Upgrading to Haswell (mobo, cpu, RAM)

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J

jerusalem

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Mar 19, 2010
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Approximate Purchase Date: July 05 2013
Budget Range: ~$1000-$1500

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, Movies, Music, video/audio recording/compression
Are you buying a monitor: No



Parts to Upgrade: CPU, mobo, RAM)
Upgrading intel core i7 2600k to intel core i7 4770k
Upgrading motherboard (I prfer Asus) looking at http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131978 or the asus ROG maximus extreme (no link yet)
And RAM I am looking at the G. skill trident X series RAM, I currently have g. skill ripjaws X series RAM (4x4GB) and suppose I could probably use that in the upgraded build.
Currently have a cooler master silent pro gold 1000w power supply and will be keeping it
sound blaster ZXR sound card
Geforce GTX Titan video card

Do you need to buy OS: I have 64-bit windows 7 and am open to suggestions about switching to windows 8 but would like them to make some upgrades or a "I know how to use a computer" version first.
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: I buy most things off Newegg
Location: Florida USA
Parts Preferences: Intel Haswell CPU but open to suggestions with good back-up information. I prefer g.skill RAM and Asus motherboards.

Overclocking: Maybe eventually

SLI or Crossfire: Maybe eventually

Your Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080,


Additional Comments: I am willing to upgrade any gaps in my system and like having the best of everything
And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: I always want to stretch more performance though currently I have plenty. My system is a touch over 2 years old and I like to upgrade for future-proofing and for fun. I have plenty of cash so I like to stay up-to-date. Another big reason is my current motherboard and processor are not pushing max performance out of my GTX Titan video card.

Thank you for any and all suggestions. Hoping to upgrade in July when I am back in the US but I can wait longer if people believe it to be prudent.
 
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DarkSable

DarkSable

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Sep 27, 2012
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The only gap in your system is your monitor setup, using a titan and i7 at 1080p is just kind of silly. That's what's holding you back, not your motherboard OR your processor.

I can tell you right now that if you upgrade to haswell, you will see very little difference in framerates in games. Your Titan is silly powerful, so you might as well get three monitors, a 1600p monitor, or a 120 Hz monitor, and take advantage of it.
 
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J

jerusalem

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I have 2 Asus monitors currently hooked up 1920x1080 res, 144hz refresh, 1ms response time, I wouldn't mind a higher res screen but have yet to find any with much less than 7-12ms response time and I mainly use these for gaming. I would also like to consider 3 or 4 monitors in the future - stereoscopic gaming and all that but I don't really want the 3D bit, just interested to see how it looks. I already have a titan so it's a moot point though I could always get a second one but the point of the Titan in the first place was a single card solution so it would kind of defeat the purpose of my original reason for buying that monster.

I would like a Z87 chipset mobo because I still have a Z68 chipset (Gen 3 version) so it has a PCIe 2.0 slot that is compatible for 3.0 devices and runs a 2600K. I'm on about a 2 year upgrade cycle and see haswell as a good opportunity to update. I mostly want to upgrade my motherboard, the titan has no issues chugging max settings on everything but I feel the bottleneck (imaginary bottleneck) is my mobo as it is now 2 generations old.

I currently have 4x4GB g. skill ripjaws X series RAM and am considering updating to trident X 2x8GB or 4x8GB (I hear the 8GB sticks are much more stable now) do you think there would be an advantage of 2x8GB over 4x4GB ? for dual channel purposes. If I go with 4x8GB then I have to upgrade to windows 7 pro or windows 8 (trying to hold off on 8)

I could always wait to upgrade until the next iteration of CPU but I feel like I'll be waiting too long. I feel like I have a great system put together but my tech is aging (as far as market is concerned, runs all software just fine). And I want to be ready for anything new that comes out. I also like to have latest/greatest tech (hence the gtx titan) because budget is no concern for my electronics habit, love my job.
 
