The upgrade bug kicks in again!

[iamgenius]

The main system I have is the one you see in my sig. It is still going very strong, and can easily run whatever I throw at it. But you know, it is been 3 years at least and the upgrade bug reactivates and there is money to burn. It is my hobby after all so why not?

I used to read all cpu articles here, but have been away lately. I went to the cpu section to to try to read all articles I missed, but holy smokes! There has been so many articles lately and I can see that intel has been doing some minor updates/upgrades here & there. New xeons and new extreme editions and such. I lost track. I don't know how many generations back is my 2700k now.

Anyways, I will want the best overclock-able intel cpu there is. Without going to the extreme route, that would be the new i7 5930k or maybe the new i7 5820k. Right?

I don't know how faster(might be unnoticeable at all) will that run my windows 8 and applications, but it will certainly give bigger benchmark numbers^_^

 

[davie jambo]

I am going to build a PC based on i7 5820k early next year , an x99 board , DDR4 ram and whatever the best card is at the time

i7 5820K is a good price for what it is and would be a nice upgrade for you. I don't think you'll notice that many extra frames in gaming though

 

[NTMBK]

Pfft, 6 core is so 2010. You want an FX 8370.

:awe:

In all seriousness, the CPU in your current rig looks great, and you're extremely unlikely to hit 5GHz with a Haswell chip. To be honest I'd recommend upgrading your GPU rather than CPU- something like a Geforce 970 is a big improvement over your 7970: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/1032?vs=1355

 

[ShintaiDK]

I would stay with your current CPU until Skylake. But you could upgrade the GPU with a good result.

 

[Arachnotronic]

I would stay with your current CPU until Skylake. But you could upgrade the GPU with a good result.

This.

 

[BSim500]

The main system I have is the one you see in my sig. It is still going very strong, and can easily run whatever I throw at it. But you know, it is been 3 years at least and the upgrade bug reactivates and there is money to burn. It is my hobby after all so why not?

Given the current state of gaming, I wouldn't bother. Your rig (5GHz i7 Sandy + 32GB RAM) is "good to go" for another 6 years at this rate...

Anyways, I will want the best overclock-able intel cpu there is.

LOL. You realize you've already got it, right? :biggrin:

The only two upgrades I'd do with your rig is 7970 -> GTX 980 and 256GB SSD -> 512GB SSD. CPU's have been the slowest things to improve over the past few years.

 

[guskline]

I agree with the posters above. My rig below is a 3930k @4.6 Ghz but I have a 3770k at 4.5 Ghz and for gaming, honestly the 3770k is as fast with the same gpu/gpus. Gosh with your rig, all that ram and uber OC'd 2700, 2 GTX970s in SLI would really be a noticeable improvement.

 

[DooKey]

Hey OP. I read what you have to say and I'm not going to recommend that you don't spend money on your hobby since you want to spend money.

The 5820K is the way you want to go. Grab a nice Gigabyte, ASUS or MSI X99 board and at least 2666 DDR4 and you're good to go. At the very least grab a GTX 980 and off to the races with a new 1tb SSD.

 

[guskline]

Before spending tons on a new X99 mb, cpu and especially ram, I would opt for the newer GPU and then decide if you want to go further.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

Hey OP. I read what you have to say and I'm not going to recommend that you don't spend money on your hobby since you want to spend money.

The 5820K is the way you want to go. Grab a nice Gigabyte, ASUS or MSI X99 board and at least 2666 DDR4 and you're good to go. At the very least grab a GTX 980 and off to the races with a new 1tb SSD.

. . . Nor would I . . .

But even with a 2600K and a more modest OC, I'd have to agree with a number of posters. I went from ISRT'd caching and an old GTX 570 to an 840-Pro and GTX 780. I'm in no hurry, but I have the same addiction.

Let's say "I'm making inquiries." I'm lookin' at options. Building spreadsheets with the options and columns in "accounting" format. I'm telling myself "That's half the fun!"

If you're seeking a record Ghz boost, you're much less likely to find it with the newer cores. The mild performance improvement doesn't scale with Ghz, and your 2700K is still beating i7-4770K @ 4.4Ghz benchmarks.

I say -- take your time, think about it, wait for a wider assortment of X99 motherboards, BIOS updates and micro-code improvements on Haswell-E productions.

Or just keep dreaming, planning and plotting until Skylake comes along.

But if you wanna do it now, you're gonna do it now . . . Your water kit will come in handy. What are you going to do with the 2700K, then?

 

[Morgoth780]

You'll notice the biggest improvement by upgrading your GPUs. You won't notice much by upgrading your CPU.

I wouldn't blame you for upgrading it though, I've been itching to upgrade my 3570k but there's nothing I see worthwhile to upgrade it to.

If you do upgrade your CPU, I'd recommend a 5820k if you can get away with the smaller number of PCI-e lanes. Otherwise get the 5930k. And if you are drowning in money, get the 8-core 5960x. But basically everything said about performance in gaming and overclocking is true.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

[SIG-RIG:] 2700K @ 5.0 GHz 1.4 Vcore + XSPX Raystorm extreme water cooling kit + 32 GB Ripjaws RAM

Are you running those Ripjaws at command-rate = 1? I recently "discovered" XMP profiles, after a habit of manually setting the RAM to spec voltage and timings. Likely, the XMP profile for those on your motherboard will set the command rate to 1 if you leave the setting itself set to "auto." You may have to bump up the VCCIO as you recertify your stress-stability.

