Old versus new(ish)

[Da_NKP]

So, in terms of performance, I was wondering if any new processors could be a better value than a used i7 2600k (around 200USD). I don't necessarily care about a specific socket or anything. Is it worth buying used here, or is there a newer (haswell to skylake) CPU that is worth buying new?

[Godlygamer23]

Sandy Bridge is still competent for today's requirements, and if you plan to overclock, you might be able to get some serious performance out of that chip. That being said, depending on your area, I would probably go with Skylake or Haswell Refresh.

[Peter Vaughan Truslow]

12 minutes ago, Da_NKP said:

So, in terms of performance, I was wondering if any new processors could be a better value than a used i7 2600k (around 200USD). I don't necessarily care about a specific socket or anything. Is it worth buying used here, or is there a newer (haswell to skylake) CPU that is worth buying new?

a used 2600k for $200 is a little bit steep, but if you could get it for $150 it'd be well worth it. 

the system I just built is using an old i5-2400 and it's pretty awesome. significantly faster than a new I3, which would have a similar price to what I paid

[Da_NKP]

6 hours ago, TriceraFLOPS said:

a used 2600k for $200 is a little bit steep, but if you could get it for $150 it'd be well worth it. 

the system I just built is using an old i5-2400 and it's pretty awesome. significantly faster than a new I3, which would have a similar price to what I paid

Yeah, this would destroy my i3 4160, for sure. Here's my amazon link, btw (http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B004FA8NOQ/ref=olp_f_primeEligible?ie=UTF8&f_used=true&f_usedAcceptable=true&f_usedGood=true&f_usedLikeNew=true&f_usedVeryGood=true)

 

So yeah, thanks for letting me know. I recently built a LAN box, so I'll keep an eye on the used prices for the 2600k. 

 

6 hours ago, Godlygamer23 said:

Sandy Bridge is still competent for today's requirements, and if you plan to overclock, you might be able to get some serious performance out of that chip. That being said, depending on your area, I would probably go with Skylake or Haswell Refresh.

Is there a specific Haswell/Skylake CPU you'd recommend? Also, I'm not sure as to what you mean by "your area" so could you please rephrase that bit? Thanks, man!

[LukaH]

i think that by  "your area"  he meant if you live in an area where it gets really hot you will have to turn the overclock off or go for a minor speed bump to keep thermals in check.

[Godlygamer23]

30 minutes ago, LukaH said:

i think that by  "your area"  he meant if you live in an area where it gets really hot you will have to turn the overclock off or go for a minor speed bump to keep thermals in check.

I was thinking more about pricing as some areas can have funky pricing.

[Redicat]

1 hour ago, Godlygamer23 said:

I was thinking more about pricing as some areas can have funky pricing.

How about... um PCI-E 2.0, i have noticed a BIG increase in FPS when i switched to 3.0 on 3930K on my mobo!  

 

No serious a 2600K is outdated you'll have more options with chipsets, M.2 support ict  

[Godlygamer23]

3 minutes ago, Redicat said:

How about... um PCI-E 2.0, i have noticed a BIG increase in FPS when i switched to 3.0 on 3930K on my mobo!  

 

No serious a 2600K is outdated you'll have more options with chipsets, M.2 support ict  

I'm not looking to make the user "stay up-to-date" with technology. If they have no use for the benefits of Haswell or Skylake, and Sandy Bridge is fine, and they can get a SB CPU for a pretty decent price, there's nothing wrong with choosing Sandy Bridge. I am going to provide a non-biased answer here, and looking to benefit the user with stuff they're actually going to use. If they decide that they want to use M.2, or whatever, more power to them.

[Redicat]

1 minute ago, Godlygamer23 said:

I'm not looking to make the user "stay up-to-date" with technology. If they have no use for the benefits of Haswell or Skylake, and Sandy Bridge is fine, and they can get a SB CPU for a pretty decent price, there's nothing wrong with choosing Sandy Bridge. I am going to provide a non-biased answer here, and looking to benefit the user with stuff they're actually going to use. If they decide that they want to use M.2, or whatever, more power to them.

True but still... PCI-E 2.0 is SLOW atleast for me runnning a "high-end" GTX 970  

[Godlygamer23]

6 minutes ago, Redicat said:

True but still... PCI-E 2.0 is SLOW atleast for me runnning a "high-end" GTX 970  

I don't know what speed the slot is running at, but Guru3D got these numbers with a 980 testing the various revisions of PCIe: http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/pci_express_scaling_game_performance_analysis_review,1.html

Edited February 10, 2016 by Godlygamer23
Corrected GPU name.

[Redicat]

8 minutes ago, Godlygamer23 said:

I don't know what speed the slot is running at, but Guru3D got these numbers with a 980 Ti testing the various revisions of PCIe: http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/pci_express_scaling_game_performance_analysis_review,1.html

Weird... You are right because 2.0 is like 40 Gbits vs 90ish on the 3.0 side. would make every slot a 8x slot technically on PCI-E 2.0.

Edited February 10, 2016 by Redicat

[Godlygamer23]

1 minute ago, Redicat said:

Weird... You are right because 2.0 is like 40 Gbits vs 90ish on the 3.0 side. would make every slot a 8x slot technically on PCI-E 2.0 

What kind of performance were you achieving on PCIe 3.0 vs 2.0?

[TomvanWijnen]

Yes, buying older cheaper CPUs often is a good idea. Look for the 2600k, but also look for the 3770k, you might find a good deal on those aswell.  Source: me, lol, the 3770k in my signature was bought close to 2 years ago now already, it costed 300 euros, including the motherboard, and the NH-D14. All three still work fine today (posting from that system ) (knocks on wood), and offer even more power than I need.

[Redicat]

2 minutes ago, Godlygamer23 said:

What kind of performance were you achieving on PCIe 3.0 vs 2.0?

Well i'm running dual GPUs... idk if that would make a difference? probably not because i still only used 32 lanes and 16x 2.0.

 

I think like 10-20 fps... i could be very wrong.

 

edit:

 

I recommend going with Skylake or the newest platform because a "I7" Xeon is only around 200ish dollars. 

And mobo's are only increasing in price... sooo.

Edited February 10, 2016 by Redicat

[LukaH]

14 hours ago, Godlygamer23 said:

I was thinking more about pricing as some areas can have funky pricing.

ohh my bad

[Da_NKP]

So yeah, that all being said, it seems I have this to take away:

• With a single GPU, generational differences aren't too big of an issue
• However, there is a lack of other features that might be useful
• Also, it comes to price: a 2600k at half the price of a newer CPU would be worth it
• But, given that prices are kinda weird (new 2600k's go for $400 on amazon...) saving up for a new i7 or Xeon would make sense

So, for everyone who participated, thanks for helping me out on this. I'll have to keep an eye on prices of old/new CPUs and look into more detail as to which newer features I'd miss out on should I go old. As I'm relatively new to building PCs, I've never felt comfortable with buying used, so personally, I'll probably go new just because I'm a wuss :D, but if there's one for cheaps, it might be worth the $150 gamble.