[SOLVED] When is it worth to sacrifice CPU performance for GPU in a gaming build?

[ayaya clap]

So ive been looking at buying a new PC and i have become torn between whether to get a better CPU and downgrade the GPU in the computer i buy.
I want to use it for gaming so GPU should be more important but now that games are using more cores + i might want to stream i dont know whether to go i7 7820hk + gtx 1070 or i7 8750h + gtx 1060. With my current PC with an i7 6700HQ its my CPU that cant handle those higher FPS in games like CS / VALORANT and Overwatch. My CPU gets too hot and starts dropping frames and to counter this i have to downclock.
I dont know if this counts here or not but i want to play competitive games so graphics have to just look good enough as FPS is most important

 

[sizzling]

For the games you mention they are not gpu heavy and if high fps are the aim then theoretically the i7 8750h is the better choice assuming it also has dual channel 16GB RAM. Some laptops are sold with single channel RAM to save costs and this cripples performance and the specs may not list if it’s single or dual channel and you are reliant on reviews. As you have already found gaming laptops often suffer overheating and this makes it hard to compare based on specs only, a lower spec laptop with better cooling can outperform a higher spec laptop which suffers thermal throttling or has had its components performance/power limited to reduce the heat produced. You really need to look at reviews of each specific laptop, some gaming laptops are terrible because of inadequate cooling but their specs look good.

 

[ayaya clap]

For the games you mention they are not gpu heavy and if high fps are the aim then theoretically the i7 8750h is the better choice assuming it also has dual channel 16GB RAM. Some laptops are sold with single channel RAM to save costs and this cripples performance and the specs may not list if it’s single or dual channel and you are reliant on reviews. As you have already found gaming laptops often suffer overheating and this makes it hard to compare based on specs only, a lower spec laptop with better cooling can outperform a higher spec laptop which suffers thermal throttling or has had its components performance/power limited to reduce the heat produced. You really need to look at reviews of each specific laptop, some gaming laptops are terrible because of inadequate cooling but their specs look good.

Thanks for the answer! I think im going for the 7820HK then, as the 1060 lists only 8GB ram and its unlikely to be dual channel and neither can i find evidence that it could be upgraded. From what ive heard its likely i get a bad paste though and have to reapply my own on the CPU but oh well...

 

[King Dranzer]

So ive been looking at buying a new PC and i have become torn between whether to get a better CPU and downgrade the GPU in the computer i buy.
I want to use it for gaming so GPU should be more important but now that games are using more cores + i might want to stream i dont know whether to go i7 7820hk + gtx 1070 or i7 8750h + gtx 1060. With my current PC with an i7 6700HQ its my CPU that cant handle those higher FPS in games like CS / VALORANT and Overwatch. My CPU gets too hot and starts dropping frames and to counter this i have to downclock.
I dont know if this counts here or not but i want to play competitive games so graphics have to just look good enough as FPS is most important

Obviously i7-7820HK + GTX1070. Reason the gain you get from going for GTX1070 over GTX1060 is lot greater than going for i7-8750H over i7-7820HK.
But what price point are you looking at. There could be better options available. Please give us the maximum budget you have for the Laptop PC and we will search for the best possible option. If not from US then please state your Country and give us budget in your local currency.

 

[ayaya clap]

Obviously i7-7820HK + GTX1070. Reason the gain you get from going for GTX1070 over GTX1060 is lot greater than going for i7-8750H over i7-7820HK.
But what price point are you looking at. There could be better options available. Please give us the maximum budget you have for the Laptop PC and we will search for the best possible option. If not from US then please state your Country and give us budget in your local currency.

I am looking at used laptops on ebay, particularly alienwares because i have a good history with them, so my budget is usually 1000$ USD for the actual product if i ballpark the estimates for VAT and shipping after that.
I live in luxembourg and my budget is 1200 - 1300 euro. Both products are roughly the same price.

 

[geofelt]

Do you really need the portability of a laptop?
If you do not, there are many advantages of a desktop.
You can upgrade a desktop. A desktop can use a larger, more immersive monitor.

