I recently got a i7 - 2600k of a friend of mine - for free. Is it worth it to upgrade? I mean, I would have to get a new MoBo (a good one is hard to get here due to the age and I'm not sure to get a used one) and a cooler. Or should I just wait for the 5xxx series and just spend my money on all new stuff? Any advise is welcome thanks
2600k can be fast as any new 4th gen i7. If you can get some cheap Z68 board and start overclocking Sandy can be really strong even today. You'll probably hit 4.5ghz and that would a nice upgrade.
Seriously? I would not even think about it twice even with a "new" board assembled with that 2600K which you get for free.....Grab it before he over think it twice and you fish behind the fishing net GRAB IT <clear? lol
The 2600k is old but it's a beast. Grab a cheap Z77 motherboard, overclock, and you can end up having better performance than my 4670k!
I can attest to the power of the Sandy Bridge. Although the guts of my system are starting to get long in the tooth and are making me kind of antsy to upgrade, the 2600 certainly can still hold its own. I have been running mine at 4.6 24/7 since a week after I bought it, and even now with dual 970s it still holds its own. Would I get better performance with a newer platform and chip? Obviously.. but if you can get a 2600 for free and oc it up to 4.5+ (which is ridiculously easy I might add) then the upgrade in your case OP is a huge one. Make sure that you set HT on as well.. I find that overall I get better performance on my system with it on. May not be able to OC as high, but the trade off is worth it, IMO.
Buying second hand (or even new) Z68/Z77 based mobo for that 2600K is no brainer as far as I'm concerned. After all these years 2600K is still a beast and OC'ed can compete without problem even with 4th generation of i7 CPU's, no doubt about that. 2600K is probably my favorite CPU among all i7's. All 2600K/2700K that went through my hands can do at least 4.2GHz OC, even worst batches, with decent aftermarket CPU cooler (heat-pipe based or AIO) and HT ON + Vcore between 1.3V and 1.4V most 2600K/2700K can hit between 4.5GHz and 4.7GHz, better batches even above 4.8GHz. I had one cherry picked 2600K capable for 24/7 on 5GHz @ 1.375V with HT ON below Corsair H100i. When you find some Z68/Z77 mobos for that 2600K post them here with prices and we'll gladly pick the best one for OC.
I've been trying to justify an upgrade for a while now. Unfortunately, there's nothing worth upgrading to yet unless you just like to waste money.
Same here. I'd like to upgrade eventually, but really, nothing has been provocative enough for me to move on it. Just been upgrading everything else (Cards.. just got a new desk, new case is being shipped, new accessories etc) Want to see what Skylake brings.. though I'm a bit bummed that it will still be only quad core chips for the PC line.
Skylake-E is probably going to be the only thing to tempt me at this stage, I had my hopes on Skylake but I'm unlikely to jump over. I've yet to find anything my 3570K can't handle anyway, and I'm not willing to fork out for a minor increase.
Right, 20% clock vs clock is the same? Or up to 25fps by certain games or even more when not gpu bound..:nerd: http://ht4u.net/reviews/2015/intel_core_i7-4790k_im_test/index25.php SB is still a ok chip though, that's about it.
Since getting my 2600K, I've upgraded harddrives, ram, case, graphics card (multiple times), monitor, cooling, sound card, graphics card again and desk.... CPU and motherboard are the only things that haven't changed. I'm hoping something worth upgrading to gets released before this system starts to decompose....lol Devil's Canyon ranges from 10-20% faster than Sandy Bridge depending on application. Given the cost difference, it's really nothing to get excited about. For those not scared to overclock, the performance difference will vary as Sandy Bridge does overclock better than Devil's Canyon allowing it to close the performance gap. Realistically, you can bring that 10-20% performance difference to as little as 5%.
Ok, so I think I should get me a Z68 or Z77 board asap before someone of this forum throws a rock at my face Thanks a lot for the responses guys! I've been looking around and I'm having some trouble finding a decent new board to OC, http://www.alternate.es/ASRock/Z77-Extreme3/html/product/1043842?tk=7&lk=6773 http://www.alternate.es/ASRock/Z77-Pro3/html/product/999535?tk=7&lk=6773 http://www.alternate.es/ASRock/Z77-Pro4/html/product/995861?tk=7&lk=6773 but I am surprised they still hold on at such a high price, being basically outdated Mobos... Thinking about the extreme 3 so I can crossfire later with another 280x. What should I get? Thinking about a CPU Air cooler & good case.
Looking at price difference between listed mobos ASRock Z77 Extreme3 is obviously the best OC choice for sure. It's 8+3 VRM section can make a difference when it comes to high OC (for 2600K ~4.4/4.5GHz and up). ASRock Z77 Pro3 has just 4+1 and ASRock Z77 Pro4 has 4+2 VRM design and imho they're no go, at least for me. When I'm buying some mobo + CPU for high/extreme OC at least 8+1 or 8+2 is what I'm looking for, anything below and I don't feel comfortable when it comes to OC no matter how high or small it will be. I'm sticking to that rule since I boght Asus P5B Delixe/WiFi-AP About CPU cooling... There is more then enough heat-pipe and AIO based coolers out there. Don't know about prices in Spain so post few of them in price range you are willing to pay and we'll figure out something.
Ok, so the extreme 3 will be the most probable choice. As a cooler, I'm thinking about one of these: http://www.alternate.es/Cryorig/R1-Universal/html/product/1120922?tk=7&lk=6559 http://www.alternate.es/Noctua/NH-D14/html/product/143409?tk=7&lk=6559 http://www.alternate.es/Noctua/NH-D15/html/product/1136477?tk=7&lk=6559 Do you guys think they are worth it? Or should I just go with this one http://www.alternate.es/Cooler-Master/Hyper-412S/html/product/915244?tk=7&lk=6559 Almost there! Thanks again to all of you
I can't speak for the others, but the D14 will net you 4.4-4.8 depending on your luck with the chip, it's a fantastic HSF for the price.
Consider this, many people dont overclock. 2600k at 4.5ghz will beat your 4770k stock at anything. I would still call that enough for gaming today. Let's be honest, performance difference is just not justified, same goes for i5's.
Since it's free, like all the people advised here, stay with this 2600k. For the rest of your parts, give us the amount of money you want to spent. If you don't follow a colour scheme, Noctua is always my top favorite. Extreme 3 or 4 should be just fine. About the case, there are plenty of options. Just say some numbers.
Ok what do you guys think of this setup: http://www.alternate.es/ASRock/Z77-Extreme3/html/product/1043842?tk=7&lk=6773 http://www.alternate.es/Cooler-Master/Hyper-412S/html/product/915244?tk=7&lk=6559 http://www.alternate.es/Corsair/CC-9011038-WW/html/product/1096966?tk=7&lk=6633 I am not a die hard overclocker and by this review it's seems like a good balance between €'s, db's and performance: http://www.guru3d.com/articles-pages/cpu-cooler-roundup-2013-q1-review,1.html