Xeon vs i5 [Gaming]

[Barms]

Hey Guys! 

 

Currently finishing up the process of planing the building of a PC, and I think I have everything, somewhat tuned in, my one big question though is,

 

Should I go with the Intel Xeon E3-1231 or the Intel Core i5-4690k

 

 

For what's needed, here's the rest of my build:

 

Permalink: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/KbDjMp

 

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($219.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Motherboard: ASRock H97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($74.65 @ OutletPC) 

Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($52.89 @ OutletPC) 

Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($97.95 @ OutletPC) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($52.49 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE 3X Video Card  ($329.99 @ Micro Center) 

Case: Thermaltake Versa H34 ATX Mid Tower Case  ($63.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA GS 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($59.99 @ NCIX US) 

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 OEM (64-bit)  ($86.98 @ OutletPC) 

Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WDN4800 802.11a/b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter  ($37.24 @ Amazon) 

Total: $1076.16

 

 

I have been told I have an el-cheapo class mobo, and may need to upgrade it if I want to overclock.

 

So, for ideally running GTA V at 60 frames on high settings, who is superior? Xeon, or Intel? 

 

I've been told the Xeon is more for data processing and thus will lag more in games, is this correct? 

 

 

Thank you! 

 

[GarnetDevil]

Get the i5, but change the board from H97 to Z97 

[OAcesync]

You need a Z97 board for overclocking and I would stick to the i5 if you're only gaming

[via]

you can geta 290x right now for 250$ so id get that instead of a 970, but then bump up your psu.

[WereCat]

Get Xeon because you won't notice any performance difference in games beside Arma.

Also Xeon will be better for future.

Get i5 only if you want to OC.

[i_build_nanosuits]

i vote xeon for future proofing reasons...DX12 on the way...8 thread CPU will help a lot in the near future.

[maxtch]

I definitely suggest you get the Xeon - it is just slightly more expensive than the i5 but you got full i7 performance (that is, slightly slower than 4790K but you will barely feel it) and you will get a hell lot bang out of your hard earned bucks. Also since you already have a GPU planned lack of integrated GPU is a blessing - it saves your money and makes the CPU consumes less power.

[Aruxx]

I'm just gonna repeat what everyone's already said here, but if you want to overclockable go for the i5 with a z97 motherboard, but if not get the xeon with the h97 board.

[Barms]

Ya the future proofing is one thing that I think I like with the Xeon, the hyper-threading, etc. 

 

Does anyone have any idea why I've heard all this "anti-xeon" stuff, people have been really heckling me saying it isn't going to perform well...Especially for gaming.

 

Thank you. 

[i_build_nanosuits]

Ya the future proofing is one thing that I think I like with the Xeon, the hyper-threading, etc. 

 

Does anyone have any idea why I've heard all this "anti-xeon" stuff, people have been really heckling me saying it isn't going to perform well...Especially for gaming.

 

Thank you.

because they are clueless...the xeon 1231-V3 is the same as the i7-4770...but without integrated graphics which i assume you don,t give a shit...people see xeon and they think: ''how well it will be expensive and it's not for gaming it will not perform well'' but it's not true at all.

[SteveGrabowski0]

Ya the future proofing is one thing that I think I like with the Xeon, the hyper-threading, etc. 

 

Does anyone have any idea why I've heard all this "anti-xeon" stuff, people have been really heckling me saying it isn't going to perform well...Especially for gaming.

 

Thank you. 

 

I have an E3-1231v3 and it's a great gaming CPU.

[SteveGrabowski0]

 

Hey Guys! 

 

Currently finishing up the process of planing the building of a PC, and I think I have everything, somewhat tuned in, my one big question though is,

 

Should I go with the Intel Xeon E3-1231 or the Intel Core i5-4690k

 

 

For what's needed, here's the rest of my build:

 

Permalink: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/KbDjMp

 

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($219.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Motherboard: ASRock H97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($74.65 @ OutletPC) 

Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($52.89 @ OutletPC) 

Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($97.95 @ OutletPC) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($52.49 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE 3X Video Card  ($329.99 @ Micro Center) 

Case: Thermaltake Versa H34 ATX Mid Tower Case  ($63.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA GS 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($59.99 @ NCIX US) 

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 OEM (64-bit)  ($86.98 @ OutletPC) 

Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WDN4800 802.11a/b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter  ($37.24 @ Amazon) 

Total: $1076.16

 

 

I have been told I have an el-cheapo class mobo, and may need to upgrade it if I want to overclock.

 

So, for ideally running GTA V at 60 frames on high settings, who is superior? Xeon, or Intel? 

 

I've been told the Xeon is more for data processing and thus will lag more in games, is this correct? 

 

 

Thank you! 

 

 

Don't buy that GTX 970. Buy this one which is better and $330 after a $20 rebate:

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125684

 

This is the great Gigabyte GTX 970. The one you initially picked isn't the monster overclocker.

