• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

i7 or i5? HT worth it?

Completely Bonkers

New Member
Joined
Feb 6, 2007
Messages
2,576 (0.41/day)
Processor Mysterious Engineering Prototype
Motherboard Intel 865
Cooling Custom block made in workshop
Memory Corsair XMS 2GB
Video Card(s) FireGL X3-256
Display(s) 1600x1200 SyncMaster x 2 = 3200x1200
Software Windows 2003
Here is a short list of programs that utilize HT :)

(snip long list)

For more info please click HERE

To be honest, while that list shows applications that have been designed to use "multi-threading", it doesnt necessarily mean there will be noticable gains of HT compared to a regular multi-core CPU. Also that list doesnt list WHICH versions of those applications are needed for gains. Excel is one example. You need to use the lastest version. Older versions are single threaded. And for gaming? Well, as we have seen many times, going from single core to dual core means great benefit, esp. in reducing lag frames. But dual to quad is marginal. And quad to quad with HT makes no noticeable difference.

So let's be honest. If this guy is deciding on investing his last $100 on a CPU with HT or a better GPU... then go for the better GPU :pimp:
 

T4C Fantasy

CPU & GPU DB Maintainer
Staff member
Joined
May 7, 2012
Messages
2,562 (0.59/day)
Location
Rhode Island
System Name Whaaaat Kiiiiiiid!
Processor Intel Core i9-12900K @ Default
Motherboard Gigabyte Z690 AORUS Elite AX
Cooling Corsair H150i AIO Cooler
Memory Corsair Dominator Platinum 32GB DDR4-3200
Video Card(s) EVGA GeForce RTX 3080 FTW3 ULTRA @ Default
Storage Samsung 970 PRO 512GB + Crucial MX500 2TB x3 + Crucial MX500 4TB + Samsung 980 PRO 1TB
Display(s) 27" LG 27MU67-B 4K, + 27" Acer Predator XB271HU 1440P
Case Thermaltake Core X9 Snow
Audio Device(s) Logitech G935 Headset
Power Supply SeaSonic Platinum 1050W Snow Silent
Mouse Logitech G903 Lightspeed
Keyboard Logitech G915
Software Windows 11 Pro
Benchmark Scores FFXV: 19329
Cheaper, performs the same, has more of a temp tolerance with overclocking.

@Brandon

Not everyone crunches. Name a few other things that can utilize the extra 4 threads. I can't think of anything else other than trans/encoding.

i disagree, my 3770k creams the 2600k i had, well i agree on the oc temps, but when you are only using air i can clock 200mhz down for the same performance
 
Joined
Mar 24, 2010
Messages
5,047 (0.99/day)
Location
Iberian Peninsula
this answer is simple if you are an enthusiast, then yes the i7 is way better... better for folding, crunching, multi tasking, anything that utilizes all threads the i7 will be better in.

yeeeeeah 'multitasking' is sooooo 'enthusiast' hahaha Sorry, could not withstand it...
 

Outback Bronze

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Aug 3, 2011
Messages
1,868 (0.40/day)
Location
Walkabout Creek
System Name Raptor Baked
Processor 14900k w.c.
Motherboard Z790 Hero
Cooling w.c.
Memory 32GB Hynix
Video Card(s) Zotac 4080 w.c.
Storage 2TB Kingston kc3k
Display(s) Gigabyte 34" Curved
Case Corsair 460X
Audio Device(s) Onboard
Power Supply PCIe5 850w
Mouse Asus
Keyboard Corsair
Software Win 11
Benchmark Scores Cool n Quiet.
Well i say i7. Why? Probably more future proof.
 

