Does The 4790K Work In A Dell OptiPlex

[@1BIGFROGGY]

You're the best online authority on the OptiPlex! Thank you for conducting this test and sharing the knowledge ;)

[@TheGameBench]

Wow, thanks!

[@flywiththeguys]

FIRST and interesting. I thought there would be a bigger difference! Good to know.

[@colincass7578]

I don't even know you bro, and was just shopping on ebay for i7 4790k, figured I'd watch this, fooook !! your solid asf the way you present things brah !!!! thanks for doing vidz my man, finally someone who knows how to use some sheer common sense on this youtube land

[@TheGameBench]

Thanks! I really do appreciate it.

[@kylemiller1984]

Thank you! I've been waiting to find this out for over a year. I won't be upgrading to the 4790k

[@TheGameBench]

Glad I could help! Sorry it took me so long.

[@abdolife8672]

thers a difference between 4790k and only 4790 without K?

[@DIYWilly]

Thanks soo much for this video. I just purchased a 4790K for my 7020. It originally had a 4770 and hoping for that small improvement you mention for video rendering. I currently have a RX550 4g and also purchased a RX 580 8g to go with the 4790K. Hoping the system is happy with this new upgrade budget plan. I will also be moving everything to a Factal Design Focus G case. Again as an upgrade over the Dell Optiplex case looking for additional room for cooling. If I get the message from BIOs than ill try what you suggested to reset. Thanks for sharing!!

[@dp13gaming69]

I love my Optiplex with its 4770 but I could never justify the price of going to a 4790 or 4790k for such a small jump in performance.

[@TheGameBench]

Yeah, that's a sidegrade that doesn't make any sense.

[@SSJfraz]

Unless you sell the 4770 and are able to get a 4790k for just a few dollars more than you sold the 4770. It can also be software overclocked, even if the bios won't support it.

[@Writeous0ne]

@@SSJfraz IMO if you can buy an SFF with the upgrade chip in it, swap it with your old rig cpu and sell the SFF with your chip in it and break even, it's viable. but if its a straight swap and you end up losing money for the upgrade, wouldnt bother.

[@jesuspena9229]

Gran video nuevo sub. Tengo un optiplex 3020 con un i5 4570 quisiera actualizarlo a un i7 4790k para combinarlo con una rx6600 crees que esta bien?

[@tormentridden]

4790k is a big jump from 4770 and has better thermals and higher intergrade graphics

[@santospoland]

What an excellent video! I know it's nearly a year old but here's my story if you care. I never, literally never owned a PC. I've been wanting a windows machine for a while, probably cause I am forced to use window 10 which kind of grew on me a little. I am a Mac guy and lo and behold there was a 3020 i3 for sale for about 50USD - a hackintosh no less. I am not sure if I will leave it running MacOS but I love the idea of tinkering with the machine and dropping in an i7 4790k. Why not. I have to say, what I hate about Mac hardware but love about PC hardware, is that one opens up so easily while the other, doesn't! Thanks for the video, really good and of course I subbed. Thumbs up all the way!

[@camman9235]

i followed your optiplex guide and bought a 7010 with a 3570U I5 and 8Gb ddr3 1600mhz almost two years ago now,and honestly i love this pc and have even installed 16gb of ram and here soon a gtx 1650.

[@fyler1]

I have an Optiplex 9010, with an i3 3220. After watching your videos I will be replacing the motherboard ($20) for the 9020 board, and putting a 4790k in with it.

[@seriksson9721]

Knowledgeable and calm, it's impressive. Thanks

[@TheGameBench]

Thank you too!

[@AskYwalker973]

This video covered everything I needed to know. I have 2 optiplex 3020MT that I'm selling (1 is already sold). both have a 4790 on the A21 bios, same ram specs, SSD, and 550w PSU. The one I sold has a 1660 super, and the one that's still available has a 1650. Upon seeing this video, it let's me know that the 4790k isn't worth it considering I can get a 4790 for around $40. If the gains were at LEAST 30% I would consider it.....thanks again 👍🏿

[@QuickDIYprotips]

Just wanted to thank you for your videos! You do a great job at explaining and clearing things up. One if your older vids brought up an HP EliteDesk 800 G1. I found one of these on ebay with an i7 4790 3.6GHz, with an Nvidia Geforce 630. It also had an 80 plus PS with windows 10, all under $220. It only had 8 GB DDR ram but i have my own 16GB 1600 that i am going to add. It also had 128 GB SSD, but i have a 1TB Drive im adding to it. Appreciate you mentioning that device. I’ll update you on how it operates when i get it. Curious to know what upgrades i can make though. Ill be looking into that.

[@ex_ceed]

you forgot to update how it operates ..

[@mrkiplingman]

Just subscribed because I found your videos to be very informative about the what works and what doesn’t with the optiplexs thank you.

[@TheGameBench]

Awesome, thank you! Glad you found it useful.

[@PCTechHustle]

Nice video Clint! 4790k in an Optiplex I've always said is a bit of a wild choice to make being that they are still pretty pricey right now. Other good alternatives as I am sure you know is to go down the Xeon route. Those older Xeon chips can be found for sometimes half the price of the i7s.

[@TheGameBench]

Yeah, that's true and I really want to get my hands on a 1270v3 and compare it to the 4790. The i7's are stupid expensive right now. I feel like they only make sense for people who have one of these older platforms with an i3, or something. At over $100, just go with a 3100 or 10100 instead. Forget the 4790k, not to mention the cost of the Z series boards right now too.

[@strawberrysherbet96]

One of the first guys I go to when I want to learn about optiplexes. U are the first one that explained everything inside which made me understood how computers work.

