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Should I upgrade from 4790k to 9900k or wait for intel 10nm process?

8K views 46 replies 20 participants last post by  ShrimpBrime 
#1 ·
I’m running on a z97 and I’m overdue for an upgrade. I’m running a 1080ti and want to make sure I’m not bottlenecked. I’m not usually anywhere near 100% when gaming so I’ve put it off till now.

I’m playing games at 1440p so generally my gpu is taxed far more than my cpu.

I hear that 10nm is coming out during this summer or in q4 of 2019. Opinions welcome.


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#2 ·
Hi,
Doubt it will get much better quad to 8 core :)
 
#3 ·
Hi,

Doubt it will get much better quad to 8 core :)


That’s what I figured too. But I was looking at some benchmarks and somehow they were getting 33% improvement over the 4790k...maybe it’s the memory difference from ddr3 to 4?


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#4 ·
No. There is no point in upgrading for games that don't exist yet and there are no games that a 4790K cant handle.

By the time you really need it, there will be better options.

You would get slightly better average FPS with a newer CPU but the difference would be pretty small, probably not even enough to notice.
 
#5 ·
No. There is no point in upgrading for games that don't exist yet and there are no games that a 4790K cant handle.



By the time you really need it, there will be better options.


Is there any gaming performance improvement going from ddr3 to ddr4?


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#11 · (Edited)
The question really is this;

Can the 4970K keep up with a 1080Ti in 1440p (I assume also 144hz) gaming with modern games and the answer is yes.

Anything it falls short on would be a GPU limited situation and upgrading your CPU would make no difference for that.

There are going to be some games that you could technically see a large improvement on but all of those games are going to be ones that are basic, like counter strike. Games where you are already getting FPS well above your refresh rate.

In terms of average FPS gain in newer games, there are tons of benchmarks for this to show that the difference would be small for most of the games people are playing these days. Probably about 5-15%, but the gain will be smallest in any situation where your FPS is actually low since all of those situations will be GPU bound.

Given that your CPU will last until the next console cycle starts up, I would wait until then. If there wasn't going to be new consoles coming out soon-ish I would say sure might as well but the end of a console generation is a bad time to upgrade your PC if you don't have to.

https://youtu.be/L_TiboYqf7M?t=70


Even at 1080p, playing newer games on max settings doesnt show a big difference.
 
#15 ·
The question really is this;



Can the 4970K keep up with a 1080Ti in 1440p (I assume also 144hz) gaming with modern games and the answer is yes.



Anything it falls short on would be a GPU limited situation and upgrading your CPU would make no difference for that.



There are going to be some games that you could technically see a large improvement on but all of those games are going to be ones that are basic, like counter strike. Games where you are already getting FPS well above your refresh rate.



In terms of average FPS gain in newer games, there are tons of benchmarks for this to show that the difference would be small for most of the games people are playing these days. Probably about 5-15%, but the gain will be smallest in any situation where your FPS is actually low since all of those situations will be GPU bound.



Given that your CPU will last until the next console cycle starts up, I would wait until then. If there wasn't going to be new consoles coming out soon-ish I would say sure might as well but the end of a console generation is a bad time to upgrade your PC if you don't have to.



https://youtu.be/L_TiboYqf7M?t=70





Even at 1080p, playing newer games on max settings doesnt show a big difference.


Good points all around.


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#12 · (Edited)
Why not wait to see what happens with amd 7mm. If its as good as they say, some intel ppl will switch over. Then you buy there old cpu/mobo/ram for bargin price (say 100usd) and then you scratched your upgrade itch. You can still buy intel 10nm or 7nm if you want at that point too.

If amd is aggressive pricing as rumored (8core/16threads) at 99usd, cpu prices will tank hard.I hope amd does that so i can watch everyone line up for these free used cpus.

Even i'm thinking about getting amd 7nm as stopgap for intel 7nm. Going to replace my x299 apex and 7920x as tired of having to deal with the voltage battle (low as possible) to keep the temperature low.

