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CPU help i3 vs i5

S

swanysto

Golden Member
So my motherboard has been giving me fits lately. There is something wrong with the usb ports. They are giving me blue screens, and the computer will freeze until I pull out whichever component is causing. It varies from my keyboard, mouse, and wifi adapter.

Anyways, I am looking to upgrade to an intel system. The AMD was nice, but it's time for a change. I haven't built a computer for about two years, so I am completely out of the loop. I am looking at processors, and the i3-4160 and the i5-4590 seem to be nice selections.

I mostly do database work, some photoshop, and a few older games(think TF2). Is the i5 worth the extra $60, or would it be wiser to put that money into a higher quality Mobo? I currently have a crucial ssd, samsung ddr3 1600 ram, GS500 power supply. I am looking to stay close to $200 for the mobo and cpu if I can. Eventually I will add a mid range GPU, but I don't need one right now.

TIA
swany

Edit: I am close to Microcenter, where the 4160 is 99.99, and the 4590 is 159.99.
 
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My experience has been that there isn't much to gain from recent Intel motherboards once you get up to around $80-90, unless you're looking to buy a Z chipset for overclocking, in which case add $20 or so.

I built my sister a gaming machine recently with the following:

Core i3 4160
8GB DDR3 1600 1.35v
250gb Transcend SSD
GTX960
350w Antec Earthwatts
ASrock H97M-ITXa/c

I can see a case being made for either an i3 or an i5. In day to day use, the 4160 is indistinguishable from my overclocked Ivy Bridge i5, but HT is rarely worth more than 50% extra performance and it shows in things such as rendering/encoding. That said, I could easily live with a Haswell i3 in my primary computer.

As far as power consumption, her machine only draws something like 170w fully loaded (video card too), so a 500w is easily enough.
 
I just picked up an i5-4590 for $189.99 and used a Z87 MSI MPower Max AC motherboard that I got new for $97 with it. Its a very good combo - just as capable in gaming as my main PC's i5-4690k and Asus Z97-A that set me back $80 more.

I do think in the long run its worth another $30-$50 for an i5 (any i5) over an i3.
 
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Of the current bundles, the i5-4690K is the way to go. On the web they have the Z97 Pro4 for $250, but IIRC, you can arbitrarily apply the discount, so it could work towards a cheaper H97 board, if you wanted (no OCing).

The i5 will be worth it, but you'll have a hard time making $200 even with MC bundle deals. Meanwhile, the i3 deal gets you south of $200.
 
Cerb said:
Of the current bundles, the i5-4690K is the way to go. On the web they have the Z97 Pro4 for $250, but IIRC, you can arbitrarily apply the discount, so it could work towards a cheaper H97 board, if you wanted (no OCing).

The i5 will be worth it, but you'll have a hard time making $200 even with MC bundle deals. Meanwhile, the i3 deal gets you south of $200.
Click to expand...


Yeah, if I went i5, I would probably be more in the $240 area.
 
Just hope they have something in stock when you go... I was in my MC in January with a wad of cash in my pocket... and I walked out basically empty handed.
 
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