One problem with a gaming laptop is heat.
Under load , a fast processor coupled with a strong discrete graphics chip will be prone to thermal throttling.
Laptop coolers, of necessity, must be small, light, and are not very capable.

As to your original question, on a desktop, a balanced gamer will budget 2x the cost of the processor for the graphics card.
If you favor fast action games, buy the stronger graphics option.

 

[TheoJames18]

I suggest you to build a pc, not laptop if you concern about the heat, and also cheaper and upgradable. Get i7 9700/Ryzen 3700X with RTX2070/RX5700XT it will be nice

 

[ayaya clap]

Do you really need the portability of a laptop?
If you do not, there are many advantages of a desktop.
You can upgrade a desktop. A desktop can use a larger, more immersive monitor.

One problem with a gaming laptop is heat.
Under load , a fast processor coupled with a strong discrete graphics chip will be prone to thermal throttling.
Laptop coolers, of necessity, must be small, light, and are not very capable.

As to your original question, on a desktop, a balanced gamer will budget 2x the cost of the processor for the graphics card.
If you favor fast action games, buy the stronger graphics option.

I suggest you to build a pc, not laptop if you concern about the heat, and also cheaper and upgradable. Get i7 9700/Ryzen 3700X with RTX2070/RX5700XT it will be nice

Its not easy to take a full-sized PC on a plane and I have to travel for weeks and sometimes months at a time so id rather have something worse that i can carry with me than to have something i own but cant use all the time.

 

[geofelt]

For portability, look for a 9th/10th gen processor that is likely to run cooler and give you better battery life.
When running on battery, on a plane, your processor and gpu will run at reduced performance to preserve battery run time. Heat should not be a problem then.
It is when plugged in that heat becomes an issue. You may have to reduce your performance then.
Look for a laptop with a good cooling system.
I have been very pleased with a lenovo X1 gen2 extreme.
https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpad-x1/X1-Extreme-Gen-2/p/22TP2TXX1E2

 

[ayaya clap]

For portability, look for a 9th/10th gen processor that is likely to run cooler and give you better battery life.
When running on battery, on a plane, your processor and gpu will run at reduced performance to preserve battery run time. Heat should not be a problem then.
It is when plugged in that heat becomes an issue. You may have to reduce your performance then.
Look for a laptop with a good cooling system.
I have been very pleased with a lenovo X1 gen2 extreme.
https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpad-x1/X1-Extreme-Gen-2/p/22TP2TXX1E2

Huh i looked at some of the models and compared the performances to what i looked at before and dang i didnt know you could get such specs for new. I think im getting a lenovo instead.

 

[King Dranzer]

Huh i looked at some of the models and compared the performances to what i looked at before and dang i didnt know you could get such specs for new. I think im getting a lenovo instead.

Don't go for that Lenovo there are far better options near you.
ASUS TUF A15 R7 4800H + RTX2060 + 8GB RAM + 512GB NVMe SSD
https://webshop.asus.com/de/notebooks-pcs/notebooks/tuf-gaming/2666/tuf-gaming-a15-fa506iv-al127t
DELL G5 i7-10750H + RTX2060 +16GB + 512GB NVMe SSD
https://www.dell.com/de-de/shop/laptops/neu-dell-g5-15/spd/g-series-15-5500-laptop/cng5008

 

[ayaya clap]

Don't go for that Lenovo there are far better options near you.
ASUS TUF A15 R7 4800H + RTX2060 + 8GB RAM + 512GB NVMe SSD
https://webshop.asus.com/de/notebooks-pcs/notebooks/tuf-gaming/2666/tuf-gaming-a15-fa506iv-al127t
DELL G5 i7-10750H + RTX2060 +16GB + 512GB NVMe SSD
https://www.dell.com/de-de/shop/laptops/neu-dell-g5-15/spd/g-series-15-5500-laptop/cng5008

Unfortunately they dont ship to me 🙁

 

[King Dranzer]

Unfortunately they dont ship to me 🙁

There are sites like Amazon.de which ship. So search for the model on sites like that. There many more sites like Amazon.de search the trusted sites and purchase from there.