Is it worth uprgading my I5 2500k?

[Sidistic]

Hi all,

I've had my I5 2500K for many many years now and was wondering if there was any point in upgrading the CPU for a newer one? It is currently overclocked at 4.5Ghz and I mainly use it for gaming.

[Bravetart]

Probably won't see much difference from an average FPS point of view, but you would from a minimum frame rate. I upgraded my 2500k recently and definitely noticed a difference in the overall smoothness of games, particularly with more modern AAA titles.

[Aaron]

Probably won't see much difference from an average FPS point of view, but you would from a minimum frame rate. I upgraded my 2500k recently and definitely noticed a difference in the overall smoothness of games, particularly with more modern AAA titles.

Do you have any before/after benchmarks?

[Bravetart]

Do you have any before/after benchmarks?

Not stored anywhere, sadly. I guess I have this:

Before
http://www.3dmark.com/fs/1452778

After
http://www.3dmark.com/fs/8508537

New build, same graphics card. Obviously CPU comes in to play with this benchmark, more than a regular game would.

[BUDFORCE]

To the original post, I personally wouldn't bother upgrading it, the cost will not be reflected in the performance gain.

[RandomPC]

I'm still using one and have no short term plans to upgrade - just doesn't look to be worth it yet unless you actually need a new system.

[Aaron]

I'm still using one and have no short term plans to upgrade - just doesn't look to be worth it yet unless you actually need a new system.

Likewise.. Still using a 2500k at stock here, which is why I was interested in the benchmarks.

[luke22]

Not stored anywhere, sadly. I guess I have this:

Before
http://www.3dmark.com/fs/1452778

After
http://www.3dmark.com/fs/8508537

New build, same graphics card. Obviously CPU comes in to play with this benchmark, more than a regular game would.

combined scores are about as close a comparison to real world gains sorry but you can work out that % im baked xD

ram speeds and chipset performance is where sandy is showing its age these days. no pcie 3, no good m2, no blazing fast ddr3 all hinder it vs new platforms which run lower latency and higher bandwidth. raw cpu performance has improved, but not to the same degree.

[Bravetart]

Truth be told, I wanted to upgrade, rather than needed to upgrade. It's perhaps not the most cost-effective upgrade you'll ever make, but the difference is noticeable from my own personal experience and there are others that have seen the same. New chipset features (m.2. and USB 3.1) are additional reasons to upgrade.

It's not quite like for like in my case as I moved from i5 to i7. Your mileage may vary.

Few random things I found with a quick search:

http://forums.joinsquad.com/topic/59...-fps-increase/

http://www.overclock.net/t/1578480/i...-5ghz-in-games

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZ_5p9wd2dk

Historically, CPU hasn't made much of a difference but I think some will be surprised with the difference, especially with minimum frame rates.

[cruciate]

I'm on a 2600k, which is obviously the i7 version, but the raw speed is similar and I don't think the hyperthreading adds anything to gaming.
I see no point upgrading, but would love to be proved wrong.

[nft99]

2500K at stock here, look at upgrading last month but for the monies spent not much extra power or power saving.
So it stays!!!!!

[Bravetart]

A perhaps more scientific test than some of the above, certainly more solid than my own observations:

http://www.pcper.com/reviews/Graphic...d-Theft-Auto-V

I think if you're looking to upgrade your graphics card too, you'll begin to notice more difference. Certainly in the above link, SLI impacts things more than a single card and may be symptomatic of CPU holding back the grunt of the GPU. It may not be, of course.

Ultimately, it's your cash and whether or not you can justify the cost. I wanted some of the newer features and had the itch, so went for it. If you're happy with existing performance, then stick with it.

[Finners]

I can't see it in that pcper article was the sandy cpu at stock? Can see if being a bit of a bottleneck in that case but would be surprised if the difference is so big if both are at 4.2ghz+

[Sidistic]

Guess I'll wait a little bit longer then. Thanks all

[Joshimitsu91]

Yeah I'm still on an i5 2500k, don't even have it overclocked and it still runs everything swimmingly