i7-3770k or i7-4770k for Flight Sim X?

cjd215

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Would the 4770k be that much better? Worth the extra money? They both turboboost to 3.9GHz and both can be overclocked.

I don't plan on running on max settings or acquiring many add ons. Just FSX Gold edition with mostly default settings.

This will be paired with either the GTX 670 or 770, not sure yet.

Thanks in advance!
 

Alain123

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I would rather get the i7-3770k cause the 4770k only gives you about 5-15% performance increase, and with the 3770k and a GTX 670 you'll easily run FSX gold on max settings.
 
Even if it's only 5-10% extra performance, I would opt to get the 4770k. Newer tech is always better IMO.

GTX770 gets my vote, it's only around $50 more expensive than the cheapest GTX670 at the moment (from what I've seen) and it performs around 10-15% better than a GTX680 if I recall correctly.


 

Alain123

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Yea I would do the same but he says he is only going to play FSX gold, so why spend more money when he can easily max out the game with cheaper components.
 

cjd215

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Thanks for the answers. Although I agree with getting the newer tech, I also would like to save some $ there and use it for liquid cooling if I could.

I will mainly play sim games, which I know are more CPU oriented. I think I'm going to do the 3770k and splurge on the gtx 770 just in case I want to venture into more GPU intense games.
 

Alain123

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With that system you'll be able to play all newer games on medium to high with good frame rates just turn of AA for smooth gaming. Ow and how much RAM are you buying?
 

cjd215

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8gb Kingston HyperX.

Also, will getting a SSD for my primary make THAT much 'in-game' difference? I'm not worried about the PC boot time. If I were to get a SSD though, I would only keep Windows 7 plus FSX on it, then use 500gb 7200rpm as my data drive.
 
An SSD will only improve loading times for some titles. Other than there, there's really no benefit to an SSD except for faster loading times, application opening times, etc.

Just be sure the RAM you get is a 2x4GB kit and is 1.5v and you should be good to go.
 

cjd215

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Yea 2x4gb for sure.


Final build will be:
i7-3770k
8gb Kingston HyperX (2x4gb)
GTX 670 (trying to save some money here. Mainly will be playing FSX, SimCity)
1TB 7200rpm HDD
Corsair H55 Liquid Cooler
Corsair 850 watt power supply

So you guys think this setup will run these games smoothly? Plus maybe Civilation or Command&Conquer and such.
 

cjd215

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OK I will probably do that. But what if I want to add a stronger graphics card in the future? Will the 650 watt handle it plus everything else?
 

cjd215

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I must admit, I'm a semi-amateur at this, so I don't even know how to do SLI or Crossfire.

One more ?, I will be hooking this up to a 55 inch plasma using HDMI, will I get a good picture? Or would I be better off using a larger computer monitor?
 
As long as you sit pretty far back from your TV, you should get a perfect picture :)

(SLI/Crossfire is very easy by the way. As long as your motherboard and PSU support it, you just connect the two cards with a ribbon cable and configure everything else inside your Nvidia/AMD driver).
 

cjd215

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So wait, if I get a motherboard that says 'SLI', does that mean I'll need the better PSU? Or is that just an optional feature? The motherboard I'm looking at is ASUS P8Z77-V. Suggestions?
 
Oh I'm sorry if I caused any confusion! If the motherboard says 'SLI', that just means it can support it. You don't need a supporting PSU just to use that board, but rather only if you're planning to SLI.

That's a GREAT board, by the way! Can't go wrong with it!
 

cjd215

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Jun 20, 2013
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THANK YOU SO MUCH! I really appreciate your help on this. It definitely has made me more confident in what I'm getting.