What do I need to upgrade my CPU?

[pegglegg]

I recently upgraded to NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 6GB, and to 8gb of ddr3 ram. My motherboard is MSI MSI X58 Pro-E (MS-7522), and I have Intel Core i7 920 @ 2.67GHz (it's an old computer).
Now I'm thinking that I may have to upgrade my processor, or is it unnecessary? I would really like to not have to upgrade everything to get a new CPU.

 

[ahdaez]

Typically when upgrading to a new CPU there is two things to keep in mind.

1. Does the Motherboard support your CPU (Make sure the MOBO supports either AMD or INTEL socket type of the CPU & the Generation of CPU)
2. Does the RAM support the Motherboard? (Memory Standard)

NOTE: When looking for new parts - NEWEGG.com has a specs tab check it out when picking parts so you know they're compatible.

Or if you're lazy and don't know anything about computers I recommend https://pcpartpicker.com/

 

[WildCard999]

Overclock your CPU (3.0ghz+), the motherboard should support it and all you'd need to buy is a good aftermarket CPU cooler which will run you around $40. Doing so should give your system a bit more performance so you can save up for a platform upgrade (CPU/MB/DDR4).

 

[Hellfire13]

You dont need to change everything. But you need to change your base platform if you want that card to perform without any bottlenecks. The oldest chip that can perform flawless with the 1060 is the i5-3450, or generically speaking the 3rd gen. i5 series which is around 25%-30% faster than your 920. So there is bound to be some amount of limitation with that 920.

But if you take the upgrade path, your current platform is already out of option as you cannot go anywhere beyond the i7. And upgrading to a relatively older gen. is not worth the price you pay for it. So the best thing to do is upgrade to a recent gen. Intel Coffelake or AMD Ryzen platform.

Choose one of the following as per your budget and preference...

Intel...


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i5-8400 2.8GHz 6-Core Processor ($178.90 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: MSI - Z370-A PRO ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2800 Memory ($91.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $360.88
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-03-26 16:23 EDT-0400



AMD...

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 1600 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor ($149.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus - STRIX B350-F GAMING ATX AM4 Motherboard ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2800 Memory ($91.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $331.97
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-03-26 16:24 EDT-0400


Both of the above should be good upgrades. Intel should give you good gaming performance and AMD should give you good overall performance.