Since the value of x299 is bad and too power hungry for most normal users, i will run a contest to give my mobo/cpu away for free at that time (shipping not included). Might as well help some user out. Though honestly the extra costs to get the thing working and energy bill negates the benefits of free x299 cpu/mobo .
 
#13 ·
I would not wait for Intel 10nm. I would wait for Zen2 (Ryzen 3000). Intel's 10nm will probably take time to catch up to their current 14nm in terms of overclocking. It's definitely not 2019.
 
#14 ·
No need to upgrade. I'm still kicking with a 4770K. Anyway, wait to see what AMD's 7nm will do compared to Intel's 10nm (if you really want to stick with Intel).
 
#17 ·
I would wait for Intel 10nm process. The 4790k is just fine for gaming at 1440p.
 
#18 ·
I made this upgrade from 4790k to 9900k paired with a 1080ti.

I get higher framerates but its not earth shattering. Games were running fine before. I play some competitive games on 1080p 240hz which is a very niche use case. If you are at higher res the gains are smaller.

I was on the fence a while and caved in when 9900k finally dropped to 489.

It takes a lot to cool a 9900k. If I didn't already have a custom loop mine would be at stock.

The platform update is great. My z390 aorus pro's sound is so much better than my old asus z87 hero.

Also has nvme, rgb, temp sensor headers and full pwm or voltage fan control at every header.

It is an expensive upgrade. If you wait there is a good chance you can get similar performance at lower cost.
 
#19 ·
If you are gaming at 1080p and >144hz it might be worth it, you can always wait longer. The 8 and 9 series are really hot though, I might wait until Intel comes out with a processor that doesn't run as hot as the sun. It's a little crazy how hard they are to cool effectively.
 
#21 ·
I'm just slowly piecing together liquid cooling parts and going to pick up a case to mod over the summer. By black Friday/cyber Monday prices should be pretty low for the core components. Ram is coming down finally. After the new AyyyMD stuff drops, Intel should be offering hefty discounts on their current offerings.

My 4790k does just fine, I'm mostly just ready to get a newer motherboard. Tired of the red and black color scheme and would like to just run 2 NVMe SSDs and move all my HDD's to my media server.
 
#23 ·
Thanks everyone. I think I’ll just wait a few months longer. Intel’s 10th gen is supposed to be coming soon anyway. Also it seems amd is giving intel a run for their money.


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#24 ·
If you have an upgrade itch, just wait for Ryzen 2. Its out in June and the 8 core one is supposed to be as good as a 9900k. I am interning at Intel right now and even though I get a huge discount for the 9900k, I'm waiting for Ryzen 2. Would like to support AMD especially if that $230 processor of their is supposed to beat 9900k

Keep in mind, I have an X58 i7 930 with a 1080 Ti
 
#25 ·
If you have an upgrade itch, just wait for Ryzen 2. Its out in June and the 8 core one is supposed to be as good as a 9900k. I am interning at Intel right now and even though I get a huge discount for the 9900k, I'm waiting for Ryzen 2. Would like to support AMD especially if that $230 processor of their is supposed to beat 9900k



Keep in mind, I have an X58 i7 930 with a 1080 Ti


Good point. Hey do you know if intel is serious about coming out with gpus in the future. I heard about it but I wasn’t sure


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#28 ·
Interesting. I just want to go back to consumer chipsets after using x299 7920x. I am using dual 360mm radiators and still literally have to get an external radiator if i want to keep the cpu cooled. I intend to get intel willowcove. However if amd pricing is good (for 16core models) it will be good stop gap. Hopefully intel/amd can bring back gpus prices to earth.
 
#30 ·
sooooo, about that 10nm.....

 
#31 · (Edited)
#32 ·
There is so much dissinformation in this thread.

Here is the deal breaker. 1% and 0.1% lows and consequent frame times.

A 1080ti is severely cpu limited when it comes to these with a 4790k.

The difference between this CPU and a 9900k is absolutely immense.

Go play a game like PUBG, your 1% and 0.1% lows will increase from 30/40 to over 100. The experience becomes like butter. Your frame times become butter smooth. Its a completely new experience.

