Do I need a new CPU?
Do I need a new CPU?
Your current setup uses an i5-8400 with a GTX 1060, and you’re thinking about adding an RTX 3070 next year. You’re wondering if upgrading the CPU is necessary or if your existing i5 will suffice. Your motherboard supports all the latest Intel generations, so changing boards isn’t urgent. Just keep in mind what advice others give you.
You're looking at a 3070 and want to know if it's worth the investment. Which motherboard fits? Does it support OC for K chips? Are you considering a budget upgrade like the 9900K for $250-$300 or splurging on a full-gen upgrade such as a 5600X+ board? Also, what else is your system made of—especially the power supply?
when you play at 4k it should work well. for cpu-intensive games or if you're using 1080p or heavier titles, your CPU might get a bottleneck. the issue is more noticeable at lower resolutions but definitely shows up at higher ones. upgrading would be a good idea. i used an i9 9900f, i7 9700f or i7 8700 and it performed just fine.
I already have a fresh PSU ready for this 3070, so no problem there. My setup includes a ROG STRIX Z370-E gaming ATX with 16GB RAM and a 1440p @144Hz monitor—this is the performance I’m aiming for.
1440p at 144Hz matches the capabilities of my screen. I enjoy playing KSP, Cyberpunk, and Elite Dangerous, among other games.
What kinds of games do you enjoy playing? The 8400 chip performs adequately but struggles with recent AAA titles, especially when aiming for higher refresh rates or maximum frames per second. Its capabilities are more suited to medium-low settings focused on achieving top FPS. For optimal performance in such scenarios, a CPU upgrade would be necessary. If your system supports higher clock speeds like the 9900K or 9700K, those options could work better. Playing CPU-heavy AAA games at 1080p will likely expose its limitations, particularly around frame timing. A 9900K would be ideal in this situation due to its additional processing threads. However, for 1440p gaming, the choice depends on your settings—enabling features like ray tracing can ease the load, making the 8400 sufficient. At 4K resolution, the GPU will be the main bottleneck, so performance differences between CPUs become more noticeable. If you're comfortable with a lower-end setup and don't plan to switch platforms, testing the 8400 is a good idea. If your GPU usage stays under 95%, it probably won’t hinder your experience much.
In that scenario, open-world titles often benefit from a CPU upgrade. KSP usually runs on single-core performance for physics, so stability matters more than frame rates. As long as the Kraken isn't a threat, the 8400 should suffice. Adding more cores likely won’t help much, though faster clocks in the 9900K or 9700K could make a difference. Cyberpunk demands a lot of CPU power, especially with high settings. If you want to push it, you’ll probably hit GPU limits. Performance can vary depending on the area in the game world, but at 1440p, the 8400 seems reasonable. Elite: Dangerous appears manageable, so the 8400 should work too. I haven’t tested Elite: Dangerous yet and don’t have benchmark numbers, so my opinion is limited. If you’re not pressed for time, give it a try and see how it goes. Some folks dislike the 6c/6t Intel chips, but until recently I ran a 9600K with a 2060 Super at 1440p on high settings, it felt just as smooth as my newer 5900X in Control, Abzu, Tomb Raider, etc.