13600K vs 7700X? - All things (like price) being equal

[entropism]

OK, so I'm looking to upgrade my 8700K/Asrock Z390 PG ITX that I've had for years. As it stands, I can put together a system for either the 13600K or 7700x for almost an identical price, about $600 + tax for the CPU, MB and memory (32gb DDR5, most likely 6000mhz). I'm building in an existing SFF case (Sliger SM580), so it will be an ITX board, and cooled with either my current Fractal Celsius 280 AIO, or purchasing a new AIO. Arctic's AIO won't fit my case.

Power supply is a Corsair 600SF Platinum.

GPU is an undervolted 3070.

Storage will be a 2GB WD Black 850X for windows, and reusing my 2GB HP 920 for games. Everything else will be on external HDDs,

This is the first time I won't necessarily be overclocking, I'm mainly concerned with getting the chip as cool as possible, to keep my fans quiet. So I'm guessing the AMD can go to 65w and turn PBO on to get what I can with it, and I'll do the equivalent for the 13600K.

So right now I'm considering the 13600K with an ASRock Z690 Phantom Gaming-ITX/TB4, and 32GB of ram, I'm assuming I'll be looking for Hynix chips. All said, it will be about $600, between microcenter and Newegg.

Another option would be the 7700X with whatever B650 ITX board is recommended. Pricing ranges from $240 for the MSI to $320 for the Asus, I have no problem spending more to get the better board. All of the VRMs seem to be more than capable, so it's more about the rear IO (USB quantity mostly, audio will be going to a dedicated DAC/Amp through Optical or USB) and the LAN chipset. I'm 100% looking for board recommendations if you suggest AMD.

Assuming I run the AMD chip at 65w with PBO enabled, or limit the power delivery to intel's spec plus undervolt it, which chip will run cooler on a 280 AIO? I know the motherboard companies are supplying WAY too much power to the new intel chips and need to be manually reined in a bit.

So, if this was you and you got to pick whatever you wanted, what direction would you guys be going?

[rogoth]

i can't speak to undervolting these days, but i dunno if you're gonna have enough PSU headroom to power an Intel based system in SFF with a 13600k/3070 combo using a 600W PSU, that aside though something to be aware of with the newest AMD chips is that they will always thermal boost to max meaning that you will need some sturdy cooling on that platform, if you do decide to go with the 7700x though i would strongly recommend the asus ROG strix b650e board, it's a little pricy but it will be everything you're looking for based on your description.

outside of 'current' performance metrics, what sort of thing do you want to do with the system?, and do you have any plans for future upgrades in the near-mid term future?, as an Intel based system right now is dead end, if you invest in the AM5 platform there is significantly more room for upgrading in the future without needing to buy a whole new platform, so it will really depend what your use case is and what your plans are for future upgrade potential, because if i were you (and i'm reading between the lines here) you're not looking to spend an awful lot of money on upgrading currently and are someone who tends to do it piece by piece over time than all at once in a full new build, in which case i would strongly lean on the AMD based system, ultimately though it's up to you and you will need to decide if the short term is where you're at or if you wanna think more long term.

[entropism]

Well, I had no reason to upgrade from the 8700K until now, and I don't really see the need to upgrade while any of the current sockets are still around. MAYBE if AM5 is still around for the 9000 or 10000 series, I might drop a new CPU in there just as a low price refresh, but I doubt it would even be neccessary.

I'm kind of hesitant to upgrade NOW, but ever since DF, my load times and frame rates have been in the toilet. I got the 8700k when it was new, and it seems to finally be showing its age.

Edit: Re the PSU - The Corsair definitely puts out more than 600w on that unit, but if need be I can upgrade the PSU down the line.

[rogoth]

Well, I had no reason to upgrade from the 8700K until now, and I don't really see the need to upgrade while any of the current sockets are still around. MAYBE if AM5 is still around for the 9000 or 10000 series, I might drop a new CPU in there just as a low price refresh, but I doubt it would even be neccessary.

