Upgrade i7-2600k?

[FluffyNuggets]

So I've been contemplating upgrading my 2600k lately but I'm not sure if I'd see an improvement in gaming. Currently I have a ASrock Extreme7 Gen3 and EVGA GTX 780 Classified Hydro Copper. 

 

Main reason I'm thinking about upgrading is I kinda jacked my motherboard up and killed my rear USB 3.0 ports. Was moving my tower and thought I had unplugged everything but I forgot one thing and the USB cable got turned almost sideways before I realized it. Now I can't plug anything into the 3.0 ports otherwise the computer wont start up. 

 

I was looking at Ivy Bridge-E but there seems to be almost no improvement or just barely over my 2600k. Haswell seems a little better but I'm not sure I want to go Haswell since it's not giving me that much over what I have besides PCIe 3.0, which I can do on my board if I install a Ivy Bridge CPU and upgrade the BIOS. 

 

I know Socket 2011 would be a better upgrade but I'm not sure if it would even be worth the time or money to upgrade. Seems like the 4820k or whatever it is isn't actually that great over Haswell, only with multi GPU's does it fair better. 

 

Is there something better coming out that would make an upgrade worthwhile and how soon is it coming out?

 

Thanks!

[YaNeZ]

Haswell-e

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/intel-haswell-e-engineering-sample,25416.html

 

But its Q3 2014...

[sonarctica]

No, 2600k is still a good CPU, you won't see any performance increase in gaming. Just overclock it to max if you are going to SLI later on. If you really need those USB 3.0 ports, then get a new mobo for now I'd say.

[JAKEBAB]

Don't get quad core on socket 2011!!! also u don't need to upgrade wait for broadwell.

[FluffyNuggets]

Haswell-e

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/intel-haswell-e-engineering-sample,25416.html

 

But its Q3 2014...

Hmm, almost a year down the road kinda sucks but it seems like a smarter upgrade since it will be a new socket type. So I'm assuming 2011 is getting phased out next year?

 

I really hope there's actually a big performance leap since Sandy Bridge-E to Ivy Bridge-E wasn't really an upgrade as far as speed goes. 

 

Hopefully I can make it last for another year. I'm just worried about the board going out which would kinda blow!

[JigglyPufflez]

No way do you need to upgrade, however if you are really bummed about your motherboard, you can get a new one?

[FluffyNuggets]

No, 2600k is still a good CPU, you won't see any performance increase in gaming. Just overclock it to max if you are going to SLI later on. If you really need those USB 3.0 ports, then get a new mobo for now I'd say.

I have it at 4.6Ghz right now which I guess is good. I would get a new board but it's kinda slim pickings for Z68 boards. Plus, that would just be a waste of money just to replace it shortly after! I don't really need the ports, just worried something else might happen since that's usually how it goes. One thing goes out and it starts spreading like a cancer to everything else lol. 

 

 

Don't get quad core on socket 2011!!! also u don't need to upgrade wait for broadwell.

I was also looking at the 4930k 6 Core but it didn't seem to do anything for gaming. 

 

I'm just wondering if I'm getting bottlenecked already since my performance on the 780 Classified at 1440p seems lower than what others are getting with a reference 780. Bioshock Infinite for example, people are getting around 100FPS at 2560x1440 and I'm not anywhere close to that. Not sure if it's the board, CPU, or something else, or maybe it's just me. 

[FluffyNuggets]

No way do you need to upgrade, however if you are really bummed about your motherboard, you can get a new one?

I could but I really like this board and I paid $270 for it which is kinda higher end. They discontinued it so I couldn't buy a new one if I tried, nor would I want to pay that much again for a pretty old motherboard. 

 

So you don't think it's bottlenecking my 780 Classified with PCIe 2.0? That card hits 99% usage so that would indicate there's not a bottleneck correct? However, other times the usage is lower and so is my frame rate. Not sure if that's my end or something with the game? I don't play with VSYNC so I know that's not causing the FPS loss. 

[JAKEBAB]

I have it at 4.6Ghz right now which I guess is good. I would get a new board but it's kinda slim pickings for Z68 boards. Plus, that would just be a waste of money just to replace it shortly after! I don't really need the ports, just worried something else might happen since that's usually how it goes. One thing goes out and it starts spreading like a cancer to everything else lol. 

