Upgrade for a 2500K?

[Davegod]

So I bought a 2500K about 2 years ago, overclocked to 4.2ghz (very first attempt and decided I was happy with that) and since then haven't paid any attention to hardware.

I figure I am due an upgrade, but I had a quick look at the benches and it all seemed very underwhelming. I got the impression that at stock speeds there is very little in it for gaming, and allowing for a safe bet overclock against my 4.2, there is even less?

Is there anything worth upgrading to, now or in a "soonish" (however you want to define that) timeframe?

FWIW I have an AMD 6950, which is maybe even more due an upgrade but I currently play Planetside 2 which is heavily CPU bound and is not very multi-threaded (though they have stated that this should improve eventually as they will bring over optimisations achieved in porting it to Playstation 4).

MB currently Z68, would be fantastic if I could just drop a new CPU into that, but I do not expect to be able to.

 

[Face2Face]

I would purchase a better CPU HSF and OC your CPU a little more. 4.5-4.7Ghz should be feasible. These benchmarks may be a little old and it's also for BETA, but it looks like PS2 likes Nvidia architecture.

If these charts still hold weight?, then a higher OC on your CPU and a GTX 760 maybe a great low cost way to get increased performance.

 

[Plimogz]

I'd say splurge on a nice cooler which definitely will let you run your Sandy Bridge a little faster. (you don't say what hsf you already have, but 4.2 was upper limit on the stock units, so... If you already have a nice cooler, disregard) And you can carry that over to the next socket, probably.

Otherwise, keep the money in the bank until you come across a game that does need something faster than your 6950. There already are some nice upgrades to be had around $300 and up, but if you don't need it right now, why not wait for both the next gen games and GPUs to roll around.

Frankly, although it's already been a sweet run on 2500K, and unless you're really itching to upgrade, I don't think there's a very compelling reason to move on yet -- if you're not willing to change platforms and spend some coin for diminishing returns, that is.

 

[lenjack]

You should easily get to 4.5, as I've done, with an evo 212 cooler, maybe more.

 

[Kenmitch]

The 2500k was a nice chip and still is to this day. I'd sell it while there is some demand tho.

A 4670k at 3.8ghz is probably similar in performance to your current overclock.

Selling your current combo would offset the cost enough to make it worth the upgrade I'd think....As long as you don't expect a crazy high overclock.

I mostly run mine at 4ghz 1.05v except when playing around with overclocks.

 

[crashtech]

What's your budget, and exact mobo model number?

 

[zlejedi]

There are no viable upgrades currently.

Best you can get is 10% IPC increase with 4670K but the cost of upgrading with mobo makes it not worth it.

 

[SlitheryDee]

I also have had a 2500k for a while now. It's been so long that I was sure there should be something worth upgrading to by now. Besides improvement in applications I rarely or never use, the increase in performance doesn't look to be significant enough for me to go ahead with an upgrade. I guess I haven't really been perceiving any CPU bottleneck in my usage that should spur an upgrade itch anyway. It just felt like it "ought" to be time to start looking. Personally I'm probably going to hold out for another year or so as things stand.

 

[Davegod]

Thanks for comments, I think I'll take the advice, stick to what I have and maybe push the OC a little. Really disappointing how little performance has progressed though

FWIW:

HSF is a 212+

MB is Asus P8Z68-V Pro

Probably not much point giving an exact budget figure as it'd be in £GBP plus prices here usually ~30% more. As long as it is decent value and not "extremely expensive edition".

Selling stuff isn't very fruitful here in UK, I usually throw old stuff into a box o' bits for a spare or to give away.

 

[cytg111]

Is there anything worth upgrading to, now or in a "soonish" (however you want to define that) timeframe?

- Samsung is out with a 1TB SSD (840 evo) .. you could treat your self to that . (and what a treat it would be).
- Drop in a Titan, 780 or 7870Ghz ed. That would rock your system too.
- Get a new screen, 30" 'er for some 2560x1600 badness ..

Anything on the CPU side though would be more side than up -grade.

 

[crashtech]

The best you can do with that board is a 3770K, which probably would not result in a noticeable improvement, unless you decide to start playing more CPU heavy games. Your board would handle it with a newer BIOS revision.

A GPU upgrade would probably be your best option, along with more OC on your 2500K. Your CPU will run a high end single card with no problem, should you choose to do so.

I have a 2700K, and with the lackluster release of IB-E, have decided to wait and see for a while longer.

 

[guskline]

I upped from a 2500k to a 3770k in rig 1 below and am pleased. I got the 3770k for $229 at MC and sold the 2500k for $160 so for the "out" $$ it was worth it.

 

[crashtech]

I upped from a 2500k to a 3770k in rig 1 below and am pleased. I got the 3770k for $229 at MC and sold the 2500k for $160 so for the "out" $$ it was worth it.

