Deciding between i7 2600 or 3770 for GFs Upgrade

[Adreyu]

Hey guys, 

So my girl-face does some gaming and 3d rendering in her spare time. She is a graphic designer by trade, so you can imagine my horror as I realized the computer she does her rendering on runs an i3-3240, Asus b75M-A motherboard, 16gb of 1333 Corsair Vengeance ddr3, GTX 660 Windforce, 5400rpm 1tb HDD, Corsair GS Series 800 W 80+ Bronze PSU. The 16gb ram and PSU aren't too bad, but obviously there was some inconsistency in the build that needed to be addressed. I suggested we do a whole platform upgrade, but due to some other things going on in life right now, she can't put the money towards it. 

Well I have been ordering her some new stuff little by little and this is basically what the build looks like now:

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	Intel Core i7-3770 3.4 GHz Quad-Core Processor	$120.00
CPU Cooler	Corsair H80i 77 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler	Purchased For $0.00
Motherboard	Asus B75M-A Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard	Purchased For $0.00
Memory	Corsair Vengeance LP 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR3-1600 Memory	Purchased For $0.00
Storage	ADATA Ultimate SU800 512 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive	Purchased For $0.00
Video Card	Sapphire Radeon RX 580 8 GB NITRO+ Video Card	Purchased For $0.00
Case	Fractal Design Meshify C Mini MicroATX Mini Tower Case	$128.20 @ Vuugo
Power Supply	Corsair GS Series 800 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply	Purchased For $0.00
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	$248.20
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-08-16 14:33 EDT-0400

The CPU price is an average of the used price I have seen, and a placeholder. The cooler is one i already have just sitting around, and the case is what I hope to put her next build in when it comes to that. 

My question is: For gaming and 3D rendering, would I be okay going with an i7 2600 or 3770?

The 2600 is cheaper and easier to find, but I don't mind stretching for the 3770 if its going to make enough difference. 

Thanks in advance.

[5x5]

the performance delta is 10% - if the 3770 is 10% more expensive, it's worth it. If it's 25% more expensive - it's bad value.

[Levent]

IMO, if you are going to upgrade a relatively old build, get the best you can so that your next upgrade will be a new system (Instead of going through another round of minimal upgrades). Get 3770

[Epimetheus]

Ivy Bridge should be simply a Sandy Bridge die shrink so performance should be very similar, i'd get what's cheaper

[Sakkura]

3 minutes ago, Epimetheus said:

Ivy Bridge should be simply a Sandy Bridge die shrink so performance should be very similar, i'd get what's cheaper

It wasn't a pure die shrink, there were some minor architectural tweaks improving IPC slightly.

[Adreyu]

Thanks for the replies guys. I will take what you have all said into consideration.

[asand1]

I7-2600 shouldn't cost more than $70 USD. Are you buying new or used? Please don't buy obsolete parts new, terrible value.

[Adreyu]

Just now, asand1 said:

I7-2600 shouldn't cost more than $70 USD. Are you buying new or used? Please don't buy obsolete parts new, terrible value.

Yeah sorry, I should have mentioned it's in Canadian dollars, and it will definitely be a used part. 

[BleachedFur]

2 hours ago, Adreyu said:

My question is: For gaming and 3D rendering, would I be okay going with an i7 2600 or 3770?

The 2600 is cheaper and easier to find, but I don't mind stretching for the 3770 if its going to make enough difference. 

Thanks in advance.

Get an E3 1240 v2. 20 PCIe lanes and its the same as the 3770 minus 100mhz, as well as running a little cooler because no iGPU. It's also a fair bit cheaper on ebay.

[Adreyu]

1 minute ago, BleachedFur said:

Get an E3 1240 v2. 20 PCIe lanes and its the same as the 3770 minus 100mhz, as well as running a little cooler because no iGPU. It's also a fair bit cheaper on ebay.

I'll take a look, thanks 

[Sakkura]

16 minutes ago, BleachedFur said:

Get an E3 1240 v2. 20 PCIe lanes and its the same as the 3770 minus 100mhz, as well as running a little cooler because no iGPU. It's also a fair bit cheaper on ebay.

It's no different in terms of PCIe lanes.

[BleachedFur]

2 hours ago, Sakkura said:

It's no different in terms of PCIe lanes.

3770 only has 16 PCIe lanes, 1240 v2 has 20. This is the same for the i7 2600 and the E3 1240. So, you're wrong. But good try.

[Sakkura]

6 hours ago, BleachedFur said:

3770 only has 16 PCIe lanes, 1240 v2 has 20. This is the same for the i7 2600 and the E3 1240. So, you're wrong. But good try.

Can't use those lanes on a B75 board, so there's no difference.

[JoostinOnline]

6 hours ago, BleachedFur said:

3770 only has 16 PCIe lanes, 1240 v2 has 20. This is the same for the i7 2600 and the E3 1240. So, you're wrong. But good try.

And how will those lanes translate to anything positive? They're pointless.