttling and high temperatures on the VRMs are positively confirmed. Several testing sites have found this to be fact and Crashman himself has told me that he has seen this trend and that his suspicion is that the MSI Godlike only showed lower thermals because the system was in fact thermally throttling at the time.

I wouldn't be so quick to jump on the CL i7 bandwagon just yet, especially since none of the Ryzen products have this problem. It could be much later than the currently anticipated mid December before we actually see additional CL i5 and i7 products hit the streets.