I'm kind of hesitant to upgrade NOW, but ever since DF, my load times and frame rates have been in the toilet. I got the 8700k when it was new, and it seems to finally be showing its age.

Edit: Re the PSU - The Corsair definitely puts out more than 600w on that unit, but if need be I can upgrade the PSU down the line.

considering AM4 had a full 4 generations of CPU for the socket, i would say AM5 is a safe bet to follow that seeing as AMD confirmed their support for the socket 'as long if not longer than AM'.

part of the reason i mentioned about your plans for potential upgrades down the line is that it's highly likely you will need to upgrade your GPU in the short-medium term assuming game development continues on the path it is currently on due to the fact nvidia cards are utterly shite for vram capacity, and modern games are already showing how restrictive that is so if you're planning to engage with any new releases, that's going to be your biggest bottleneck down the road more so than CPU performance, what i will say is though aim for AMD due to the easier potential future upgrade path and generally cheaper setup costs now relative to Intel stuff.

[Kagthul]

The 13600K is better across the board. Outperforms or equals the 7700X in games and is quite a bit faster in productivity workloads (if that matters to you). Gap only widens if you intend to OC. Regarding cooling… probably about the same. Not that temp matters much as long as it isnt throttling and the noise from the cooler isnt too loud for you.

FWIW though, my 13600K is kept cool by a single 120mm AIO (NZXT Kraken RGB, needed it because the pump is in the rad) after limiting the power down to 145W (PL1 and 2). I lost zero performance (still hits its 5.1ghz boost clock). I imagine a 280mm would be more than fine if you limited it to Intels 180W PL2 limit.

[mrgreenthump]

Buying atm is a bit iffy, cause the 7800X3D is about to come out and while it may be a bit too expensive maybe. It surely forces everything around it to drop prices if it's priced anything like 5800X3D that is.

[rogoth]

The 13600K is better across the board. Outperforms or equals the 7700X in games and is quite a bit faster in productivity workloads (if that matters to you). Gap only widens if you intend to OC. Regarding cooling… probably about the same. Not that temp matters much as long as it isnt throttling and the noise from the cooler isnt too loud for you.

FWIW though, my 13600K is kept cool by a single 120mm AIO (NZXT Kraken RGB, needed it because the pump is in the rad) after limiting the power down to 145W (PL1 and 2). I lost zero performance (still hits its 5.1ghz boost clock). I imagine a 280mm would be more than fine if you limited it to Intels 180W PL2 limit.

you ignored the one key factor the OP is working with, they will be using a SMALL FORM FACTOR case and general setup, the ridiculous power draw on Intel based systems atm is not very conducive to SFF builds, with almost every single reviewer for that type of setup going with AMD unless they are trying to do something stupid like 'overclocking my i9 in a SFF case to see if i can keep it cooled' or similar, plus with the cost of living, the power efficiency of AMD is a huge draw too being that it uses SIGNIFICANTLY less power to do the exact same tasks and even has a bios setting to lower that power draw even further if you really wanna squeeze out the most efficiency from them, Intel has nothing of the sort and if their geriatric process node was forced to run at the same power targets that AMD hits, you would never be anywhere close to a 5Ghz boost clock, it's only because of that ridiculous power draw that they are able to even come close to the clock speeds they are right now, so keep that in mind in the future.

[Kagthul]

Buying atm is a bit iffy, cause the 7800X3D is about to come out and while it may be a bit too expensive maybe. It surely forces everything around it to drop prices if it's priced anything like 5800X3D that is.

