I'm upgrading my old rig from 2016, which had a GTX 1060 and an i5 6600K. I've recently bought an Intel Arc B580 with 12GB VRAM and now I need advice on which CPU to pair it with. I've seen some conflicting info about whether the B580 needs a powerful CPU. I'm considering the Ryzen 5 9600, but I've heard that it's only a small step up from the 7600. My old CPU has 4 cores, and I'm worried that having only 6 with the 9600 isn't a significant upgrade. Should I spend a little more for a higher model like the 7700 or 9700? I'm looking for a solid CPU that will work well with my GPU and won't lead to bottlenecking. What do you think?
2 Answers
Just get any decent modern CPU. The Intel 14600KF is around $150 and offers great performance, and for around $190, you can snag the 14600K. Sure, you might not have upgrades later, but if you're planning to stick with this setup for a while, it’s a solid choice.
I'd recommend going with the Ryzen 7600. In gaming benchmarks, the extra cores don't contribute much more than that. It's enough for most gaming needs without causing a bottleneck.
What about for non-gaming tasks? Do the extra cores help out in other areas? Afraid I'll need to upgrade again in a few years if 6 cores aren’t enough.
What do you mean by no upgrade path?