To upgrade or not to upgrade?

[Unknown_Gamer]

Hi everyone!

 

I've had my 4690k since April of 2016 (I got it for $199 off of eBay and its worked great with no problems) but I've decided to upgrade my computer case. In this time, I realized that the new computer case has USB 3. My problem is that my current motherboard only supports USB 2 (I have an H81M-A). That then lead me to looking into mobos that support USB 3 header which then lead me to think about upgrading to a 6600k. I am wondering if you all think I should upgrade? I usually play games like Garry's Mod, ETS2, ATS2, and maybe some battlefield here and there. I multitask a lot, usually having about 8-12 chrome tabs open, garry's mod running, discord client, 3 windows of Atom running, an srcds terminal running (Server hosting for my local Gmod testing server), and maybe Spotify. Do you think it is worth it to upgrade with all of this in mind and with my specs below (I've always worried my CPU has bottlenecked my GPU)

 

Current setup:

CPU: Intel i5 4690k overclocked to 4.3 GHz at 1.98v

GPU: Gigabyte G1 Gaming 1070

Mobo: Asus H81M-A

PSU: EVGA 500W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply

RAM: 16gb of Corsair (2x8) 1333mhz

Cooler: Hyper 212 Evo

 

Should I upgrade to 1151, 6600k? If so, what is a good budget mobo (Pref. ATX and Asus, though I an open to other brands like EVGA and MSI), or should I look into the 7600k or 8600k?

 

Thanks all!

[Crunchy Dragon]

Why not go all the way to an 8400?

[Unknown_Gamer]

3 minutes ago, Crunchy Dragon said:

Why not go all the way to an 8400?

What's the difference between the 8400 and 8600k? I'm just looking to stay up-to-date with all the new cool kids and I hear they are use Coffeelake. I know a lot of people will bash me but I am looking to save some money by using eBay ('ve never had ANY problems buying ram, mobos, and CPUs from eBay)

 

EDIT: I see the 8400 is not overclockable. I've always been an overclocked. Is there there no k version of the 8400?

[Crunchy Dragon]

2 minutes ago, Unknown_Gamer said:

What's the difference between the 8400 and 8600k? I'm just looking to stay up-to-date with all the new cool kids and I hear they are use Coffeelake. I know a lot of people will bash me but I am looking to save some money by using eBay ('ve never had ANY problems buying ram, mobos, and CPUs from eBay)

The 8400 is locked and clocked slightly lower, but if you wanna spend a bit more, you can get the 8600K.

[danomicar]

I would think you'd be safe with a 6600K. That's all the power I need and I don't believe any of the games you mentioned are particularly hard on processing. 

 

But the real question would you rather be "safe" or know for a fact you have too much power?

[Mooshi]

Going from a quad-core i5 to a quad-core i5 is a waste. If you're sticking Intel, go hex core minimum.

[Unknown_Gamer]

1 minute ago, Mooshi said:

Going from a quad-core i5 to a quad-core i5 is a waste. If you're sticking Intel, go hex core minimum.

Sorry, its been ages since I've done this type of research and I think I lost some of my lingo. What do you mean by hex core minimum?

[Crunchy Dragon]

Just now, Unknown_Gamer said:

Sorry, its been ages since I've done this type of research and I think I lost some of my lingo. What do you mean by hex core minimum?

If you're staying on Intel, get a 6 core CPU at the least.

[Mooshi]

1 minute ago, Unknown_Gamer said:

Sorry, its been ages since I've done this type of research and I think I lost some of my lingo. What do you mean by hex core minimum?

To be blunt, going to a quad-core chip to one a few generations older is tossing money away for minimal performance gain. With Intel's current lineup, 6 core chips replaced quad core. 

 

This way there is a reason to upgrade. Or you could go AMD Ryzen, but I wouldn't say that is much of an upgrade if this is mainly a gaming PC.

[AskTJ]

i5's that are from 1st gen, up until 7th gen, have 4 cores. i5's that are 8th gen and above, now have 6 cores.

[Crunchy Dragon]

6 minutes ago, Mooshi said:

I wouldn't say that is much of an upgrade if this is mainly a gaming PC.

Ryzen is actually a pretty good option for gaming PCs.

I had the choice between an i3-8100 and a Ryzen 5 1600, and I chose the 1600. More cores, more threads, higher performance, unlocked.

 

Ryzen would be a really good upgrade. The 6600K is slightly better than the 1600, but the 1600 has 6 cores, 12 threads, and is also half the price.

[Unknown_Gamer]

Ok I guess I will limit my look to the intel 8th gen and have narrowed it down between the 8400 and the 8600k. I like the 8400 because of its low pricetags and that it has 6 cores, but I don't like that it isn't unlocked. I have reason to go with the 8600k but is it really worth the performance increase? Also, how about good cheap mobos for 8600k that has good overclocking that isn't above $150. How is this mobo? https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813144113&cm_re=coffee_lake_motherboard-_-13-144-113-_-Product

 

I switched from AMD to intel and would like to preserve all my files and just want a simple mobo swap, I don't want to go through the pain of uninstalling all drivers and reinstalling new ones again. I feel AMD is not my thing even though they got some good pricetags, I really on appreciate them for giving intel competition and giving me and others lower pricetags on Intel.

 

EDIT: Mobo I found doesn't list that it supports 133mhz ram but would it still work?

[dizmo]

Don't get something that's less than 8th gen unless you're getting it for an amazing price.

The 8400 allows you to use cheaper motherboards, and honestly if you're using a 1080p60 monitor that's all you need.

If you do high refresh rate gaming, then I'd consider the 8600k.

 

Don't get an MSI motherboard. Asus, Gigabyte and ASRock are all better choices.