Its going to be 450$

[Neufab]

i can't speak to undervolting these days, but i dunno if you're gonna have enough PSU headroom to power an Intel based system in SFF with a 13600k/3070 combo using a 600W PSU, that aside though something to be aware of with the newest AMD chips is that they will always thermal boost to max meaning that you will need some sturdy cooling on that platform, if you do decide to go with the 7700x though i would strongly recommend the asus ROG strix b650e board, it's a little pricy but it will be everything you're looking for based on your description.

outside of 'current' performance metrics, what sort of thing do you want to do with the system?, and do you have any plans for future upgrades in the near-mid term future?, as an Intel based system right now is dead end, if you invest in the AM5 platform there is significantly more room for upgrading in the future without needing to buy a whole new platform, so it will really depend what your use case is and what your plans are for future upgrade potential, because if i were you (and i'm reading between the lines here) you're not looking to spend an awful lot of money on upgrading currently and are someone who tends to do it piece by piece over time than all at once in a full new build, in which case i would strongly lean on the AMD based system, ultimately though it's up to you and you will need to decide if the short term is where you're at or if you wanna think more long term.

PSU wattage recomendations are for shitty discount PSUs. His platinium Corsair won't break a sweat powering that setup.

[Kagthul]

PSU wattage recomendations are for shitty discount PSUs. His platinium Corsair won't break a sweat powering that setup.

Yeah, PSU freak outs amuse me.

3070 is 220W peak, PL2 on the 13600K is 180W (which it will only maintain briefly). Add another 50W for the rest of the system.. still 150W of overhead. Under torture load.

[mrgreenthump]

Yeah, PSU freak outs amuse me.

3070 is 220W peak, PL2 on the 13600K is 180W (which it will only maintain briefly). Add another 50W for the rest of the system.. still 150W of overhead. Under torture load.

It's the top end parts and to some extent MB manufacturers that have caused that even the low end parts are overbudgeted most of the time.

[ShellyAnderson12]

OK, so I'm looking to upgrade my 8700K/Asrock Z390 PG ITX that I've had for years. As it stands, I can put together a system for either the 13600K or 7700x for almost an identical price, about $600 + tax for the CPU, MB and memory (32gb DDR5, most likely 6000mhz). I'm building in an existing SFF case (Sliger SM580), so it will be an ITX board, and cooled with either my current Fractal Celsius 280 AIO, or purchasing a new AIO. Arctic's AIO won't fit my case.

Power supply is a Corsair 600SF Platinum.

GPU is an undervolted 3070.

Storage will be a 2GB WD Black 850X for windows, and reusing my 2GB HP 920 for games. Everything else will be on external HDDs,

This is the first time I won't necessarily be overclocking, I'm mainly concerned with getting the chip as cool as possible, to keep my fans quiet. So I'm guessing the AMD can go to 65w and turn PBO on to get what I can with it, and I'll do the equivalent for the 13600K.

So right now I'm considering the 13600K with an ASRock Z690 Phantom Gaming-ITX/TB4, and 32GB of ram, I'm assuming I'll be looking for Hynix chips. All said, it will be about $600, between microcenter and Newegg.

Another option would be the 7700X with whatever B650 ITX board is recommended. Pricing ranges from $240 for the MSI to $320 for the Asus, I have no problem spending more to get the better board. All of the VRMs seem to be more than capable, so it's more about the rear IO (USB quantity mostly, audio will be going to a dedicated DAC/Amp through Optical or USB) and the LAN chipset. I'm 100% looking for board recommendations if you suggest AMD.

Assuming I run the AMD chip at 65w with PBO enabled, or limit the power delivery to intel's spec plus undervolt it, which chip will run cooler on a 280 AIO? I know the motherboard companies are supplying WAY too much power to the new intel chips and need to be manually reined in
So, if this was you and you got to pick whatever you wanted, what direction would you guys be going?

Based on your requirements and budget, it seems like the Intel Core i5-13600K would be the better choice for your use case. The ASRock Z690 Phantom Gaming-ITX/TB4 is a solid motherboard choice that should work well with the 13600K.

In terms of cooling, both the 13600K and 7700X should be fine with a 280 AIO. However, the 13600K may run slightly cooler since it has a lower TDP and is based on Intel's newer 10nm process technology.

As for RAM, you can't go wrong with Hynix memory, but keep in mind that not all RAM modules are created equal, even if they have the same brand and model number. Make sure to check the QVL (Qualified Vendor List) for your motherboard to ensure compatibility.

