Build Advice Upgrading my 2016 build ?

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Metalwell

Metalwell

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Dec 15, 2015
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Hey everyone, I would like to upgrade my system from 2016 in the following months, towards the end of this year to be precise. I would love if I dont have to change a lot of hardware to save some costs. I will game on this machine and I do sound processing in Ableton from time to time,nothing fancy just a hobby. I would appreciate any recommendations, my budget is going to be a little bit tight but I would like to move some stuff around to adjust pricing.
I would like this to run for some time, I could always change other parts in the future, maybe in a year? Like PSU however all of these parts had served me well for years.
Do you think I could replace the CPU for a cheaper one but somewhat in similar performance margins?

I forgot to add but I have a1080p monitor and I am not thinking about changing it until it gives away, I really like it but soon I will switch to 2K.

I have highlighted the changed parts.

Here is my current setup:
PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4 GHz Quad-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 64.95 CFM CPU Cooler
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming 3 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 850 Evo 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Storage: Corsair MP510 960 GB M.2-2280 PCIe 3.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($65.98 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Blue 2 TB 3.5" 7200 RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.59 @ Lenovo)
Video Card: Gigabyte GAMING GeForce GTX 1070 8 GB Video Card
Case: Corsair Vengeance C70 ATX Mid Tower Case
Power Supply: SeaSonic FOCUS Plus 650 Gold 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($132.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $287.54
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-08-19 00:01 EDT-0400

And this is the upgrades I am thinking about;

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i5-13600K 3.5 GHz 14-Core Processor ($310.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 64.95 CFM CPU Cooler
Motherboard: Gigabyte B660M DS3H AX DDR4 Micro ATX LGA1700 Motherboard ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 850 Evo 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Storage: Corsair MP510 960 GB M.2-2280 PCIe 3.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($65.98 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Blue 2 TB 3.5" 7200 RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.59 @ Lenovo)
Video Card: PNY XLR8 Gaming VERTO EPIC-X RGB GeForce RTX 4080 16 GB Video Card ($1099.99 @ B&H)
Case: Corsair Vengeance C70 ATX Mid Tower Case
Power Supply: SeaSonic FOCUS Plus 650 Gold 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($132.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $1813.51
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-08-19 00:05 EDT-0400
 
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I would opt for a brand new PSU when the time to buy your parts comes around. Your build will do 1440p without an issue, mind you, so you're leaving potential on the table when going 1080p.

If you're going with an K suffix processor, best get a Z series chipset. If you want to stick to B series chipset, it's worthwhile dropping down to a non-K suffix processor.

Towards the end of the month, a lot of things will drop in terms of pricing. I'd seriously consider going with DDR5 when you're jumping to a new processor.
 
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Lutfij said:
I would opt for a brand new PSU when the time to buy your parts comes around. Your build will do 1440p without an issue, mind you, so you're leaving potential on the table when going 1080p.

If you're going with an K suffix processor, best get a Z series chipset. If you want to stick to B series chipset, it's worthwhile dropping down to a non-K suffix processor.

Towards the end of the month, a lot of things will drop in terms of pricing. I'd seriously consider going with DDR5 when you're jumping to a new processor.
Click to expand...
As for motherboard, something like this?

ASUS PRIME Z690-A Intel Z690 Soket 1700 DDR5​


Also do you have any other recommendations?

I will set price alarms and keep the price chart updated till I secure some funds. I want K processor to utilize overclocking capabilities

About the PSU, it really bogs down my price budget. Would it cause too much headache if I kept this PSU, and maybe I can upgrade it a bit later on? I will eventually go for 1440p soon after I have this built set up.
 
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It's not that the PSU is bad, it's just that it's nearing the end of its service life and a general upgrade is a good, convenient time for a PSU replacement. It's unlikely to be actually dangerous.

I would secure the funds and only *then* nail down the hardware you want to use. Even three months can be an eternity when speccing a build and prices and availability can change considerably. Moreover, you don't get any actual advantage to planning this ahead of time.
 
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Lutfij said:
g with an K suffix processor, best get a Z series chipset. If you
Click to expand...

DSzymborski said:
It's not that the PSU is bad, it's just that it's nearing the end of its service life and a general upgrade is a good, convenient time for a PSU replacement. It's unlikely to be actually dangerous.

