We have a lot of hardware experts here and people with question that are not worth its own thread. This is the thread for those people. Ask simple hardware questions here and the hivemind will try its best to advice you.
If you are going to ask questions about your PC you can help us help you by using Pcpartpicker to neatly list your hardware.
Of course I wouldn’t make this thread if I didn’t have a question myself:
A friend of mine is upgrading his CPU and it throwing out his old one. I get to have it for free but I’m wondering whether it’s an actual upgrade.
My current build is:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
| Type | Item | Price |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Core i7-960 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor | |
| CPU Cooler | Scythe Mugen 4 79.0 CFM CPU Cooler | $47.89 @ OutletPC |
| Motherboard | Asus Sabertooth X58 ATX LGA1366 Motherboard | |
| Memory | Corsair Vengeance 12GB (3 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory | $59.99 @ Newegg |
| Video Card | EVGA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB ACX 3.0 Video Card | $429.95 @ B&H |
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts | ||
| Total | $537.83 | |
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-08-11 17:20 EDT-0400 |
After upgrading:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
| Type | Item | Price |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Core i5-4570 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor | $192.99 @ SuperBiiz |
| CPU Cooler | Scythe Mugen 4 79.0 CFM CPU Cooler | $47.89 @ OutletPC |
| Motherboard | Asus B85-PLUS ATX LGA1150 Motherboard | $91.99 @ SuperBiiz |
| Memory | Corsair Vengeance 12GB (3 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory | $59.99 @ Newegg |
| Video Card | EVGA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB ACX 3.0 Video Card | $429.95 @ B&H |
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts | ||
| Total | $822.81 | |
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-08-11 17:26 EDT-0400 |
Now obviously upgrading from a first generation i7 to a fourth generation i5 is an upgrade despite losing Hyperthreading. But my i7 is overclocked to 4Ghz which isn’t possible with the i5. So is this an upgrade or a downgrade when it comes to gaming?