 

 

I was also looking at the 4930k 6 Core but it didn't seem to do anything for gaming. 

 

I'm just wondering if I'm getting bottlenecked already since my performance on the 780 Classified at 1440p seems lower than what others are getting with a reference 780. Bioshock Infinite for example, people are getting around 100FPS at 2560x1440 and I'm not anywhere close to that. Not sure if it's the board, CPU, or something else, or maybe it's just me. 

have you overclocked? i dont think 780 is all that powerfull i was expecting it to be a boss i tried running need for speed rivals at 3100x1800 i think maybe 3200x1800 one of those and it sucked balls i don't even think i have it maxed out at 1440p for it to run also im pretty sure the 2600k should not be bottlenecking the 780.

 

Edit: just read your post above there is no card on the market that saturates pci 2 16x so thats impossible for it to be pcie 2 bottlenecking.

[FluffyNuggets]

have you overclocked? i dont think 780 is all that powerfull i was expecting it to be a boss i tried running need for speed rivals at 3100x1800 i think maybe 3200x1800 one of those and it sucked balls i don't even think i have it maxed out at 1440p for it to run also im pretty sure the 2600k should not be bottlenecking the 780.

I usually have the 780 Classified clocked around 1300Mhz Core and memory to 1600Mhz. I leave the memory lower and the core higher just so I don't need to raise the voltage every time I turn my PC on. I can't get the Classified Voltage Tuner to keep a set voltage otherwise I'd leave it clocked higher. 

 

I know if I run the 780 at a stock clock (Per BIOS flash) 1111Mhz Core and 1502Mhz Memory the performance is pretty lacking in games, especially BF4. However, once I add a couple 100Mhz to Core and Memory the performance gain is very noticeable.

 

Who knows, maybe my SSD's are slowing things down since they are pretty close to being full. I know performance sucks when they get filled up! I guess I'd be better off getting a bigger SSD for gaming and leave the ones I have now just for the OS. 

[JigglyPufflez]

I could but I really like this board and I paid $270 for it which is kinda higher end. They discontinued it so I couldn't buy a new one if I tried, nor would I want to pay that much again for a pretty old motherboard. 

 

So you don't think it's bottlenecking my 780 Classified with PCIe 2.0? That card hits 99% usage so that would indicate there's not a bottleneck correct? However, other times the usage is lower and so is my frame rate. Not sure if that's my end or something with the game? I don't play with VSYNC so I know that's not causing the FPS loss. 

99% usage is good, means your GPU is being used well and to its full potential (Something you want with a 780) I am sure there is no bottleneck, also I didn't realise your board costed that much. Btw you could run 2 780's in SLI and not have a bottleneck, just make sure you has the PSU for it. Also for the sometimes low usage, it happens, I get it on BF4 I never hit a constant 99% on BF4 I wish I did, but it still run fines with my GTX 680. I think you should just get another 780 if you wish to upgrade your system. However make sure you take advantage of that extra horsepower (another monitor or something) Hope this helped

[LIGISTX]

I know what its like to have a high end board and not wanting to get a different one because of its high-endness. But honestly, if you do want a new board, get a z-77. They work fine on ivy and sandy chips. Honestly these days, any decent board from a top name company will perform the exact same. Now if cooling options and looks matter, well that is up to you. But I wouldn't upgrade, a 2600k @ 4.5+ is still a pretty ballin CPU.

[FluffyNuggets]

99% usage is good, means your GPU is being used well and to its full potential (Something you want with a 780) I am sure there is no bottleneck, also I didn't realise your board costed that much. Btw you could run 2 780's in SLI and not have a bottleneck, just make sure you has the PSU for it. Also for the sometimes low usage, it happens, I get it on BF4 I never hit a constant 99% on BF4 I wish I did, but it still run fines with my GTX 680. I think you should just get another 780 if you wish to upgrade your system. However make sure you take advantage of that extra horsepower (another monitor or something) Hope this helped

You know, I thought about adding a second GPU but I'm not sure the AX850 would handle both, especially at 1.35V for both lol. I have no idea what kind of wattage I'm drawing from the wall, I just know my temps dramatically increase using 1.35v under water. Around a 10c increase!

