Upgrading Older PC (i7 2600k) for 4k gaming?

[Vizzini89]

Hi everyone, I have been recently thinking of upgrading my pc so that it would be capable of 4k gaming, my question is whether or not it is worth it to upgrade in the near future (next couple of months) or should I sit on my money for another year or so and start another build from scratch. This would be the last upgrade for this rig (it was my first ever gaming computer). For it to be "worth" it to me, I would like it to run graphically intensive 4k games very well. If I do end up doing the upgrade, I can always use the GPU in my next build to start off with.

My current Specs:
CPU+cpu cooler: Intel i7 2600k (stock cooler)
Motherboard: ASRock z77 Extreme4
Ram: 16GB Crucial Ballistix Sport (2x 8G DDR3 1600)
SSD/HDD: 1 TB Seagate HDD, 128 GB Samsung SSD
GPU: Asus GeForce GTX 770 DirectCU II (2GB)
PSU: Corsair CX750M
Chassis: Corsair 300R (Midsize Tower)
OS: Windows 10 Home x64

CPU
Is this worth upgrading? The CPU is getting up there in age (Circa 2011). My main fear is that the CPU will bottleneck the new card (I would definitely consider overclocking the CPU, however this would be my first time). If I do overclock it, I will most likely be purchasing a new CPU cooler since the one one the unit is still stock. Are there any recommendations for a good aftermarket CPU fan/heatsink?

GPU
I was thinking of purchasing a Geforce GTX 1080, or possibly wait for the GTX 1080 TI to be released. Any thoughts on this or other recommendations? I'd be willing to spend $900 ish on a GPU.

PSU
I am also a little worried that my PSU might not be able to handle the new card (plus the OC'd CPU if that ends up being part of the solution), will the 750W be fine, or should I look at something more powerful?

RAM
Is 16GB RAM sufficient for 4k gameing, or should I consider adding 2 more sticks and ramp up to 32GB?

Monitor
The monitor will be purchased down the line, ~2months, Any recommendations on 4k monitors, my budget will be around $600 for the monitor

 

[Supahos]

Oddly enough 4k gaming makes the GPU VERRRRY important and the rest of the system much less. The CPU doesn't care if it's 1080 or 4k. Physics are physics. 75 Hz 1080 is harder on the CPU than 4k 60 hz

 

[schaft]

Your build is still fine except for gpu. Just buy the GTX 1080, if you find it not satisfactory then you can upgrade other part later. Read along and you will understand a bit.

Your i7-2600K with standard clock will bottleneck GTX 1080 but not as hurtful as you think. Learn how to overclock it and the bottleneck will get much less. That cpu is well known for its overclock ability. Now is time to unleash it. Its still using stock cooler, but you should try overclock it before buying a new heat sink for handling the heat fro overclock, don't worry, i7 sandy bridge has fail safe mechanism that will stop from getting damage due to temperature. Here a link that discussed it :
http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-3055251/2600k-gtx-1080-bottleneck.html

PSU and ram is still fine. Until now gaming still only using 8Gb ( I also using 16Gb and I never seen the game using more than 8Gb). Your PSU is still far more than enough for a single gpu. Its a 750W, even GTX 1080 can work well with 550W psu.

You might need bigger SSD, i am using 480 Gb and already full. But it can wait until you decide to total upgrade or not. Gen 3 SSD/M.2 needed new motherboard chipset to optimize it, so far the brand I know that fully utilize gen3 is Samsung 960 pro, which is of course very expensive. Wait the SSD upgrade until you finalize your satisfaction with GTX 1080 against your current pc.

Good luck. Its really not worth to upgrade totally for me, but its just me.

 

[rhysiam]

The 2600K is still solid, especially as 4K smashes any GPU on the market - as @Suphos says.

If I were you I'd get a cooler and overclock that CPU. Just keep the Intel Heatsync and any spare brackets that come with the cooler you get. That way if you do decide to upgrade the CPU + Mobo down the track you can move the cooler to your new build and put the Intel heatsync back on the to repurpose or sell your 2600K (all you'd need is a little thermal paste).
I personally wouldn't be OCing on the stock cooler unless you really know what you're doing. You won't get far on stock, and coolers are cheap and can be reused anyway... good investment, no brainer.