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thdarkshadow

thdarkshadow

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Feb 6, 2013
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You are right it is an imaginary bottleneck. You will get no difference in gaming performance if you "upgrade". Tops 1fps. If you overclock what you have now it will match the new Haswell. If you want to blow money for bragging rights then ok but real world performance will be the same. Even in CPU intense stuff like rendering there is little difference like single digit seconds on things that take 5 minutes. More ram will do nothing as well unless you have several games, photo shop, a video rendering and 40 browser tabs open while playing crisis 3. Since you have 16gb already no need to get more. Basically don't change your hardware unless you just have this huge urge to waist good money for nothing but being able to say you have a better pc on paper than your friends
 
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Tradesman1

Tradesman1

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With the 4770K, the sky's the limit, the Tridents are a good choice and again the sky's the limit. In 16GB, I'd suggest 2x8GB rather than 4x4GB (less stress on the MC (Memory Controller)). In the 2x8GB they are available anywhere from 1600 CL7 through 2933/CL12 - the Egg has a good buy on 2400/CL10 2x8GB at $160 from there it really jumps to 2666, 2800, 2933 and 3000
 
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J

jerusalem

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Do you think there is more performance out of the 1600MHz CL7 or CL 12 at higher MHz. In previous builds it's been all about lowest CL but I'm wondering if there is a conversion to account for the higher MHz at a lower CL, haven't found a great article explaining it yet and my knowledge has not been that great on RAM since the days of EDO lol
 
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DarkSable

DarkSable

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Yep, it's pretty simple. What you're looking for is called the "calculable latency."

Here's the formula:
(Cas Latency / RAM speed) * 2000 = Latency in nanoseconds (ns)

However, bear in mind that that's just one number - a lot of times, even when the calculable latency is the same, the ram with the lower latency will be faster in real world practice, because you won't need the higher clock speed.
 
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g-unit1111

g-unit1111

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I agree, my build is based around a 3570K (upgraded from a Phenom II) and I have no intention of moving to Haswell. Maybe Broadwell, or whatever the next generation is.
 
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Tradesman1

Tradesman1

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An easy way to look at it as far as performance (speed) excluding the higher bandwidth you get as freqs go up is the step method - if you start with 1600/7, then 1866/8 (is a hair better and so on >) 2133/9, 2400/10, 2666/11 and 2900/12 or if you start at a base of 1600/8 then you'd next look at 1866/9, 2133/10.....I've found this to be a good method for comparison shopping - i.e. if see something good you like at 1866/10 then you might compare prices to 1600/9 or 2133/11 (and if good sticks the other two should be able to run at 1866/10) this is obviously just an example but in particular as applies to Intel then the 2133/11 is good, but also then when looking at AMD - they can't always run higher freqs, but you can take higher freq sticks and downclock to a lower freq, tighten the timings and get equal performance while having sticks that CAN run higher if you upgrade the CPU or want to use the sticks in a better rig
 
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jerusalem

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http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131974

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131989

Looking at these 2 motherboards, not sure which one is preferred. I plan on mostly gaming and very little overclocking so the hero seems fine but I really like to buy top of the line. Wondering if there will be much performance difference between the 2 boards for me. This is a tough call.

Also some RAM options:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231589
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231590
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231678
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231628
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231629

Any suggestions are helpful between the 2 board options and 4 RAM options. Still deciding between 2x8GB or 4x8GB but I like the g.skill trident X series RAM, looks awesome. Justifications for why you think one kit would be better than another would be great. I think 1600MHz DDR3 would be fine for me with CL 7, money is no object really but if I spend more I do want a performance gain. Excited for Z87 chipset and I figure the LGA 1150 will be the new socket so I can grab 5th gen processor if they make a huge advancement or something. So far responses have been great, thank you!
 
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Tradesman1

Tradesman1

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On the mobos, I like the Hero, as long as it meets your needs, on the DRAM (you've picked my favorites) all are good choices, the 2400 32GB set is what I went with on my IB and is a great choice, you have OCing headroom and 2400/32 is good for the money, all the 2400 sets are based on the same model stick, only the advanced timings differ in the sets, to account for the different total amounts of GBs...I'll be going with the 32GB/2800 when I build Haswell
 
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J

jerusalem

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Well they finally announced the Asus ROG Maximus VI formula motherboard and I think I have to get that one. Seems best for me so I will be waiting until it is released (and hopefully some positive reviews come out) to grab it. How do you guys feel about the 4770 vs 4770k haswell processors?
 
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