I'm currently using an ASRock B660M Pro motherboard with an Intel i3-12100F and a PowerColor RX 6600. I'm considering upgrading to an i5-12600K and an Intel Arc B580 12GB, but I can only buy one component now and plan to purchase the other later. Which upgrade should come first? Would the i3-12100F bottleneck the B580 significantly, and would the i5-12600K provide a noticeable improvement with the RX 6600? My main use is gaming, especially demanding AAA titles.
3 Answers
Before choosing the 12600K, consider whether it’s worth spending money on another 12th-generation chip. If your motherboard and BIOS support it, a later-generation i5 such as a 14600K or 14600KF may be a better long-term CPU upgrade, though it could require a BIOS update and stronger cooling. If that option is outside your budget, the 12600K is still a meaningful upgrade over the 12100F. For a 1080p setup, I’d choose the CPU first; for 1440p or higher, I’d generally prioritize the B580.
It depends heavily on your resolution and settings. At 1440p or higher, the GPU is usually the limiting factor, so buying the B580 first could make the biggest difference. At 1080p, particularly in esports games or when targeting 120 FPS and above, the CPU upgrade is more valuable. The 12100F probably won’t bottleneck the B580 badly in every game, but it may affect minimum FPS and smoothness in CPU-heavy titles.
For newer AAA games, I’d lean toward the CPU first. The i3 can still drive the RX 6600 reasonably well, but the i5’s extra cores and larger cache should improve frame-time consistency and 1% lows. That means smoother gameplay, especially if you’re aiming for high refresh rates. Once you install the B580, the stronger CPU will also be less likely to hold it back.
I’m mainly playing AAA games and want the smoothest experience possible rather than just the highest average FPS.