Upgrade from i7-950 to i7-2600k

[clayday]

I've been contemplating selling my i7-950 on ebay (and mobo ofc) and upgrading to the i7-2600k. I mostly use my computer to play video games, but I also do some HD video editing for youtube. My computer isn't "slow" at all, but editing videos takes longer than I wish it did. I realize that the 2600k isn't going to improve my gaming, so I'm looking to lessen the HD rendering time for videos. Currently, I'm not overclocked at all, but I'm considering it if I don't purchase the i7-2600k.

The cost isn't too important, but I'm wondering if there is anything from Intel in the close future that I should wait for. I know Ivy Bridge is coming soon, but honestly I don't know anything about it and thought I would ask the experts here.

So I guess what I'm asking is: upgrade now, or wait for _____ ?

Thanks in advance,
Clay

i7-950
Sabertooth X58
6GB Ram
2x GTX460 SLI
Mushkin 60gb SSD for OS
WD Black's for storage and installations
HAF X case

 

[IntelEnthusiast]

Straight up the Intel® Core™ i7-2600K vs. the Intel Core i7-950 would most likely not offer a big improvement in gaming performance. Now if you overclock the Intel Core i7-2600K to 4.5GHz there should be a bigger improvement in performance.

If it were up to me and cost were not issue; sure I would upgrade now but if cost were an issue than I wouldnt upgrade at this time.

Christian Wood
Intel Enthusiast Team

 

[mcnumpty23]

just upgraded my i7-920 that was overclocked to 4ghz

got a 2600k

and quite honestly its not that much faster--mainly i wanted usb 3.0 and sata 6gbs support

you would be fine if you have a decent heatsink and overclock your i7-950 it should be good for 4ghz+

also make sure hyperthreading is on for video editing and use a software that uses gpu acceleration for video

transcoding--like badaboom or media esspresso

 

[sosofm]

+1 @mcnumpty23

 

[bwrlane]

Agree with most of these comments.

You will see a performance bump with the 2600k but it won't be much. The i7 950 is still an excellent chip.

Personally, I use an i7 920 overclocked to 4GHz and also do a lot of video editing. I've yet to see any compelling reason to upgrade - the cost and hassle for a relatively minor improvement are not worth it. I love upgrading my PC - any excuse to tinker, so wish I could justify a new processor and mobo, but at the moment, I can't. I've had my current setup since 2009 and the fact that it still provides close to state of the art performance is a sign of how much development has slowed. Must be because Intel no longer feels a competitive threat at the high end. I'll reassess the situation when Ivy Bridge comes out later this year.

You should definitely overclock your CPU. Provided you have suitable cooling, it should run 4GHz easily. At that speed your video rendering will be faster than an i7 2600k at stock and not a million miles off it overclocked.

Which package do you use for editing video? Personally I use Premiere Pro. If your software allows it, you can get a speed bump from enabling GPU encoding, but be aware that GPU encoding has its drawbacks. Quality can suffer and it limits your output options.

Best bang for buck will be to overclock your CPU and buy another 6GB of RAM.

 

[jaguarskx]

Not worth upgrading. Wait for Haswell (2013) to determine if that would be worth upgrading from what you currently have.

Ivy Bridge will be an updated version of Sandy Bridge, but I doubt the CPU processing performance will be a large upgrade; I'm guessing around 6%. The biggest performance boost will be the integrated graphics core, Intel HD 4000, which is estimated to improve by about 60% (according to Anandtech).

 

[clayday]

Thanks for the responses. It sounds like staying with my current setup, and overclocking a bit, would be best option for me. I do have a pretty good aftermarket CPU cooler, and a HAF X case.

For those asking: currently I do most editing with Vegas Pro 11, but I also have Premier Pro and might give that a go soon.

Thanks for the advice. I'll stick with my current setup for awhile.

Clay

 

[geekapproved]

That would quite possibly be the dumbest upgrade ever. Don't bother especially with Ivy Bridge right around the corner.

I wouldn't even bother upgrading 950 to Ivy Bridge, it's not worth the money.