3770k to a 7600k

[pandy44k]

Hi guys,

is it worth upgrading from a 3770k to a 7600k ? mixed usage but mainly gaming. need the system to last me around 5 years so future proofing is on my mind.

also perhaps the wrong sub forum but what are peoples opinions of a 1060 vs R480? from what i have read there doesn't seem to be much in it?

also is it worth waiting for the new AMD CPUs?

[PowerPie5000]

I wouldn't bother upgrading the CPU unless you actually notice it struggling. The 3770k is still more than capable at handling the latest games when paired with a decent GPU and you can just overclock if it starts to struggle (assuming you have an OC capable board?). The GTX 1060 and RX 480 are pretty evenly matched, but I'd personally lean towards the RX 480 when it comes to newer DX12 & Vulkan based games... And the fact that AMD are pretty good at squeezing out extra performance with their driver updates (Radeons get better with age so to speak ).

[Spreadie]

I moved from 3770K to 6700K, mainly because replacement Z77 boards were considerably more expensive than Z170, and I got £175 for my 3770K, but also because I wanted native m.2 NVMe support.

I can't say I have noticed any real benefits in performance.

It's worth waiting to see what Ryzen brings, but I'd be tempted to put the money towards a new GPU or SSD storage.

[EndlessWaves]

A lot of the improvements have been in the GPU, which is irrelevant if you're buying an external one.

The extra memory bandwidth is nice, as is the newer tech support from the chipset (e.g. NVMe drives) but neither are a particularly big deal for gaming so it's not worth the cash to upgrade right now.

As for the card, another point in the RX 480's favour is that variable refresh rate screens are available for it on any budget.

[pandy44k]

thanks guys,

so is the general feeling that the 3770k will be worth keeping for another 4/5 years? its got a small OC to 4.4 on it and it seems happy with that at standard voltage. the graphics card is a 7970 so thats due for replacement, is my money better spent on a new graphics card and a free sync monitor? it already has an SSD in it and the motherboard has an M2 sata slot on it (but not used atm)

over the next 3/4 years i wont be able to afford to upgrade the machine so need it capable for that amount of time

thanks for the advice!

[imadaily]

Worth bearing in mind that some ivy-bridge era motherboards offer M.2 support via a BIOS update. (with the addition of a PCIe adaptor)

Asrock released a beta BIOS enabling NVMe for their extreme 4/6 Z77 boards.

[Hoonigan]

There's rumours of Intel releasing an i5 with Hyper-Threading enabled, as a retaliation to Ryzen. Hexus seems to believe it will be called the i5 7640K.

Obviously, we don't know the price of this yet, but you'll probably find it'll sit somewhere between the 7600K (£229) and the 7700K (£329).
It's also likely that the "7640K" will run on current Z270 motherboards, so there won't be any extra outlay there.

TL;DR, wait a couple of months and re-assess the situation.

Rumour: http://hexus.net/tech/news/cpu/10222...s-says-report/

[kompukare]

It's also likely that the "7640K" will run on current Z270 motherboards, so there won't be any extra outlay there.

Surely only with a BIOS update which would equally apply to Z170 boards and either way is the classic catch-22 CPU without BIOS support dilemma.

[Hoonigan]

Surely only with a BIOS update which would equally apply to Z170 boards and either way is the classic catch-22 CPU without BIOS support dilemma.

Hmmm... You've got a point there! Might be a solution closer to the time, but it's worth looking out for.

[pandy43k]

thanks guys, suppose ill give a little more info on my system, its a 3770k overclocked to 4.4. its got 32gb of ram on an asus maximus extreme z77. its got a 512gb ssd and it has an m2 slot onboard but not in use. its weakness is the 7950 graphics card at the minute.

going from what you guys have said my money would be better going on a monitor (i currently have a basic benq 1080p one) and a new graphics card? I'm liking the look of an rx480 nitro+ and a 4k free sync monitor. barring a broken part i assume this system will give me another good few years yet?

[imadaily]

4k is probably a bit much for a RX480 especially if you're hoping it'll last 5 years?
If you have a look at some of the benchmarks you'll see the effect of going from 1080p to 1440p to 4k.
https://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/...aming_X/7.html

[pandy43k]

i see what you mean, perhaps a rx480 with a freesync 1080 monitor might be a better combo? are there any better and cards on the horizon?

[imadaily]

Vega is coming at some point. Though I have no idea when, or the level of improvements we should expect.

A 1080p freesync monitor and rx480 should play most stuff maxed out for a reasonable while.

I quite like 1440p but I value pretty visuals over frame rates.

[pandy43k]

i do too, thats why i liked 4k, but as you say the rx480 doesn't really do it well. It seems to struggle at 1440p as well, although i would think you would just have to turn down some of the graphics to increase the frame rate? any recommendations of a reasonably priced 27" 1440p monitor with free sync?

EDIT: found this one http://www.ebuyer.com/748361-acer-xg...c-um-hg0ee-a01 its not 144hz but the ones that are seem much more expensive?

[adamgrundyuk]

I'm wondering if the prices will drop for the 7600k/7700k now that AMD have released further details of the Ryzen CPU

[rob4001]

I think 4k is another GPU generation away yet at least for non insane prices