DDR4 also makes a huge difference over DDR3 for the frame times and % lows as well.

And yes, I did this upgrade myself. Huge difference.

Benchmarking is presented wrong, averages are useless. It's all about

1. Frame TIMES
2. 0.1 and 1% LOWS

Everything else is flat out wrong, as averages mean nothing as they don't reflect the experience / smoothness at all.
 
#33 ·
Id probably wait for zen 2 reviews to hit.

That said I went from a 4790k@4.6ghz to a 9900k@5ghz and my frame times and minimums saw a nice up tick in alot of games. Encoding was also finally doable though 9900k still chugs under x264 load and fps and frame times take a big hit.

Pubg is buttery smooth for me now and its my main game.
 
#35 ·
i went from 4930k to 9700k n found it to be a bit of a small step, luckily I spent as little as possible.

based on what AMD has coming, and how intel will respond.

Id' wait.

I rarely recommend waiting, but we're at the beginning of a new console hardware cycle and AMD is finally back from the dead.
 
#37 ·
i went from 4930k to 9700k n found it to be a bit of a small step, luckily I spent as little as possible.



based on what AMD has coming, and how intel will respond.



Id' wait.



I rarely recommend waiting, but we're at the beginning of a new console hardware cycle and AMD is finally back from the dead.


I thought their zen3’s single core performance still wasn’t at 5ghz.


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#38 ·
I'm not focusing on the minutia.

late 2020/early 2021 will be the time to upgrade for those of us with recent hardware.

the second generation of consoles + AMD momentum is forcing intel & NV to stop snoring. AMD is back, n here to stay. We're at the dawn of a new arms race between AMD, NV, n Intel.

Also, as a multi-gpu user, and multi-nvme user. AMD's big boy line up looks quite enticing, 64 lanes? yes please!

running 2x GPUs @ full 16x + 4x NVMe @ 4x each? Sounds amazing.

not to mention the fact AMD is pushing PCIe4.0 soon, n intel is going straight to 5.0... while spending money on 9900k would keep you on 3.0...
 
#40 ·
I'm not focusing on the minutia.



late 2020/early 2021 will be the time to upgrade for those of us with recent hardware.



the second generation of consoles + AMD momentum is forcing intel & NV to stop snoring. AMD is back, n here to stay. We're at the dawn of a new arms race between AMD, NV, n Intel.



Also, as a multi-gpu user, and multi-nvme user. AMD's big boy line up looks quite enticing, 64 lanes? yes please!



running 2x GPUs @ full 16x + 4x NVMe @ 4x each? Sounds amazing.



not to mention the fact AMD is pushing PCIe4.0 soon, n intel is going straight to 5.0... while spending money on 9900k would keep you on 3.0...


We’re still in 2019. If it’s that good I can upgrade again then. Maybe games will utilize more cpu cores then


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#42 ·
then wait for the 9900kS at least. new revision releasing @ 5ghz on all cores, in response to AMD's keynote the other day.

and yep this next console generation will definitely benefit us over here in the PC world, just like 1st gen x86 consoles did.

we're finally at the true EOL for DX11, it should all be up hill from here. Hell, titles are even starting to release with proper SLI support again!
 
#43 ·
then wait for the 9900kS at least. new revision releasing @ 5ghz on all cores, in response to AMD's keynote the other day.



and yep this next console generation will definitely benefit us over here in the PC world, just like 1st gen x86 consoles did.



we're finally at the true EOL for DX11, it should all be up hill from here. Hell, titles are even starting to release with proper SLI support again!


I already got the 9900k about two weeks ago. Im getting 5.0ghz all cores with HT, 3600 mem (1T) rock solid at 1.285V and turbo LLC.

I started this thread while I was still on the fence.


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#45 ·
Yep. Just haven’t gotten around to it because I still was considering returning it and waiting. I’m set on keeping it now.

Should I delete the thread since the initial question is N/A? Or keep it for other people to reference the different replies who might be wondering the same.


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