2500k, have the itch to upgrade.

[daninfamous]

I havnt been following anything cpu related for a while. I have a 2500k rig that has served me pretty well.

2500k, mild o/c, cheap-o slow ram, samsung evo 250gb. asrock extreme 3 Mobo. gtx 760 2gb video card.

My upgrade budget is about 800-1200. just depends on where I wanna splurge.

Ill re-use my case, my optical drive, mouse/keyboard/monitor all that good stuff.

Really looking for a guts overhaul.

cpu/mobo/memory, and depending on final budget gpu.

I am looking into this devil's canyon but i am conflicted if I should wait or not.

I really am not playing much on my computer right now, but i am prob going to start up some bf4 and whatever else is around the corner.

I prob can push this 2500k and gpu harder if needed, just trying to get an outside opinion if I should scratch the itch or try to ignore it for now.

Thanks a bunch!

PS please ignore my terri-bad grammar.

=)

 

[Ken g6]

I tend to think wait. There's a small chance Intel will come out with a "cheap" hex-core Haswell-E soon, and some chance it might be better for BF4 and other games than Devil's Canyon. Haswell-E would also let you get the jump on DDR4 RAM.

Of course, I always tend to think "wait". That's why I'm still on a Core 2 Quad.

You could get a water cooling setup now to bump up that OC, and use it on whatever later processor. What size depends on your case. Seems like a 4.5-5GHz OC on your SB should be close to Devil's Canyon at stock. Edit: I forgot about hyper-threading. Yes, DC would be an upgrade for BF4.

You could certainly get a faster GPU. But the GPU companies are also likely to come out with new versions this fall. That part's a toss-up IMHO.

 

[Lepton87]

I had a 2500K and upgraded to a 2600k for 100$ that overclocks about 200-300MHz better.
Easy upgrade, if I hadn't cleaned my cooler and interior in the process it would have taken 5 minutes. I wanted a 3770k but someone snatched me it in an auction at the last minute.

 

[RaistlinZ]

If you're not playing much on your rig right now then there's no compelling reason to upgrade if you can wait until the Fall.

 

[bunnyfubbles]

I tend to think wait. There's a small chance Intel will come out with a "cheap" hex-core Haswell-E soon, and some chance it might be better for BF4 and other games than Devil's Canyon. Haswell-E would also let you get the jump on DDR4 RAM.

IIRC, the last rumor about 5820K pricing put it around $400, I don't think we're going to get much cheaper than that, maybe MC will give us a killer deal, but that not always an option

At any rate, $400 for a 5820K, likely at least $200 for a motherboard, and likely at least another $200 for RAM (although this is the biggest unknown right now, could very well save some money by going with only 1 stick, but I wouldn't want to run without at least 2) and we're already using up the lower end of his budget range, and that's before cooling which it would be pretty advisable to spend the better part of another $100 on an AIO water cooler or massive tower cooler. Granted, he'd have enough for a beastly GPU but then we'd be at the upper end of his budget.

Also, there is pretty much a guaranteed chance that Haswell-E will be faster than anything mainstream Haswell is good for outside of anything Quicksync could be used for (and assuming their is no dGPU alternative), Sandy-E/Ivy-E sixcore CPUs are the best CPUs you can give most games these days, I think its something like only 11% of the time where its a slower option, but its also nearly twice as expensive for the core components.

 

[Lepton87]

Also, there is pretty much a guaranteed chance that Haswell-E will be faster than anything mainstream Haswell is good for outside of anything Quicksync could be used for (and assuming their is no dGPU alternative), Sandy-E/Ivy-E sixcore CPUs are the best CPUs you can give most games these days, I think its something like only 11% of the time where its a slower option, but its also nearly twice as expensive for the core components.

You got that wrong, over 90% of the time 4790K will be faster. 4770K matches 3970X

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2387728


BrightCandle did a nice study but it was mostly neglected, IMHO it deserved a lot more attention then it did.
UPDATE:

I exaggerated but 4790K is definitely the fastest gaming CPU at stock.

 

[StinkyPinky]

I only moved from a 2500k to 4790k because my system destroyed itself. Otherwise I'd quite happily have stayed with my 2500k which is still a good CPU.

But if you don't overclock then going from a 2500k to 4790k is a decent upgrade due to the high stock speed (700MHz extra...that's significant).

 

[daninfamous]

Thanks for the input all, I forgot to mention im on a hyper 212+ cooler. I think im going to push this 2500k hard for now and maybe push the gpu too. and try to make it till fall for a big(ger) upgrade.

Thanks =)

edit

ive been thinking about getting one of the AIO watercooler units from corsair, would it be safe to assume ill be able to use it on one of the new chips in the fall. (i keep forgetting the naming structure) haswell-e i think?

edit

 

[Headfoot]

Got 2500k myself. Waiting for Haswell E. Very high likelihood you'll be able to use the cooler on the Haswell E chips, you might have to buy a different backplate though. All-in-one coolers will most likely fit. Intel has been pretty good about keeping cooler mounting holes the same even when they are changing sockets lately.

 

[Durp]

Definitely wait.

 

[suklee]

ive been thinking about getting one of the AIO watercooler units from corsair, would it be safe to assume ill be able to use it on one of the new chips in the fall. (i keep forgetting the naming structure) haswell-e i think?

