I7 2600k vs i5 6600k

[Fer23rt]

I currently own a i7 2600k, with a gigabyte ga b75m hd3 mobo, I can basically trade it in for an i5 6600k, with a ga z170 hd3, which will enable me to oc the i5.

Basically I can do an even trade from i7 to i5, and not have to spend any extra money to OC. What I am trying to ask, is it worth it, or should I go for a p68 mobo for the i7? Thanks

[JammyCreedog]

I have used both the i5 6600k and the i7 3770.  While the 6600k clocks a little bit higher, the ipc is pretty close. Personally, I prefer the extra threads from the i7. I don't think it's a worthwhile upgrade. Now the 6 core 8700k with hyperthreading, that would be an upgrade worth doing.

[Fer23rt]

It's just that currently I cannot OC the i7 with what mobo I have, so basically if I want to oc, either I get the i5 or send more to OC the i7

[trattgunnar]

I'd go for the Z170 platform if that's the choice you have other than going for overclockable boards for 2nd gen. Mainly because there is still an upgrade path if you decide to go for an 6700k or even 7700k later.

[epsilon84]

An overclocked 6600K will beat a stock 2600K. Even stock they are pretty evenly matched, with the 2600K slightly ahead in MT performance but the 6600K ahead in ST.

[aisle9]

13 hours ago, Fer23rt said:

I currently own a i7 2600k, with a gigabyte ga b75m hd3 mobo, I can basically trade it in for an i5 6600k, with a ga z170 hd3, which will enable me to oc the i5.

Basically I can do an even trade from i7 to i5, and not have to spend any extra money to OC. What I am trying to ask, is it worth it, or should I go for a p68 mobo for the i7? Thanks

Don't forget the RAM. The 2600 uses DDR3, the 6600K uses DDR4. If you're in the US and planning on going with the recommended 16GB of RAM, that's north of $100, and 16GB of DDR3 is only worth about $40 these days. I feel I should also point out that the low-end Gigabyte Z170 boards (really any low to midrange Gigabyte board since about 2015) have consistently been absolute dumpster fires in my experience, and if you can get a board from AsRock or ASUS you're much better off. 

 

What's making you want to overclock the 2600K? If there's a serious performance deficiency in your tasks, the odds of it being solved by overclocking a six-year-old CPU are low. I would definitely not spend the money to get an overclockable LGA 1155 motherboard in 2018/2019, but I would take the extra threads of the 2600K over better IPC and half the threads with the 6600K. If you're on the upgrade path regardless, consider going with Ryzen instead. AM4 is very much a living socket, even if you go with something like a Ryzen 5 1400 or 1500X, and a good B350/B450 board is a whole hell of a lot cheaper than a good Z170/270 board.

 

tl;dr, I would not trade an i7-2600K, even if it's on a locked chipset, for an i5-6600K. The extra threads, imo, are worth more than the extra IPC.

[Fer23rt]

Gives me something to think about, because I was eventually thinking of going the amd upgrade path, with probably a 1700x, with an asrock board, which would mean that one way or another I will have to go for ddr4

[Fer23rt]

Thanks again for all your help guys

[paprikman]

On 12/24/2018 at 4:39 AM, Fer23rt said:

Gives me something to think about, because I was eventually thinking of going the amd upgrade path, with probably a 1700x, with an asrock board, which would mean that one way or another I will have to go for ddr4

Ryzen sucks if you don't buy proper high-frequency ram and mobo with good OC properties, which makes it cost almost the same with intel setup. I'd just gone with some i7 and give up overclocking. Unless you do some video editing or streaming, you will be fine with it for many years.

[Fer23rt]

You are correct, thanks again 

[aisle9]

On 12/26/2018 at 3:08 AM, paprikman said:

Ryzen sucks if you don't buy proper high-frequency ram and mobo with good OC properties, which makes it cost almost the same with intel setup.

None of this is true.