No, Z77N + i5-3570K does not reach 8 GT/s PCIe 3.0.
No, Z77N + i5-3570K does not reach 8 GT/s PCIe 3.0.
I own a Gigabyte GA-Z77N-Wifi board with an i3-3225 chipset but got an EVGA 3060 in it. With this CPU I'm restricted to PCIe 2.0 and HWInfo shows the interface at 5 GT/s. If I upgrade to an i5-3570K would that allow PCIe 3.0 speeds at 8 GT/s or am I stuck? Would I need a new board plus RAM to reach full bandwidth? I know the 3570K would limit performance slightly but I don't play highly demanding games just light multiplayer titles and streaming.
You definitely want an i7 2600 or 3770 for smooth performance in games and reliable frame rates. Everything supports the x16 3.0 slot, making the upgrade from 3225 to 3570 a small change but a huge leap for stability and speed. Going for an i7 2600 or 3770 will give you a solid gaming experience without stutters. Just focus on getting at least 60fps for a smooth session.
I understand the 3570K isn't ideal for current gaming needs, and a 3770K would likely perform better. However, the cost is a major factor. 3770Ks are selling for around £100 on eBay, while the 3570K is closer to £35. At that price point, the 3570K remains a reasonable buy, whereas the 3770K falls short. In typical situations, I’d recommend opting for an affordable B450 board paired with an Athlon 3000G. These should match the 3770K’s price and offer decent performance. The 3000G is hard to find at such a low cost right now. Considering these options, the 3570K isn’t the worst choice, especially since you already have the motherboard. Regarding your question, yes— the i5 3570K supports PCIe 3.0, so you won’t face significant performance limits from that. You won’t reach the card’s full capability, but it should still run smoothly for casual games and won’t be a major bottleneck.
The CPU bottleneck seems manageable thanks to how you use it, so PCIe 2.0x16 shouldn’t cause issues (even with an i5 and i7 from the third generation). ...? The jump from i3 to i5 won’t be small if going from i3 to i7 feels huge.
I also suggested Xeon options or a 2600 because the 2600 weighs under 50 pounds and its CPU is straightforward. The Xeons are better for even less power. The main concern is maintaining stable frame rates; the CPU can't boost high FPS, but aiming for a consistent 60 FPS in games would be essential. Pure quad-core processors won't deliver that in newer titles.
The variation lies in stability. Any brief stuttering in newer titles you'd encounter on an i3 would remain on an i5, since you simply switch from a 4-thread to another 4-thread processor but now all four cores are fully utilized. It doesn't resolve the problems when four threads aren't sufficient. For such an outdated platform, the aim should be a smooth, stutter-free 60 frames per second experience, which an i5 from that time can't deliver well in modern games. That's why I consider an i7 a significant improvement—it delivers a solid gaming experience without issues, whereas an i5 falls short. The average frame rate won't change much, but the stutters (especially the rare 1% and 0.1% instances) will be nearly eliminated.
Xeons differ from consumer models in socket design, making them more expensive in this context. While they offer good value for someone with a similar setup, replacing the motherboard isn't the most cost-effective solution. None of the CPUs mentioned are built for high frame rates in current games; the focus here is on local multiplayer titles like Moving Out. The suggested hardware for that game includes an FX-4350 or a Pentium G4600—both strong options, especially with a dual-core processor. This i5 should easily reach 60fps in those types of games, which is sufficient for a standard TV setup. A 3060 chipset seems unnecessary for such applications, and the recommended GPU for Moving Out is actually a GTX 750. Ultimately, it's up to the player to decide how they use their system.
In short, the situation is clear: the i5 3570 at $35 fixes the PCIe 2.0 limitation but doesn’t improve performance much beyond what I already have. The i7 2600K at $60 offers decent multithreading (8 threads on 4 cores) but still uses PCIe 2.0. Upgrading further would likely need a new board, chipset, and RAM, costing around $250 to $300.
If you can obtain the 3770 for a bit less than the 3570K, it's a good deal. My brother is running a 3570K with my GTX 970 and everything has worked well. Older or lighter titles shouldn't cause any trouble. When the game suggests a quad-core CPU, you should be fine.