[Buxty]

I'm looking at replacing my ageing FX8120 and dying motherboard from my sig rig and Intel seems the best option right now. I'm planning to keep everything the same except the processor, motherboard and case (which'll be replaced with a mATX one).

I'm thinking of grabbing the MSI Z87M Gaming for the motherboard but needed help picking out a good processor for the system. Currently I use my system for gaming mostly while i watch movies on another display. Also in september im starting University where i'll be programming and learning all that good stuff to do with databases and information systems. If it could last a few years it would be cool

I have a couple of questions:

1. I've heard about "degradation", do Intel CPU's suffer badly from this when overclocked? Is it worth overclocking at all nowadays for performance benefits? (Not getting much enjoyment from oc'ing atm)
2. Would there be any performance differential between the 4670k and the Xeon 1230V3 aside from HT?
3. What would you pick given the choice between the 4670k, the 4770k and the Xeon? I don't have the money now for the purchase but i'd save up if it would be money well spent.

Any help would be great, it's about time i stopped being an AMD fanboy

 

[BradleyW]

Degradation is different for everyone. Depends on the quality of the silicon, how much volts are being pushed and overall operating temperatures.
There are "far too many variables" to suggest AMD CPU's suffer less degradation compared to Intel.
The Xeon 1230V3 would ever so slightly beat the 4670k clock for clock, but overclocking is usually out of the question with Xeon architecture.
For your needs, I'd go with the 4670k, unless you require HT, get the 4770k.

 

[twisted5446]

Nothing wrong with being an AMD fanboy. I dont claim to be but only seem to buy AMD. Intel has been on my radar lately though.

 

[Bit_reaper]

1. I've heard about "degradation", do Intel CPU's suffer badly from this when overclocked? Is it worth overclocking at all nowadays for performance benefits? (Not getting much enjoyment from oc'ing atm)

Degradation is not an issue unless you are running really high voltage and yes overclocking does give very real performance benefits perhaps now more then ever.

2. Would there be any performance differential between the 4670k and the Xeon 1230V3 aside from HT?

At stock the HT and clock difference will result in some performance differences but its usually pretty minor. That said once you start OC'ng the differences definitely tips in the 4670k favor as it can easily achieve much higher then stock clocks while the Xeon can't really be properly overclocked.

3. What would you pick given the choice between the 4670k, the 4770k and the Xeon? I don't have the money now for the purchase but i'd save up if it would be money well spent.

If you are looking for primarily an gaming CPU then I would recommend the 4670k. Where the 4770k comes in to its own is when you do productivity stuff like video rendering ect. (though it can be useful if you do CPU based streaming to twitch or the like). The Xeon features aren't really that useful in your normal desktop environment as thous are geared more towards running virtual machines or software where error correcting memory (ECC-ram) is needed to ensure reliable results.

 

[Buxty]

Thanks for the input so far guys

Okay so I won't worry about shortening the life of my chip then as I doubt i'd be pushing insane clocks with it even if i did decide to OC but its always nice to have the option.

Reading around the internet i commonly hear people saying something along the lines of "the Xeon is like a i7 but without the iGPU" and i know the specifications are similar in the way both are 4C/8T but anything other than that? It almost seems tempting to get a Xeon if its basically a server i7.

Also as far as the future goes i'd like this to be the final set of upgrades i do for a while and would HT be of use as programs/games start to rely on more cores, or would that not apply to HT?

 

[BradleyW]

HT has helped only in BFBC2, BF3 and BF4 from my internal testing on various chips. Other games did not show an increase in performance. This "could" change for next Gen games that utilize more of the CPU.

 

[66racer]

I wouldnt worry about cpu degradation as long as volts and temps are in order. I have had my 2700k at 4.8ghz and 1.385v for over a year now without issues. Been having the haswell itch more than ever after the new stepping was mentioned on the 4770k. For gaming I have to also recommend the 4670k unless money isnt an issue, then the 4770k since bf3/bf4 likes HT and supposedly more games will use the threads sooner or later. Used is another option if you buy from a good seller. My 2700k is still solid for gaming and would make a good gaming cpu on a budget.

 

[Buxty]

Funnily enough Battefield 4 was really the game i play consistantly due to how easy it is so HT would come in handy. It's looking like the 4770k is the best bet tbh, and if i kept it for years the overclocking might help it keep up with newer generations

 

[Sev7_d]

Here's another viable option for you to consider!

Wait for Devil's Canyon and it's motherboards to release. It's just around the corner.