Worthy upgrade from X79?

[yoadknux]

Hi,

I've a X79 4930k system. I am using it for general desktop usage, a lot of gaming, and relatively light mathematical calculations (with Matlab, Mathematica, etc). I have recently thought about upgrading, but I am still not feeling that well with the options:

Going to X99 means 5930k or 6850k -> pretty expensive, not so much availability, so I think I'll skip this option.

Going to 6700k/7700k -> higher single & quad core performance -> better for gaming, but something inside my head tells me that going from 6/12 to 4/8 isn't all that much of an upgrade.

Going to Ryzen: I thought about getting 1800x, but... benchmarks show that an overclocked 4930k vs an overclocked 1800x have an almost identical single core and quad core performance, only higher core usage shows more performance -> probably not relevant to my usage. Also lose quad channel RAM and latency is higher, so I have to assume the 4930k is at least as good for gaming.

Going to 8700k: Finally a real upgrade. The only drawback is loss of RAM bandwidth because of no support for quad channel RAM. Also probably less PCI-E lanes? Might be an issue because I plan on going SLI at some point and I'm also getting a PCI-E sound card.

So... maybe someone can explain the CPU situation to me? Is it the right time to upgrade, or should I keep waiting? Seems to me that CPUs haven't progressed all that much over the last few years. Maybe I should wait for a quantum computer...

 

[bigtallanddopey]

I think you have summed up where you are at quite well. You are probably right on the edge of being able to upgrade and get what you could call a decent performance difference.

If you have the money you could get one of the x299 platform processors or core i9 as they’re called. But like I said they’re expensive and tbh the low end cpus on the x299 platform have been overtaken by the high end i7,s

Or your other two options are the 8700K like you have mentioned and the ryzen 7 2700x. I think you would see performance gains with both however is it a big leap in performance? Probably not.

If you can do what you want to do with what you have currently then stay as you are. If you think you need a little more in the games then maybe look at the graphics card instead. (Unless you already have a 1080ti)

 

[ATMINSIDE]

If you're looking for a jump in gaming performance you're better off getting a GPU upgrade. What GPU are you using now and what resolution do you game at?
What about a new higher refresh and/or resolution monitor with a new GPU?

 

[yoadknux]

I think you have summed up where you are at quite well. You are probably right on the edge of being able to upgrade and get what you could call a decent performance difference.

If you have the money you could get one of the x299 platform processors or core i9 as they’re called. But like I said they’re expensive and tbh the low end cpus on the x299 platform have been overtaken by the high end i7,s

Or your other two options are the 8700K like you have mentioned and the ryzen 7 2700x. I think you would see performance gains with both however is it a big leap in performance? Probably not.

If you can do what you want to do with what you have currently then stay as you are. If you think you need a little more in the games then maybe look at the graphics card instead. (Unless you already have a 1080ti)

If you're looking for a jump in gaming performance you're better off getting a GPU upgrade. What GPU are you using now and what resolution do you game at?
What about a new higher refresh and/or resolution monitor with a new GPU?

Thanks for the comments guys. I definitely agree that the GPU is the most important thing. But I already have a 1080ti and I'm playing at 1080p 144Hz so I'm probably going into that bottleneck area. I was playing AC Origins last night and for the first time out of all the games I have ever played my GPU usage went below 100% (no syncs or something like that). This made me look at the different options.

 

[EarthDog]

But I already have a 1080ti and I'm playing at 1080p 144Hz so I'm probably going into that bottleneck area.

This would have been good to know in post #1.

That said, if you want the most out of that card, go i7-8700K and overclock it. Skylake-X is a bit slower in many titles due to its arch changes (cache, ring bus, etc) at the same clockspeeds. But if you need the cores, you do not have much of a choice.

I see you mention RAM bandwidth... is that an issue for your other work or something? I ask as it has almost nothing to do with gaming going from quad channel to dual.

But since you are also planning on SLI and another PCIe card, X299 would seemingly be the choice for 1080p high Hz gaming.

 

[yoadknux]

This would have been good to know in post #1.

That said, if you want the most out of that card, go i7-8700K and overclock it. Skylake-X is a bit slower in many titles due to its arch changes (cache, ring bus, etc) at the same clockspeeds. But if you need the cores, you do not have much of a choice.

I see you mention RAM bandwidth... is that an issue for your other work or something? I ask as it has almost nothing to do with gaming going from quad channel to dual.

But since you are also planning on SLI and another PCIe card, X299 would seemingly be the choice for 1080p high Hz gaming.

RAM bandwidth isn't an issue in general. I just have a general idea (which may be false) in the back of my head that faster RAM is good in CPU bottleneck situations. I mean, when people test 3200MHz vs 2400MHz RAM they're actually testing the bandwidth, no? Since latency is generally constant because CL timings increase... And I know that 2400MHz quad channel has higher bandwidth than 3600MHz+ dual channel. So RAM bandwidth really doesn't matter for gaming?

As for the 8700k, it really has only 16 PCI-E lanes - So big no no to SLI+Sound card. Is it because some PCI-E lanes are reserved for the M2 SSDs?

 

[wingman99]

For the i7 8700k, Z370 SLI is around + or - (5%) give ore take depending on the game and resolution for 8X+8X compared to 16x+16x and the sound card should only be 1X from the south bridge. LINK: https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Titan-X-Performance-PCI-E-3-0-x8-vs-x16-851/

 

[EarthDog]

RAM bandwidth isn't an issue in general. I just have a general idea (which may be false) in the back of my head that faster RAM is good in CPU bottleneck situations. I mean, when people test 3200MHz vs 2400MHz RAM they're actually testing the bandwidth, no? Since latency is generally constant because CL timings increase... And I know that 2400MHz quad channel has higher bandwidth than 3600MHz+ dual channel. So RAM bandwidth really doesn't matter for gaming?

As for the 8700k, it really has only 16 PCI-E lanes - So big no no to SLI+Sound card. Is it because some PCI-E lanes are reserved for the M2 SSDs?

What is your bottleneck situation? I wouldn't worry about RAM bandwidth losses from quad to dual. Non issue for you and your listed uses.

 

[ihrsetrdr]

My Asrock X79 ext4 runs a Xeon E5 2650 (8/16) nicely stock, if more threads would help the cause. The E5 2650s are going for a lot less $$ now, than when it I got my x79 in 2011. serversupply.com

 

[yoadknux]

If I upgrade, I don't think I'll stay on X79. Going for more cores means less single core performance.

Right now I'm considering between X99 (I've found 5930k for 190$) or Z370 (Found 8600k for same price). Considering the prices in my country those are absolute steals. Not sure what I should go with. Reminds me of the day I had to choose between the E8400 and the Q6600...

But to be honest, 5930k over 4930k is almost nothing, we're talking about how much performance, maybe 10%? The biggest feature is M2 SSD that is not so important to me, and with the 8600k I give up on 6 threads.

Ehhh, probably I'll skip both and wait for a killer deal on 8700k... anything else is probably a lateral move.

 

[Cnaydmancangt]

Id wait for the new cpu's to come out. You have a 1080ti and at only 1080p i doubt your seeing below 100fps in any game.. I mean every game i play im at 100fps + except warhammer total war 2 and im playing at a higher resolution then you. I thought about upgrading my 4790k as well, for my resolution it aparently isnt worth it, but even with yours i wouldnt either.. New cpu's are close to coming out. I gatta say computers arent as fun as they used to be. I remember upgrading cpu's used to be a big deal but for 10 years it isnt a big deal. I mean i had my e8400 wofldale for 8 years before i got my 4790k in 2015...