13700K or 13600K
13700K or 13600K
I struggled to place an air cooler on my motherboard without affecting RGB RAM. I decided to opt for a X73 AIO cooler. The next decision is about choosing a CPU. It will handle 1080P at 240Hz, then upgrade to 360Hz later. Streaming with Obs on Twitch is important, so I want the CPU that maximizes FPS during streaming. Currently I own the 12700K, but it might end up in my child's hands. I’m considering either the 13600K (345€) or the 13700K (426€). Based on benchmarks, the 13700K is quite challenging to cool, so that claim may be true. Which one would perform best?
They should comfortably handle 1080p streaming, and I’d choose the more affordable option personally.
It seems the 13,700k model starts hot but becomes much more controllable when you set power limits, with only a small effect on performance. The 13,600k should be easier to cool, though this likely comes mainly from the power restrictions rather than cooling alone.
It depends on what you value most. A jump from 12700K to 13600K could feel like an improvement, but whether it’s worth it hinges on your priorities and experience. Since I’m not a specialist, it might help to weigh the benefits against any risks or changes in performance.
I'm using nvenc or Intel's IGPU encoding for encoding. It's usually only important if you're doing it on your CPU, which I'd advise against. Both options perform better than encoding on a GPU, though the performance difference can be hard to notice.
It’s unlikely to notice a big difference—probably not more than a small margin. The chance of your air compressor getting noisier due to higher temperatures is low, so you shouldn’t expect a 100€ price jump either.
1080P gaming setup with RTX 3070 Suprim X graphics card from MSi