Hardware & Technical i5 or i7 for future proofing the rig

[sutex]

My RAM is about 1866MHz, CPU is a i7 4960X and a GTX1080EXOC I can produce somewhat 30-60FPS in 4K in ED
In Arma3 I barely hit 60FPS mostly it's around 40FPS

My Next rig would be purely a gaming rig, but I still don't know what to do regarding CPU and RAM/MoBo because different games require different hardware to run perfect.

1st Memory > 2nd Motherboard > 3rd CPU> 4th GPU > 5th PSU > 6th Case

The above is about best practice, following that ^^^ ,you can have the Number Crunching PC the Video Editor, or the Gaming beast as throughput is optimized and bottlenecks are reduced

in each step , each component , 'fits in' with the one before it , Good Memory can be really expensive , it also can be first thing to stuff up, if the MB cant utilize it well , same with CPU

the first 3 steps , makes or breaks you gaming beast , Once you have those worked out , choice of GPU is easier


Most modern day Motherboard are robust have all the bells whistles to work with all the steps above well enough ,so you could start in the middle or with the GPU

but as Ive said the above is about best practice , just for fine tuning and to have a smooth running machine..

Most Mb manufacturer have Vendor list ,memory and CPU that works with their MB , they do it , for the simple reason of throughput and reducing bottlenecks , when you plug in you GPU and its start filling the pipes !

 

[Iain M Norman]

Who'd have though a simple thread about hardware advice could have got so out of hand?

People, just agree to disagree please.

The OP will pick what advice to meet his ends out of the thread I'm sure. Enough of this 6 of one and half a dozen of the other bickering.

I do actually have an infraction hammer somewhere around here in the volcano lair. Don't make me go hunt it down. #wink

 

[sutex]

▷ Asus ROG Rampage VI Apex (Socket 2066) Intel X299 E-ATX Moth ...
https://www.overclockers.co.uk › ... › Intel › LGA 2066 (X299 Chipset)
3 days ago - Please refer to Memory QVL(Qualified Vendors List) for details. Multi-GPU Support, Supports NVIDIA® 4-Way/Quad-GPU SLI™ Technology Supports AMD® ...


MB-AX299D Asus X299 Deluxe: all-in-one LGA 2066 (kabylake-X ...
www.comx-computers.co.za › ... › Motherboards: Intel LGA 2066
6 days ago - Hyper DIMM support is subject to the physical characteristics of individual CPUs. * Refer to for the Memory QVL (Qualified Vendors Lists). Multi-GPU Support .
.....................

Just two examples of MB, saying please refer to Memory QVL , which is why I start with Memory first, meaning am I going to run 8 16 32 or 64 , (64 is over kill for gaming , 32 is better MB CPU and GPU can handle it )

so given 32 is the sweet spot , I then pick the better MB for the amount of ram and Type, remembering its gaming so you're going to water cool ( or should ) so you need a big board for RAM heat to fade away..

Memory and Mb as 1st / 2nd are interchangeable maybe , but Memory speed is important as is price , No point having the super MB if only the $1000 memory stick is the only type your MB likes

 

[popuptoaster]

▷ Asus ROG Rampage VI Apex (Socket 2066) Intel X299 E-ATX Moth ...
https://www.overclockers.co.uk › ... › Intel › LGA 2066 (X299 Chipset)
3 days ago - Please refer to Memory QVL(Qualified Vendors List) for details. Multi-GPU Support, Supports NVIDIA® 4-Way/Quad-GPU SLI™ Technology Supports AMD® ...


MB-AX299D Asus X299 Deluxe: all-in-one LGA 2066 (kabylake-X ...
www.comx-computers.co.za › ... › Motherboards: Intel LGA 2066
6 days ago - Hyper DIMM support is subject to the physical characteristics of individual CPUs. * Refer to for the Memory QVL (Qualified Vendors Lists). Multi-GPU Support .
.....................

Just two examples of MB, saying please refer to Memory QVL , which is why I start with Memory first, meaning am I going to run 8 16 32 or 64 , (64 is over kill for gaming , 32 is better MB CPU and GPU can handle it )

so given 32 is the sweet spot , I then pick the better MB for the amount of ram and Type, remembering its gaming so you're going to water cool ( or should ) so you need a big board for RAM heat to fade away..

Memory and Mb as 1st / 2nd are interchangeable maybe , but Memory speed is important as is price , No point having the super MB if only the $1000 memory stick is the only type your MB likes

Dude, you are a bit confused, 32g of RAM is overkill for gaming, like serious overkill. Most games wont even use up 8g, on my second screen I have hardware monitors running all the time and even with 16G of RAM on my machine almost all games leave about 10g free while they are running.

For someone on a budget that extra RAM money could buy a MUCH better GPU which would net much more obvious improvements.

If I were you I would stop basing your opinions on those MB manufactures websites, those are set up to ensure customers understand what will fit, not what is best for playing games.

