Question Which CPU is great for gaming

[th3gl1tch1nth35y5t3m]

So a month or two ago I finished replacing my GPU it's a RTX 2060 and I am now having troubles with the CPU being pushed to the absolute breaking point most games take up 80-90% of my CPU and I'm wondering which CPU would be the best for gaming focus

 

[WildCard999]

Which CPU do you have now?

What is your budget for upgrades?

Monitor resolution/refresh rate?

While your CPU usage is pretty high there's no reason to upgrade unless your experience performance issues such as stuttering for FPS dips. If possible it may be worth it to wait for Computex to finish to see what will be getting released and also reviews of the 3rd gen Ryzen CPU's which I think is early July.

 

[sizzling]

What do you have now?

Assuming 1080p a Ryzen 2600 with 2x8gb 3000mhz RAM is a great setup but AMD is launching a new generation in the next 2 months which is rumoured to be a big step up. Personally I’m not a fan of the current i5’s but if you want Intel the 9600k is an option but I’d only really consider the i7 9700k.

 

[th3gl1tch1nth35y5t3m]

Which CPU do you have now?

What is your budget for upgrades?

Monitor resolution/refresh rate?

While your CPU usage is pretty high there's no reason to upgrade unless your experience performance issues such as stuttering for FPS dips. If possible it may be worth it to wait for Computex to finish to see what will be getting released and also reviews of the 3rd gen Ryzen CPU's which I think is early July.

Yeah I'm getting big frame stutters because of it my current CPU is a i5-7500 and I don't really have a specific budget margin right now and my monitor is a 1360 x 768 res and 60 refresh rate

 

[th3gl1tch1nth35y5t3m]

What do you have now?

Assuming 1080p a Ryzen 2600 with 2x8gb 3000mhz RAM is a great setup but AMD is launching a new generation in the next 2 months which is rumoured to be a big step up. Personally I’m not a fan of the current i5’s but if you want Intel the 9600k is an option but I’d only really consider the i7 9700k.

Sorry I really should've detailed my current build better but my monitor is a 1360 x 768 and the refresh rate is 60 and my current CPU is i5-7500 and I have 1x8gb 2400mhz of RAM

 

[WildCard999]

Yeah I'm getting big frame stutters because of it my current CPU is a i5-7500 and I don't really have a specific budget margin right now and my monitor is a 1360 x 768 res and 60 refresh rate

You need to upgrade that monitor.

You could reuse your current memory if you did something like this...

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel - Core i5-9400F 2.9 GHz 6-Core Processor ($149.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock - B365M Pro4 Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($83.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Monitor: Acer - V277U 27.0" 2560x1440 75 Hz Monitor ($222.99 @ Walmart)
Total: $456.86
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-05-26 20:42 EDT-0400

Going from 1360x768 to 1440P is going to be huge, games will look much better and if you use this system with the 2060 and a DisplayPort cable you'll be able to use Freesync.
https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/how-to-run-gsync-on-freesync-monitor,6072.html

 

[sizzling]

Really you need a monitor upgrade, at that low resolution you will never fully utilise a 2060, it’s far too powerful. That gpu will happily run 1440p 60Hz. No wonder your cpu is maxed out trying to keep up.

An upgrade to 2x8gb RAM may be the next step depending on the games you play. While your cpu isn’t the best it’s only going to struggle to hold 60fps in very cpu heavy games.

 

[th3gl1tch1nth35y5t3m]

Really you need a monitor upgrade, at that low resolution you will never fully utilise a 2060, it’s far too powerful. That gpu will happily run 1440p 60Hz. No wonder your cpu is maxed out trying to keep up.

An upgrade to 2x8gb RAM may be the next step depending on the games you play. While your cpu isn’t the best it’s only going to struggle to hold 60fps in very cpu heavy games.

Wait a monitor can affect CPU performance?

 

[th3gl1tch1nth35y5t3m]

You need to upgrade that monitor.

You could reuse your current memory if you did something like this...

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel - Core i5-9400F 2.9 GHz 6-Core Processor ($149.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock - B365M Pro4 Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($83.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Monitor: Acer - V277U 27.0" 2560x1440 75 Hz Monitor ($222.99 @ Walmart)
Total: $456.86
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-05-26 20:42 EDT-0400

Going from 1360x768 to 1440P is going to be huge, games will look much better and if you use this system with the 2060 and a DisplayPort cable you'll be able to use Freesync.
https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/how-to-run-gsync-on-freesync-monitor,6072.html

Damn wasn't expecting a response this complex but thank you have a question about the CPU you show here would the Ryzen 5 2600x be a good CPU to use instead of that intel one?

 

[sizzling]

Wait a monitor can affect CPU performance?

