3 $1800 builds help me choose

[x5yankee]

Current PC
i7 4770k
Radeon HD 7990
Full custom water loop
Samsung 4K freesync monitor
Historically 100% gaming

here are the builds
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=31680365
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=27916091
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=38616248

I am aware that a i5 7600k is more than sufficient for what I have been doing. However, I hate the idea of "upgrading" to a cpu that is virtually identical in power as my my 4770k 3 years later. If you think this is a wrong assumption please let me know. I just think more cores/threads is the way to go for the future

 

[AlienALX]

The Ryzen rig is far more forward thinking, IMO.

Having said that if it were me I would keep the 4770k as it's more than strong enough for right now and just upgrade the SSD/GPU and if you fancy a new one, case.

You are right about cores and the future, I just don't think you need to change your CPU yet.

 

[NeverBackDown]

Yeah just the GPU. Unless you want Ryzen, but you only really need the GPU

 

[Avet]

No need to upgrade the CPU. This one is more than enough until the new Intel generation, or revision of Ryzen come. I would only go with GPU, and SSD. Buy water block and connect 1080 to your loop. Case upgrade is always nice.

 

[x5yankee]

One of the things I wish to accomplish is to move away from the full water loop. For example, all of you have suggested keeping the 4770k and just upgrading the gpu. Great idea except in a full custom loop like mine its not simply pull the card out and put in a new one. Compounding the difficulty is the fact my loop is in an itx case. (yeah a 7990 in an itx case = tight fit). I figure todays components use less power and the need for a custom loop has diminished.

 

[Avet]

Even if you swap the case, and dismantle loop don't change the CPU. Put it in a new case. About the heat... Yea new components are more efficient, but don't expect some significant drop in temperatures. Few degrees certainly. They are just a lot kinder to your electrical bill.

 

[AlienALX]

Haswell is very efficient. Not as efficient as Kabys and Skylakes but that doesn't matter. You're talking a difference of a few bucks a year.

Maybe build it into a new case, but don't water cool the GPU? a lot of people do that. Or just get some quick disconnects and fit the GPU on those.

 

[NeverBackDown]

Custom loop is for slightly lower temps on the CPU, but you can run the fans next to nothing.
For the GPU it's a bigger benefit of temp drop and can still run quiet while more stable (avg) clocks for nvidia and only just a little better AMD OC.

If you really want to upgrade, I'd wait for Ryzen 5. They may OC better than 7 which will help game performance.

 

[AngryGoldfish]

GPU's usually output the most amount of heat due to the heatsinks we use being so inefficient. Water cooling a GPU is therefore more useful than water cooling a CPU. AIO's dedicated to CPU's are a little bit wasted in most instances as we don't use the CPU very much. AIO's for GPU's, in my opinion, should have been the focus for developers as GPU's benefit the most from being cooler. If you're keen on ditching the inconvenience of a custom loop, that's not a problem,but it would be nice to keep it for the aforementioned reasons.

An R7 1700 will be a huge performance upgrade over a 4770K, but not in gaming. You'd likely get the same performance with a 4k monitor in the majority of titles. If you have the craving for an upgrade, I's second the idea of waiting another month until the R5's come out to see what the story is there. You could upgrade your platform to AM4 with an excellent motherboard like the Crosshair, pick up a R5, then upgrade again your CPU in two years time without swapping motherboards to an even better Zen CPU. That's what I might do.