Go check out some videos of your own, see if you can find anyone on youtube saying loads of super fast RAM is important for gaming and post the videos here so that we can all be converted to your methods.

 

[popuptoaster]

Thanks for all the answers, now my understanding has improved significantly.

My current rig runs ED okay, but a bit of performance improvement wouldn't hurt. Back then I went for the GTX960 4gb because I was told anything better would have diminishing returns due to the i3 CPU I have.

Someone said that jumping 2 generations is better and that's what I'm planning to do as well, so perhaps GTX 11 series.

So my takeout: I'll go for much more RAM, a mid-high motherboard and good price/value i5. I will seek expert advice on the details, of course.

I wouldn't buy a 60 series Nvidia card, the 70 series is well worth the extra cash and they are a LOT better. I don't know how much you have to spend on your graphics card and I'm not up on AMDs cards as I'm team green usually but as far as Nvidia stuff is concerned I think the sweet spot is either a 1070 if you want current gen OR the older 980ti is about the same price at the moment and will still kick on any modern game as long as your not trying to game at 4k.

 

[Gortron]

I am a PS3 fugitive and despite being in PC gaming since 2 years, I didn't really got into terms with technical stuff - please be gentle.

So here is the situation:
About 2 years ago I went for a budget gaming rig that has i3-3220 and 8mb of memory, my monitor is a simple HD one. It had an oldish used GPU that I upgraded to MSI GTX960 4gb early last year (just about when DWE arrived to Beagle Point ).
I guess you'll agree that right now it appears that the CPU is the bottleneck.

What I'm aiming for:
I guess there is no point to upgrade the CPU to level of the GTX960, as I don't want to be in a situation in a year or two that I need to uograde the whole rig at once. So I thought perhaps it is time to think about a mid/high setup that will be good enough to handle a 'tasty' GPU of a next generation (let's say, something good around end of next year or so). Obvisouly I'd buy new motherboard and RAM too.

So the question as in the title: is it worth to go for something like an i7-6850 that may serve better a next-gen GPU, or a high-spec i5 will be still good enough for years to come? I'm definitely not in a hurry, I may even wait for Black Friday or something to have a good deal. Also, I'm not into overclocking and stuff, so off-the-shelf performance is preferred.

Thanks in advance!

One of the first considerations should be what type of gaming you intend to do. If you want 4K gaming @60FPS on some future graphics card then CPU becomes less of an issue than if you want 144FPS @1080p on a high speed panel. This is because draw calls take a fair amount of CPU power so the more you make the more powerful a CPU you need.

If it is very high FPS you want a CPU than won't bottleneck a GPU is single thread or low thread/core use games. In that case you want the fastest Intel i5 or i7 you can afford, so and i5 7600K or i7 7700K. They are the current performance kings for games but you are going to pay for that performance both in the prices of the CPUs and in compatible motherboards.

If you aren't quite so worried about bleeding edge FPS (or want 4K or maybe VR) and want all-round performace better than the i5 for a little less money (not on the CPU but on the motherboards) the AMD Ryzen 1600X looks like an excellent choice. 6 core 12 threads and 4.0GHz boost. The interesting thing is all the games consoles are going down the >4 core road so there is the potential that going forwards for it to outperform the i5 in games.

Either way once you decide on a CPU you need to chose a chipset. Normally the chipset will allow or not allow overclocking, may have more or less PCIE lanes and differing support for duel or quad channel memory, stuff like that. Probably the main consideration will be if you want overclocking or not (if you don't then don't bother buying a K series Intel CPU get a i7 7700 instead for example as the K means it is clock unlocked).

As has been pointed out the mainboard will state supported memory as will the CPU. 8 to 16Gb or DDR4 (2x4GB or 2x8GB) will be ample. You really don't want 32GB unless you are doing loads of video editing whilst running a simulation of a nuclear weapon exploding and playing Planet coaster at the sametime.

A little tip for checking compatibility, go somewhere like here pick one you like and copy the important parts

 

[kilvenny]

My old man was an army trained electronics engineer. His advice was always start with the power supply. Make sure it's good quality and will not be stressed. I would go i7 and a decent cooler on a reasonable MB. Never ever go cheapest. Memory and gfx can be upgraded later. However if your base system is decent and cpu towards top end. It should give you four years use. I bought an i7 3 years ago. Year 1 new ssd. Year 2 memory. Year 3 new gfx. Year 4 new screen. Year 5 new base unit and the cycle continues.

 

[hems303]

Dude, you are a bit confused, 32g of RAM is overkill for gaming, like serious overkill. Most games wont even use up 8g, on my second screen I have hardware monitors running all the time and even with 16G of RAM on my machine almost all games leave about 10g free while they are running.

For someone on a budget that extra RAM money could buy a MUCH better GPU which would net much more obvious improvements.

If I were you I would stop basing your opinions on those MB manufactures websites, those are set up to ensure customers understand what will fit, not what is best for playing games.

Go check out some videos of your own, see if you can find anyone on youtube saying loads of super fast RAM is important for gaming and post the videos here so that we can all be converted to your methods.

