7740x or 3600?

[Raynstorm]

Hi!

 

I´m looking to make a minor upgrade to my computer. My old i7 4770 with 1060 just wont cut it for Horizon Zero Dawn and especially the upcoming Cyberpunk 2077. 

 

On this computer, gaming is the focus. I dont really need loads of threads for rendering or anything like that. Gaming and some browsing, thats it.

 

Now, I have an old (but still very good imo) 27inch 144hz 1080p monitor. I have no real plan to upgrade this as of right now as when I eventually will upgrade, it will be a 2k, 144hz good monitor and those doesnt come cheap, at least not over here, So because of this my old monitor only supports 144hz via DVI, not HDMI (which I embarrassingly found out when I actually bought a 2060 super and couldnt get more than 60hz, oof).

 

This means I am stuck with the 10-series GPUs. No biggie though, I am in the process of buying one and I can get one used for around 225-250 usd (I might get a 1080ti if I can get a deal for around 300 usd or so).. 

 

Now, I also plan to make an upgrade to my cpu/mobo/ram. I am still on a budget but I think my 4770 will struggle for the year or two I plan on keeping the 1080 around. So my first plan was to find a used 7700k/8600k/8700k with mobo for around 225-250 usd. Now I´ve found a 7740x with x299 mobo that I think I can get for 200-225 usd. That leaves me ram and I can buy new 3200mhz ddr4 for around 80 dollar, making this upgrade cost around 175-200 usd. All this used parts ofc.

 

Now I can also buy a new Ryzen 5 3600 (4600?) + mobo + ram for around 450 usd total.

 

From what I can gather, the 7740x and the 3600 is almost equal in most games with the 3600 maybe beeing every so slightly ahead overall but not by enough that it would matter. Not sure if the 4600 will be much better for gaming, or if it will actually increase in price.

The 3600 though is brand new, with PCIe 4.0 support and futureproofing. The 7740x is a dead platform and next upgrade will have to be a full one in a few years with all new cpu/mobo/ram/GPU and monitor etc.

 

The 7740x will probably be quite good enough for a few years even if I decide to go for say a 3070 or even a 3080 down the line, right? Especially if I´d switch to a 2k monitor at the same time.

 

I dunno. I´m a little lost here and would like to hear what you think. Go with the much cheaper 7740x and run it for like 2 years, buy a 3600 for fairly cheap or wait for something like the 4600 and then pay even more probably.

 

Thanksful for tips!

 

Cheers

 

[jaslion]

3600 all the way. The 7740x is beaten by a 3300x cpu already.

[porina]

4 minutes ago, Raynstorm said:

I dunno. I´m a little lost here and would like to hear what you think. Go with the much cheaper 7740x and run it for like 2 years, buy a 3600 for fairly cheap or wait for something like the 4600 and then pay even more probably.

I'd be hesitant to get a quad core CPU these days, even if the 7740X is probably the fastest quad core CPU ever (when overclocked on equivalent cooling compared to others). It's not a big enough upgrade over a 4770 though.

 

I'd argue it does have some upgrade path. X299 CPUs have taking a pricing hit and are reasonable compared to AM4 offerings in the higher core counts. But that doesn't get around the short term need.

 

Red or blue, I'd aim for a 6 core CPU at least.

 

1 minute ago, jaslion said:

The 7740x is beaten by a 3300x cpu already.

Stock, maybe, but not if comparably overclocked, in gaming uses.

[Raynstorm]

1 minute ago, porina said:

I'd be hesitant to get a quad core CPU these days, even if the 7740X is probably the fastest quad core CPU ever (when overclocked on equivalent cooling compared to others). It's not a big enough upgrade over a 4770 though.

 

I'd argue it does have some upgrade path. X299 CPUs have taking a pricing hit and are reasonable compared to AM4 offerings in the higher core counts. But that doesn't get around the short term need.

 

Red or blue, I'd aim for a 6 core CPU at least.

 

Stock, maybe, but not if comparably overclocked, in gaming uses.

Thanks for the reply.

 

I´m kinda with you. At the same time I wanna get a cheap upgrade, it might just be a too bad of an idea.

Waiting for Zen 3 is probably the smart thing to do. If the 4600 isnt a big enough upgrade over the 3600, the 3600 will probably drop in price pretty quickly once zen 3 is out.

[jaslion]

1 minute ago, Raynstorm said:

Thanks for the reply.

 

I´m kinda with you. At the same time I wanna get a cheap upgrade, it might just be a too bad of an idea.

Waiting for Zen 3 is probably the smart thing to do. If the 4600 isnt a big enough upgrade over the 3600, the 3600 will probably drop in price pretty quickly once zen 3 is out.

A 7740x for all intents and purposes is just a 7700k on the x299 platform. Which is just a very minor upgrade over the 4770 you have now. So I would not invest 200 into a dead platform that is barely a upgrade when zen 3 is about to come out.