i5-4670K upgrade advice

zoobee · 10 Nov 2022 at 02:16

Hi there, I have an aging Z87oc Haswell build, ive added more RAM to 16GB, upgraded card to 1660 Super but i think the CPU is holding it back now. I cant really afford total upgrade, i was hoping i slightly better CPU could give it a new leases of life >.<

*I was a coward and didnt OC the chip i know, even though i bought the OC board =( Its a decent case and cooling, 750w power unit. *sorry if posted in the wrong area, my bad.

Tetras · 10 Nov 2022 at 05:45

Depending on the game, some people have had good results using the 4 core 8 thread CPUs (either Xeon or i7) and they're getting more affordable now, but which game in particular are you having trouble with?

Wing-Man · 10 Nov 2022 at 08:34

your only option is 4790k, look at places like CeX and you can pick them up for under £30.

zoobee · 10 Nov 2022 at 11:57

Tetras said:
Depending on the game, some people have had good results using the 4 core 8 thread CPUs (either Xeon or i7) and they're getting more affordable now, but which game in particular are you having trouble with?

Well, i mostly play Battlefield lol, and football manager, wanted to try latest BF game, but was not sure if im up to it

zoobee · 10 Nov 2022 at 11:58

Wing-Man said:
your only option is 4790k, look at places like CeX and you can pick them up for under £30.

Ahh, i like that kind of price, yeah it dont have to be new, its the i7 then, should i buy or not buy overclocked ones, cheers looking now

tamzzy · 10 Nov 2022 at 12:00

You may have to update the bios first before you can drop in the 4790k

Hasnain · 10 Nov 2022 at 23:26

zoobee said:
Well, i mostly play Battlefield lol, and football manager, wanted to try latest BF game, but was not sure if im up to it

Sadly that game is not worth the trouble of trying lol. That game ran poorly on my 5800x and 3080 lol.

Tetras · 11 Nov 2022 at 00:14

zoobee said:
Ahh, i like that kind of price, yeah it dont have to be new, its the i7 then, should i buy or not buy overclocked ones, cheers looking now

If they say they didn't overclock they're probably not telling the truth, just sayin'

Cyber-Mav · 11 Nov 2022 at 04:35

Xeon of the e3 v3 variety should also work

Wing-Man · 11 Nov 2022 at 08:55

Hasnain said:
Sadly that game is not worth the trouble of trying lol. That game ran poorly on my 5800x and 3080 lol.

yer i had a 7700k and it was shockingly cpu bound.

Cyber-Mav said:
Xeon of the e3 v3 variety should also work

not all motherboards supported them intel made it a thing after people used them on the last 2 gens.
i had a right pain getting one to work but there was a nice saving now not so much 4970k can be had for £30 and it overclocks

zoobee · 30 Nov 2022 at 02:12

Sooo i bought the 4790k and when i boot it spins up for 2 secs then stops, spins up again then stops and so on... I put my old i5 back in works fine so i guess i need to update my bios? Why did i not do that initially... would that be for my Z87 board then or the CPU too? Thanks

tamzzy said:
You may have to update the bios first before you can drop in the 4790k

goldy6660 · 30 Nov 2022 at 04:04

Yeah with the others here go for the 4790k and oc the crap out of it. It'll be your cheapest easiest upgrade. Careful though you'll likely get addicted to over clocking

edit just read you did indeed go for it. Did you update your bios first.

zoobee · 30 Nov 2022 at 04:42

goldy6660 said:
Yeah with the others here go for the 4790k and oc the crap out of it. It'll be your cheapest easiest upgrade. Careful though you'll likely get addicted to over clocking

edit just read you did indeed go for it. Did you update your bios first.

