Choose a CPU that can handle gaming and light multitasking for about five years.
Choose a CPU that can handle gaming and light multitasking for about five years.
5900x exceeds the budget a bit, my gaming expectations are modest—60 fps and 1080p, I usually run an idle VM in the background, and I appreciate having the ability to multitask. I’m looking for a CPU that lasts about five years, which means I need PCIe 4 support. Am I correct? Right now I own an i7 4790 and had the option to upgrade to a 1080 Ti when needed; it performed adequately, though it was somewhat limited, but I could still run Cyberpunk at ultra 60fps on 1080p. In 3-4 years, without PCIe 4, GPUs might become a significant drawback by 2026 and even 2025, as they’d be bottlenecked by PCIe 3 bandwidth. So my main concern is whether PCIe 4 should factor into planning a long-term CPU + CPU setup? If it weren’t an issue, I’d easily choose the 10700k over the 5600X for just $30 more and two extra cores. Currently, I’m leaning toward the 5600X mainly because of its platform; the 11400 is tricky since it’s still decent now but will show age faster, especially with CPU-heavy titles like Path of Exile and Guild Wars 2, which I enjoy. What do you think? Any advice?
PCIe 4 isn't crucial for most graphics cards, and Gen 4 SSDs are costly, scarce, and probably unnecessary for a $300 CPU. For observing PCIe 3's longevity, examine PCIe 2. The current Intel CPUs that relied on PCIe 2.0 were the 2600k and 2700k, and their efficiency would fade long before PCIe updates became significant. Additionally, there isn't a lasting CPU architecture left at the moment—every system is nearing the end of its life due to the arrival of DDR5.
Thanks for your feedback! This visualization is quite compelling. Perhaps I shouldn't be overly concerned about PCIe4 if the situation hasn't changed much yet, given the small differences observed so far. I wasn't aiming to find a CPU-RAM-Motherboard combo that remains interchangeable over the long haul; rather, I'm seeking a processor powerful enough to efficiently utilize GPUs for at least five years. The plan is to make an informed decision on which CPU fits my budget and performance needs over this period, ideally allowing a GPU upgrade around the middle of the five-year span.
I believe the 5600x stands out, it’s likely to excel in CPU-intensive titles and could be expanded to nearly 16 cores eventually. Of course, the 10700k offers 8 cores which may work more efficiently over time as 8-core processors can often run i5/ryzen 5 models by late 2022 or early 2023. Still, the 5600x provides stronger single-core performance, making it suitable for better GPUs and multitasking should be manageable. For the past five years, 32GB will probably become essential. Notably, your monitor is likely the main limitation, particularly with a 1440p 144Hz VA panel, which can be quite demanding.
I considered an option that could yield 11700f with just a $40 increase over 5600x or 10700. Using local pricing, it matches the same CPU type otherwise. With 8 cores and PCIe4, it seems reasonable from my perspective.