Should I upgrade from my i7 6700K?

[asdfguy]

I have an i7 6700K, overclocked to 4.4ghz, and I'm unsure if I should upgrade. I mostly use my PC for gaming, but the games I play - Alan Wake 2, Red Dead Redemption 2, Days Gone, etc - don't seem to use that much CPU. In all of those games, the CPU usage is at max 40%, while my GPU, Nvidia 3060 12GB, is at 99%-100% usage. I'm gaming at 1440p

Will I see a difference in gaming performance if I upgrade to, let's say, an AMD 7600X?

 

[darkblade]

Key factor here will be the resolution you are gaming at.

 

[asdfguy]

Key factor here will be the resolution you are gaming at.

Mostly at 1440p

 

[SpellowHouse]

What I tend to find is that the CPU affects the frame rate lows. In other words, how glitchy the game becomes as the PC is under stress. If you don't have any problems with the games you play, then there is probably little benefit to upgrading.

 

[darkblade]

Your CPU is still pretty good for gaming. 40% utilisation is pretty low.
If you are seeking higher frame rates, or looking to play more demanding games, then it might be worth upgrading. But as you've seen, you will need to upgrade the motherboard and ram too.

You are likely to get more of a performance improvement by upgrading the graphics card.

 

[bakes0310]

I upgraded last month from my 6700k and Nvidia 1080 card to what I have in my sig (7800x3d 7900xtx) and it's been totally worth it and transformed my gaming experience. I play at 1440p and on my old system I was getting 35-40fps at high settings, now I'm getting about 135fps on high settings and now I don't need to worry about my system not being able to play certain games.

It's down to you though and what you can put up with and if you still enjoy gaming on your current system.

 

[snarloas1982]

I have an i7 6700K, overclocked to 4.4ghz, and I'm unsure if I should upgrade. I mostly use my PC for gaming, but the games I play - Alan Wake 2, Red Dead Redemption 2, Days Gone, etc - don't seem to use that much CPU. In all of those games, the CPU usage is at max 40%, while my GPU, Nvidia 3060 12GB, is at 99%-100% usage. I'm gaming at 1440p

Will I see a difference in gaming performance if I upgrade to, let's say, an AMD 7600X?

I got many years out of the 6700k myself. A great chip it was. Playing BF1 on a ultrawide @ 1440p made my mind up to upgrade. The cpu was just getting bashed, i think BF games are cpu intensive anyway.