[SOLVED] I'm going for a partial upgrade and I need help here

[Omar Ahmad]

Current Specs:

• GTX 1050TI
• i5-7400
• Gigabyte H110M-S2PT
• 16GB RAM

I think my CPU is bottlenecking my PC, I checked with NVIDIA performance overlay (since MSI afterburner crashes games), the CPU utilization was always 100% for all cores while the GPU was 98-99% in one game (AC Odyssey) and around 85% in another (Ghost Recon: Wildlands).

So I'm planning on getting the i5-12400F along with a suitable motherboard (MSI H610M-G)

I'm not sure if this is a good step to make or am I missing something here?

 

[rgd1101]

what the ram speed?
bottleneck on what exactly?

 

[logainofhades]

You do not want an H610 board. You will not get the full performance, out of a 12400f, with one. You do not want less than this. That said, I doubt your cpu is bottlenecking a 1050ti, unless you are playing a game that really wants more cores/threads, than your i5 can provide. Use MSI afterburner, and check your usages, before you go throwing money at your rig.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i5-12400 2.5 GHz 6-Core Processor ($174.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI PRO B660M-A DDR4 Micro ATX LGA1700 Motherboard ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $314.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2022-04-25 14:05 EDT-0400

 

[Omar Ahmad]

what the ram speed?
bottleneck on what exactly?

2400 MHz.

Bottleneck on some video games, some games stutter or have low average FPS. I checked with NVidia performance overlay (since MSI afterburner crashes games), the CPU utilization was always 100% for all cores while the GPU was 98-99% in one game and around 85% in another.

 

[Omar Ahmad]

You do not want an H610 board. You will not get the full performance, out of a 12400f, with one. You do not want less than this. That said, I doubt your cpu is bottlenecking a 1050ti, unless you are playing a game that really wants more cores/threads, than your i5 can provide. Use MSI afterburner, and check your usages, before you go throwing money at your rig.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i5-12400 2.5 GHz 6-Core Processor ($174.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI PRO B660M-A DDR4 Micro ATX LGA1700 Motherboard ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $314.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2022-04-25 14:05 EDT-0400

I checked with NVidia performance overlay (since MSI afterburner crashes games), the CPU utilization was always 100% for all cores while the GPU was 98-99% in one game and around 85% in another.

 

[logainofhades]

You are probably going to want faster ram too, at some point, as that is kinda slow these days. With your 1050ti it might not make much of a difference, but if you go with a faster GPU later, you are going to want faster ram.

 

[geofelt]

Try a simple test:
Run YOUR games, but lower your resolution and eye candy.
This makes the graphics card loaf a bit.
If your FPS increases, it indicates that your cpu is strong enough to drive a better graphics configuration.
If your FPS stays the same, you are likely more cpu limited.
It is unusual for a game to drive all 4 threads to 100% while also running the gpu near 100%
Are you also running other apps?

That is not as good as it would seem.
It means that an influx of more demand will not be able to be met and stuttering of some sort will happen.

If budget permits, buy the 12400, not the F version.
The extra $25 or so gets you integrated graphics which is a good insurance for graphics issues.

Your current DDR4 ram will be fine.
Intel does not depend much on ram speed for performance.

A B660 based motherboard would be my preference.
Here is a chart of the differences:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGA_1700
H610 would work for you, but such motherboards are built as cheaply as possible.
I think you would get better quality for not much more with B660.

If budget is an issue, look at the I3-12100.
You would get 8 threads vs. 12, but the single thread performance would be comparable.
Here is a review:
https://www.tomshardware.com/news/intel-core-i3-12100-12100f-review

You are more likely to be graphics limited than cpu limited.

 

[alceryes]

Current Specs:

• GTX 1050TI
• i5-7400
• Gigabyte H110M-S2PT
• 16GB RAM

I think my CPU is bottlenecking my PC, I checked with NVIDIA performance overlay (since MSI afterburner crashes games), the CPU utilization was always 100% for all cores while the GPU was 98-99% in one game (AC Odyssey) and around 85% in another (Ghost Recon: Wildlands).

So I'm planning on getting the i5-12400F along with a suitable motherboard (MSI H610M-G)

I'm not sure if this is a good step to make or am I missing something here?

What drives are you using? Microstutters are regularly caused by slow drives. Gone are the days where all assets are loaded during loading screens. Streaming assets are now loaded all the time - old/slow drives can't keep up.
It sounds like something else is running, taking CPU cycles, if all your cores are always at 100% while gaming.

@logainofhades' suggestion is good but you need to realize that you'll just be switching from a supposed CPU bottleneck to a definite GPU bottleneck with your 1050 Ti. The 2400MHz RAM may be introducing some extra stutters and a slight loss of performance too. Uless you upgrade the whole system, any upgrade will be bottlenecked with whatever's left.

 

[Karadjgne]

Ehh. At 100% cpu, 90% gpu you are playing demanding games at detail levels higher than the entire pc can comfortably support. Bluntly, that's like trying to race Formula1 in a go-kart.

Because of the 100% cpu, the gpu isn't getting full fps, so it's at 90% now, if you open the flood gates with a stronger processor, expect that 90% to be 100% and really not getting much if any fps improvement.

Right now, your best option is to drop detail settings to low-medium. It's the only viable option until you can replace both the platform and the gpu, because the 1050ti isn't a gaming gpu by today's standards, yet your games and details demand such.

 

[logainofhades]

Ehh. At 100% cpu, 90% gpu you are playing demanding games at detail levels higher than the entire pc can comfortably support. Bluntly, that's like trying to race Formula1 in a go-kart.

Because of the 100% cpu, the gpu isn't getting full fps, so it's at 90% now, if you open the flood gates with a stronger processor, expect that 90% to be 100% and really not getting much if any fps improvement.

Right now, your best option is to drop detail settings to low-medium. It's the only viable option until you can replace both the platform and the gpu, because the 1050ti isn't a gaming gpu by today's standards, yet your games and details demand such.

I would say they would get better min rates, and no CPU related stutter. Even a 12100 would be a vast improvement, in that regard.

 

[vMax]

Two options, 12400F and B660m motherboard circa $315 or go for the Radeon RX 6600XT circa $379
https://pcpartpicker.com/product/QR...gb-mech-2x-oc-video-card-rx6600xt-mech2x-8goc

Even though the RX6600XT will be bottlenecked by the CPU it will still be a huge improvement over the 1050Ti. Then later you can look to upgrade motherboard and ram and as suggested even the 12100 will be an improvement...

 

[logainofhades]

The 12400f would not bottleneck a 6600xt. The 6600xt is in between a 3060 and 3070 performance wise. Just for some reference what the combo would provide. Would make for a very balanced rig.

 

[Karadjgne]

Op was talking about a budget cpu replacement. Ya'll effectively doubled or more the budget by tossing in a gpu as well as platform. Granted, that's necessary, a cpu alone won't do much and a gpu alone won't do much either.

If I had to choose, platform replacement. I'd rather have playable, stutter free, smooth fps at lowered graphics settings than unplayable, stuttering, jerky fps that look awesome between pauses.