Discuss gaming performance with optimal CPU and RAM speeds.
Discuss gaming performance with optimal CPU and RAM speeds.
You're testing different CPU and RAM speeds. Option 1 is an 8-core, 16-thread processor, while Option 2 is a 12-core, 24-thread processor.
Beyond just MHz, several other aspects must be taken into account.
Which CPUs are you looking at? Many aspects matter beyond just the clock speed, making it seldom useful alone. A 5900X at 4.7GHz on one thread beats a 7700k clocked at 5GHz by a noticeable gap, even though the latter runs slower. Metrics like instruction per cycle, number of cores, cache size and speed play a far greater role than speed itself. Clock speed only counts when everything else matches, which is uncommon.
My signature specs are listed here. Option one is the second system, option two the first. Remember, all my monitors run at 60Hz, so I only need 60 frames per second. Both are workstations initially, but my wife and daughter are interested in PC gaming. The 3060 will be chosen based on what people consider the best gaming CPU. I’m currently overclocking, but the stock base and boost speeds for each CPU are: Xeon E5 2670 v3 12C/24T 2.3GHz base, 3.1GHz max turbo with 2133MHz DDR4; and Xeon E5 2640 v3 8C/16T 2.6GHz base, 3.4GHz max turbo with 1866MHz DDR4.
The IPC at 4GHz on a Ryzen Zen3 with 2 cores differs greatly from a 4GHz Intel 12th gen CPU with 2 cores. For RAM, MHz alone doesn't tell the whole story—timings matter too. EDIT: The E5-2640 v3 is probably better for your gaming needs. Also, confirm it's DDR4 rather than DDR3; that older DDR4 version might not be ideal.