Upgrade from a i5 4690? £400ish with Mboard

[kration]

I've got an i5 4690 and my build is in my sig below.

The 4690 is pretty ancient but seems to be doing OK, though 3DMark identifies it as a bottleneck with my 1080ti. Will I get any benefit from upgrading the CPU?

With graphics card prices going crazy for the foreseeable future, I think my next upgrade will be the cpu/motherboard (as well as memory?). The CPU/Mboard in my sig should show the balance that I'm happy with.

My main uses are:

• VR - especially gaming and mainly Elite Dangerous
• Gaming over 3 screens e.g. Guild Wars 2

I've always upgraded CPU and Mboard as a bundle, and I'm aiming at £400ish for both. Though if there's a sweet spot lower than that then I'd be happy.

The main considerations are:

• I'm not interested in overclocking
  
• I've used both Intel and AMD in the past - happy with either
  
• Bang for buck as well as longevity - I find that a standard CPU/Mboard is fine for ages
  
• Are there any benefits in upgrading from my generic memory sticks?

So, any recommendations re. CPU/Mboard combinations as well as memory etc. would be appreciated.

 

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Plonk in a Core i7 4790K??

The main issue is 16GB of DDR4 is going to cost close to £200,meaning you will only have £200 left for the CPU and motherboard.

 

[kration]

Plonk in a Core i7 4790K??

The main issue is 16GB of DDR4 is going to cost close to £200,meaning you will only have £200 left for the CPU and motherboard.

I'm happy to stick with the DDR3 memory, unless DDR4 is significantly better.

The upgrade to a Core i7 4790K is tempting. But I'm a wimp when it comes to replacing the CPU and fitting the cooler etc.

I've never done it and the whole idea of taking out the cpu, detaching the cooler, applying cooler paste etc gives me the jitters.

Though I appreciate I may be being too nervous.

 

[tamzzy]

I'm happy to stick with the DDR3 memory, unless DDR4 is significantly better.

no can do, i'm afraid. the last chipset to use ddr3 ram (aside from a few specialised boards), is z97. if you're gonna upgrade platform, you'll HAVE to get ddr4 ram.
ddr3 and ddr4 ram are incompatible with each other

 

[jigger]

I'm happy to stick with the DDR3 memory, unless DDR4 is significantly better.

The upgrade to a Core i7 4790K is tempting. But I'm a wimp when it comes to replacing the CPU and fitting the cooler etc.

I've never done it and the whole idea of taking out the cpu, detaching the cooler, applying cooler paste etc gives me the jitters.

Though I appreciate I may be being too nervous.

Just take your time, use care, check and double check.

 

[kration]

Though, after a quick search, are 4790K's still available at a reasonable price?

 

[tamzzy]

they pop up in the members market from time to time (you're nearly there)
although that being said, is your board z97 or h97/b95.
if it's not z97, you can't take advantage of overclocking the 4790k...

 

[kration]

they pop up in the members market from time to time (you're nearly there)
although that being said, is your board z97 or h97/b95.
if it's not z97, you can't take advantage of overclocking the 4790k...

I'm not experienced in overclocking, so would the 4790k be much of an upgrade in its standard state?

I'll look forward to the sunlit uplands of the members market - if I get there...

 

[tamzzy]

so would the 4790k be much of an upgrade in its standard state?

depends on whether you are already having a bottleneck with the 4690 you have, and whether the programs you use take advantage of multithreading.
but that being said, even if you don't overclock, the boost clock of the 4790k is 4.4ghz vs the 3.9ghz of the 4690, so you should see an improvement all round.
for gw2, probably - but because more mhz is probably more useful in this case
for e:d, probably as it's a multithreaded game

 

[kration]

they pop up in the members market from time to time (you're nearly there)
although that being said, is your board z97 or h97/b95.
if it's not z97, you can't take advantage of overclocking the 4790k...

And I'm not sure how I'd find out whether the board is z97 or h97/b95.

 

[tamzzy]

And I'm not sure how I'd find out whether the board is z97 or h97/b95.

download and run cpuz and click on the mainboard tab

 

[realscot]

I have the 4690k @ 4.4 and in the latest BF1 maps my CPU is at 100% on all 4 cores bottlenecking my 980ti @ 1080p!

 

[realscot]

I have the 4690k @ 4.4 and in the latest BF1 maps my CPU is at 100% on all 4 cores bottlenecking my 980ti @ 1080p!

I personally think you'd be better off waiting and saving than mucking about changing cpu's as 4790k's are going for Ryzen 5/7 money.

**Sorry for 2 half posts, silly phone**

 

[kration]

I personally think you'd be better off waiting and saving than mucking about changing cpu's as 4790k's are going for Ryzen 5/7 money.

**Sorry for 2 half posts, silly phone**

Thanks for all of the advice. As the prev poster says, I think I'll just wait for a while. Prices generally seem crazy at the moment and there's no pressing urgency to upgrade at the moment .

 

[~>Dg<~]

id just wait for ryzen 2 and see how it fairs. if the single core matches intel then maybe go that route . if it cant just go modern intel. intel have gaming sown up because of that very reason.

 

[opethdisciple]

Wait for Ryzen 2. Also gives you time to save some more cash.

By which point you might have access to MM and sell current kit.