So true mate on the 32 Gb....I KNOW as I have it...never ever use it I'm sure...just fills up all those empty slots..lol

o7

 

[MickyG1982]

As an outsider I only know that AMD is struggling lately and they need Ryzen to succeed for their survival - not very encouraging to hop in. Is the brand of the CPU may affect compatibility with nVidia GPUs?

All I've ever run (since a P75 back in the 90's & a Cyrix MII 300 after that) has been AMD processors right up to the lofty (honestly) heights of the 860k circa 2014 rig I have now. None of them have ever had any problems with the Nvidia GPU's I've put in them. I've had 3 years use out of this rig without having to do much other than (like you) add a GTX 960 into the mix. One thing AMD do have going for them is that they tend to hang on to their sockets for quite a while (well, apart from the one my processor sits in) AM3(+) for example has been in production since the start of the decade, AM3+ processors were also backwards compatible with AM3 through a BIOS upgrade on some boards further extending the life of their systems.

AMD has given Intel a right scare in the price to performance department right from the lowest R3 up to Threadripper - hence why Intel is rushing all it's new processors & boards out the door as a stopgap solution.

 

[Gortron]

Just found this superb i5 vs Ryzen video by digital foundry. I highly recommend watching!

[video=youtube_share;4RMbYe4X2LI]https://youtu.be/4RMbYe4X2LI[/video]

 

[sutex]

Dude, you are a bit confused, 32g of RAM is overkill for gaming, like serious overkill. Most games wont even use up 8g, on my second screen I have hardware monitors running all the time and even with 16G of RAM on my machine almost all games leave about 10g free while they are running.

For someone on a budget that extra RAM money could buy a MUCH better GPU which would net much more obvious improvements.

If I were you I would stop basing your opinions on those MB manufactures websites, those are set up to ensure customers understand what will fit, not what is best for playing games.

Go check out some videos of your own, see if you can find anyone on youtube saying loads of super fast RAM is important for gaming and post the videos here so that we can all be converted to your methods.

Well your wrong there, just more group thinking , Ive come to expect.

ARK survival, will use most of your 16g up flying around, been an EA game, but keep watching Videos and be told how to think.

AND ! Ive never SAID SUPER FAST RAM, others keep saying that, if you can READ , Ive said ram speed is important for gaming, why you ask ?, simple most players will OC there CPU by 10% & having good RAM allows the option to adjust ram speed too.

To conclude I'm quite content to be able to think for myself, so I'll leave you all with this

Think outside the square others are drawing for you ..... for some here, that will be impossible unless someone on a video told them how first

 

[relayer]

Some good advice in this thread.

Been building PCs & gaming/music systems since 1983. So that's my *****-waving out of the way.

I'm gonna echo kilvenny here - do some hard thinking about your power supply. I have repaired many, many rigs damaged by a faulty power supply; I've also fixed dozens of underpowered rigs in which that was really the problem (not memory errors or cpu problems, which is how a power problem manifests). You want to plan out your future rig & examine the power needs. Don't cheap on it - gold/bronze/silver & from a reputable PSU maker.

I tend to get OC-rated components because it gives some headroom. Someone mentioned the ASUS boards' utility for a safe & simple OC - I use it on my i5-4690k (3.5) to get an easy 4.1Ghz. It isn't necessary though.

Also, if you're going to build a hot-shot rig, you really have to think about your cooling solutions. I'm running that i5 and also the memory hot (for video editing/music production) but I still get under 40c on load on air cooling alone (and only 2 case fans) because it's a well-designed case for air flow with really good case fans & I keep my cables tidy.

You didn't mention what slots you have on the mainboard or your chipset. This is where future-proofing runs into problems. Chipsets and sockets change, sometimes rapidly. What's the cpu in - an 1150 socket? If so, you could pop an i5 or an i7 in there for a quick juicing up at a relatively cheap price and hang on for another year or two. I'm guessing, from the year mentioned, ddr3? If you aren't running 16GB, do that.

The last three gaming rigs I've built carried me from 2007 through 2017 with only parts upgrades, which takes some of the sting out.

 

[popuptoaster]

ARK survival, will use most of your 16g up flying around, been an EA game, but keep watching Videos and be told how to think.

Oh it will will it? Funny, doesn't seem to use much more than about half on my system........

 

[FoxTwo]

Oh it will will it? Funny, doesn't seem to use much more than about half on my system........

https://www.dropbox.com/s/18dncmtq2du46l8/ark details.jpg?raw=1

That's very interesting, popuptoaster... cuz I have the same exact widgets on my desktop for the same purposes!

 

[popuptoaster]

That's very interesting, popuptoaster... cuz I have the same exact widgets on my desktop for the same purposes!

I cant get CPU meter to show my overclock, my 6700k runs at 4.6 and GPU meter always shows the card frequency as zero which is a shame as my 1070 boosts up to 2025mhz, keep thinking I'll find some new gadgets but have never got around to it.