In which applications did you notice the biggest difference?

 

[john3850]

Since I live a few miles from a MC I also got in on the 3770k for $229.
It seems the 3770k does the same amount of work with at least 20% less load then 2500k did which is nice.

 

[cytg111]

we're all different, my rule of thumb is that upgrading is viable if i'll see a 100% boost, that being cpu, gfx or whatever.. If that number is different to you (like 10, 20, 30 percent), then go by that .. but do yourself a favor and define that number.

 

[crashtech]

Wow, these days 100% will net you a long, long wait.

 

[cytg111]

Wow, these days 100% will net you a long, long wait.

- Yes, I anticipate that my current haswell rig will last at least 5-7 years.. Also one of the deciding factors on maxing out the ram.

edit: and yes, it is quite sad, i'd be more than happy to shell out the $'s for a 2 year cycle, but the curve: core2-nehalem-sandy-haswell is plotting a pretty clear graph.. it is what it is I guess.

 

[greenhawk]

we're all different, my rule of thumb is that upgrading is viable if i'll see a 100% boost, that being cpu, gfx or whatever.. If that number is different to you (like 10, 20, 30 percent), then go by that .. but do yourself a favor and define that number.

+1

I did that for GPU and CPU, though I found for the GPU, it was more useful for the larger screen, not for actual increase in frame rates. Overall, looking back, even a doubling was a little short as the GPU upgrade could of waited (game I was expecting to be gpu limited wasn't). and the games I kept playing where fine on the old cpu. Next upgrade I am thinking will have to be 150% increase or it ding as it still feels a little wasteful when I see just how hard it is working. I could have waited another year or 2 in hind sight.

Wow, these days 100% will net you a long, long wait.

It will at that. My last 100% increase was from a q6600 to the i5-3570K. some IPC increase and about a 30% cpu clock increase.

Looking forward, IPC is sub 10% per cpu generation, and intel does not seem interested in increase clock speeds noticably as reducing power consumption across all cpu ranges appears the direction they are taking.

The only other was a CPU can be faster is to add more cores, but that depends on software. But intel have pretty much ruled out more than 4 cores for the home market, so that is out.

at about a 10% per year increase (6% IPC and the rest cpu/turbo speeds), 100% increase is about 7-8 years away.

Basically, when the computer dies.



The short term for those that have not done it yet, is go SSD for a more responsive system.

After that, well, nothing worth spending money on. Best save for a new car or some other but ticket item.

 

[guskline]

In which applications did you notice the biggest difference?

In gaming, doesn't matter how many cores it needs the 3770k "feels" faster. Obviously with something like AIDA 64 the benchmarks are faster.

Again the difference in net price ($230 for the 3770k less the $160 I sold the 2500k for is $70!). Bought me the fastest 1155 CPU and allowed for hyperthreading.

If you have a 2500k and like it keep it. GREAT chip.

 

[astrodave77]

I have a 2600K at 4.6 and was wondering what's out there now that will give me more FPS in FSX? FSX is the only reason I ever upgrade my PC. Can the new processors overclock as well as the 2600K and if so are they much faster as the same clocks?

 

[crashtech]

Interesting, thanks.

 

[PrincessFrosty]

I would purchase a better CPU HSF and OC your CPU a little more. 4.5-4.7Ghz should be feasible. These benchmarks may be a little old and it's also for BETA, but it looks like PS2 likes Nvidia architecture.

I agree with this, the updates in tech since the 2500k era CPU hasn't been that impressive, if you're willing to OC your CPU you'll find the advanced in the IPC of newer CPUs is more or less balanced out against the lower clock speeds they'll run at (due to temps).

For overclockers there's little reason to use the more modern architecture, I'm still on a 2600k@4.9Ghz and checked into CPU upgrades and can't find anything worth upgrading to.

 

[bolinder]

Any chance of finding a 3770K for $230 nowadays? I keep seeing $325. Similar situation, except I am not replacing my 2500K computer, but rather building a second. Thanks.

 

[crashtech]

Any chance of finding a 3770K for $230 nowadays? I keep seeing $325. Similar situation, except I am not replacing my 2500K computer, but rather building a second. Thanks.

No, not really. Prices of 3770Ks will probably hold steady, as they are the last, best option for the now dead-end LGA1155. But you may be able to find a 2600K for closer to your target price range, and they are usually good overclockers, providing performance very close to or possibly in excess of a 3770K.

 

[skipsneeky2]

The 2500k is a stubborn processor,already 2 and a half years old and there isn't really a chip even close to be worth upgrading to,the 2500k could very well go down in history for its staying power.

Betting skylake if that is what is out in 2015 might finally make people consider a upgrade,then again who knows what will happen with games after the next gen consoles come out,i got a feeling BF4 by itself could push quads to their limits and make ht enabled quads and 6 core chipss the way to go.