eidairaman1

The Exiled Airman
Joined
Jul 2, 2007
Messages
40,435 (6.61/day)
Location
Republic of Texas (True Patriot)
System Name PCGOD
Processor AMD FX 8350@ 5.0GHz
Motherboard Asus TUF 990FX Sabertooth R2 2901 Bios
Cooling Scythe Ashura, 2×BitFenix 230mm Spectre Pro LED (Blue,Green), 2x BitFenix 140mm Spectre Pro LED
Memory 16 GB Gskill Ripjaws X 2133 (2400 OC, 10-10-12-20-20, 1T, 1.65V)
Video Card(s) AMD Radeon 290 Sapphire Vapor-X
Storage Samsung 840 Pro 256GB, WD Velociraptor 1TB
Display(s) NEC Multisync LCD 1700V (Display Port Adapter)
Case AeroCool Xpredator Evil Blue Edition
Audio Device(s) Creative Labs Sound Blaster ZxR
Power Supply Seasonic 1250 XM2 Series (XP3)
Mouse Roccat Kone XTD
Keyboard Roccat Ryos MK Pro
Software Windows 7 Pro 64
Well i say i7. Why? Probably more future proof.

only way a CPU is future proof is to swap it with another since the core isnt modular. the 2600K doesnt lead the 2500K by too much so it negates having to use HT honestly.
 

Aquinus

Resident Wat-man
Joined
Jan 28, 2012
Messages
13,147 (2.96/day)
Location
Concord, NH, USA
System Name Apollo
Processor Intel Core i9 9880H
Motherboard Some proprietary Apple thing.
Memory 64GB DDR4-2667
Video Card(s) AMD Radeon Pro 5600M, 8GB HBM2
Storage 1TB Apple NVMe, 4TB External
Display(s) Laptop @ 3072x1920 + 2x LG 5k Ultrafine TB3 displays
Case MacBook Pro (16", 2019)
Audio Device(s) AirPods Pro, Sennheiser HD 380s w/ FIIO Alpen 2, or Logitech 2.1 Speakers
Power Supply 96w Power Adapter
Mouse Logitech MX Master 3
Keyboard Logitech G915, GL Clicky
Software MacOS 12.1
A slightly related question: HT is good with heavy virtualization yes?

Yes, the extra logical cores can help under heavy VT workloads, all the K edition chips support VT, however the non-K and SB-E chips support VT-d which improves virtualized I/O performance.

Here is a short list of programs that utilize HT :)

*** Removed list of stuff. ***

The list certainly isn’t complete. For example, we noticed that Intel didn't list 7-Zip, which is an archiving tool.

For more info please click HERE

Basically, anything that can utilize more threads will and anything that doesn't won't have a problem because the i7 is just as fast as the i5 thread-for-thread. However the extra cache and logical threads improves performance over 4 threads.

this answer is simple if you are an enthusiast, then yes the i7 is way better... better for folding, crunching, multi tasking, anything that utilizes all threads the i7 will be better in.

Couldn't agree more. I got my i7 3820 because I run a number of VMs, I'm in need of re-encoding all of my video to the same format (which the 3820 can do reasonably unlike the old Phenom II 940,) and because I wanted an Enthusiast platform with a better upgrade path. However I looked at a number of reviews before hand and in almost every case for video games, the i5 is just as good as all the faster solutions with more threads and more cores.

If you're going to game, go with the i5 and invest that money elsewhere. Also honestly, part of the reason I got SB-E was my refusal to buy a mainstream platform after having to buy decent hardware for so many years I just wanted something a little better. It's up to you, the i7 definitely won't disappoint but the i5 should be enough.
 
Joined
Jun 12, 2007
Messages
4,815 (0.78/day)
Location
Wangas, New Zealand
System Name Darth Obsidious
Processor Intel i5 2500K
Motherboard ASUS P8Z68-V/Gen3
Cooling Cooler Master Hyper 212+ in Push Pull
Memory 2X4GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600
Video Card(s) ASUS R9 270x TOP
Storage 128GB Samsung 830 SSD, 1TB WD Black, 2TB WD Green
Display(s) LG IPS234V-PN
Case Corsair Obsidian 650D
Audio Device(s) Infrasonic Quartet
Power Supply Corsair HX650w
Software Windows 7 64bit and Windows XP Home
Benchmark Scores 2cm mark on bench with a razor blade.
Encoding using AutoGk:-
Q6600 1hr 14min avg
i5 2500k 33min avg
 

