Worth upgrading this PC?

[aaziz99]

want to make an upgrade for my partner’s PC for as cheap as possible. What would be worth doing while saving for a full build overhaul, or is it even worth swapping any of the parts?

Current Parts:

CPU: i5-9400F
GPU: GTX 1660 TI 6GB

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO (plan to keep this)

RAM: 2x8GB (unsure of the exact model/speeds)

PSU: EVGA Supernova 450 GM

 

I was thinking of maybe finding a good deal on a used i5-9600K/KF or a i7-9700K/KF (only if the 450W PSU is sufficient for the extra 30W TDP rating for the 9700K). 
not sure if a GPU upgrade would be possible considering the smaller PSU in this build, but I’m open to suggestions if it seems worth while.

 

is it even worth investing in a small upgrade like this? Will there be a noticeable difference in a game like Baldurs Gate 3?

Budget (including currency): as cheap as possible (USD)

Country: US

Games, programs or workloads that it will be used for: 

Games: Baldurs Gate 3, League, Sims, and story based games like Detroit: Become Human

Other details currently using a 1080p 75hz monitor

 

Thank you in advance!!

[Dedayog]

2 minutes ago, aaziz99 said:

want to make an upgrade for my partner’s PC for as cheap as possible. What would be worth doing while saving for a full build overhaul, or is it even worth swapping any of the parts?

Current Parts:

CPU: i5-9400F
GPU: GTX 1660 TI 6GB

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO (plan to keep this)

RAM: 2x8GB (unsure of the exact model/speeds)

PSU: EVGA Supernova 450 GM

 

I was thinking of maybe finding a good deal on a used i5-9600K/KF or a i7-9700K/KF (only if the 450W PSU is sufficient for the extra 30W TDP rating for the 9700K). 
not sure if a GPU upgrade would be possible considering the smaller PSU in this build, but I’m open to suggestions if it seems worth while.

 

is it even worth investing in a small upgrade like this? Will there be a noticeable difference in a game like Baldurs Gate 3?

Budget (including currency): as cheap as possible (USD)

Country: US

Games, programs or workloads that it will be used for: 

Games: Baldurs Gate 3, League, Sims, and story based games like Detroit: Become Human

Other details currently using a 1080p 75hz monitor

 

Thank you in advance!!

The only CPU worth dropping in is the 9900K, and that's still more expensive than a 5600/B550 replacement.

 

How is BG3 working on that machine?

 

They really need a new CPU as well as GPU.  The PSU can support a Ryzen 5600 and a 6650XT for example.

[jaslion]

Not worth.

 

There are 2 good cpu's on the platform a 8700k and 9900k. That is because the 8700k is a 6c/12thread cpu and the 9900k is a 8c/16 thread cpu. These are both EXPENSIVE and get beaten by 120$ new offerings easily

 

Current games have 8 threads as a minimum and this is increasing. Making the i5's be below minimum (hence stuttering in games) and the 9700k is holding on but barely nowadays.

 

Id save for a platform upgrade first as your cpu is the main holding back point. You're gpu is also lower end but good enough for the games you play.

[Tetras]

You'd really need to upgrade both to make it worthwhile, since they're reasonably well balanced right now and that is likely to need a new PSU too.

 

The 1151v2 CPUs aren't bad CPUs, since they're still capable of playing pretty much everything at decent frames, but the better ones are usually far more expensive to buy used than their performance justifies, to the point that a 12100 or 12400F and a cheap H610/B760 board, or a 7500F bundle, is often better value and better performing. If you could find e.g. a 8700K for $30 or a 9700K for $50, then sure, why not? But, you won't.

[aaziz99]

33 minutes ago, Dedayog said:

The only CPU worth dropping in is the 9900K, and that's still more expensive than a 5600/B550 replacement.

 

How is BG3 working on that machine?

 

They really need a new CPU as well as GPU.  The PSU can support a Ryzen 5600 and a 6650XT for example.

It’s doing okay, definitely some stuttering though. Like getting between 50-70 fps on medium-high settings (trying to convince to lower some of the setting still haha)

 

but gotcha, gonna just save for a full upgrade then

[aaziz99]

18 minutes ago, Tetras said:

You'd really need to upgrade both to make it worthwhile, since they're reasonably well balanced right now and that is likely to need a new PSU too.

 

The 1151v2 CPUs aren't bad CPUs, since they're still capable of playing pretty much everything at decent frames, but the better ones are usually far more expensive to buy used than their performance justifies, to the point that a 12100 or 12400F and a cheap H610/B760 board, or a 7500F bundle, is often better value and better performing. If you could find e.g. a 8700K for $30 or a 9700K for $50, then sure, why not? But, you won't.

Gotcha thanks for your advice and help on this! Gonna just save for a full platform I think. 

[BahnStormer]

Problem you've got is that the platform is now a long way EOL, so those CPU's are probably going to be really over-priced for any meaningful upgrade (e.g. 9900K) as the only people buying them want the highest spec the rest of their build can handle and it's a lazy upgrade.... that has a price.

 

I'm not saying there aren't upgrades, but just unlikely to be many cost effective upgrades: mostly depends on your local 2nd hand market and how much you trust the seller, but you're likely to be looking at pouring $250-$300 (9900K 2nd hand price?) into an EOL CPU with no future. 

 

Not recommended, but an AM4 upgrade would be "cheap" and could give you a big bump - here's a  comparison of a 5800X3D v 9900K (40% lead to the AM4 on average, 54% in Baldur's gate):

 

So same situation as your current build - it would be throwing away money (~$350) on CPU+motherboard on a dead-end platform, so it's great CPU upgrade if have the AM4 motherboard + good RAM, but otherwise NOT recommended!

 

IMHO, it would be far better to do a "mid" step to something like this:
B650($120-$140) - likely to be okay for a 7800X3D (or 8000 series 3D chip later).

Ryzen5-7600X($210) - temporary stop-gap.

32Gb of good RAM ($110) I'd recommend G.Skill Flare X5 32 GB (6000MT/sec, CL30) which will be good for a few generations of future gaming builds.

 

Total is $440-$460.

 

Then upgrade the PSU+GPU as the 2nd phase.... and swap out the CPU as a 3rd phase.

 

I've been considering when I should do similar steps for my next CPU upgrade, but I was looking at the Asrock 670E Pro RS ($250), instead of the B650.... so that's $570 total.

 

I think I'll hang on until my 5900X is a little more "tired", then likely all the way to a 7800X3D, but that's a $700 leap!

[BahnStormer]

.... and given you're only looking at 1080P 75Hz, I think that the GPU could actually last you a good bit longer.... I've got a GTX1660S and R7-5800X3D in my lounge and I'm always amazed at how well it still games and IIRC the Super is 5-10% slower than the Ti!