When to build a new rig this year... New CPU vs 4770K

[Caveman]

I know... The subject is cliche... Just build one know because if you wait, there will always be something better...

I believe that "concept" but I also know it is not always true. I try to wait until I can see at least an average 50% FPS increase in IL-2, DCS, P3D, and XP11 before building my next rig... That said, my current rig uses a 4770k w/ 16GB of what would not be "medium speed RAM" and 970 GTX that I upgraded to a 1080 Ti. The 1080 Ti already gave me my 50% increase but I' wondering about a 0k new rig this year and how much I can expect to gain with another build. Flight sims are primarily "behind the times" with respect to utilizes multiple cores but are getting better in that respect via implementation of Vulkan.

So...

It appears the 9900 CPU is ~30% faster than the 4770k. It appears most believe the new Zen 3 will be ~ as fast as the Intel 9900 for single threaded applications with the bonus of much better multicore capability. Also, I like the idea of being able to swap the CPU and keep my MoBo... My last AMD was an Athlon 1800+ about 20 years ago and I loved it.

Anyway, when is the next CPU war driven by the Zen 3 supposed to happen this year? Aren't things supposed to be shaken down by this fall? And... Will there be any video cards better than the 2080 Ti flop that happened this year?

 

[happy medium]

wait for Intel's 10nm cpu's to release at the end of this year.

 

[Markfw]

wait for Intel's 10nm cpu's to release at the end of this year.

Thats not going to happen... IMO. The Zen3's will be out sometime between Late may to July.

 

[ZGR]

If you go for a 9900k, you definitely want to splurge on some really fast RAM. I got several people to test my favorite 'flight sim' (not really a flight sim) called Kerbal Space Program. That game hammers core 0, but does have decent multi core support now. The 9700k was 50% faster than my 5775C and the 9900k was nearly 100% faster with giant 400+ part ships. While these numbers sound awesome, we are still talking about 30fps dips for the 9900k in this game, especially at high speeds with Aerodynamic CPU effects.

I would only go 9700k/9900k if I was going to OC to 5 GHz and use excellent high speed, low latency RAM. That will be a nice performance uplift; but it will not be enough for a smooth 60fps in Xplane in many scenarios.

I can't see Zen 3 beating the 9900k, but I can see its performance being essentially equal at a far lower price in these kind of games. I can see an OC'd 9900k pulling ahead though. Would be funny if AMD actually beat Intel in gaming across the board for once. That would cause quite the ruckus.

 

[PotatoWithEarsOnSide]

wait for Intel's 10nm cpu's to release at the end of this year.

I had to check that it wasn't 1st of April.

 

[UsandThem]

Would be funny if AMD actually beat Intel in gaming across the board for once. That would cause quite the ruckus.

IMO they did that back in the Athlon days.

Their problem was they eventually became lost in the silicon wilderness, and once they were really lost, they tried to Bulldoze their way out.......which didn't work as well as they hoped.

I have big expectations for AMD's next CPUs after what they showed they did with Zen
refresh / die shrink. But the proof is in the numbers, so I'm just waiting for the official reviews after the launch.

 

[Caveman]

Ideally, I like to purchase ~6 mos after a release to take advantage of sales, etc... Based on the above, it appears the data is saying that there will be a good buying slot for Ryzen 3 or 9900 this fall and another new batch of Intel 10nm CPUs to consider next summer...

Does the preceding sound right?

If so, I think my game plan is to purchase this fall (black Fri) and then possibly upgrade the AMD CPU to Ryzen 4? when released to counter the 10nm chips from Intel...

Sound like a plan?

 

[Markfw]

The 10 nm cpus next summer is still a longshot. But yes, soon AMD will have 3000 series out, and early rumors have it equalling Intel in games. (maybe beating ??) Lets just see in a few months.

 

[jpiniero]

I would say wait until next year to match up with the consoles, although if you are playing flight sims perhaps that doesn't matter as much. Note that DDR5 is coming, but likely not for consumers until 21.

What kind of OC are you getting on the 4770K?

 

[Caveman]

I have not tried OC'ing the 4770k (or the 1080 Ti) yet but that could give me some legs as well...

 

[ondma]

The 10 nm cpus next summer is still a longshot. But yes, soon AMD will have 3000 series out, and early rumors have it equalling Intel in games. (maybe beating ??) Lets just see in a few months.

Source?

 

[Markfw]

Source?

