[SOLVED] Upgrade from i7 4790 to last

[Koentro]

Hello, everyone! I need to upgrade from the i7 4790 and would like your recommendation for a more powerful CPU. The 4th Gen was a beast that managed to get to 2022 still packing some considerable punch. So could you please recommend me a CPU with a similar profile? I mean, powerful and that have a great potential to last like the i7 4790 did? Things to note:

1. I play in 1080p only and don't plan to change resolution. The games I play are usually the latest releases, like Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, Wild Hearts, Spider-Man, Halo Infinite etc
2. Budget: $350 ~ $400
3. I don't feel confident to do OC, so a non-K version would be ideal.
4. If possible, could you recommend a mobo for the CPU that you are recommending?

Thank you very much for your time to read.

EDIT: I got a 750w PSU by Corsair (Plus Gold), SSD Samsung Evo 850, GTX 1070.

 

[Lafong]

That budget for CPU?

Or for CPU, motherboard, and RAM?

You'll need DDR4 or DDR5.

 

[jnjnilson6]

Hello, everyone! I need to upgrade from the i7 4790 and would like your recommendation for a more powerful CPU. The 4th Gen was a beast that managed to get to 2022 still packing some considerable punch. So could you please recommend me a CPU with a similar profile? I mean, powerful and that have a great potential to last like the i7 4790 did? Things to note:

1. I play in 1080p only and don't plan to change resolution. The games I play are usually the latest releases, like Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, Wild Hearts, Spider-Man, Halo Infinite etc
2. Budget: $350 ~ $400
3. I don't feel confident to do OC, so a non-K version would be ideal.
4. If possible, could you recommend a mobo for the CPU that you are recommending?

Thank you very much for your time to read.

A good CPU would be anything as fast as or faster than a Core i5-13600 (Raptor Lake; 13th gen) or a Core i7-12700 (Alder Lake; 12th gen). Aforementioned CPUs have synonymous performance.

About RAM, you may get either DDR4 or DDR5, but make sure you've got at least 24 Gigabytes. I would recommend at least 3200 MHz DDR4. (Do make sure the motherboard and RAM you'll be getting are compatible with one another.)

It would be good for the motherboard to be a fine brand like ASUS. You'd basically need an LGA1700 and would have to read up on the motherboard website about the compatibility in regards to the hardware you'll be installing on it (appropriate BIOS version for CPU support, PCIe lanes, Ports and compatibility, RAM support, etc...).

I would recommend that you get a liquid cooling system (it will be expensive and back in the day Corsair was a very good brand). Or otherwise a powerful air cooler. (Noctua thermal paste is very good.)

Do make sure your PSU provides the necessary power for the system, that the motherboard is compatible with your devices and fits nicely into the box and that the temperatures inside are good.

-> Another thing. You may write up the other specifications of your current system. If you have not an SSD, it would definitely be something you should be looking into as an upgrade. (I recommend Samsung NVMe).

-> If you would like to get a little leeway on the money side, you can consider getting an i5-12400 or i5-13400. It would still provide very good performance, towering vastly on the i7-4790.

Even if you get a cheaper motherboard and cheaper cooling and a cheaper CPU and if you've already got a good SSD, the update would be considerably pricey. So you should either stick up with the i7-4790 for some time further ahead or plan further into your budget for the particular parts. Sometimes it's better to buy parts a little bit more on the expensive side than get the cheapest ones. And at other times cheaper parts may work out better than more expensive ones. So it's pretty much a roll of the dice. But the most important factor is compatibility. You should be absolutely sure everything's compatible before making your purchase.

 

[Eximo]

A little overbudget, but this is a really good deal for a 12700K. You don't have to overclock it.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i7-12700K 3.6 GHz 12-Core Processor ($258.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Silver Soul 135 82 CFM CPU Cooler ($30.90 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock Z690 Phantom Gaming 4 ATX LGA1700 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Kingston Fury Renegade RGB 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3600 CL16 Memory ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $519.87
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-03-02 09:55 EST-0500

Alternatives don't save much. The 13400F is decently priced, but motherboard prices that would 100% compatible out of the box are a little high. Actually makes some sense to switch to DDR5.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i5-13400F 2.5 GHz 10-Core Processor ($209.94 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Silver Soul 135 82 CFM CPU Cooler ($30.90 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B760M PG Riptide Micro ATX LGA1700 Motherboard ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Mushkin Redline 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-5200 CL36 Memory ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $470.82
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-03-02 10:01 EST-0500

 

[Math Geek]

you did not say what psu you are using and it's age, nor the gpu you have. that is needed so we can be sure it will all work together and power up.

considering how long you used the 4790 and the prices of current gen parts, i'd go with a nice AM4 build which is plenty strong all will be for a time to come. this would be the best bang for the buck and not require an expensive mobo and cooling like the newer chips do.

this is just the mob/chip/ram but most likely you'll want a new psu and a nice ssd to go with it if you don't already have it.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 5700X 3.4 GHz 8-Core Processor ($179.00 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: be quiet! Pure Rock 2 CPU Cooler ($39.90 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B550 Phantom Gaming 4 ATX AM4 Motherboard ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Aegis 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $388.88
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-03-02 10:00 EST-0500

i've built this exact system already and know the parts work together and the low power chip is easy to cool with a nice budget cooler. this is just an example of what you can use, fel free to change it if you have another cooler in mind. but it won't need any major cooling for sure

 

[Eximo]

Also an AMD option that is pretty reasonable.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 5700X 3.4 GHz 8-Core Processor ($179.00 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Silver Soul 135 82 CFM CPU Cooler ($30.90 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B550 Phantom Gaming 4 ATX AM4 Motherboard ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3600 CL18 Memory ($75.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $385.88
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-03-02 10:06 EST-0500

 

[Koentro]

Thank you for the replies, everyone, very insightful! I would rather go with an Air Cooler, it suits my experience and confidence with cleaning and such.

