Is it actually worth me upgrading my i5 3470 to an 8400 or r5 1600?

[matthew.baker1337]

Had this cpu since 2012 but not sure if it's worth the upgrade. I only tend to play games, so I'm not sure if it's gonna be a big increase or worth the money I'll spend on them

 

[vapour]

Are you happy with the gaming performance? If so, no need to upgrade since you know all those choices need new CPU/MB/DDR4 if you still use ddr3.

 

[matthew.baker1337]

Are you happy with the gaming performance? If so, no need to upgrade since you know all those choices need new CPU/MB/DDR4 if you still use ddr3.

Exactly what i was thinking, and yea gaming performance is completely fine for me

 

[vapour]

Keep playing and save some money for better CPUs. canon lake and Zen2 are on the way. When you feel the pc is not good anymore, come here and ask for suggestion for your upgrade

 

[matthew.baker1337]

Keep playing and save some money for better CPUs. canon lake and Zen2 are on the way. When you feel the pc is not good anymore, come here and ask for suggestion for your upgrade

Thanks, I'll just wait. I've pretty much done this for the past two years, wondering weather to get a new cpu or not, considering if it's worth it, but I think I'll just wait another year and get something else instead.

 

[Eximo]

If nothing else you can try to pick up a used 3770 and get a little more performance without spending too much. Then sell the i5, probably many people out there on a 3rd gen i3 or Pentium that might want it.

 

[doubletake]

If nothing else you can try to pick up a used 3770 and get a little more performance without spending too much.

Agree with this. That's what I did for a backup ITX system, swapped out the 3470 for a 3770, upgraded from 8 to 16GB of RAM @ 2133MHz and called it a day. Several games saw quite decent improvements in minimum FPS in CPU bound games.

 

[why_wolf]

not exactly your setup but in the same ballpark. The short answer is no not really, especially if everything is working fine as is. https://youtu.be/gMFd0aVhVKU

 

[goldstone77]

It's more worth it too keep using the same processor and just get a better video card! Is there a specific game you are unable to play?

 

[matthew.baker1337]

It's more worth it too keep using the same processor and just get a better video card! Is there a specific game you are unable to play?

I have an MSI GTX 1060 Gaming X so, not necessarily, it handles most games well. And I'm not playing on 1440p ultra lol, just 1080p

 

[matthew.baker1337]

If nothing else you can try to pick up a used 3770 and get a little more performance without spending too much. Then sell the i5, probably many people out there on a 3rd gen i3 or Pentium that might want it.

I looked at your answer, and i was like "Yea, that's a good idea" So I go on eBay and see that they're selling for £160+ pre-owned. I'd rather but a 1600 or 8400 for the same price lol

 

[why_wolf]

If nothing else you can try to pick up a used 3770 and get a little more performance without spending too much. Then sell the i5, probably many people out there on a 3rd gen i3 or Pentium that might want it.

I looked at your answer, and i was like "Yea, that's a good idea" So I go on eBay and see that they're selling for £160+ pre-owned. I'd rather but a 1600 or 8400 for the same price lol

expect both of those require a new motherboard and new RAM. Making that kind of upgrade cost hundreds more than just the 160 for the CPU itself.

 

[matthew.baker1337]

If nothing else you can try to pick up a used 3770 and get a little more performance without spending too much. Then sell the i5, probably many people out there on a 3rd gen i3 or Pentium that might want it.

I looked at your answer, and i was like "Yea, that's a good idea" So I go on eBay and see that they're selling for £160+ pre-owned. I'd rather but a 1600 or 8400 for the same price lol

expect both of those require a new motherboard and new RAM. Making that kind of upgrade cost hundreds more than just the 160 for the CPU itself.

True, didn't factor that in

 

[mdd1963]

Never upgrade for gaming while performance is still 'just fine'....

Although the i5 is getting a bit 'long in the tooth' in some of the very newest gaming titles, most find it still does the job in 90% of most games....

If your current rig can last a year, next year comes the 9700k/9800k

 

[PistolPaul]

I agonised over the "time to upgrade?" question this summer. My 2500K is over six years old and in the past I've generally swapped out CPUs within four years, hence me asking myself if it was time to move on. However after trying the Star Wars Battlefront 2 Beta and it AUTO setting out to ULTRA and playing at reasonable rates (with an R9 290) I have concluded I am probably going to be okay until Spring next year before I reconsider the situation. While I am glad for my bank balance that I do not need to buy new gear it is sad to see things have stagnated this way.

 

[goldstone77]

Unless you can't do something with the system you have I would suggest waiting. You have 12nm Ryzen, 10nm Intel, and 7nm Ryzen all coming withing the next year or so. My advise, and this goes for GPU's as well, is upgrade on when you have node improvements. The 10nm Intel and 7nm Ryzen will be long nodes, which the improvements won't change much. Those are the upgrades you are looking for. Hell, it might be the last computer you have to buy for a decade.