JrRacinFan

Served 5k and counting ...
Joined
Mar 17, 2007
Messages
20,073 (3.23/day)
Location
Youngstown, OH
System Name Dual Build Streamer
Processor Ryzen 7900x3d : Ryzen 4600G
Motherboard AsRock B650E Steel Legend : Giga B450i Aorus
Cooling Custom Water 1x420 : Stock
Memory 32GB T-Force Deltas : 16GB Dominator Platinums
Video Card(s) PowerColor 7900 XTX Liquid Devil: iGPU
Storage 20+ TB
Display(s) Sammy 49" 5k Ultrawide
Case Custom White Painted Phanteks Enthoo Pro 2
Audio Device(s) Onboard : Onboard
Power Supply EVGA 1200W P2
Mouse Corsair M65 RGB Elite White
Keyboard Hyperx Origins 65
Software Windows 10
i disagree, my 3770k creams the 2600k i had, well i agree on the oc temps, but when you are only using air i can clock 200mhz down for the same performance

Ok, but when you can get a bump of 400mhz more out of the 2600k due to temperature tolerance(at the same max load temp)....

Sorry I'm still having a hard time understanding why/how Ivy is "that much greater" from an overclock standpoint.
 

brandonwh64

Addicted to Bacon and StarCrunches!!!
Joined
Sep 6, 2009
Messages
19,542 (3.67/day)
Ok, but when you can get a bump of 400mhz more out of the 2600k due to temperature tolerance(at the same max load temp)....

Sorry I'm still having a hard time understanding why/how Ivy is "that much greater" from an overclock standpoint.

In SOME programs it is but the average difference between IB and SB is around 200Mhz but that it. If you already have a CPU similar to its performance then IB is not needed but if you are coming from say AM3/775 then IB would be a good choice but this statement all goes to budget and what you get find for the right price.
 
Joined
Dec 20, 2005
Messages
245 (0.04/day)
Processor 2500K
Motherboard Asus P8Z68-V
Cooling Stock
Memory Samsung MV-3V4G3D/US 4x4 1866@99927 1.41v
Video Card(s) Sapphire 280x
Display(s) crossover
Case junk
Audio Device(s) usbstick
Power Supply enermax 82+pro 5years+ still good
Real man use real cores, wait .. who said that. Oh damn. Anyway, most games only use 1-2.5 cores and even then they suck doing so. Safe the money for the next upgrade or party some, makes more sense.

Many years ago i was 15 too, i understand what u are going through, tough times...
 
Joined
Jan 11, 2009
Messages
9,231 (1.66/day)
Location
Montreal, Canada
System Name Homelabs
Processor Ryzen 5900x | Ryzen 1920X
Motherboard Asus ProArt x570 Creator | AsRock X399 fatal1ty gaming
Cooling Silent Loop 2 280mm | Dark Rock Pro TR4
Memory 128GB (4x32gb) DDR4 3600Mhz | 128GB (8x16GB) DDR4 2933Mhz
Video Card(s) EVGA RTX 3080 | ASUS Strix GTX 970
Storage Optane 900p + NVMe | Optane 900p + 8TB SATA SSDs + 48TB HDDs
Display(s) Alienware AW3423dw QD-OLED | HP Omen 32 1440p
Case be quiet! Dark Base Pro 900 rev 2 | be quiet! Silent Base 800
Power Supply Corsair RM750x + sleeved cables| EVGA P2 750W
Mouse Razer Viper Ultimate (still has buttons on the right side, crucial as I'm a southpaw)
Keyboard Razer Huntsman Elite, Pro Type | Logitech G915 TKL
Ivy has more features (ie native USB3, PCI Gen 3 and whatnot), and after OC has the same performance as the SB counterpart when OCed... Yes it won't be as high of a clock but since Ivy beats SB perf per clock wise, it'll even out.

I see no reason not to go 3570K over 2500K
 

fullinfusion

Vanguard Beta Tester
Joined
Jan 11, 2008
Messages
9,909 (1.67/day)
Id go with the HT cpu anyday of the week.

I was kicking it last night and turning off HT and running certain programs and Yup, HT all the way.

Here watch this video, the guy is kinda a dip but he makes things easy to understand HERE


Ivy has more features (ie native USB3, PCI Gen 3 and whatnot), and after OC has the same performance as the SB counterpart when OCed... Yes it won't be as high of a clock but since Ivy beats SB perf per clock wise, it'll even out.

