2500k vs 3750k - $30 difference

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Aug 7, 2009
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Need some advice pretty quickly. I'm building a new system and had pretty much decided on the 3750k. That goes for $230. There is a special, today only, on the 2500k for $200. Both of the above include shipping and no tax.

This will be a non gaming build and I had planned to use the 3750k's built-in HD 4000 graphics instead of a discrete card. I will probably do a very modest OC to 4 or 4.2.

I know the 2500k is a better OCing CPU than the 3750k but the 2500k utilizes the HD 3000 graphics. Also, the 2500k has no PCI-E 3.0 support which the 3750k does. If I decide to upgrade to a discrete graphics card in the future am I better off having PCI-E 3.0 support?

The 2500k is highly regarded and has a great track record so far. I understand that there are some high temperature concerns with the 3750k when even mildly OCing but it is the latest architecture chip.

I know $30 doesn't seem like much difference but it is to my budget. For that $30 I could upgrade to the ASRock Z77 Extreme4-M board. Would appreciate opinions on what to go with. Should I go with a proven performer or step into the future?

System :
Silverstone Temjin TJ08B-E micro ATX case - purchased
ASRock Z77 Pro 4-M micro ATX MB
Intel i5 3570K CPU or i5 2500K
Samsung 830 256GB SATA 3 SSD - purchased
WD Caviar Black 7200 RPM 64MB cache 500GB SATA 3 HDD - purchased
8GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 low profile RAM - purchased
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO CPU cooler - purchased
Window 7 HP 64-bit - purchased
Corsair VX550W PSU - bought a couple of years ago but have never used. Plenty of power for my needs.
DVD drive from old system
 
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id go with the 3750 for two reasons. better IGPU since your going to use it, secondly the 3750 should have better resale value being newer. Seems worth $30 in my opinion.
 
I would buy a used 2500k for $160-$170. You can't beat the price/performance. The hard part is waiting for a used one to pop up.

If you don't want used, then get the 3570k for the better integrated graphics. If you'd benefit from the z77 extreme 4 and would use features from it, then get the 2500k.

If I decide to upgrade to a discrete graphics card in the future am I better off having PCI-E 3.0 support?

No. It won't make a difference.
 
If you can find a used 2500K, that would be the best way to go for biggest bang for buck.
 
If you can find a used 2500K, that would be the best way to go for biggest bang for buck.
I've never purchased a used CPU before. Seems like I might be taking a chance on someone off-loading a bad chip or some other problem with it. Of course, that's not to say that a new one might not have the same risk but I think I'll stick with purchasing new.
 
I've had 2500k and 3570k and over clocked each.

Both of them over clock well.

Clock for clock 3570k performs better.

3570k takes alot less voltage to run fast.

My 3570k runs stable at 4.5GHZ with only 1.15v. (more energy efficient)


My max over clock for 3570k is 5GHZ and 2500k is 5.3GHZ which I have ran a few times just for quick suicide overclock benchmarks for fun.


Also don't forget IB is good to go for PCI 3.0 for those beastly video cards yet to come.
 
OK, thanks to all for their replies and opinions. I think I'll stick with the 3570K for this build. I'd like to save the $30 but I think I'll be better off down the road. Of course, if I run into problems with the 3570k I'll be blaming all here who recommended it. JUST KIDDING!:D
 
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