I would secure the funds and only *then* nail down the hardware you want to use. Even three months can be an eternity when speccing a build and prices and availability can change considerably. Moreover, you don't get any actual advantage to planning this ahead of time.
Click to expand...
During the inflation in my country, it is better for me to buy it as soon as possible at the first price drops. The prices for the hardware will never drop here but there are some flash sales where I can snag some discounted price, that is why I am deciding what to aim for :)
 
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Overclocking a 13600K yields very little advantage. Maybe you are thinking about it for hobbyist/experimental reasons rather than performance?

If you look for non-K processors, you likely won't find a 13600. They seem to be found only on some OEM pre-builts. So you might consider the 13500 or 13700.

If the 13700 proved too expensive, I wouldn't have any qualms about putting a 13600K on a decent quality B series board and just use it without overclocking.

Passmark single thread benchmarks:

13500: 3937

13600K: 4181

13700: 4180

The 13700 has 2 more cores and 4 more threads than the others. I have no idea how much that would help in your use case.
 
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Unfortunately, the graphics card you picked suggests a 750w psu.

Yes, it is a HUGE upgrade over your 1070 card.
Check tom's gpu hierarchy chart:
www.tomshardware.com

GPU Benchmarks and Hierarchy 2023: Graphics Cards Ranked

We've run hundreds of GPU benchmarks on Nvidia, AMD, and Intel graphics cards and ranked them in our comprehensive hierarchy.
www.tomshardware.com www.tomshardware.com

I might look at a lesser graphics card like the 4070ti which is still a big jump but should run on 650W:

On the processor, You have a continuous spectrum of options.
13600K is certainly one of them.
Your I7-6700K was tops in it's time.
It has 8 processing threads and a passmark rating of 8954. That is when all 8 threads are fully busy.
The single thread rating is 2523.
The single thread rating is arguably the more important factor in gaming and desktop quickness.
By comparison, today, a I3-13100 has the same 8 threads but a rating of 15611/3767.
I5-13400 has 16 threads and 26206/3836.
i5-13500 20 threads 32474/3857
I7-13600K has 20 threads and 27564/4187
i7-13700 24 39153/4170.
Any one of these upgrades should be very satisfying.
That said, if you r budget can handle the 13600K, I suggest you buy it.
If you do not, you will always be second guessing yourself wondering if you did the right thing.
The 13th gen processors and the modern motherboards abandon official turbo limits and try to go as fast as they can given workload and cooling restraints. The overclocking capabilities of the K processors are not as effective as the default turbo mechanism for gaming.

Your noctua NH-D14 is a fine cooler and will do the job with any processor.
Noctua will send you a free lga1700 mounting kit.


On ram, no need to upgrade ram so long as 16gb will suit you.
There is no real difference in performance between DDR4 and DDR5. DDR4 motherboards are usually a bit cheaper today.
Intel does not depend on fast ram for performance.
This article suggests that ram speed is not needed for gaming:
www.pcgamer.com

Don't waste money chasing RAM speed for gaming on AMD or Intel

Revisiting the question that every gamer considers when building a new gaming system: does RAM speed matter?
www.pcgamer.com www.pcgamer.com
 
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geofelt said:
Unfortunately, the graphics card you picked suggests a 750w psu.

Yes, it is a HUGE upgrade over your 1070 card.
Check tom's gpu hierarchy chart:
www.tomshardware.com

GPU Benchmarks and Hierarchy 2023: Graphics Cards Ranked

We've run hundreds of GPU benchmarks on Nvidia, AMD, and Intel graphics cards and ranked them in our comprehensive hierarchy.
www.tomshardware.com www.tomshardware.com

I might look at a lesser graphics card like the 4070ti which is still a big jump but should run on 650W:

On the processor, You have a continuous spectrum of options.
13600K is certainly one of them.
Your I7-6700K was tops in it's time.
It has 8 processing threads and a passmark rating of 8954. That is when all 8 threads are fully busy.
The single thread rating is 2523.
The single thread rating is arguably the more important factor in gaming and desktop quickness.
By comparison, today, a I3-13100 has the same 8 threads but a rating of 15611/3767.
I5-13400 has 16 threads and 26206/3836.
i5-13500 20 threads 32474/3857
I7-13600K has 20 threads and 27564/4187
i7-13700 24 39153/4170.
Any one of these upgrades should be very satisfying.
That said, if you r budget can handle the 13600K, I suggest you buy it.
If you do not, you will always be second guessing yourself wondering if you did the right thing.
The 13th gen processors and the modern motherboards abandon official turbo limits and try to go as fast as they can given workload and cooling restraints. The overclocking capabilities of the K processors are not as effective as the default turbo mechanism for gaming.

