Upgrade CPU or GPU

[xRoyalVortex]

My specs right now are: 

Cpu: i7-2600

Gpu: Gtx 960

 

I game on 1080p, 240hz csgo

 

I would either upgrade my gpu to a 1080ti or my cpu to an i7-7700k

 

Which would be the better option? Thank you

[pommedeterror007]

Personally id say go with a mid range CPU and a GTX 1060 or RX 480/580. Because you will have bottlenecks by upgrading just one of those.

[xRoyalVortex]

Just now, pommedeterror007 said:

Personally id say go with a mid range CPU and a GTX 1060 or RX 480/580. Because you will have bottlenecks by upgrading just one of those.

I am planning to upgrade the other one in the near future, which one would i upgrade first if i had to pick one of those?

[tp95112]

Id go with a cpu upgrade. If you're playing cs at 240hz your going to need a beefy cpu to get enough frames. What motherboard do you have? If you have a z67/Z77 maybe find a used unlocked i7

[pommedeterror007]

Well if you plan to do any heavier gaming on more intensive games, go with the GPU. 

[Jurrunio]

don't consider new i7s and i5s because Ryzen beat then bad. The only Kaby lake chip worth considering is Pentium G4560. An i7 7700k should be replaced by an Ryzen 5 1600.

 

It's too extreme to get 1 top of the range part and leave the remaining one there. If you can get both upgraded to match each other's performance well in the near future, then I'd say go for the 1080ti first. I don't think CS:GO is more CPU-bound than GPU-bound in your case (it will surely be CPU bound with a 1080ti)

[themctipers]

5 minutes ago, Jurrunio said:

don't consider new i7s and i5s because Ryzen beat then bad. The only Kaby lake chip worth considering is Pentium G4560. An i7 7700k should be replaced by an Ryzen 5 1600.

 

It's too extreme to get 1 top of the range part and leave the remaining one there. If you can get both upgraded to match each other's performance well in the near future, then I'd say go for the 1080ti first. I don't think CS:GO is more CPU-bound than GPU-bound in your case (it will surely be CPU bound with a 1080ti)

1080p high refresh rate csgo needs IPC, not cores.  

[Jurrunio]

3 minutes ago, themctipers said:

1080p high refresh rate csgo needs IPC, not cores.  

there's a whole $100 gap there though, and Ryzen is good enough to get 240+fps from cs:go.

 

Download video

That's an Ryzen 7 1700 with 2 cores disabled and clock speed reduced to act like a 1600. Averages at about 260 to 280 FPS. GPU is not a bottleneck in this test, so I'd say to save a bit of money on the CPU for a GPU that will make other games, if OP decides to try them, run very well.

[tp95112]

1 minute ago, Jurrunio said:

snip

 

 

For cs you want more then 300 fps especially 240hz. There is perceivable input lag if you're hover just above your max refresh rate

[Mooshi]

Can cs:go go away?  I find it hard to believe anyone notices lag above 200fps lmao

[pommedeterror007]

I have a i7 2600 system with a 980 in it.

I hit 180~fps ultra overwatch 1080p. So i think gpu is best.

[themctipers]

6 minutes ago, Mooshi said:

Can cs:go go away?  I find it hard to believe anyone notices lag above 200fps lmao

its a twitchy shooting game where every MS counts

 

I find it to be much smoother going from 60 to 150fps, then not a lot but still some going from 150 to 200, then barely any going 200-300

[r4tch3t]

Go with the CPU, it'll have the biggest impact on CS, then I'd wait for the next generation of cards and get one of them or a 1080ti at a discount

[pommedeterror007]

Look, I can personally test between a 960 and 980 in both the i7 2600 and my i7 6700k @ 4.6ghz and tell results. IF YOU REALLY WANT. However im going to stick to my original suggestion.

[laminutederire]

What's your exact upgrade budget?

As other have pointed out, you may be better off trying to upgrade both with less top of the line chips

Personnally I cap cs go at 140fps because I only have a 60Hz monitor,  but my 6600k +r9 fury allow that fps easily, I'm sitting at 250-450 fps if I don't cap it.

Both are significantly cheaper than either of the 7700k and 1080ti, but it does work for your purpose.

[ShadyOrb09]

I wouldn't upgrade one without the other, I made that mistake. I bought a GTX 1080 and was waiting on buying a 6700k meanwhile a 1080TI came out for a bit more... Just buy them both at the same time.