I did not update the BIOS first, i need to read up properly of how to do it, i have the latest Gigabyte bios on a USB stick now, bit confused what to do next, do i update it with my i5 still, then sw2itch it out for the i7? I cant get into by BIOS atm, DEL, f5,8,10,12 not working, dont think my KB has power at that point. Ah well, im sure ill work it out lol

Orcvader · 30 Nov 2022 at 11:19

zoobee said:
I did not update the BIOS first, i need to read up properly of how to do it, i have the latest Gigabyte bios on a USB stick now, bit confused what to do next, do i update it with my i5 still, then sw2itch it out for the i7? I cant get into by BIOS atm, DEL, f5,8,10,12 not working, dont think my KB has power at that point. Ah well, im sure ill work it out lol

Do you have a spare wired keyboard? For Gigabyte you need to press the END key during POST to enter Q-Flash. Alternatively hold the shift button when you press restart in Windows, there should be an option to boot into UEFI, and when you're in there, press F8 to enter Q-Flash.

zoobee · 1 Dec 2022 at 15:21

Orcvader said:
Do you have a spare wired keyboard? For Gigabyte you need to press the END key during POST to enter Q-Flash. Alternatively hold the shift button when you press restart in Windows, there should be an option to boot into UEFI, and when you're in there, press F8 to enter Q-Flash.

Thanks, i ended up pressing the CMOS switch on my mobo and it worked, but idk how to flash my BIOS, do i literally DL it the latest from the GIGA website, put it on a stick and boot/flash from it? I have it on a stick now, but i dont want to have to remove CPU again only to have to put it back in if i7 is not working, im so noob at this. I dont want to brick my mobo

I dl the f9c version and put it on a stick, do i then insert stick to USB and boot then goto BIOS? and i can update from there? Ive never done this before, just worried https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/GA-Z87X-OC-rev-1x/support#support-dl-bios

Orcvader · 1 Dec 2022 at 15:25

zoobee said:
Thanks, i ended up pressing the CMOS switch on my mobo and it worked, but idk how to flash my BIOS, do i literally DL it the latest from the GIGA website, put it on a stick and boot/flash from it? I have it on a stick now, but i dont want to have to remove CPU again only to have to put it back in if i7 is not working, im so noob at this. I dont want to brick my mobo

You download it, and if it's in a zip folder, extract it, then copy to the USB. You want to boot into Q-Flash which is built into the motherboard. Either press END during POST or enter the BIOS first then press F8 which will take you to Q-Flash. Q-Flash will then ask for the new BIOS file, so navigate to your USB and then select the new file. Once it's done it'll reboot the system, probably into Windows, and you can use either CPU-Z or HWiNFO64 to check the BIOS version and it should be the one it just flashed. Once that's down you can then power down and swap the CPU over.

EDIT: Yes, download from Gigabyte's website.

zoobee · 1 Dec 2022 at 16:09

Orcvader said:
You download it, and if it's in a zip folder, extract it, then copy to the USB. You want to boot into Q-Flash which is built into the motherboard. Either press END during POST or enter the BIOS first then press F8 which will take you to Q-Flash. Q-Flash will then ask for the new BIOS file, so navigate to your USB and then select the new file. Once it's done it'll reboot the system, probably into Windows, and you can use either CPU-Z or HWiNFO64 to check the BIOS version and it should be the one it just flashed. Once that's down you can then power down and swap the CPU over.

EDIT: Yes, download from Gigabyte's website.

Right, thankyou sir for explaining so well, ok i think i can do this... here goes!

When i post again ill update my bio so you'll know it was a success =))

drakulton · 1 Dec 2022 at 16:14

With age of 4790Ks it would definitely be worth deliding the CPU as the thermal compound between the die and the IHS will have turned to dust by now making the CPU run hotter than when it was new.

zoobee · 1 Dec 2022 at 18:15

drakulton said:
With age of 4790Ks it would definitely be worth deliding the CPU as the thermal compound between the die and the IHS will have turned to dust by now making the CPU run hotter than when it was new.

Agreed, i clean them and my Heatsink with isoprpoplic alcohol and lint free wipes. They are spotless.

Im sad to report even with the BIOS update its not working, it just spins up for 2 secs and stops, try again ad infiniti. Is the chip likely dead? IS there anything else i can try? Im back with my i5 *sobs*.

Orcvader · 1 Dec 2022 at 18:21

zoobee said:
Agreed, i clean them and my Heatsink with isoprpoplic alcohol and lint free wipes. They are spotless.

Im sad to report even with the BIOS update its not working, it just spins up for 2 secs and stops, try again ad infiniti. Is the chip likely dead? IS there anything else i can try? Im back with my i5 *sobs*.

How long did you wait for? Usually when you put in a new CPU the BIOS will reset itself and does a few self tests before actually booting up. Usually takes a few minutes.