If you do decide to go with AMD, the Ryzen 5 5600X would be a good alternative to the 13600K. For a mini ITX motherboard, the ASUS ROG Strix B550-I Gaming or the MSI MPG B550I Gaming Edge WiFi are both excellent choices.

Ultimately, it comes down to personal preference and what you plan to use the system for. Based on your requirements and budget, the 13600K with the ASRock Z690 Phantom Gaming-ITX/TB4 and 32GB of RAM should be a great choice for your needs.

[Biglog]

It's the top end parts and to some extent MB manufacturers that have caused that even the low end parts are overbudgeted most of the time.

Many higher-end PCs pull over 600w at the wall under load when checked with a wattage meter. Not everyone needs ~850W but for the minimal price difference, it often makes sense to have overhead than not enough. Not to mention a good psu can last a long time through several builds, so just because a person doesn't need more overhead now doesn't mean they won't later with a gpu or mb/cpu upgrade. A better one is easier to repurpose down the road too into another PC if needed too, and getting 10+ years from a good one isn't unusual.

I also would never suggest an off-brand cheap psu for any build. You might get lucky for a while, but it's the foundation for your system. Going cheap there increases the risk for power problems that are often difficult to troubleshoot, and it puts much more expensive system hardware at a higher chance of getting damaged by a bad psu. There are better places to cut $50 in the budget than the part driving the power for $1500+ worth of other hw imo.

[Communism]

I'd go with the 7800X3D even if it means waiting an extra couple weeks to afford it with how CPU demanding WoW is.

[Twoddle]

Guys, I'm looking to build a new computer in the coming months (new job), is a i9-13600K the CPU to go for in my new dogs bollocks money-no-object home PC? Not really a gamer apart from some HotS every now and then, so integrated graphics is fine.

I do like it to be fast though so I can analyse chess games and run my coding algorithms. Also like to program games in C# using Monogame and the more sprites it can update in one frame the more satisfied I am. Cheers.

[Temp name]

Guys, I'm looking to build a new computer in the coming months (new job), is a i9-13600K the CPU to go for in my new dogs bollocks money-no-object home PC? Not really a gamer apart from some HotS every now and then, so integrated graphics is fine.

I do like it to be fast though so I can analyse chess games and run my coding algorithms. Also like to program games in C# using Monogame and the more sprites it can update in one frame the more satisfied I am. Cheers.

It's an i5, not an i9, but yeah, should be able to do basic games with the integrated gpu, though I'm too unfamiliar with programming to say how good it would be there

[swisscheese]

Guys, I'm looking to build a new computer in the coming months (new job), is a i9-13600K the CPU to go for in my new dogs bollocks money-no-object home PC? Not really a gamer apart from some HotS every now and then, so integrated graphics is fine.

I do like it to be fast though so I can analyse chess games and run my coding algorithms. Also like to program games in C# using Monogame and the more sprites it can update in one frame the more satisfied I am. Cheers.

No, for heavy programming you should get a 7950x.

[mrgreenthump]

Guys, I'm looking to build a new computer in the coming months (new job), is a i9-13600K the CPU to go for in my new dogs bollocks money-no-object home PC? Not really a gamer apart from some HotS every now and then, so integrated graphics is fine.

I do like it to be fast though so I can analyse chess games and run my coding algorithms. Also like to program games in C# using Monogame and the more sprites it can update in one frame the more satisfied I am. Cheers.

Tbh most of modern CPUs are "good enough" for programming, compilations will not take a lot of time on any 6+ core unless you go for something really complex. Simulations might take a lot of CPU power, but the question how often and much you simulate. In my case 5950x back when it launched was a no brainer because it saved me a lot of time and hence more money, but now I just do hobby stuff and it's very unutilized, because I don't use it for any heavy simulations anymore.

[Djuntas]

Buy 7800X3D and save money in the long term on your electricity. Only smart choice.

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