Source
r/buildapc•
sumguy720

Upgrading CPU for the first time since 2010. Should I consider a new motherboard?

I was lucky enough in 2010 to buy a Intel Core i7 930 which has served me well for the last decade without any issues. I've since upgraded my video card from a Nvidia 550 to a 1060 and increased my ram from 4 (DDR2) to 16GB (DDR3). I know my CPU is a bottleneck on some games I play and generally changing graphics settings is not really giving me much of a boost anymore (the 1060 seems sufficient for what I play these days)

The 930 CPU runs out of a motherboard sporting the LGA 1366 socket, and I was considering upgrading to an i7 990X just to avoid replacing my motherboard as well, but I'm not really sure if that's the right move.

My question is - would the added cost of upgrading my motherboard be worth the added benefits I could get from a CPU that runs on more modern architecture? Is there a solid CPU out there today that could last me another decade like my trusty 930? I don't think I'm married to intel, but please correct me if I'm wrong about that.

Posted Dec 3, 2020, 5:45 AM UTC

211
zombiedud4096•

I would recommend a 3000 series ryzen processor it’s doing me well so far an paired with either a b550 or x570 board you’d have an upgrade path for a whole nother gen of ryzen CPUs not to mention if you went with a 5600x or the 5800x you’d have something better than a 10900k if you can buy a 5000 series ryzen. So probably a 3700x xt isn’t worth the extra money and probably 16-32 gigs of 3200 or 3600 DDR4 from teamgroup which is what I use an in super happy with the performance boost I’ve gotten. P.S. ryzen 5000 is hard to get rn so hold on if you wanna go that route but Intel can’t compete anymore with AMD

5
sumguy720OP•

Is there a simple way to compare based on model numbers or am I better off just looking at benchmarks? Is clock speed even a useful metric these days or is there some magic number that is useful for comparisons?

1
jazz71286•

Clock speed is still important but it's not the be all factor like it used to be. Basically reaching the mystical 5ghz was seen as the only thing worth considering back in the day but the architecture has advanced a lot since then and other factors are just as important to actual real world performance, like better ccx design and reduced latency.

The only real way to compare cpus is to look at third party benchmarks to see the actual performance differences.

1
zombiedud4096•

Well speaking of benchmarks the 5600x is better than anything Intel can offer anymore due to L3 cache and the IPC an a few other factors

1
frogthors•

Definitely plan on doing a total upgrade of CPU, Mobo, and RAM (since you'll need DDR4), especially if you want to then be good for a long time. I looked into this recently with my 4 year old intel CPU, and the possible upgrades that would fit in my motherboard are totally overpriced because other people also want to upgrade their cpu without updating their motherboard. So the price per performance is really poor.

2
sumguy720OP•

Will I need DDR4 ram because newer mobos or CPUS no longer support DDR3? I'm guessing it's a different form factor or something?

1
frogthors•

Yeah, they're just not compatible with DDR3 or older.

1
jazz71286•

Sounds like it's definitely worth it given you can't really upgrade a cpu without upgrading the motherboard, and you definitely need to upgrade your cpu.

In terms of price to performance it's hard to go past ryzen cpus right now. A b550 motherboard with a 3600x will do wonders for years to come, and you can even move up to a 5000 series cpu down the line with that same board.

1
sumguy720OP•

Thanks for that recommendation- someone else suggested something similar, I'll probably do some research in that direction!

1
the_el_man•

I'm in a similar boat (from i7 5775c). Wait until Jan or just on stock if you see it. We have waited this long, you even longer. Worth holding out for a new R7. Unless you can snag a deal on an i9. That should last you another 5 years plus. I was debating getting a r5 3600, then a r5 5600x, but with the prices an i9 9900k is almost the same price. But think just going to wait until prices come back to normal. Annoying as got the money out aside...

1
Cohibaluxe•

Absolutely get off that ancient platform. Do not bother investing more money into a decade old motherboard. Get a cheap B450 board and a decent 3000 series Ryzen (3600 will serve you extremely well) and you'll be leaps and bounds ahead of what you could ever get on a first gen Intel Core platform.

1