is a intel 2500k getting too old???

R

rpbbmw

n00b
Joined
Feb 28, 2012
Messages
15
Im stll running a 2500k at 2.8 ghz. Im going to upgrade from my gtx 970 to a 1070. When is the point that the processor is going to bottleneck me? It seems to run everything great. I just want to know when is it time to drop the $$$ and upgrade? Im still a noob in this forum but thanks for any insight.
 
You should easily be able to get 4.5-4.6GHz out of that chip with sufficient cooling, so unless you aren't willing to OC (in which case don't bother with a K variant next time around, just save the cash) you can get a ~40% clock boost vs stock and get some more time out of it considering you say it's working well for you now. Why are you running it at 2.8 when stock is 3.3?
 
Trimlock said:
A processor is too old when it stops doing what you want it to do.
Click to expand...

This. A 920 and 980x are still viable for many games with modern video cards. Simply depends on the game, screen resolution, and your expectations.
 
I bet that if you OC your processor that you'll be right there neck in neck with a 4770K or really close to it. Here is a CPU comparison with the new Doom game that came out yesterday. Lots of life left in your processor.

image.png
 
Tsumi said:
This. A 920 and 980x are still viable for many games with modern video cards. Simply depends on the game, screen resolution, and your expectations.
Click to expand...

Yeah, this.

My i5 750 still performs shocking well considering its age.
 
I was just pondering this same question... The answer depends on what you do with your computer.

Just Gaming? (Or, primarily gaming?)
Given the upgrade to the GTX 1080, if you are playing games at 1080p, then you will likley see a nice boost in performance if you go to the i5-6600k... (I5-6500 if you dont want to overclock). If you play at 4k res, the 2500k is probably going to be just fine. Might be a little gain from an upgrade, but probably not worth the cost. At 4k res gaming, it would be better to see if you can OC that 2500k a bit more to get the extra performance with out spending more money.

Video or audio encoding?
You will definity see a benefit to an upgrade to the 6600k or 6500. This would include playing instruments through an amp simulator, making backups of DVDs or BluRays, Compiling your own videos to upload to the internet... Some video encoding programs will use NVidia CUDA cores, and in that case the newer 6500 / 6600k probably won't matter much.

Overclocking.
You have to consider 3 things to OC the chip. CPU Cooler, motherboard, and power supply. For this discussion, know that each component can hold you back... So a high grade motherboard and cpu cooler will still not produce a high overclock when using a mediocre power supply.... All other combinations apply as well.

Motherboard - First, your MB has to support overclocking. 3.8GHz is quite low for the 2500k, goven that 3.7GHz is the built-in boost clock speed.

Cooler - The stock cooler can get you from 4.3 to 4.5. Somthing like the Cooler Master 212 EVO can get you up to 5GHz, but it's big anf you need a big case. I think the H5 variant is smaller, and just as affordable.

Power Supply - Cheap psu means low, or NO overclock. I used to think this was bullshit until i upgraded my power supply recently. I had a Cooler Master GX 750W psu, which was more than enough wattage for my system, but my 2500k never made it past 4.3GHz. I bought a GTX 980Ti and was forced to upgrade... Got an EVGA B2 850w and now my 2500k hits 4.9GHz. Note that it wasn't the difference from 750 to 850... But the old psu was low quality and the new one is much higher qaulity. A good 650w is usually better than a cheap 1000w (especially for overclocking)

The simple answer is... Ok, no simple answer.
Its based on what you do with your pc...
Are you gaming at 1080p or 4k?
Do you encode video or audio?
What parts you have now, do you even care about overclocking?


So.... More information will get more advice
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top