Value/Performance: i5 6500 vs. i5 6600K

[Biopanda]

Hello everyone,

I've been essentially building a new computer (scrapping my old one and keeping the GTX 960, 600W PSU, 1 TB HDD) and have concluded that I will be buying the ASUS Z170-A motherboard (1151 socket). Not sure if it's worth mentioning I have a 60 Hz Monitor at the moment.

The only diverging choices I have regard the CPU: take the cheaper i5 6500 or take the i5 6600K? Is it worth investing more money into the 6600K if my answer to whether or not I plan to overclock is a tentative "probably"? (I want to overclock but I'm not sure if I'll hit limitations or changing my mind).

The current price difference between the 6600K and 6500 is around $44.

Thank you in advance!

 

[TJ Hooker]

You have to look at the total platform difference for overclocking. That means the added cost of a -k CPU, an aftermarket cooler, and a Z170 mobo. When I've run the rough numbers in the past, the general conclusion I've drawn is that you typically only get around the same GHz per dollar, maybe a little more. And real world performance per doller will likely be less because it doesn't scale perfectly with clock speed.

Now, it sounds like you've already decided you're getting a Z170 board regardless, so I guess that doesn't really factor into the cost difference. Even so, I think I'd lean towards just getting the 6500, unless the idea of overclocking appeals to you in and of itself.

 

[synphul]

Overclocking is more of a personal choice, it depends on the program or game. Some games it won't matter as much, games like bf1 it will make a difference. The i5 6500 max's out at 3.6ghz when 1 core is fully loaded. If all 4 are fully loaded it will reach around 3.4ghz due to the way turbo boost works. An i5 6600k with a modest air cooler like a cryorig h7 or reeven justice for around $35-42 should allow you to reach around 4.5-4.6ghz across all 4 cores.

That's over a 32% speed increase. Chances are you should be able to get another year or two useful life out of a 6600k with the improved clock speeds over a 6500. By the time the 6500 is showing its age the 6600k oc'd will still be as relevant as kabylake or cannonlake is stock, maybe even a bit better.

If you're in the U.S. keep in mind that black friday/cyber monday and holiday sales are around a couple weeks away. You might find a few discounts on things like the 6600k and coolers.

 

[Biopanda]

To TJ Hooker: OC appeals to me a lot, it's a matter of having the appropriate circumstances and knowledge to (and other parts such as coolers sufficient enough). Thanks for the response!

Overclocking is more of a personal choice, it depends on the program or game. Some games it won't matter as much, games like bf1 it will make a difference. The i5 6500 max's out at 3.6ghz when 1 core is fully loaded. If all 4 are fully loaded it will reach around 3.4ghz due to the way turbo boost works. An i5 6600k with a modest air cooler like a cryorig h7 or reeven justice for around $35-42 should allow you to reach around 4.5-4.6ghz across all 4 cores.

That's over a 32% speed increase. Chances are you should be able to get another year or two useful life out of a 6600k with the improved clock speeds over a 6500. By the time the 6500 is showing its age the 6600k oc'd will still be as relevant as kabylake or cannonlake is stock, maybe even a bit better.

If you're in the U.S. keep in mind that black friday/cyber monday and holiday sales are around a couple weeks away. You might find a few discounts on things like the 6600k and coolers.

Thanks for answering. Are popular components such as the 6600k prone to being slashed in prices? Last year if I remember GPUs and CPUs only saw small decreases in price (or stock shortages).

 

[synphul]

The price savings won't typically be huge, you're not likely to see a $230 cpu on sale for $170 or anything. It will most likely be reduced to around $210-215. That's what they did with the 4690k's the black fri/cyber mon following their release but $10-15 is better than nothing. Other components may be on sale as well, things like cases, motherboards etc.

If putting together a new build and willing to watch the sales you might save $30-50 overall. A couple years ago after the 4690k was released and replaced the 4670k, the 4690k was on sale and the 4670k wasn't. It actually made the newer refresh cpu's cheaper than the originals they replaced.

 

[Biopanda]

Thank you for answering my question!

 

[Ecky]

I know it's not in direct answer to your question but personally, I find that since you can get an i7 6700 + B150 for around the same price as a 6600K + Z170 + cooler, the i7 generally holds more value. In modern games, 2nd generation i7's are generally looking better than 6th generation i5's, and in many cases an overclocked 6600K doesn't match a stock i7 in performance, and ends up drawing 2-3x as much power.

 

[synphul]

An i7 with a lower end mobo is another way to go with it. Some games make use of ht, some make use of clock speed. An i7 6700 won't be any faster in terms of clock speed than say an i5 6600 (non k), they're only 100mhz apart. An oc'd i5 won't draw 2-3x as much power though.

Without overclocking the 6700k it's only 200mhz faster than the 6700 so pretty close for comparison purposes. The 6700k stock consumes around 137w load (system power) and the 6600k stock consumes 129w (system power). Oc'd to 4.5 the 6600k system only draws 164w, not 274w to 411w as "2-3x the power" would suggest. An oc'd 6700k @ 4.7ghz draws 194w so it's roughly in line. I7's generally run a few degrees hotter and consume a little more power than an i5 due to hyper threading.

http://www.kitguru.net/components/cpu/luke-hill/intel-core-i7-6700k-i5-6600k-skylake-cpu-review/9/

Any performance comparisons I've seen an oc'd i5 does keep up with a stock i7, one achieves the performance through processing data faster, the other by processing the data more efficiently if it can make use of the ht.

 

[Ecky]

An i7 with a lower end mobo is another way to go with it. Some games make use of ht, some make use of clock speed. An i7 6700 won't be any faster in terms of clock speed than say an i5 6600 (non k), they're only 100mhz apart. An oc'd i5 won't draw 2-3x as much power though.

Without overclocking the 6700k it's only 200mhz faster than the 6700 so pretty close for comparison purposes. The 6700k stock consumes around 137w load (system power) and the 6600k stock consumes 129w (system power). Oc'd to 4.5 the 6600k system only draws 164w, not 274w to 411w as "2-3x the power" would suggest. An oc'd 6700k @ 4.7ghz draws 194w so it's roughly in line. I7's generally run a few degrees hotter and consume a little more power than an i5 due to hyper threading.

http://www.kitguru.net/components/cpu/luke-hill/intel-core-i7-6700k-i5-6600k-skylake-cpu-review/9/

Any performance comparisons I've seen an oc'd i5 does keep up with a stock i7, one achieves the performance through processing data faster, the other by processing the data more efficiently if it can make use of the ht.

If we assume 30w of system power, a 65w TDP i7 will be ~65w, while an OC'd i5 will draw 130-160w (depending on how far you take it). Total system power isn't 2-3x higher but the contribution from the CPU alone can be.

 

[turkey3_scratch]

Ya but while gaming the I5-6600K is about 52W and the I7-6700K is 70W. Might as well use Tomshardware's data which is done with much better equipment that actually isolates the power of the CPU http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/skylake-intel-core-i7-6700k-core-i5-6600k,4252-11.html

Under torture the I5-6600K doesn't even seem to reach its rated TDP. The I7 does reach 100W under torture.