 

Also, GTA V plays marginally better on a CPU with no hyperthreading or with hyperthreading turned off. The i5-4690k and a good Z97 board will get another 1-2 fps out of GTA V at 1080p version a Xeon E3-1231v3 on average I would guess, based on this result.

 

 

There are games that do make use of the extra virtual cores HT provides, such as Dragon Age Inquisition, Crysis 3, Battlefield 4, and a few others I can't think of right off hand. 

[maxtch]

Ya the future proofing is one thing that I think I like with the Xeon, the hyper-threading, etc.

Does anyone have any idea why I've heard all this "anti-xeon" stuff, people have been really heckling me saying it isn't going to perform well...Especially for gaming.

Thank you.

There are lots of misinformation out there regarding Xeons and Core i's and people still have that somewhat inherent opinion that Xeon brand is associated with servers and workstations and Core brand is associated with games.

The hard truth is that things don't really make any difference at all. Xeons and Core i's, as long as they have the same specs and originate from the same generation, performs identically. Luke have tested that i7-4790 (non-K) and E3-1276v3, which have the same specs, performs identically. (And in my parts bin I have a Core 2 Quad Q9300, which is just a rebadged Xeon E3320)

The machine I listed in my signature is also powered by a Xeon. Even though my graphics card is at most half decent there is absolutely no issue in gaming.

[FLUFFYJELLO]

who is superior? Xeon, or Intel?

I've been told the Xeon is more for data processing and thus will lag more in games, is this correct?

Thank you!

Xeon is a line of Intel processors by the way.

The Xeon will be helpful if you ever decide to do anything more demanding than gaming, and games that use more cores will love it. It's not a strong single threaded performance of the i5, nor can it be overclocked (by conventional means), but it is still a very solid option for gaming.

[Barms]

Okay, this makes sense now.

 

So, can I disable hypertheading on the Xeon (from time to time, not ever permanently) obviously 1 to 2 frames isn't a huge difference, but...

 

Although still kind of feeling mixed emotions. You guys all bring up really good points though. 

 

Don't buy that GTX 970. Buy this one which is better and $330 after a $20 rebate:

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125684

 

This is the great Gigabyte GTX 970. The one you initially picked isn't the monster overclocker.

 

Also, GTA V plays marginally better on a CPU with no hyperthreading or with hyperthreading turned off. The i5-4690k and a good Z97 board will get another 1-2 fps out of GTA V at 1080p version a Xeon E3-1231v3 on average I would guess, based on this result.

 

 

There are games that do make use of the extra virtual cores HT provides, such as Dragon Age Inquisition, Crysis 3, Battlefield 4, and a few others I can't think of right off hand. 

 

 

Also, I didn't quite follow all this. I'm more or less a relative dummy when it comes to CPUs outside the Core series. 

[i_build_nanosuits]

-So, can I disable hypertheading on the Xeon (from time to time, not ever permanently) obviously 1 to 2 frames isn't a huge difference, but...

-I'm more or less a relative dummy when it comes to CPUs outside the Core series.

-Yes you can enable or disable hyper-threading in your UEFI as you please...it's extremely rare HT does not react well with games like that, and the difference is not noticeable, 99% of the time you want HT on...i leave it on all the time and i do play GTA V online.

-if you have no interest in CPU's and no intentions to learn overclocking and install an aftermarket CPU cooling solution, get the xeon and save money it will cost you less than the core i5-4690K and a Z97 motherboard and a cooler.

[NumLock21]

Been using xeon since socket 775, and no problems playing games.

[-iSynthesis]

No bottleneck with any one of the CPUs; kind of depends if you are doing anything else than gaming; if you are for example sometimes live streaming/editing i would reccomend the Xeon; otherwise the i5, however upgrade the Motherboard to Z97 if going with an i5 (Did you already buy it?)

 

I have a haswell Xeon myself and use it to play GTA V, getting a solid 60fps at mostly highest settings

[Barms]

No bottleneck with any one of the CPUs; kind of depends if you are doing anything else than gaming; if you are for example sometimes live streaming/editing i would reccomend the Xeon; otherwise the i5, however upgrade the Motherboard to Z97 if going with an i5 (Did you already buy it?)

 

I have a haswell Xeon myself and use it to play GTA V, getting a solid 60fps at mostly highest settings

 

Yes, I do do a bit of streaming and editing, but not really a ton or anything of big magnitude.

 

Haven't bought anything yet. 

[-iSynthesis]

Yes, I do do a bit of streaming and editing, but not really a ton or anything of big magnitude.

 

Haven't bought anything yet. 

Then i would suggest getting the Xeon. It will do better in those applications and it will perform about the same in gaming, max 3fps difference, in heavily single threaded games, and only if you oc the i5.

[EllieThePurpleFuzzy]

The Xeon's hyperthreading is pointless for gaming, so you would be better going with the 4460 Or 4690K in that regard, however since you are doing a bit of streaming and editing, the xeon might come in handy .