[SOLVED] Intel or AMD for gaming?

[shaun88]

I’m wanting to build a new gaming PC and I’m stuck between i7 9700k and i9 9900k, I’ve seen gameplay videos where frames per second are basically the same for both CPU’s but I’ve heard there’s less strain on the i9 9900k. I haven’t had AMD for years but loads of people really recommend AMD now but I don’t really have a clue, I’ve heard Ryzen is for gaming and threadripper is for everything else like video editing etc which I don’t do, I just want a PC purely for gaming, money isn’t much of an issue, please advise

Many thanks

 

[Koekieezz]

I haven’t had AMD for years but loads of people really recommend AMD now but I don’t really have a clue

If you only aims for gaming, go for intel, they're done pretty great at game, but if you do want to do multi tasking such as rendering, streaming, or else, Ryzen is bang for the buck for you, even if you don't do rendering, streaming, etc. it would save your buck since it's mostly futureproof, and its extra feature might make you no worry if someday, you want to do one of those.

 

[GarrettL]

I'm a long time Intel user since AMD couldn't compete for so long. Last AMD build for me was Athlon.

I built a Ryzen pc gaming rig last November. I'm 52 and been a gamer forever. This Ryzen pc is fantastic for gaming. Yes you can get a few more frames with an Intel, and in many games it's just a few frames. But when I built last year, the Intel's were overpriced.

Now Intel is lowering pricing on it's newest cpu's and they do offer a much better value. But AMD does offer PCIe 4.0 and after having it, I won't do without it on any pc. You have less restrictive storage options and the M2 NVMe's are crazy fast.

There is no wrong choice, both offer good products for gaming. AMD still offers great value with the 3900x for sale for for as low as $389. But trying to find an AMD motherboard is extremely difficult due to Covid. Lot's of AMD rigs were built in the last few months in the US.

 

[Deleted member 2720853]

I'm surprised, and pleased, that there's no instant "Get AMD" answers in here.

Thanks for downvoting and encouraging company bias instead of a fair review of both sides.

 

[Zerk2012]

For just pure gaming I would get the 10700K 8 cores with hyperthreading or the 10600k 6 cores with hyperthreading should be released any day. The 10700k is already out.

 

[NightHawkRMX]

Well, i wouldn't buy a 9700k or 9900k, I would buy the new 10th generation CPUs that are better value.

Purely for gaming, Intel's 10ty generation still edges out AMD currently.

Amd still has its benefits. AMD is more feature rich. Ryzen has pcie 4.0 support which currently allows for faster storage and likely will be of benefit with future gpus. Most ryzen cpus come with a stock cooler. Amd also has a boatload of cache on most new ryzen cpus which helps for creative workloads.

Often AMD is cheaper, however with 10th gen cutting prices and boosting performance, for strictly gaming, intel would be my choice. Really an i5 like a 10600k is all you need for gaming.

Amd and intel both have some availability and stock issues from what i see.

 

[sizzling]

The lead Intel has in FPS in reviews is in specific scenarios designed to maximise the difference between CPU’s. You need to consider if these scenarios apply to you. Intel has a lead at lower resolutions (1080p) when matched with a high end gpu (2080/2080S/2080Ti). As you go up in resolution or drop down gpu levels the difference between CPU’s reduces very quickly to either be negligible or nonexistent. For example I game at a higher resolution (1440p) with a 2080S using a 3700X, I am entirely gpu bound in my games and I know even if I switched to Intel the most Id see is a few FPS but mostly no difference. However if I was at 1080p I’d expect to see a measurable uplift by using a 9700k/9900k or 10th gen equivalents.

 

[GarrettL]

I'm surprised, and pleased, that there's no instant "Get AMD" answers in here.

It has been that way for several months on this forum, but pricing is king. When it's not an automatic Intel or AMD answer the consumer usually is the winner.

 

[GarrettL]

The lead Intel has in FPS in reviews is in specific scenarios designed to maximise the difference between CPU’s. You need to consider if these scenarios apply to you. Intel has a lead at lower resolutions (1080p) when matched with a high end gpu (2080/2080S/2080Ti). As you go up in resolution or drop down gpu levels the difference between CPU’s reduces very quickly to either be negligible or nonexistent. For example I game at a higher resolution (1440p) with a 2080S using a 3700X, I am entirely gpu bound in my games and I know even if I switched to Intel the most Id see is a few FPS but mostly no difference. However if I was at 1080p I’d expect to see a measurable uplift by using a 9700k/9900k or 10th gen equivalents.

And that's how I ended up with AMD as well. With the money I saved going AMD helped maintain my budget for 1440p with a 2070S.

For the sticklers, yes Intel gets a few more frames. Brand loyalist want that title. Will be interesting to see how AMD's 4000's compare to Intel's latest offering.

So yeah, there is no wrong choice, the question is...what's your budget?

 

[dorsai]

I’m wanting to build a new gaming PC and I’m stuck between i7 9700k and i9 9900k, I’ve seen gameplay videos where frames per second are basically the same for both CPU’s but I’ve heard there’s less strain on the i9 9900k. I haven’t had AMD for years but loads of people really recommend AMD now but I don’t really have a clue, I’ve heard Ryzen is for gaming and threadripper is for everything else like video editing etc which I don’t do, I just want a PC purely for gaming, money isn’t much of an issue, please advise

Many thanks

You didn't mention your GPU or monitor resolution...if you're running a mid level GPU like a 2070 at 1440p then AMD will game basically equal to the Intel CPUs depending on the specific CPUs being discussed.