I see no reason not to go 3570K over 2500K
Id wait for now. Wait for a new revision on IB and grab a 2500 or 2600K for now.
Besides pci-e 3.0 was shown to be a joke.
 
Joined
Jan 11, 2009
Messages
9,231 (1.66/day)
Location
Montreal, Canada
System Name Homelabs
Processor Ryzen 5900x | Ryzen 1920X
Motherboard Asus ProArt x570 Creator | AsRock X399 fatal1ty gaming
Cooling Silent Loop 2 280mm | Dark Rock Pro TR4
Memory 128GB (4x32gb) DDR4 3600Mhz | 128GB (8x16GB) DDR4 2933Mhz
Video Card(s) EVGA RTX 3080 | ASUS Strix GTX 970
Storage Optane 900p + NVMe | Optane 900p + 8TB SATA SSDs + 48TB HDDs
Display(s) Alienware AW3423dw QD-OLED | HP Omen 32 1440p
Case be quiet! Dark Base Pro 900 rev 2 | be quiet! Silent Base 800
Power Supply Corsair RM750x + sleeved cables| EVGA P2 750W
Mouse Razer Viper Ultimate (still has buttons on the right side, crucial as I'm a southpaw)
Keyboard Razer Huntsman Elite, Pro Type | Logitech G915 TKL
he said it's used for day to day and gaming, HT won't help much for those, specially not 100$ worth

my guess is pcie gen 3 is going to help in the future, not for now
 

fullinfusion

Vanguard Beta Tester
Joined
Jan 11, 2008
Messages
9,909 (1.67/day)
I use my machine for day to day also gaming so whats the big deal? Im more then happy with my cpu and have a board that supports IB but why waste the cash on a earlie adoption.
 
Joined
Jan 11, 2009
Messages
9,231 (1.66/day)
Location
Montreal, Canada
System Name Homelabs
Processor Ryzen 5900x | Ryzen 1920X
Motherboard Asus ProArt x570 Creator | AsRock X399 fatal1ty gaming
Cooling Silent Loop 2 280mm | Dark Rock Pro TR4
Memory 128GB (4x32gb) DDR4 3600Mhz | 128GB (8x16GB) DDR4 2933Mhz
Video Card(s) EVGA RTX 3080 | ASUS Strix GTX 970
Storage Optane 900p + NVMe | Optane 900p + 8TB SATA SSDs + 48TB HDDs
Display(s) Alienware AW3423dw QD-OLED | HP Omen 32 1440p
Case be quiet! Dark Base Pro 900 rev 2 | be quiet! Silent Base 800
Power Supply Corsair RM750x + sleeved cables| EVGA P2 750W
Mouse Razer Viper Ultimate (still has buttons on the right side, crucial as I'm a southpaw)
Keyboard Razer Huntsman Elite, Pro Type | Logitech G915 TKL
yet you want to waste money on HT? The difference between 2500k and 3570k is really small, specially compared to the diff between HT and non-HT version of the CPUs
 
Last edited:

fullinfusion

Vanguard Beta Tester
Joined
Jan 11, 2008
Messages
9,909 (1.67/day)
HT is simple, it Kicks ass.

HT turns a small block into a Super charged mighty mouse :toast:
 

Aquinus

Resident Wat-man
Joined
Jan 28, 2012
Messages
13,147 (2.96/day)
Location
Concord, NH, USA
System Name Apollo
Processor Intel Core i9 9880H
Motherboard Some proprietary Apple thing.
Memory 64GB DDR4-2667
Video Card(s) AMD Radeon Pro 5600M, 8GB HBM2
Storage 1TB Apple NVMe, 4TB External
Display(s) Laptop @ 3072x1920 + 2x LG 5k Ultrafine TB3 displays
Case MacBook Pro (16", 2019)
Audio Device(s) AirPods Pro, Sennheiser HD 380s w/ FIIO Alpen 2, or Logitech 2.1 Speakers
Power Supply 96w Power Adapter
Mouse Logitech MX Master 3
Keyboard Logitech G915, GL Clicky
Software MacOS 12.1
HT is simple, it Kicks ass.

