Upgrade to 5930k or stay as is?
Upgrade to 5930k or stay as is?
You're evaluating whether to upgrade your GPU to a 6900k or 6950X compared to your current 5930k. Both options are significantly faster than your i7, especially at higher resolutions like 1080p and 1440p. Since you mainly play games, it might be more practical to consider a platform upgrade in the future rather than investing upfront. Weigh the benefits of immediate performance gains against the cost and long-term value.
Are you experiencing any performance problems? If everything is working well, I'll just wait.
Only one generation upgrade makes sense. (Yes, moving from DDR3 to 4 and a few other changes would be a larger upgrade than most, but still not enough.) Edit: The 7th Gen i9s that Linus checked might be worth it (or at least near worth it) if you find a decent Mobo price. Around $200 for the 8/16 i9 7820 is reasonable.
X99 is currently DDR4 okay. But 6xxx CPUs on LGA2011-3 can't be overclocked anymore because of a security fix. In games where single-core speed is important, a 5930k won't lag behind a 6900k or 6950X. Still not as strong for everyday use.
In gaming, the top CPU performance is measured in GHz across multiple cores. The 5930k seems to offer strong results on the X99 platform (socket 2011-3). More advanced chips for the same socket usually sacrifice speed for extra cores. Many Xeon models also fit this setup, though they’re typically suited for work tasks rather than play. I own a X99 system for my home lab. My current setup is an Xeon E5-2678 v3 with 12 cores/24 threads, a base speed of 2.5GHz and turbo up to 3.3GHz. I bought it on Ali Express for under $100 USD. Below are some Xeon CPU options you might explore. Please verify compatibility with your motherboard before purchasing. Haswell CPUs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_In...E5-2678_v3 Broadwell CPUs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_In...E5-2643_v4
E5 1660 v3 and 1680 v3 both feature 8c/16t settings, unlocked multiplier available. Performance on x99 is solid, and top models may reach around 4.8ghz.
I had similar ideas two years ago. I was still using a 5820k and considering a 6900k upgrade. But what I found was too costly (I wasn’t interested in buying used) so switching to the latest generation would have only added about $200 (for CPU, motherboard, RAM). That’s why I chose the current generation—it felt like the better option overall in terms of performance and price.