 

Also, I just bought this PSU for almost $200 so I'd hate to need to buy a new one. 

 

One thing I was considering depending on the price is getting the 780Ti Classified Kingpin card. 450w TDP is pretty awesome and that card just begs to be under water, or LN2 if you have that kind of money. I heard he hit 2000Mhz Core on it which is just insane but I think that might have been with LN2 cooling!

I'm waiting for the price and review before I decide to ditch my almost new Classified 780. 

 

I guess I should get a voltage meter to check how much power I'm drawing. I could run two 670FTW's on this PSU but the 780 Classified uses more voltage. 

[FluffyNuggets]

I know what its like to have a high end board and not wanting to get a different one because of its high-endness. But honestly, if you do want a new board, get a z-77. They work fine on ivy and sandy chips. Honestly these days, any decent board from a top name company will perform the exact same. Now if cooling options and looks matter, well that is up to you. But I wouldn't upgrade, a 2600k @ 4.5+ is still a pretty ballin CPU.

Haha, it's not really about the high-endness, more about the board working with very little issues. 

 

Z77 will only support PCIe 2.0 on Sandy correct? So it would be more of a side grade more than anything?

 

I guess the smart thing to do is just have the money on hand in case I need to do a replacement if the board fails? I guess I can just wait for 9 months until the next socket change and upgrade then. Broadwell and Maxwell would be a nice upgrade I think lol!

[LIGISTX]

Haha, it's not really about the high-endness, more about the board working with very little issues. 

 

Z77 will only support PCIe 2.0 on Sandy correct? So it would be more of a side grade more than anything?

 

I guess the smart thing to do is just have the money on hand in case I need to do a replacement if the board fails? I guess I can just wait for 9 months until the next socket change and upgrade then. Broadwell and Maxwell would be a nice upgrade I think lol!

Correct, but PCIE 3.0 is basically pointless anyways. So even if you did get that functionality, I would still consider it to be the same amount of "sidegrade".

 

But yea, it basically is a sidegrade if you want to call it that, nothing will change performance wise. But yea, I would keep a few bucks around in case the board does die, because that could happen. Honestly, I personally would replace it. Its pretty unlikely, but the issue could cause some sort of board short and end up taking other components with it.

[FluffyNuggets]

Correct, but PCIE 3.0 is basically pointless anyways. So even if you did get that functionality, I would still consider it to be the same amount of "sidegrade".

 

But yea, it basically is a sidegrade if you want to call it that, nothing will change performance wise. But yea, I would keep a few bucks around in case the board does die, because that could happen. Honestly, I personally would replace it. Its pretty unlikely, but the issue could cause some sort of board short and end up taking other components with it.

That is my fear but I avoid plugging anything into the back 3.0 ports. The 2.0 works fine on the back as does everything else. Might just be I fried that and everything else is fine!

 

I guess I'll just hold out till Broadwell. DDR4 support would make the wait worthwhile since it's brand new tech and that's always exciting to be an early adopter! Question is though, do I want to know the price of DDR4 lol?

[TechFan@ic]

The performance improvement going from Sandy to Ivy is 5% and from Ivy to Haswell is 6%.
So approximately 11% better performance per clock, but significantly lower overclocking potential which will negate almost all architectural performance improvements.
Upgrading from a 2600K to a 4770K will not give you any tangible performance benefits except for applications that can utilize the GPU for rendering (quicksync).

 

[FluffyNuggets]

The performance improvement going from Sandy to Ivy is 5% and from Ivy to Haswell is 6%.

So approximately 11% better performance per clock, but significantly lower overclocking potential which will negate almost all architectural performance improvements.

Upgrading from a 2600K to a 4770K will not give you any tangible performance benefits except for applications that can utilize the GPU for rendering (quicksync).

Yeah that's about what I've seen in reviews. Sandy OC's really well, Ivy decently, and Haswell not so much. It kinda sucks Intel hasn't really done much lately because there's not much to upgrade to. Seems like CPUs are bit stagnant on both sides! I really hope Broadwell will be an actual upgrade not this 5% crap! I want more power but Intel says no lol.