HT turns a small block into a Super charged mighty mouse :toast:

It's more like an ECU remap, because it's using unused resources. When a CPU is running at 100% on all cores without hyper threading, there are parts of each core that aren't being used even on modern super-scalar CPUs. HyperThreading adds logical threads that use these unused resources to churn out a little more horsepower. The extra cache is to try to keep system memory from getting hit as often with the extra threads on the CPU.
 

fullinfusion

Vanguard Beta Tester
Joined
Jan 11, 2008
Messages
9,909 (1.67/day)
It's more like an ECU remap, because it's using unused resources. When a CPU is running at 100% on all cores without hyper threading, there are parts of each core that aren't being used even on modern super-scalar CPUs. HyperThreading adds logical threads that use these unused resources to churn out a little more horsepower. The extra cache is to try to keep system memory from getting hit as often with the extra threads on the CPU.
Thanks, and thats why I love HT.

I used to be an Amd fan but not any more... I had 4 core, 6 core, 8 core and nothing comes close to this Intel cpu :rockout:

Anyways I guess It's up to one's budget on what they buy. Me Im sticking with this settup for a few more months till Intel revise there IB proc :D
 

Mindweaver

Moderato®™
Staff member
Joined
Apr 16, 2009
Messages
8,193 (1.50/day)
Location
Charleston, SC
System Name Tower of Power / Sechs
Processor i7 14700K / i7 5820k @ 4.5ghz
Motherboard ASUS ROG Strix Z690-A Gaming WiFi D4 / X99S GAMING 7
Cooling CM MasterLiquid ML360 Mirror ARGB Close-Loop AIO / CORSAIR Hydro Series H100i Extreme
Memory CORSAIR Vengeance LPX 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4 3600 / G.Skill DDR4 2800 16GB 4x4GB
Video Card(s) ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 4070 Ti / ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 3070 V2 OC Edition
Storage 4x Samsung 980 Pro 1TB M.2, 2x Crucial 1TB SSD / Samsung 870 PRO 500GB M.2
Display(s) Samsung 32" Odyssy G5 Gaming 144hz 1440p, ViewSonic 32" 72hz 1440p / 2x ViewSonic 32" 72hz 1440p
Case Phantek "400A" / Phanteks “Enthoo Pro series”
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC4080 / Azalia Realtek ALC1150
Power Supply Corsair RM Series RM750 / Corsair CXM CX600M
Mouse Glorious Gaming Model D Wireless / Razer DeathAdder Chroma
Keyboard Glorious GMMK with box-white switches / Keychron K6 pro with blue swithes
VR HMD Quest 3 (128gb) + Rift S + HTC Vive + DK1
Software Windows 11 Pro x64 / Windows 10 Pro x64
Benchmark Scores Yes
I have 2x 2500k's @ 4.7ghz and 1x 2600k @4.5ghz. I can tell you now that I would not trade my 2600k for either of my 2500k's. Don't get me wrong and I'm not try to start a flame war with other 2500k owners... If you don't have the money to get a 2600k then the 2500k is a great chip, but if you can afford a 2600k or ib then get it. People that tell people to only by such and such because that's all you need are full of horse shit! You're on a tech forum we want more than the avg pc user.. better is always better! :toast:
 

fullinfusion

Vanguard Beta Tester
Joined
Jan 11, 2008
Messages
9,909 (1.67/day)
^
great comment :toast:

*edit* sorry for the bitch slap icon, I hit the wrong key lol. Beer tap is what I was going for.
 