When I got it squared away with these RipJaws Z modules I'm rocking, I ran some games and exclaimed "Sheee-it!! Holy RipJaws, Batman!"

 

[iamgenius]

I have been actually thinking of getting another 7970 and doing a crossfire because I have never tried it. This GPU upgrade was always an option.

I can't beat all your arguments....I think I'll wait. Will have to find something else to have fun with......like trying a new linux distribution maybe.

 

[iamgenius]

Are you running those Ripjaws at command-rate = 1? I recently "discovered" XMP profiles, after a habit of manually setting the RAM to spec voltage and timings. Likely, the XMP profile for those on your motherboard will set the command rate to 1 if you leave the setting itself set to "auto." You may have to bump up the VCCIO as you recertify your stress-stability.

When I got it squared away with these RipJaws Z modules I'm rocking, I ran some games and exclaimed "Sheee-it!! Holy RipJaws, Batman!"

I'll be honest. I actually don't know. I'll need to go and check. This checking might drive me to break this 5.0GHz although I remember it was too hard. Overclocking is just too tempting!

 

[BonzaiDuck]

I'll be honest. I actually don't know. I'll need to go and check. This checking might drive me to break this 5.0GHz although I remember it was too hard. Overclocking is just too tempting!

I might have wished I'd bought the 2700K for an extra couple hundred Mhz. I stop at 4.7 because the voltage under stress shows between 1.37V and 1.39. Some folks are easier about pushing higher.

But it doesn't matter as much with the RAM tuned to its optimum, and "optimum" doesn't necessarily mean "overclocked." Or -- the command-rate setting seems to be an "auto" choice of my motherboard, even though the spec says "2N." So call it "minor overclocking."

I tweaked my own profiles at both 4.6 and 4.7, and with the XMP RAM settings with CMD=1, I was rather stunned just running at 4.6. Remember -- you can likely do this without touching the vDIMM of 1.50V, and you'd leave the basic timings alone (set to "auto" under XMP, they appear as the spec timings). It DOES need a couple bumps in VCCIO, which you might discover if you run IBT or some other stress-test to validate. But it's not much. My VCCIO is currently set at 1.131V or thereabouts.

Part of the addiction is a temptation to upend stable settings with both risk and promise of something better, and then going through the stress validation process all over again (unless you're confident about shortcuts.) The other part of it is spending money.

We knew about this command-rate tweak years ago, but there was a time when some RAM-makers would discourage it. I've consulted with G.SKILL techs, and their response is "Sure!" I was just surprised that the XMP profiles on my motherboard just flat out and choose it.

Also -- the techs confirmed for me that XMP is not just a lazy Noob's crutch for RAM settings. It sets more aggressive "Advanced Timings" automatically, so you wouldn't have to fool with them or endure days-worth of MemTest runs.

 

[cantholdanymore]

I would stay with your current CPU until Skylake. But you could upgrade the GPU with a good result.

But that's two years away if that
I'm like the OP need a upgrade fix NOW:biggrin:

 

[crashtech]

I miss my old 2700K. Sold it to a serviceman overseas and USPS "lost" it on its way to an APO. Knowing what I know now, I might have stuck with it a while longer.

 

[Xpage]

I would spend some money on a new custom loop or go more exotic with a peltier cooling solution with water to cool the hot side of the peltier. Or if you have money to burn to try the Captherm Systems MP1120 CPU cooler. I would like to know how much of an improvement that would be for your system.

I want one but cannot justify it...yet

 

[iamgenius]

I would spend some money on a new custom loop or go more exotic with a peltier cooling solution with water to cool the hot side of the peltier. Or if you have money to burn to try the Captherm Systems MP1120 CPU cooler. I would like to know how much of an improvement that would be for your system.

I want one but cannot justify it...yet

What's so special about this cooler? Is it really meant to be better than custom water cooling kit? I can't really find reviews on it.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

What's so special about this cooler? Is it really meant to be better than custom water cooling kit? I can't really find reviews on it.

Someone else had posted in "Cases & Cooling" some few months ago about this item. I just did another brief search -- nothing very thorough -- but I can't find the information about it that would give an informed decision about choosing it!

Frosty-Tech keeps a database of cooler tests conducted under controlled conditions. But I can't find anything substantive about the CapTherm, even though they had a short news spot about it recently.

Recalling the previous threads I mentioned, there seemed to be a "advocate" posting about the cooler here. I THINK he had given enough "test results" that you could safely say it underperformed in comparison to known, familiar coolers -- heatpipe and AiO. If there's info to the contrary, I'd like to see it.

As for TEC coolers. There are several ways to use TEC, some in a "chilled water" arrangement, and there is actually some cooler out there that either combines AiO or heatpipe technology with a TEC plate between the IHS and the rest of the cooler. NOR -- did those items match what we know as top-end AiO or heatpipes.

The reason is pretty simple. In that sort of configuration, it is the AREA of the heatspreader in contact with the TEC plate that determines its efficacy. More than that, it had been determined some years back that to make a TEC plate effective at the IHS/processor, the processor would have to show a TDP of 65W or less.

That leaves some Rube Goldberg items deploying more than just a TEC plate. TEC plates with aluminum heatsinks are used to build IGLOO travel coolers that plug in to an auto's cigarette lighter. You CAN make TEC effective in a chilled water setup, but it's going to take a lot of electrical power to obtain the benefits. Conclusion? Might as well get a phase-change cooler.

Now -- someone can differ with me about this, and I'd like to hear what they have to say. I'd LIKE to see some sort of "miracle cooler" appear on the market soon. But . . .

"All Quiet On the Western Front."