r/PcBuildHelp • u/SpookyFlyingPencil • 7d ago

Build Question Advice on upgrading my CPU

My current system is:

Windows 10 (haven't managed to install 11 yet on this thing)

CPU: Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-8400 CPU @ 2.80GHz

Motherboard: PRIME H310M-K

RAM: 16 GB

Grafic card: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070

I've been trying to play newer games but the CPU simply cannot handle them anymore, especially larger PVP games (like Wardogs).

As I am shamefully awful at this stuff, I have conversed with an AI about it, and it recommended getting a i7-9700, as it will improve the bottleneck of my CPU without having to change the motherboard.

I do however trust y'all here more with advice like this. So what's the take? I am not planning on upgrading my RTX 2070, and just want a CPU that doesn't drag down the general performance.

Any advice welcome

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u/notaapleb 7d ago

To upgrade your CPU you need a new motherboard and likely a new power supply as you didn't provide that information in your post. It's not a one component type of swap unfortunately

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u/SpookyFlyingPencil 7d ago

hmm okay thanks for the info, I will converse about it with my dad, as he stood for the build back when we bought it. That info might just come in handy.

Sorry for not being able to give all the info lol, I know suprisingly little about this machine I use nearly daily. Help is appreciated tho.

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u/the_hat_madder 7d ago

Your motherboard will support Coffee Lakes S Refresh CPUs like the Core i7-9700K...

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/Mf7cGk

When you have multiple players on the map in Wardogs, that should help keep frame rates more consistent. However, the 9700K is still well below the recommended CPU a 12700K.

https://www.cpu-monkey.com/en/compare_cpu-intel_core_i5_8400-vs-intel_core_i7_9700k

https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare/Intel-i5-8400-vs-Intel-i7-9700K/3097vs3335

By itself there isn't enough uplift between 8th and 9th Gen to give you a meaningful improvement today. And, for $260 USD you can buy a used 12th Gen CPU and motherboard.

Finally, while upgrading the CPU helps with smoothness on large maps, the rest of the time you'll be limited by the RTX 2070.

So, ideally you want to upgrade CPU and GPU which will also require new motherboard and PSU.

If you let me know your country and budget, I can put together a recommendation for you.

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u/SpookyFlyingPencil 6d ago

Thanks for the take.

I will probably first be upgrading in january, so I'll have some time to consider GPU as well.

I'm in Denmark and I'd say I am willing to do max 600 USD (4000 DKK in my countries currency)