Mindweaver

Moderato®™
Staff member
Joined
Apr 16, 2009
Messages
8,193 (1.50/day)
Location
Charleston, SC
System Name Tower of Power / Sechs
Processor i7 14700K / i7 5820k @ 4.5ghz
Motherboard ASUS ROG Strix Z690-A Gaming WiFi D4 / X99S GAMING 7
Cooling CM MasterLiquid ML360 Mirror ARGB Close-Loop AIO / CORSAIR Hydro Series H100i Extreme
Memory CORSAIR Vengeance LPX 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4 3600 / G.Skill DDR4 2800 16GB 4x4GB
Video Card(s) ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 4070 Ti / ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 3070 V2 OC Edition
Storage 4x Samsung 980 Pro 1TB M.2, 2x Crucial 1TB SSD / Samsung 870 PRO 500GB M.2
Display(s) Samsung 32" Odyssy G5 Gaming 144hz 1440p, ViewSonic 32" 72hz 1440p / 2x ViewSonic 32" 72hz 1440p
Case Phantek "400A" / Phanteks “Enthoo Pro series”
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC4080 / Azalia Realtek ALC1150
Power Supply Corsair RM Series RM750 / Corsair CXM CX600M
Mouse Glorious Gaming Model D Wireless / Razer DeathAdder Chroma
Keyboard Glorious GMMK with box-white switches / Keychron K6 pro with blue swithes
VR HMD Quest 3 (128gb) + Rift S + HTC Vive + DK1
Software Windows 11 Pro x64 / Windows 10 Pro x64
Benchmark Scores Yes
Joined
Jul 21, 2008
Messages
5,172 (0.90/day)
System Name [Daily Driver]
Processor [Ryzen 7 5800X3D]
Motherboard [Asus TUF GAMING X570-PLUS]
Cooling [be quiet! Dark Rock Slim]
Memory [64GB Corsair Vengeance LPX 3600MHz (16GBx4)]
Video Card(s) [PNY RTX 3070Ti XLR8]
Storage [1TB SN850 NVMe, 4TB 990 Pro NVMe, 2TB 870 EVO SSD, 2TB SA510 SSD]
Display(s) [2x 27" HP X27q at 1440p]
Case [Fractal Meshify-C]
Audio Device(s) [Steelseries Arctis Pro]
Power Supply [CORSAIR RMx 1000]
Mouse [Logitech G Pro Wireless]
Keyboard [Logitech G512 Carbon (GX-Brown)]
Software [Windows 11 64-Bit]
he said it's used for day to day and gaming, HT won't help much for those, specially not 100$ worth

my guess is pcie gen 3 is going to help in the future, not for now

This

THIS THIS THIS

god damn, give the guy the right answer and put ur epeens away.
 

Mindweaver

Moderato®™
Staff member
Joined
Apr 16, 2009
Messages
8,193 (1.50/day)
Location
Charleston, SC
System Name Tower of Power / Sechs
Processor i7 14700K / i7 5820k @ 4.5ghz
Motherboard ASUS ROG Strix Z690-A Gaming WiFi D4 / X99S GAMING 7
Cooling CM MasterLiquid ML360 Mirror ARGB Close-Loop AIO / CORSAIR Hydro Series H100i Extreme
Memory CORSAIR Vengeance LPX 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4 3600 / G.Skill DDR4 2800 16GB 4x4GB
Video Card(s) ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 4070 Ti / ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 3070 V2 OC Edition
Storage 4x Samsung 980 Pro 1TB M.2, 2x Crucial 1TB SSD / Samsung 870 PRO 500GB M.2
Display(s) Samsung 32" Odyssy G5 Gaming 144hz 1440p, ViewSonic 32" 72hz 1440p / 2x ViewSonic 32" 72hz 1440p
Case Phantek "400A" / Phanteks “Enthoo Pro series”
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC4080 / Azalia Realtek ALC1150
Power Supply Corsair RM Series RM750 / Corsair CXM CX600M
Mouse Glorious Gaming Model D Wireless / Razer DeathAdder Chroma
Keyboard Glorious GMMK with box-white switches / Keychron K6 pro with blue swithes
VR HMD Quest 3 (128gb) + Rift S + HTC Vive + DK1
Software Windows 11 Pro x64 / Windows 10 Pro x64
Benchmark Scores Yes
This

THIS THIS THIS

god damn, give the guy the right answer and put ur epeens away.

What does a Holy Dam have to do with this? :confused: I think we have all given him plenty of answers. Telling him to buy a chip that's only 100 doll hairs more is us showing him our epeens? If we were doing that we would have said, "Zomygod get a i7-3960X Extreme Edition".. I think you need to learn what an epeen is... like I stated before if he has the money.. Why not get the chip with HT?... What if he doesn't plan to upgrade for a couple of years?? spending that little extra is worth it. :toast:
 
Top