If you're planning on running a 2080ti then Intel would be my choice as they still have an edge when pushing high end video cards. A persons ability to tell the difference between say 180fps and 165fps is another topic of discussion but there's no doubt for pure high end gaming Intel still has an advantage today.

A couple of months from now is murkier with Ryzen 4000 series coming out relatively soon...at that point my guess is even at high end gaming AMD will reach parity with Intel but nobody knows for sure until the chips roll out.

 

[Flapybird]

I’m wanting to build a new gaming PC and I’m stuck between i7 9700k and i9 9900k, I’ve seen gameplay videos where frames per second are basically the same for both CPU’s but I’ve heard there’s less strain on the i9 9900k. I haven’t had AMD for years but loads of people really recommend AMD now but I don’t really have a clue, I’ve heard Ryzen is for gaming and threadripper is for everything else like video editing etc which I don’t do, I just want a PC purely for gaming, money isn’t much of an issue, please advise

Many thanks

http://valid.x86.fr/0eeq80
Amd Is much better I think.

 

[Deleted member 2720853]

It has been that way for several months on this forum, but pricing is king. When it's not an automatic Intel or AMD answer the consumer usually is the winner.

Yeah, my next build will definitely be Ryzen. For now, I just wanted an upgrade to my crappy airflow prebuilt.

 

[RodroX]

The lead intel has for gaming is around 3%~15% as long as you keep the resolution low (1080p) and the details at medium or high (depending on the game), and those numbers are mainly if you pair those CPUs with a high end RTX 2080TI, so if thats your case scenario go Intel.

Ive seen and read about 10 reviews of the new 10th gen Intel chips, from Tomshardware, LTT, Guru3D, GamerNexus, Hardware Unboxed, Paul's Hardware, Teach Deals, etc. and what i got from those is:

1. If you only care about high FPS, 1080p, medium details and money is a no-problema then i9 10900K
2. If you care about FPS but money is an issue then 10600K. (Gamer Nexus has a guide on how to turn a Core i5 10600K on an almost 10900K with just a few BIOS tweaks).

(The above two if you can find stock at all).

3. Everything else -> Ryzen 5 3600 / 7 3700X / 9 3900X + B550/X570 motherboard.

If you can wait to build a system then you shoud wait for new restock since after human malware started there are lots of missing components.

Keep in mind that the new 10th gen will require a Z490 board and a very decent cooler for stock operation. If you plan to enable MCE or OC, then the very decent cooler transform into a 360mm AIO as the minimum and you will have to factor a power consumption of around 200~320 Watts for the CPU and Mobo alone (depending on the 10th gen model).

Heck now that I think about it maybe the i9 9900K is the best bet (albeit been a dead platform) right now for really high FPS, maybe not the highest one anymore but still, Who can see the diference between AVG of 220 or 225?

As someone said already theres no wrong buy right now, unless of course you buy the i7 9700K or the i7 10700K, those two seems to be a really stupid buy.

 

[NightHawkRMX]

A 10600k is essentially an 8700k however with a mild clock bump coupled with tweaks to keep temperatures down. You still will need a hefty cooler for overclocking, but the heat output is nowhere near a higher-end CPU like a 9900k, 10700k, or 10900k.

A $35-40 Arctic freezer 34 esports should handle it fine at stock or maybe a very mild overclock. You will want something beefier for a hefty overclock.

 

[TerryLaze]

The lead intel has for gaming is around 3%~15% as long as you keep the resolution low (1080p) and the details at medium or high (depending on the game), and those numbers are mainly if you pair those CPUs with a high end RTX 2080TI, so if thats your case scenario go Intel.

Nobody pays so much money only for right now,only for this generation of GPUs.
Todays 2080ti is tomorrow's 3060ti or 4050ti or whatever, getting more frames at 1080 today means getting more frames at 4k tomorrow with your next GPU a few generations in.

 

[drivinfast247]

If you're planning on running a 2080ti then Intel would be my choice as they still have an edge when pushing high end video cards. A persons ability to tell the difference between say 180fps and 165fps is another topic of discussion but there's no doubt for pure high end gaming Intel still has an advantage today. .......

What does running a 2080ti lead you to say he should run an Intel CPU?

 

[GarrettL]

Many gaming benchmarks tend to use the 2080ti as it shows the cpu limitation at 1080p. Intel is usually ahead by a few frames on many games at 1080p. I think that's what he was trying to say.

I went to 1440p earlier this year, I will never go back to 1080p gaming.

 

[Phaaze88]

Short version:
Go Intel: Gaming only, 1080p resolution or lower, money is no object.
Go AMD: All purpose machine, 1440p resolution or higher, value conscious.

 

[v71]

I’m wanting to build a new gaming PC and I’m stuck between i7 9700k and i9 9900k, I’ve seen gameplay videos where frames per second are basically the same for both CPU’s but I’ve heard there’s less strain on the i9 9900k. I haven’t had AMD for years but loads of people really recommend AMD now but I don’t really have a clue, I’ve heard Ryzen is for gaming and threadripper is for everything else like video editing etc which I don’t do, I just want a PC purely for gaming, money isn’t much of an issue, please advise

Many thanks

The 1st question that people should normally ask you is what Monitor do you have? A 1080p 60hz or something higher resolution and Hz, as this will determine the refresh per sec and, despite some, the approximate number of FPS the monitor will show. [edit - hence, it will be easier to understand what GPU and CPU you might want/ppl can recommend]