I will see if the i7 12700! Just out of curiosity, a gen 11th could last for years? I based the budget on an average conversion from dollars to Brazilian Real (I live in Brazil) to give you a better idea what I can afford.

I'm sorry for not mentioning the PSU, I should have done that: it's a 750w Plus Gold by Corsair (since 2019). I use it with a GTX 1070 (since 2017), which I plan to switch for a 3070. I have an SSD as well: Samsung Evo 850. In case I get a new mobo, I wouldn't have to get a new SSD (since 2017), right? I use HDD to store games and secondary files. Ah! I've had the i7 4790 since 2017 as well.

Thank you for the complete rigs you suggested, everyone. In the meantime, I will check their prices in my country. I appreciate a lot the time you're all taking to help me with it.

 

[Math Geek]

did not know you were in brazil, that may change it all dramatically. prices and availability are wildly different from country to country. past experience looking at brazil shops, shows they are rarely even close to what we can get in the US.

we can look deeper at what you can actually buy if you can give us a site or 2 you can buy from and a budget in your local currency.

 

[Eximo]

I think the 11700K is around $240, and the motherboard prices are climbing. 12th gen makes more sense at this point.

You can re-use your SATA drives just fine. Yes, you should look into an M.2 NVMe SSD as your boot drive. 500GB these days is very affordable, but common recommendation is at least 1TB.

 

[jnjnilson6]

Thank you for the replies, everyone, very insightful! I would rather go with an Air Cooler, it suits my experience and confidence with cleaning and such.

I will see if the i7 12700! Just out of curiosity, a gen 11th could last for years? I based the budget on an average conversion from dollars to Brazilian Real (I live in Brazil) to give you a better idea what I can afford.

I'm sorry for not mentioning the PSU, I should have done that: it's a 750w Plus Gold by Corsair (since 2019). I use it with a GTX 1070 (since 2017), which I plan to switch for a 3070. I have an SSD as well: Samsung Evo 850. In case I get a new mobo, I wouldn't have to get a new SSD (since 2017), right? I use HDD to store games and secondary files. Ah! I've had the i7 4790 since 2017 as well.

Thank you for the complete rigs you suggested, everyone. In the meantime, I will check their prices in my country. I appreciate a lot the time you're all taking to help me with it.

The PSU is very good and you won't have to get a new SSD on the new system. You may, however, need to acquire a new Windows license; there's also a chance you may not and that the current license will work.

I would not really recommend getting Intel 11th gen, because the socket (LGA1200) differs from the socket for Alder Lake and Raptor Lake (12th and 13th gen; socket LGA1700) and upgrading in the future would require again a swap of motherboard.

I am wishing you all the best with updating your rig and many timeless hours spent reveling in grasping and incredible experiences!

 

[Eximo]

LGA1700 is also already done, so that doesn't matter too much.

So is AM4 for that matter.

AM5 would be the best choice. But that means sticking to a pretty low end motherboard and memory. But does leave you open for potential CPU upgrades for several generations.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 7600 3.8 GHz 6-Core Processor ($229.00 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte B650M DS3H Micro ATX AM5 Motherboard ($149.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Mushkin Redline 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-5200 CL36 Memory ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $488.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-03-02 10:56 EST-0500

 

[Koentro]

@jnjnilson6 Thank you very much, I'm very much leaning towards that CPU! I will check its TDP next. I worry about that because I work as a freelancer from home, so the PC remains on basically 18 hours a day.

@Math Geek This website: https://www.kabum.com.br/produto/33...n-vega-8-windows-11-home-cinza-m515da-br1213w Budget in BRL: R$ 2100

 

[Eximo]

Intel Total $2220
I5-12400F (six core)
B660 motherboard
2x8GB DDR4 3600

https://www.kabum.com.br/produto/28...z-max-turbo-cache-18mb-lga-1700-bx8071512400f

https://www.kabum.com.br/produto/368052/placa-mae-msi-intel-lga-1700-matx-ddr4-pro-b660m-p-ddr4

https://www.kabum.com.br/produto/17...2x8gb-3600mhz-ddr4-cl17-preto-kf436c17bbk2-16

You can shave a little by dropping down to the i3-13100F (quad core)

Or AMD $2040

R5-5600 (six core) : R$ 840

A520 motherboard R$ 580:
https://www.kabum.com.br/produto/129653/placa-mae-asus-prime-a520m-e-amd-am4-matx-ddr4

R$ 620
https://www.kabum.com.br/produto/17...2x8gb-3600mhz-ddr4-cl17-preto-kf436c17bbk2-16

They really don't carry any decent motherboards though.