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I5 2500k 1155 upgrade

danmck

danmck

danmck

Associate
Joined
23 Nov 2006
Posts
283
Location
Scotland
I have started to notice that some games are struggling and my cpu is now below some of the recommended spec for gaming.

I am on a real tight budget as i have a child on the way and I am looking for a stop gap upgrade to tide me over.

I am happy with the rest of my rig just hoping to swap out the cpu.

can anyone please provide some advice ?

My current cpu is the I5 sandybridge 2500k. I cannot buy any new processors for the slot so most likely will need to be 2nd hand.

what would be the best bang for buck and also give me the chance of getting some more life out of my pc ?

Due to the high prices of some of the chips i am really put off buying 2nd hand processors for such a high price ! (I7 3770k £150 etc)

can anyone advise what would be my best options ? I5 3570k ? I7 2700k ? I7 3770k ?

My current I5 is overclocked at 4.2 on air and temps are fine but will air coupe with some of the above chips ? as I can't afford water cooling but could maybe spring for a new cheap cpu cooler if required ?

Also would this be worth it with my current setup ?

compatibility list for mobo
https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/support/Z68AGD55_G3.html#support-cpu


I5 sandybridge 2500k 4.3
16 gb
MSI Z68A-GD55-G3 Intel Z68
Gelid Tranquillo CPU Cooler
290x Radeon 4gb
Samsung SSD evo 850

any advice would be appreciated ! :)
 
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What games are you noticing the cpu struggling, I'm on the same cpu and even BF1 runs around 70-95% load?
 
wiggy said:
What games are you noticing the cpu struggling, I'm on the same cpu and even BF1 runs around 70-95% load?
Click to expand...

GTA 5 was the first one and this may not be the best example but I was thinking about battlefield and from this forum I have seen a lot people stating it was holding the game back ?

Also at 95% would it not mean that after a decent spec game or two, I am done ?
 
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If your desperate then an i7 2600k will be your cheapest upgrade mine sits at about 60% load across all 8 threads when playing BF1 64 player multiplayer.

Thinking back to BF3/4 some people had success with unparking their CPU cores to gain some performance. Worth a go.
 
If you feel it's holding you back then do as Finners suggests and get an I7. You could get 50-60 for your I5 to lesson the cost.
 
danmck said:
thanks guys

so the 2600k or 2700k ? and would both be fine on air ?
Click to expand...

No problems at all here with my 2600K on air @ 4.4GHz (freezer i30) never see temps go over 50 most of the time and thats during a extended gaming session.
 
if i manged to find a decent intel i7 3770K ivy would that work with my current cooler ? or on air at all ?
 
danmck said:
if i manged to find a decent intel i7 3770K ivy would that work with my current cooler ? or on air at all ?
Click to expand...

Yes, fine. Just check if your board needs a bios update first to support the 3770. Assuming you're aiming for a stable 60fps, overclocking on a 3770 isn't really needed. Unless you're aiming for a world champion overclock, any half-decent air cooler will be perfectly fine.
 
Seanoog said:
danmck. Surely overclocking your i5 2500K should be your first port of call, before spending more money?
You only have it at 4.3Ghz, why not try for 4.5 or 4.7?
Click to expand...

I have tried and I cannot get it past 4.2.

I have it overclocked using the turbo option and this means it runs really cool with low voltage when it speed steps down. And only overclocks when the turbo is kicked in. This works great and keeps the temps right down and saves my pushing a constant voltage through the processor.

https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18340310

I have tried everything to break the wall of 4.2 but i can't get past it.

I may try and push it but you think on air i can get 4.7 ?

thanks for the input everyone !
 
Out of curiosity what games are struggling? A 3570K even at stock is still pretty powerful, overclocked especially there should be nothing it struggles with, really, apart from BF1 which maxes out some i5 systems (though not reliably every i5 system, even those of the same model, so it may be something that needs ironing out in time).
 
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