 

I don't think anyone will make fun of you for buying stuff on eBay. A good chunk of my entire build was done on eBay, and as a result I got a killer computer for $350.

[Unknown_Gamer]

1 minute ago, dizmo said:

Don't get something that's less than 8th gen unless you're getting it for an amazing price.

The 8400 allows you to use cheaper motherboards, and honestly if you're using a 1080p60 monitor that's all you need.

If you do high refresh rate gaming, then I'd consider the 8600k.

 

Don't get an MSI motherboard. Asus, Gigabyte and ASRock are all better choices.

 

I don't think anyone will make fun of you for buying stuff on eBay. A good chunk of my entire build was done on eBay, and as a result I got a killer computer for $350.

Thanks, the only problem I find is that none of the motherboards list that they support 1333mhz. Does 1333mhz work but just isn't actively supported on the new motherboards or does the system just not POST with 1333mhz on 8th gen intel?

[dizmo]

5 minutes ago, Unknown_Gamer said:

Thanks, the only problem I find is that none of the motherboards list that they support 1333mhz. Does 1333mhz work but just isn't actively supported on the new motherboards or does the system just not POST with 1333mhz on 8th gen intel?

You have to use DDR4.

[Unknown_Gamer]

23 minutes ago, dizmo said:

You have to use DDR4.

 

Seriously dawg,  there no other way? I don't wana pay these damn RAM prices, they're so high! I remember I got my my current 16gb set I bought for $100 USD NEW in April of 2017! Now I feel really deterred and don't want to upgrade. Is there any prediction of when RAM will return to their normal prices ~$105 maybe if you count for inflation. If there is no other way I will no longer continue this upgrade until RAM prices return to normal or I get a killer deal/lowball some dude on eBay.

[dizmo]

10 minutes ago, Unknown_Gamer said:

 

Seriously dawg,  there no other way? I don't wana pay these damn RAM prices, they're so high! I remember I got my my current 16gb set I bought for $100 USD NEW in April of 2017! Now I feel really deterred and don't want to upgrade. Is there any prediction of when RAM will return to their normal prices ~$105 maybe if you count for inflation. If there is no other way I will no longer continue this upgrade until RAM prices return to normal or I get a killer deal/lowball some dude on eBay.

Nope. They're a little high, but they're not that bad. Yes, if you look at it in terms of percentage, it's a huge rise. However it's only an extra $60 in terms of the build. You likely got a deal because DDR3 isn't really in demand anymore. If you're really going to abandon the upgrade over $60, then you'll be waiting for a very long time.

[ChernobilChuck]

Are you sure it worth it to upgrade? Don't get me wrong with an 8th gen i5 your pc would much faster but would gain any benefits? The games you play should run pretty good with those specs. And upgrading to get 1/2 usb 3.0s working is pointless imo. Sooo i think you should only upgrade if you need the extra performance in any of the games you want to play, otherwise it's quite expensive as you have to get a mobo, a cpu, and ram too.

[willing]

@Unknown_Gamer

I don't think you need to upgrade your entire platform. The i5 4690K is still a very good CPU for your tasks and you have 16GBs of RAM already paired with it. Like others said above, if you go for an 8th gen Intel CPU, you also have to get a new mobo and RAM (and RAM prices are crazy rn).

I would just ditch your H81 and buy a Z97 mobo. Z97s have USB 3.0 and some even have NVMe support. You can still use your current CPU and RAM with it.

Idk why you even had an H81 mobo paired with an i5 4690K; the H81 is mainly for entry level, non-OCable Haswell chips.

 

And no, your CPU isn't bottlenecking your GPU unless you're playing at 1080p @ 240 FPS or around that realm. 

[Mattias Edeslatt]

Why not get a ad-in card with USB 3 there are cards that also have internal headers so you can hook up the front of the case. The gain is minimal to upgrade in your use-case and really not wort the cost in i.m.o. 

 

You already have a good graphic card and a processor that doesn't hinder it's performance. And none of the games are heavy on multi-threading so there is ample capacity for your other applications to run at the same time. 

[Unknown_Gamer]

Thank you all for the input! To respond to the last 2 replies, I got an H81M-A because I was a novice and it does well! I can overclock to 4.3GHz on my 4690k but the games I play work fine, but one thing that doesn't perform so well is Prepar3D (FSX but updated by Lockheed Martin). I am a big aviation geek and with planes I fly like PMDG, Aerosoft, etc. on my 4690k, it doesn't perform amazing. I've found a good deal at my local microcenter where I can get a 8600k + Asus Z370-P for $309. All I need is some ram and I'm good (Hoping to lowball some dude on eBay).

 

By the way, what is the difference between the Asus Z370-P and the Z370-A?

[Clarhett]

On 6/30/2018 at 12:08 AM, Unknown_Gamer said:

What's the difference between the 8400 and 8600k? I'm just looking to stay up-to-date with all the new cool kids and I hear they are use Coffeelake. I know a lot of people will bash me but I am looking to save some money by using eBay ('ve never had ANY problems buying ram, mobos, and CPUs from eBay)

 

EDIT: I see the 8400 is not overclockable. I've always been an overclocked. Is there there no k version of the 8400?

If the point is to save money, and still be able to use a newer USB 3.0 why not move laterally into an i7 4790K and a Z97 motherboard. You could end up re-using all your existing gear, and just switch out the CPU, motherboard, and case.

[Emberstone]

4 hours ago, Unknown_Gamer said:

Asus Z370-P and the Z370-A

It looks like the Z370-P has a worse VRM setup for overclocking. Those are the parts that supply power to the processor. Fewer of them and worse quality means they run hotter, and will fail sooner.

 

Stock will probably be fine, but it's not a board I'd personally want to push.

 

The Z370-A is a great board, however. I've got one myself.