New Build w/ 3080

Andooo · January 28, 2023

Hi,

I'm planning my first new pc build in quite a few years and looking to pick up a 2nd hand 3080. I'll be mostly using it for gaming at 1440p.

I'm trying to decide between a 13600k with DDR4 or R5 7600 with DDR5 (both 32gb). I'm based in New Zealand, where these two options are pretty much the same price (the 7600 option is around $25 USD cheaper). I've heard the 13600k outperforms the 7600 a decent chunk but I'm trying to work out whether this is worth missing out on both DDR5 and the upgrade path of AM5? I've also considered the 7700 but this option is around $125 USD more than the 13600k here, though my budget is fairly flexible.

What sort of performance increases could I expect with a 13600k over the 7600 with a 3080 at this res? And what kind of longevity could I expect from the 13600k before I'd be pressed to upgrade? Any input is appreciated.

RONOTHAN## · January 28, 2023

6 minutes ago, Andooo said:

What sort of performance increases could I expect with a 13600k over the 7600 with a 3080 at this res?

The 13600K is about 15% faster on average in gaming workloads, though the exact amount will depend on how CPU bound the game is. If it's something like Civ VI, I'd expect closer to that 15% mark. If it's something like Doom Eternal, it would be pretty much identical, though since the 13600K does have E Cores it does pull ahead in multicore workloads by a large amount.

9 minutes ago, Andooo said:

And what kind of longevity could I expect from the 13600k before I'd be pressed to upgrade?

That really depends on you and your performance standards. A 13600K should do really well for a while, but we don't know the future, what games are going to do since CPUs have been moving so fast, and even how CPU bound the games you like are gonna be. I'd expect you should be able to get about 5 years out of it easily, but that's really just a guess and I could be dead wrong in either direction.

There are arguments to be made in either direction. Personally I'd be leaning towards the 13600K, mostly because in socket upgrades don't usually make that much sense (even on Ryzen, since once you start being due for an upgrade your board could be old enough that BIOS support for new CPUs that make sense to buy is a bit spotty, look at X370 with Ryzen 3000, for instance, where only half the boards got support for it in a reasonable time), though I can see arguments to be made either way.

Andooo · January 28, 2023

2 hours ago, RONOTHAN## said:

The 13600K is about 15% faster on average in gaming workloads, though the exact amount will depend on how CPU bound the game is. If it's something like Civ VI, I'd expect closer to that 15% mark. If it's something like Doom Eternal, it would be pretty much identical, though since the 13600K does have E Cores it does pull ahead in multicore workloads by a large amount.

That really depends on you and your performance standards. A 13600K should do really well for a while, but we don't know the future, what games are going to do since CPUs have been moving so fast, and even how CPU bound the games you like are gonna be. I'd expect you should be able to get about 5 years out of it easily, but that's really just a guess and I could be dead wrong in either direction.

There are arguments to be made in either direction. Personally I'd be leaning towards the 13600K, mostly because in socket upgrades don't usually make that much sense (even on Ryzen, since once you start being due for an upgrade your board could be old enough that BIOS support for new CPUs that make sense to buy is a bit spotty, look at X370 with Ryzen 3000, for instance, where only half the boards got support for it in a reasonable time), though I can see arguments to be made either way.

Thanks! I'll probably go with the 13600k, doubt I'll be upgrading again for at least a few years anyway.