I looked into those too, but from what I've read the Corsair AIO watercoolers have average cooling performance and the fans are loud. I ended up getting a Noctua NH-D14 for my future 4790k.

 

[bunnyfubbles]

You got that wrong, over 90% of the time 4790K will be faster. 4770K matches 3970X

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2387728


BrightCandle did a nice study but it was mostly neglected, IMHO it deserved a lot more attention then it did.
UPDATE:

I exaggerated but 4790K is definitely the fastest gaming CPU at stock.

not many people are going to buy a K series CPU and run it stock, the 4790K might be a special case because its stock speeds are so much faster than the 4790, but the point still stands, especially when auto-overclocking features will allow anyone of any degree of overclocking experience to get 4-4.3GHz in just a couple of clicks and effectively erase the 4790K's stock advantage, as the newest chip fails to give us the 5.0GHz overclocks and beyond it needed to truly distinguish itself, for it realistically tops out at 4.6-4.7 like we've had for ages with Sandy.

Do I want the 4790K if I play just one or two games that can't leverage an HEDT rig? Sure. Do I want it over an HEDT rig knowing I have a vast library of games? No way. But then those who can afford HEDT very well might go ahead and luxuriate themselves with a secondary rig with a 4770K/4790K so they can have the best of both worlds, at least until Haswell-E comes out.

Of course this really all goes back to practicality. Is HEDT a good value if you only care about gaming performance? Certainly not, but then neither is the 4790K. But if the CPU/platform cost is not an issue for a single gaming rig, I can be honest in saying that I would never choose the 4790K over the 4960X outside of a niche scenario.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

Gee! There must have been four or five threads such as this one, begun over the past seven months.

It is only now -- today or this month -- that I can declare my Sandy-Bridge system and work-in-progress "complete." I initially put my sig-rig together during July and August, 2011.

I almost need to make an effort as I declare my intention for building a Haswell-"E" system in 2015. In fact -- I need to make an effort just to remain committed to the schedule for such a plan.

Of peripheral relevance only, I'm wondering what the OP means by "mild o/c . . " in reference to his i5-2500K processor. What do you mean, Daninfamous?

 

[tollingalong]

Definitely wait.

What he said.

No point in shelling for 2 more fps.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

I only moved from a 2500k to 4790k because my system destroyed itself. Otherwise I'd quite happily have stayed with my 2500k which is still a good CPU.

But if you don't overclock then going from a 2500k to 4790k is a decent upgrade due to the high stock speed (700MHz extra...that's significant).

You say "destroyed itself." Wha happened?

I run my rig 24/7/365; sleep is disabled; it's been three years. I keep wondering if a motherboard component will go south sooner or later. Something like that would catch me by surprise. But it just takes a licking and keeps on ticking. Like the bunny: "Boom, boom, boom, boom."

 

[SlickR12345]

If you aren't playing games then no need to upgrade, even if you are playing games that PC would run most games at high settings and 1080p resolutions.

I think your best option is to wait, we should have new GPU's and CPU's towards the end of the year.

Of course everything could be delayed again, but you still have a capable PC and I wouldn't rush to get anything new.

Again the only options over the GTX 760 are to go for AMD 290 or 290x with custom coolers or get a 780, in order to have a significant performance gain over the 760.

For the CPU you'd have to go with 4790 to have a significant performance boost compared to the 2500k.

 

[StinkyPinky]

You say "destroyed itself." Wha happened?

I run my rig 24/7/365; sleep is disabled; it's been three years. I keep wondering if a motherboard component will go south sooner or later. Something like that would catch me by surprise. But it just takes a licking and keeps on ticking. Like the bunny: "Boom, boom, boom, boom."

My PSU died and took out my SSD, Video Card, and damaged some sata ports in the mobo.

Happily running on a 4790K as of a few days ago. I haven't overclocked it yet, and possibly may not even do so considering it can turbo all four cores to 4.2 anyway.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

My PSU died and took out my SSD, Video Card, and damaged some sata ports in the mobo.

Happily running on a 4790K as of a few days ago. I haven't overclocked it yet, and possibly may not even do so considering it can turbo all four cores to 4.2 anyway.

Not so amazing that a malfunctioning PSU would do all that damage.

I use Seasonic PSUs exclusively now. Around 2008, I'd received a "cost-saving" deal from BFG for a PSU they produced -- priced for me at about $40. I was building my (then)-new server with a GA-EP45-UD3R mobo and an E-8400 processor -- and thought to try out the BFG PSU. It didn't "blow up," but went south immediately when I powered it on. The mobo was rendered inoperable; I think I salvaged the RAM and CPU.

The video card was still working when I finally got my little WHS server-box together. Not long thereafter, the EVGA GeForce 5300 graphics card stopped working, and I found that all the caps on the card had burst open.

Bad s*** happens.

 

[TakBaseTech]

Wait. That CPU is fine for most gaming scenarios these days. You won't notice any difference.

http://arstechnica.com/civis/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=1248499

 

[moonbogg]

I'd say hang tight. Haswell-E is worth at least waiting for reviews before making a decision.

 

[mikenike]

I have a 2500k and a 6850... still making the cut.

 

[gmaster456]

I also would hold out. That CPU is still plenty

 

[mikeymikec]

OP, please send me your unwanted 2500K, I'm sure I can find a use for it Otherwise I'm happy with my 960T.

 

[fire400]

when you get tired of it, pull the mobo and cpu out and upgrade/replace as you go