Your noctua NH-D14 is a fine cooler and will do the job with any processor.
Noctua will send you a free lga1700 mounting kit.


On ram, no need to upgrade ram so long as 16gb will suit you.
There is no real difference in performance between DDR4 and DDR5. DDR4 motherboards are usually a bit cheaper today.
Intel does not depend on fast ram for performance.
This article suggests that ram speed is not needed for gaming:
www.pcgamer.com

Don't waste money chasing RAM speed for gaming on AMD or Intel

Revisiting the question that every gamer considers when building a new gaming system: does RAM speed matter?
www.pcgamer.com www.pcgamer.com
Click to expand...
Appreciate the detailed answer. So, if I get another PSU which is 750W, it is going to be hard on my budget, so I might have to downgrade to 4070Ti, would that futureproof me for 1440p gaming? If I choose this path I can actually snuggle a 1440p monitor. I would really appreciate playing stutter and lag free games. My 1070 is finally causing me distaste, it was an amazing card though.

My other option is to get Seasonic 750W 80+ Gold or Corsair RMx750(which as of now the half the price of Seasonic! I wonder if this is a good PSU, on tier list it is on par with Seasonic)along with GTX4080... which is quite expensive but if it is better, I am not leaving it off the table.

I am definitely buying AN i5 13600k, I am certain on that and for the motherboard I can afford ASUS PRIME Z690.

Now, all I need to decide is whether 4070ti + i5 13600k is good at 1440p gaming for its price budget.
 
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Seasonic focus/prime and Corsair RMx are both top quality power supplies with 7/10 year warranties.
Do not go cheap on the psu.
Modern graphics cards can have some very high power spikes that a stronger psu can handle better.
If upgrading the psu I would really suggest 850w and not a stopgap 750w unit.
It will only consume the power demanded of it, regardless of the max capability.
I am not expert on the new ATX 3.0 standard, but I think a new psu should probably adhere to that standard.
read some reviews.

What kinds of games do you play?
Some like fast action shooters will demand a fast graphics card.
Others like sims, mmo and strategy games will need good single thread performance.
They can probably use a slower graphics card for presentation of high resolution images.

Graphics cards and power supplies are easy enough to upgrade.
Look for a 4070ti that is not maximally overclocked; they will need extra power.
You should be able to run with your current 650W psu.
At least try it first.
 
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geofelt said:
Seasonic focus/prime and Corsair RMx are both top quality power supplies with 7/10 year warranties.
Do not go cheap on the psu.
Modern graphics cards can have some very high power spikes that a stronger psu can handle better.
If upgrading the psu I would really suggest 850w and not a stopgap 750w unit.
It will only consume the power demanded of it, regardless of the max capability.
I am not expert on the new ATX 3.0 standard, but I think a new psu should probably adhere to that standard.
read some reviews.

What kinds of games do you play?
Some like fast action shooters will demand a fast graphics card.
Others like sims, mmo and strategy games will need good single thread performance.
They can probably use a slower graphics card for presentation of high resolution images.

Graphics cards and power supplies are easy enough to upgrade.
Look for a 4070ti that is not maximally overclocked; they will need extra power.
You should be able to run with your current 650W psu.
At least try it first.
Click to expand...
Thanks again for the reply. I have watched some benchmarks on 4070ti + i513600k on 1440p gaming and I am actually quite satisfied with it. And for sometime I will be still gaming at 1080p, so the performance will be more. I mostly play high action games, fps, mmorpgs.

I have did a quick research on 850 watt psus,
If I switch to RTX 4070Ti then I can get Cooler Master MWE, Be Quite System Power 10 950W 80+ Gold or CORSAIR RM850x Shift 850W
I think it is only smart to cheap down on GPU to get a better and a future proof PSU of 850w, what do you think?
So as current system;
RTX 4070ti, (this actually gives me a good headroom to snag a decent psu)
i5 13600k
Asus Prime Z690
And a PSU of 850Watt, I will probably look into this further in a tier list, CORSAIR RM850x Shift 850W, among all of the PSUs I have given, I think I will go with this one.
Maybe, as you said, I will do more research on how my 650 seasonic could handle this setup, and then I can upgrade accordingly later in the future.

One thing I would like to add is, once I buy these components I will not be upgrading for a long time. Would I really need a 850w psu for that matter? or 750 would be just enough?

​

 
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