Even a 1080 struggles at 4K. You say you're thinking about this "in a couple of months", so wait and see what the landscape looks like then. 1080ti rumours are flying around, and Vega is slated for a May launch (still rumours or vague and old product schedules). If 4K is your goal and you have a $900 budget, you would absolutely benefit from a 1080ti or Vega GPU, so save up your money and look at what's available (and coming in the near future) when you're actually ready to spend your money.

PSU: Is that one of the old CX750 PSUs? They weren't great. But having said that, it's around double the power you actually need. Given you already have it, I'd be fine were I in your shoes. Others would probably recommend you get yourself a newer and decent unit (again, assuming you've got one of the old and pretty low quality CX750M models... the new ones (with white labels are actually really solid).

 

[Vizzini89]

Thanks for the advice. I'm pretty sure its an old CX750, that being said, I will most likely grab a new PSU since id be a little worried that it could damage my new card. I think ill sit and wait for the new cards to be revealed, in the meantime, ill research overclocking. Thanks again.

 

[Sai Krishna_2]

Hi everyone, I have been recently thinking of upgrading my pc so that it would be capable of 4k gaming, my question is whether or not it is worth it to upgrade in the near future (next couple of months) or should I sit on my money for another year or so and start another build from scratch. This would be the last upgrade for this rig (it was my first ever gaming computer). For it to be "worth" it to me, I would like it to run graphically intensive 4k games very well. If I do end up doing the upgrade, I can always use the GPU in my next build to start off with.

My current Specs:
CPU+cpu cooler: Intel i7 2600k (stock cooler)
Motherboard: ASRock z77 Extreme4
Ram: 16GB Crucial Ballistix Sport (2x 8G DDR3 1600)
SSD/HDD: 1 TB Seagate HDD, 128 GB Samsung SSD
GPU: Asus GeForce GTX 770 DirectCU II (2GB)
PSU: Corsair CX750M
Chassis: Corsair 300R (Midsize Tower)
OS: Windows 10 Home x64

CPU
Is this worth upgrading? The CPU is getting up there in age (Circa 2011). My main fear is that the CPU will bottleneck the new card (I would definitely consider overclocking the CPU, however this would be my first time). If I do overclock it, I will most likely be purchasing a new CPU cooler since the one one the unit is still stock. Are there any recommendations for a good aftermarket CPU fan/heatsink?

GPU
I was thinking of purchasing a Geforce GTX 1080, or possibly wait for the GTX 1080 TI to be released. Any thoughts on this or other recommendations? I'd be willing to spend $900 ish on a GPU.

PSU
I am also a little worried that my PSU might not be able to handle the new card (plus the OC'd CPU if that ends up being part of the solution), will the 750W be fine, or should I look at something more powerful?

RAM
Is 16GB RAM sufficient for 4k gameing, or should I consider adding 2 more sticks and ramp up to 32GB?

Monitor
The monitor will be purchased down the line, ~2months, Any recommendations on 4k monitors, my budget will be around $600 for the monitor

Man, you are like my doppleganger from another country. I have an i7 2600 and a GTX 770 with an 256 GB SSD.
I have been doing lot of "research" and these are my findings - I realized that CPU upgrade is worth this much:
230$ for i5 6600/7600k (at the very least) + 60-80$ (decent mobo 1151) + new DDR4 RAM (don't know if your older ram still works) 60 USD (for 8 GB stick - you don't need more than 8 GB for gaming - if you need more for other stuff - add another 60 USD)
It turned out to be around at the very least 400 USD ( adding other misc stuff )

I realized that for the FPS I am going to get by spending 400+ USD (probably 10 FPS extra at 1440p), I better buy a GTX 1080 instead of GTX 1070 (since I wanted 1070 to begin with). I also need a new monitor as my 1080p IPS 60 hz is feeling old and I am looking at 1440p or 4k IPS. (don't care much about 144Hz) - so better to spend money on GPU + Display rather than on CPU + mobo.

If you have lots of moneys, obviously you might not be asking us. I don't know.

Currently, I am waiting out for Vega release - either GTX 1080 is going to be cheaper or Vega will be competitive enough to be a good option. Also, FreeSync displays are at least 150 USD cheaper. So, I get that too with AMD.

That is my current plan. If you are not looking for AMD, spend it elsewhere like GPU or G-Sync monitor.