Indirectly. FPS directly affects cpu load, at such a low resolution the gpu will try and push ridiculously high FPS and your cpu will max out trying to keep at. The higher the resolution, the greater the gpu load and therefore lower the FPS and cpu load.

 

[WildCard999]

Damn wasn't expecting a response this complex but thank you have a question about the CPU you show here would the Ryzen 5 2600x be a good CPU to use instead of that intel one?

Ryzen would be a good choice as well but then you'd need to replace the memory as your current single stick is too slow. You'd want a 2x8gb @3000/3200mhz kit.

And @sizzling is correct, with the lower resolution it really pushes your CPU hard and barely makes your GPU work as it's rendering less pixels.

 

[th3gl1tch1nth35y5t3m]

Indirectly. FPS directly affects cpu load, at such a low resolution the gpu will try and push ridiculously high FPS and your cpu will max out trying to keep at. The higher the resolution, the greater the gpu load and therefore lower the FPS and cpu load.

But wouldn't enabling V-Sync fix that issue though?

 

[th3gl1tch1nth35y5t3m]

Ryzen would be a good choice as well but then you'd need to replace the memory as your current single stick is too slow. You'd want a 2x8gb @3000/3200mhz kit.

And @sizzling is correct, with the lower resolution it really pushes your CPU hard and barely makes your GPU work as it's rendering less pixels.

Damn I'm pretty much better off buying a whole new PC at this point it would seem. Any specific RAM sticks would you recommend?

 

[sizzling]

But wouldn't enabling V-Sync fix that issue though?

Yes it would but then you will be using very little of the 2060’s potential. However V-Sync adds lag so is not suited to fast moving games but there are other ways to cap fps.

What games are you having issues with? Only the most cpu heavy games should have difficulty averaging 60fps. Although your RAM is a concern too in these types of game.

 

[th3gl1tch1nth35y5t3m]

Yes it would but then you will be using very little of the 2060’s potential. However V-Sync adds lag so is not suited to fast moving games but there are other ways to cap fps.

What games are you having issues with? Only the most cpu heavy games should have difficulty averaging 60fps. Although your RAM is a concern too in these types of game.

Pretty much any game at the moment (For Honor, Prey 2016, and Metro Exodus just to name a few)

 

[sizzling]

Pretty much any game at the moment (For Honor, Prey 2016, and Metro Exodus just to name a few)

Maybe it the effect of running single channel slow RAM reducing performance below what it could be. I cannot say for certain.

 

[th3gl1tch1nth35y5t3m]

Maybe it the effect of running single channel slow RAM reducing performance below what it could be. I cannot say for certain.

possibly I've been meaning to buy more RAM never really got around to it and plus since my current one isn't exactly the best I might just buy two new ones to replace it any recommendations for RAM sticks?

 

[sizzling]

possibly I've been meaning to buy more RAM never really got around to it and plus since my current one isn't exactly the best I might just buy two new ones to replace it any recommendations for RAM sticks?

Buying a 2x8gb kit is the best way to avoid issues, RAM is only guaranteed in the form it is sold. Adding another 8gb is not guaranteed to work without issue even if you buy the same make and model. Usually it works but there is a chance of issues.

As for what to buy, it depends a little on what you plan to do. Ryzen performance is significantly impacted by RAM speed with 3000-3200 being the sweet spot for price/performance. If you stay Intel the gains from faster RAM are less.

 

[WildCard999]

Either way you look at it your due for a monitor upgrade. I'd grab a 1440P monitor and since that will help shift the gaming load more towards the GPU maybe your performance will improve a bit. If not no biggie as you'd want to do it anyways and performance won't get worse. From there you can look at Coffeelake refresh or AMD Ryzen as a platform upgrade.

 

[th3gl1tch1nth35y5t3m]

Either way you look at it your due for a monitor upgrade. I'd grab a 1440P monitor and since that will help shift the gaming load more towards the GPU maybe your performance will improve a bit. If not no biggie as you'd want to do it anyways and performance won't get worse. From there you can look at Coffeelake refresh or AMD Ryzen as a platform upgrade.

Alright will do thanks for the help

 

[th3gl1tch1nth35y5t3m]

Buying a 2x8gb kit is the best way to avoid issues, RAM is only guaranteed in the form it is sold. Adding another 8gb is not guaranteed to work without issue even if you buy the same make and model. Usually it works but there is a chance of issues.

As for what to buy, it depends a little on what you plan to do. Ryzen performance is significantly impacted by RAM speed with 3000-3200 being the sweet spot for price/performance. If you stay Intel the gains from faster RAM are less.

Alright I'm planning on buying the Ryzen 5 2600X but it would seem I need a new monitor first off I still don't quite have enough money for anything right now but thanks for the help