[TechFan@ic]

Yeah that's about what I've seen in reviews. Sandy OC's really well, Ivy decently, and Haswell not so much. It kinda sucks Intel hasn't really done much lately because there's not much to upgrade to. Seems like CPUs are bit stagnant on both sides! I really hope Broadwell will be an actual upgrade not this 5% crap! I want more power but Intel says no lol.

Broadwell will not improve CPU performance, the cores will remain unchanged.

The focus will be to bring a significant GPU improvement, almost doubling of the execution units I believe.

And if 22nm is any indication, 14nm Broadwell will likely overclock even less than Ivy & Haswell.

[LIGISTX]

That is my fear but I avoid plugging anything into the back 3.0 ports. The 2.0 works fine on the back as does everything else. Might just be I fried that and everything else is fine!

 

I guess I'll just hold out till Broadwell. DDR4 support would make the wait worthwhile since it's brand new tech and that's always exciting to be an early adopter! Question is though, do I want to know the price of DDR4 lol?

Wait, we were talking about PCIE 3.0 not USB 3.0. lol. USB 3.0 is a pretty nice increase in speed, a good thumb drive will do 80+ reads compared to maybe 25-30 on USB 2.0. But PCIE 3.0 vs 2.0 means nothing. No video card needs more bandwidth than a 2.0 x16 slot.

[ericlee30]

I really hope there's actually a big performance leap since Sandy Bridge-E to Ivy Bridge-E wasn't really an upgrade as far as speed goes. 

Nope, there actually is not. the 4960X is 4.4% faster then the 3970X

[FluffyNuggets]

Wait, we were talking about PCIE 3.0 not USB 3.0. lol. USB 3.0 is a pretty nice increase in speed, a good thumb drive will do 80+ reads compared to maybe 25-30 on USB 2.0. But PCIE 3.0 vs 2.0 means nothing. No video card needs more bandwidth than a 2.0 x16 slot.

No, I was talking about how I killed my USB 3.0 ports on the rear I/O.

[JigglyPufflez]

You know, I thought about adding a second GPU but I'm not sure the AX850 would handle both, especially at 1.35V for both lol. I have no idea what kind of wattage I'm drawing from the wall, I just know my temps dramatically increase using 1.35v under water. Around a 10c increase!

 

Also, I just bought this PSU for almost $200 so I'd hate to need to buy a new one. 

 

One thing I was considering depending on the price is getting the 780Ti Classified Kingpin card. 450w TDP is pretty awesome and that card just begs to be under water, or LN2 if you have that kind of money. I heard he hit 2000Mhz Core on it which is just insane but I think that might have been with LN2 cooling!

I'm waiting for the price and review before I decide to ditch my almost new Classified 780. 

 

I guess I should get a voltage meter to check how much power I'm drawing. I could run two 670FTW's on this PSU but the 780 Classified uses more voltage. 

Your powersupply is plenty for another graphics card and yes KingPin did hit 1.93Ghz on the core with LN2 I believe (Correct me if I am wrong) it is absolutely beautiful in overclocking I would imagine. I believe your PSU is more than enough for 2 780 Ti's. However you might want to ask a couple more people, before you confirm in buying another one. Hope this helps bud!

[FluffyNuggets]

Your powersupply is plenty for another graphics card and yes KingPin did hit 1.93Ghz on the core with LN2 I believe (Correct me if I am wrong) it is absolutely beautiful in overclocking I would imagine. I believe your PSU is more than enough for 2 780 Ti's. However you might want to ask a couple more people, before you confirm in buying another one. Hope this helps bud!

Now I just gotta afford another Hydro Copper. So painful!!!

[willielikesmonkeys]

If all you do is gaming then there's no reason not to get a 4670k or even a 4770k. They still have some improvements and if it means easier to OC and $20-30 off your power bill every year (depending on if you leave it on for a long time) that's also good news. They aren't bad chips or anything they just aren't a HUGE upgrade. If not you can always buy a USB 3.0 PCIe card if you want the ports. Now if you like to stream games or do let's plays or stuff like that then you would actually might pay attention to a 4820k. But even then once shadow play gets all the bugs ironed out that's not much of an argument. 

 

I would personally replace those ports with a PCIe card. No need to spend the extra money unless you have a reason to. Or you just want bragging rights about having the latest and greatest.