What is the best cpu to pair with the GTX 1050 TI and will my motherboard support it?

[EckoTrek]

I have a Dell Inspiron 3847 Desktop computer that was not originally meant for gaming. I recently upgraded it with a GIGABYTE GTX 1050 TI WINDFORCE OC. The performance is ok, but i'm not really getting the best performance in cpu heavy games. What would be the best cpu to match with the gtx 1050 ti and also be compatible with my pc?

 

PC Specs:

8 GB DDR3 Memory

Intel Core i3-4170 CPU @ 3.70 GHZ

GTX 1050 TI GIGABYTE WINDFORCE OC

1 TB Hard Drive

IDK What Motherboard I have but its the base model that comes with the Dell Inspiron 3847

450W PSU

[SkilledRebuilds]

8 threads is what you want if the board/bios is compatable ..

 

They might be too power hungry for some factory business boards.. say a 65w board or up to 95w supporting...

 

Find the CPU support listing for your motherboard. It'll let you know which TOPEND CPUs can be supported by that board

I'd aim for a 8thread CPU if possible.

 

Night and Day differences to frametimes on even older GPUs or newer games..

[EckoTrek]

25 minutes ago, SkilledRebuilds said:

8 threads is what you want if the board/bios is compatable ..

 

They might be too power hungry for some factory business boards.. say a 65w board or up to 95w supporting...

 

Find the CPU support listing for your motherboard. It'll let you know which TOPEND CPUs can be supported by that board

I'd aim for a 8thread CPU if possible.

 

Night and Day differences to frametimes on even older GPUs or newer games..

i don't know exactly what motherboard i have and it doesn't specify on the listing either. what should i do?

 

[SkilledRebuilds]

1 minute ago, EckoTrek said:

i don't know exactly what motherboard i have and it doesn't specify on the listing either. what should i do?

 

The PC Model should have a website and support page that the CPU support pages/info can be had

(Maybe look up the whole PC model number not the motherboard specifically)

[-rascal-]

I searched for "Dell Inspiron 3847" and this was the first result that came up:

https://www.dell.com/support/home/ca/en/cabsdt1/product-support/product/inspiron-3847-desktop/docs

 

It looks like the motherboard is based on the H81 chipset, and can support 4th generation Intel Core i5 and i7.

In fact, it looks like the higher-end configured Dell Inspiron 3847's came with the i7-4790.

This is the fastest CPU you can get for a 4th generation chip that is compatible with the socket, and H81 chipset.

 

The i7-4790 is a 4-core, 8-thread CPU.

Keep in mind, it is a 5-year old CPU, and has now been long discontinued (discontinued as of July 2017).

It will be hard to find a brand-new one, and you may need to check the used market for one.

https://ark.intel.com/content/www/us/en/ark/products/80806/intel-core-i7-4790-processor-8m-cache-up-to-4-00-ghz.html

 

The Core i3-4170 you have now is a 2-core, 4-thread CPU.

It will struggle in games that have better (or proper) multi-core / multi-thread support --- which is basically every PC game released in the last decade...

https://ark.intel.com/content/www/us/en/ark/products/77490/intel-core-i3-4170-processor-3m-cache-3-70-ghz.html

 

Also note the i3-4170 is a 54W CPU, while the i7-4790 is 84W.

You may also need to invest in a better aftermarket cooler to control the extra heat coming off of the i7-4790.

 

Alternative to the i7-4790, there is also the i7-4790K / 4770K / 4770.

In the i5 tier, there is the i5-4690 / 4690K / 4670 / 4670K.

Intel offers other i7's and i5's, but if you want the most performance you can get from your 4th generation platform, those would be your go-to options.

[EckoTrek]

9 minutes ago, -rascal- said:

I searched for "Dell Inspiron 3847" and this was the first result that came up:

https://www.dell.com/support/home/ca/en/cabsdt1/product-support/product/inspiron-3847-desktop/docs

 

It looks like the motherboard is based on the H81 chipset, and can support 4th generation Intel Core i5 and i7.

In fact, it looks like the higher-end configured Dell Inspiron 3847's came with the i7-4790.

This is the fastest CPU you can get for a 4th generation chip that is compatible with the socket, and H81 chipset.

 

The i7-4790 is a 4-core, 8-thread CPU.

Keep in mind, it is a 5-year old CPU, and has now been long discontinued (discontinued as of July 2017).

It will be hard to find a brand-new one, and you may need to checked the used market for one.

https://ark.intel.com/content/www/us/en/ark/products/80806/intel-core-i7-4790-processor-8m-cache-up-to-4-00-ghz.html

 

The Core i3-4170 you have now is a 2-core, 4-thread CPU.

It will struggle in games that have better (or proper) multi-core / multi-thread support --- which is basically every PC game released in the last decade...

https://ark.intel.com/content/www/us/en/ark/products/77490/intel-core-i3-4170-processor-3m-cache-3-70-ghz.html

 

Also note the i3-4170 is a 54W CPU, while the i7-4790 is 84W.

You may also need to invest in a better aftermarket cooler to control the extra heat coming off of the i7-4790.

 

Alternative to the i7-4790, there is also the i7-4790K / 4770K / 4770.

In the i5 tier, there is the i5-4690 / 4690K / 4670 / 4670K.

Intel offers other i7's and i5's, but if you want the most performance you can get from your 4th generation platform, those would be your go-to options.

Thank you. This is basically what I was looking for.