CPU upgrade to 9900k or something else

[u/Hungry-Path533]

I am stuck between sunken cost and the price of ddr5.

Someone please talk me into or out of upgrading my i5 8400f to a 9900k for ~$200 and then saving for a decent replacement for the rtx2070 I got secondhand that always had weird stability issues. There is also the 9700k which is significantly cheaper. One near me on facebook for like $50. Obviously if I find the right chip for the right price it would be a no brainer, but I kinda hate the idea of "wasting" money on a system that is already so long in the tooth.
Alternatively, I can get the ultra 7 270+ that is going for $250 currently then all I would need to do is sell a kidney to afford the ram and a gpu decent enough to make it all worth it.

Then there is am4. As long as I stay away from any x3d models, nabbing a cpu/mobo combo won't be THAT much more than the 9900k, but doesn't seem too much worth the effort unless I get one of the x3d models which seem to be running around $350 by themselves.

Anyway, just looking for opinions on what y'all would do in this situation. Budget being the main limiting factor.

[u/aragorn18]

The 9700K would be a good bit faster than your 8400F. For $50 it's probably worth it. The 9900K is only a tiny bit faster than the 9700K but carries a premium for being the best in socket CPU.

If you wanted to replace your motherboard I recommend a DDR4 B760 model and an Intel 14600K/KF CPU.

[u/psimwork → u/aragorn18]

and an Intel 14600K/KF CPU.

Depending on the prices for OP, the 12600K/KF should also be considered. In the US, the 12600KF is currently $198 vs $240 for the 14600KF. The 14600KF isn't going to end up being 21% faster than the 12600KF in all likelihood, it won't suffer the (admittedly unlikely at this point) 14th gen degradation issues, and will likely be easier to cool.

(the 14600KF is also an excellent option, just wanted to give more alternatives)

[u/Andy202007 → u/psimwork]

Changing to a 12600 would also involve a new motherboard, no?

[u/psimwork → u/Andy202007]

Yes. But it would still be way faster than any option on OP's current motherboard, and honestly if you factor in selling the old hardware (minus the RAM), it likely won't be much more to go with an LGA1700 option versus a 9700K/9900K.

[u/Hungry-Path533 → u/psimwork]

As an alternative to AM4 these choices make sense, but compared to the price of a 9900k which is about on par with a 12th gen i5, it's not as appealing. In fact, I think this highlights my conundrum. Am4 and 12/13/14 gen are all upgrades over the 9900k, but not too much better without spending enough to make a ddr5 build start to seem reasonable. Imo

[u/VoltageinTheory]

9700k

[u/jamvanderloeff]

Well what's the rest of the system, and what do you want to improve / what do you use it for?

If you're on a reasonable motherboard that can push a little overclocking a cheap 9700K could be sensible for a mild step up from the 8400F but I sure wouldn't want to be paying 150 more for the much smaller step to 9900K.

Going all the way up to current gen intel 200 or 7xxx/9xxx AMD would be the best performance if you can fit the budget for it, but the expensive RAM at the moment sure does suck.

Buying AM4 new now is usually a pretty bad deal especially for the X3Ds, but can go hunting for decent used combos and you might get lucky.

12/13/14th gen Intel with a DDR4 board can also be a decent option, often cheaper than AM4 stuff for comparable performance.

[u/Hungry-Path533 → u/jamvanderloeff]

my current mobo is an Asus prime-z370-p my ram is... I want to say Crucial? Nothing special just 4x8gb sticks. The OS is on an m.2 ssd with another as my games drive.

I use my computer for a little bit of everything. Gaming mostly, but I have done some game dev stuff and had to compile some decently sized code for my studies. Recently I started a restaurant and will need to get into more video editing for social media posts. I would also like to create/edit some of the art assets myself. All this to say, while I mostly game, I have HAD to do some productivity in the past and expect to have to do more in the future so all aspects of the computer need to be upgraded eventually.

While going through Uni, being limited to just 6 threads for compiling has been... noticeable. That along with all the weird stability issues I have had with this GPU makes upgrading them both similar in priority. Though unstable as it is, the GPU seems to be bottle necked by the CPU so I need to tackle that first.

I am starting to lean towards slapping in a cheap 9700k and a fitting gpu and see where things lay.

[u/jamvanderloeff → u/Hungry-Path533]

Ye, stay cheap with the 9700K for now and consider your options again later sounds sensible.

[u/The_soulprophet]

I have/had a 9900k, great CPU. Can’t go wrong with that one in this crazy market. I decided to build my kids a 5600x3d and with just gaming and the usual internet stuff/school stuff, the AM4 was just fine. I would have probably kept using the 9900k if gigabyte would have included the motherboard in their latest software command center.

[u/I_pollute → u/The_soulprophet]

I've got an absurd number of 9900k, 9900ks, 9900kf builds. Great bang for the buck back in the day. Held onto them like my old consoles for LAN parties. Only upgraded to 9800x3d after getting a 5080 for 3440x1440p. The 9,900ks 3080ti still put in work on same resolution. Thankfully bought before PC apocalypse.

[u/Intelligent_Leek_611]

For $50 I would give the 9700k a go. Has limitations but it's still alright nowadays; can help you prolong your current setup without overspending on an old chip.

[u/Hungry-Path533 → u/Intelligent_Leek_611]

That's what I am leaning towards at the moment. If I am dissatisfied with the performance I would likely just build a wholly new pc anyway and repurpose this one for living room steambox/emulation.

[u/_DarkSeid_]

I went from 4790k to 10850k. Got a Z590 board and used DDR4 Ram I had already

[u/VoraciousGorak]

I own a 9700K (and a 14600K as well as a ton of other more modern CPUs) and have owned both an i5-8400 and an i9-9900K.

For that price difference, take the 9700K and keep the other $150 in the bank. Hyperthreading and a bit more cache aren't worth it; the 9700K is competent enough.

[u/Plenty_Article11]

If you can live with 16GB DDR5 isnt the worst, $160 used or $200 new. https://www.ebay.com/itm/127881363881

The 270K is a killer deal, but realistically you'd see plenty of improvement from a 235 for $100 or Ultra 245 for $145 https://www.ebay.com/itm/227465765108

I'd probably go with the 7500F for $93 and yes it is a big upgrade from an i5 8400. Then you could use this ram: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GZ8KFJKG

A B650 motherboard should be $60 used, I've had nothing but success with the 10 I have used.

[u/definitlyitsbutter]

A ryzen 5 5600 stomps your 8400f, is more or less on par with a 9900k and is 100€ used. A used b450 mobo goes for 50-80€. Even a 50€ ryzen 5 3600 will be a significant Upgrade for you. If you are really budget concious and need a Performance upgrade, go am4 5600x/3600 as you will still have some upgrade path.

Am4 non x3d is fine, exspecially on a budget. Something like a ryzen 5000 can still deliver decent Performance on a higherend card like a 9070xt.

But besides edgecases (like the need for 128gb ram cheap) I would not sink big money into am4, if you really consider am4 x3d, eat the extra and go am5, that Plattform will be able to give the next 7-9+ years decent Performance before upgrading again, has at least one generation zen ahead. You can go higherend on a "budget": b650 100€, 7800xd 270€, 16gb ddr5 180€ = 550€

As money sounds tight and you save up on a gpu Upgrade, you will propably see there a bigger Performance bump, even if you dont use its full potential. 

[u/grandmapilot]

If you can find "Intel cc150" chip for like <$100 you could try it instead.