Upgrade E8400 to 2600k?

[Merzil]

Hi All,

Just a quick question if possible.

I currently run a E8400 chip clocked to 3.52ghz, i have done this for the past 3-4 years. It seems ok for games but i feel it is running out of life.

Will i see a significant improvement in performance with the 2600k? I mainly want it for upcomming games like Elderscrolls Skyrim.

I also do some video editing and photoshop work using windows 7 64bit.

The rest of my rig is below.

Thank you for any advice you can offer.


Asus Rampage Formula x48
E8400 CPU
OCZ 4GB (2x2GB) PC2-6400C4 800MHz Reaper
ATI Radeon HD4870 X2

 

[bilston]

If it's just for skyrim then maybe wait til closer the time its out? It is slated for november but it'll probably slip to next march at least. By that time, Ivy Bridge will be out.

 

[cmndr_andi]

I would agree, if your system is performing as you need it to in the applications and games that you use - then I wouldn't suggest upgrading yet.

Also, as Bilston mentions - Skyrim isn't slated for release until November. By then the next generation AMD "bulldozer" CPUs will be out, as will Intel's top-end Sandy Bridge CPUs. So if you can wait - then you will almost certainly get more power for your money.

If you really want to spend money now - then you may want to consider an SSD, or perhaps swapping your E8400 for a quad core like the Q6600/6700.

 

[Devrij]

As above, hang tight for a few months. You should get 4GHz out of that chip so squeeze a bit more out of it if you need it now.

 

[subbytna]

I'd wait until the new revision of the sandybridge chips....give it another 3-4 months and revisit things again.

clock that card further and get a better GPU and you'll be grand for at least another 6-8 months

 

[EniGmA1981]

As above, hang tight for a few months. You should get 4GHz out of that chip so squeeze a bit more out of it if you need it now.

+1

I'm runnig 4.0 for a 24/7 o/c but I have had it stable at 4.2 but the temps were pretty toasty under prime lol

 

[bilston]

Same, 4ghz running 24/7 for over a year now Great little chip. Might get a GTX560 tomorrow from my 4850. Should last a few more months then upgrade to ivy bridge

 

[Skellig]

Hold out. These old Intels still run very nice. Tried overclocking a tad bit more?

And I reckon a 2gb extra upgrade of RAM will be pretty beneficial for your video editing.

 

[Vimes]

I'm only echoing what the other wise sages have added. My E8500 has been running at 4Ghz since day one and is certainly not running out of life with anything that I use it for.

I see that you threw in the obligatory video editing and photoshop, just to see if that would sway anyone's opinion to help you to justify such an "upgrade", thankfully it is a unanimous "wait for a while and save your money."

BTW - with some games I find that a faster clocked dual chip is better than a slower quad as those games are not optimised to make use of all four cores.