Read the numerous posts here, all of which say it will be at least 2020 before we see anything of substance for 10 nm for Intel. It has failed badly. I don't need to link all of the articles.

 

[ondma]

Read the numerous posts here, all of which say it will be at least 2020 before we see anything of substance for 10 nm for Intel. It has failed badly. I don't need to link all of the articles.

Was referring to the part about Ryzen 3 being faster in games.

 

[Markfw]

Was referring to the part about Ryzen 3 being faster in games.

Jeeezzz I said MAYBE ....We have to wait and see the reviews.

 

[DrMrLordX]

wait for Intel's 10nm cpu's to release at the end of this year.

Those are mobile CPUs. OP doesn't seem to want to buy a new laptop.

@Caveman

Wait until June/July. We may see Zen2 on the desktop before then, but I would not hold my breath. If you are looking for sales on the 9900k, then you will start to see them after Zen2 hits. If there are any sales to be had on the 9900k at all.

 

[mopardude87]

Op never mentioned the resolution he games at.If the op jumped on even a 2080 ti right now i am willing to bet at 4k he will be prone to gpu bottlenecks then cpu. The people on i7 8700 chips like me are prob certainly not gonna have to worry about Ryzen 3 making them look obsolete for gaming especially at 1440p/4k. If Ryzen 3 makes a i7 8700 look like a Ryzen 2700x where its good enough getting 60 fps over the 80fps from a i7 8700 most likely depending on resolution it won't matter which of the 2 cpu platforms are in their computers.Any game that is bottlenecked by the cpu at 1440p certainly is old enough to run perfectly fine on anything from a 4770k to a i7 8700 and anything between i am sure.Exceptions would be 144hz gamers i guess?

If your a strict 1080p gamer it may become a bit more complicated especially if your not playing something heavily multi-threaded like BF1/BF5 where currently the i7 8700k/i9/9900k dominate in max fps.

 

[DrMrLordX]

Any game that is bottlenecked by the cpu at 1440p certainly is old enough to run perfectly fine on anything from a 4770k to a i7 8700

I wouldn't count on that. 2018 titles at least can be CPU bottlenecked @ 1440p on a 2080Ti. 4K? Sure, that's still a GPU bottleneck.

 

[beginner99]

Op never mentioned the resolution he games at

Exactly. These fast cpus like a 9900k are only worth it for high fps gaming mostly at 1080p. some benefits could be had on some games at 1440p but at 4k? Your mostly GPU limited.

 

[Furious_Styles]

Exactly. These fast cpus like a 9900k are only worth it for high fps gaming mostly at 1080p. some benefits could be had on some games at 1440p but at 4k? Your mostly GPU limited.

OP is also really only playing flight sims, not a category of games that really requires high fps (100+) for that matter.

 

[mopardude87]

I wouldn't count on that. 2018 titles at least can be CPU bottlenecked @ 1440p on a 2080Ti. 4K? Sure, that's still a GPU bottleneck.

Sorry i meant on the 1080 ti at 1440p. I wouldn't pair a 2080 ti with a i7 4770 for 1080/1440p anyways. I had bad enough bottlenecks at 1080p with my old i5 4460 with my 1070 ti and even with games not extremely multi threaded like BF4 or GTA V. Not like those game were unplayable on the i5 but BF1 certainly came about and nearly broke the i5 and 8gb with it. The i7 8700 and 16gb certainly solved all that but now that i sit at 1440p its all gpu bottlenecks.

 

[mopardude87]

If you could increase graphics fidelity and keep to the same frame rate, that is a option too. I play a game called Wizard101 and no matter if i play it on a C2D or my i7 8700 i get single threaded performance dropping into the 40s at times. I DSR 4k and it barely breaks in the 1070ti. 8K is even possible on my friends computer in the game but given the age of the game it just crashes at 8k lol. When 8k works well it just looks way to small on his 65'' 4k t.v .

Not sure how bad off the sims are but if my W101 example is anything close i could see you having a blast at maybe 1440p at 32'' or maybe 4k on like a 38'' or bigger. Maybe for all we know op your already there?

 

[DrMrLordX]

Sorry i meant on the 1080 ti at 1440p.

Oh, okay. Gotcha.

OP is also really only playing flight sims, not a category of games that really requires high fps (100+) for that matter.

Flight sims are notorious about being single-threaded. Not so much with the newer ones, but it's still an issue. For that reason, ST performance is king. That's why the 9900k is on the table.