[@YoungMinistry351]

I know this was 2 years ago but, you seem very knowledgeable on the topic of optiplex and im planning to upgrade from an xbox to an optiplex with a i7 4790 and throw in a gtx 1660 ti and was wondering if I would get better performance and decent low end emulation and modding.

[@aren3325]

Ive been thinking of doing this for a while now. I have a 4790 and I wanted to upgrade to the 4790k, your video helped me, thanks!

[@TheGameBench]

Glad I could help.

[@offtopicmusic9639]

thank you, im thinking about upgrading to an i7 4790k but wasn't sure if my motherboard supported it, i have the same everything and this helped me make my dissension to upgrade, Thank you

[@colincass7578]

honestly, you could show just how to install a keyboard, and I'd watch just how you present to your audience, soooooo gold

[@zeeweenor]

This might be the best dell optiplex related channel. Keep up the good work 👍

[@TheGameBench]

Wow, thanks!

[@stephenbarraclough5242]

yey the optiplex king is back :) . Video for you, optiplex media server :)

[@MrNightro]

I have the 4790k with an aftermarket Noctua cooler in the Optiplex paired with a Zotac 1080 Ti mini GPU, 32GB ram & it is able to reach its full boost clock of 4.4Ghz with dips to 4.2Ghz with no issues. The only thing I did was install the latest bios before the upgrade & there was nothing special that had to be done for it to work. I installed the Noctua NH-U9S with two fans in push/ pull configuration plus a couple case cooling mods using various Noctu fans thus keeping my temps in the lower 60c region max, mid to upper 50c on average while gaming. I am debating installing the Cooler Master MasterLiquid Pro 140 to see if I can get even better temps since the core clocks stay up while the CPU is cool.

[@TheGameBench]

I really wish I had mentioned the cooler. I totally forgot that the stock cooler isn't really adequate, though all my tests were performed on the stock cooler.

[@zellar1]

Great info! Finally, now we know!

[@TheGameBench]

Glad it was helpful!

[@limi7less34]

Glad you came back! I decided to upgrade my Prodesk from an i5-4570 to an i7-4770, works flawlessly. But after this video i remembered that on eBay an i7-4790k was listed 20€ less than the cost of my current i7, I didn't buy the 4790k as I was scared of eventual compatibility problems, and now I'm kicking myself for have passed on that CPU! Anyway, I've got another question; is it easy to install an aftermarket cooler for these prebuilts?

[@TheGameBench]

Dang... that's a bummer. The 4790k is usually pretty spendy versus the locked models. Anyways, on the OptiPlex, changing the cooler on the isn't too bad since it's a standard 115x pattern. Sadly, HP did not do the same with the Pro Desk, Elite Desk, or Z series workstations. You'd have to to some custom work and fabricate your own backplate to change the cooler on the ProDesk, as it's a proprietary pattern. However, I would argue that it's purely a cosmetic change with the locked CPU's as they run pretty cool under these stock coolers. You should be sitting comfortably in the 70's. So there's no performance to gain from changing out the cooler.

[@esperanzavibes2368]

Very informational stuff. Clear explanation. Satisfying high quality content. Subbed

[@TheGameBench]

What did you think? Has this made you think about doing this, or completely turned you off trying it out? Also, I did record the overlays, but I didn't go into detail on that because there wasn't that much to see. Generally, there was very little uplift in GPU usage, but as you could see in F1 2019, that was the biggest increase I saw, which was typically a few percent from the 4790 to 4790k. Also, you more eagle eyed viewers might have noticed that the frame rate was locked in the CS Go footage. Those weren't recordings of benchmark runs, but more to give you an idea of what the benchmark runs looked like. I lock the frame rate to keep that capture smooth. And I NEVER do any capturing while benchmarking to prevent it skewing the results.

[@rodrigotamez7480]

Do you think i should upgrade my cpu cooler i really only use it for racing games on 3 monitors and i have the 4790

[@TheGameBench]

@@rodrigotamez7480 With the 4790, I wouldn't. I should be running in the low 70s at worst. And if you replace the cooler, it would be for looks as it wouldn't improve performance.

[@rodrigotamez7480]

@@TheGameBench thank you have a great day

[@jaysideways26]

Thank you so much for this helpful video ill be waiting for the 3020 version of this.

[@flacosek1889]

i just restarted after the cpu swap. i dint know people had issues. i thought it was normal to restart. i get like 15 consistent more fps in 9020 1080 ti

[@leocheng9346]

Just wanted to say thanks for these informative and wonderful videos. It would be nice if you could elaborate why you suggest disabling the Spectre and Meltdown patches though. Thanks once again.

[@TheGameBench]

Brian at Tech Yes City has talked a lot about this, not sure if he has a dedicated video though. I share his view point that it increases performance for Intel CPU's, but does nothing for AMD, sometimes it even hurts performance. Anyways, some argue that it comes at a security risk, but these exploits are only of a concern for the enterprise space. Nobody is going to bother with an individual.

[@MattJackson-t1h]

Superb video, thanks for the in-depth analysis :)

[@bekindtoyourself5171]

I'm thinking about upgrading from i5-4590 to the 4590K but I'm worried that the PSU won't keep up with what i got already. I got additional RAM, an ssd and a hardrive and a 1660ti. Been searching for a while but still haven't got a straightforward answer. Also wondering if the stock cpu fan will keep up.

[@dodooga1]

Great video! I managed to snag a 4790k for $125, it should be a good upgrade from the i5 4460 that came with my optiplex

[@TheGameBench]

Very nice! It will be a pretty decent upgrade over any i5, even more so from the 44xx models. And that's a bit under the current market value too.

[@VirmanaMarketing]

Awesome to see you well! Videos are the best!

[@TheGameBench]

Thanks!

[@mrkemblegilstrap]

ahahahaha! good one! some good sass and a couple of half smile/grins. that's some juicy testing, son! interesting until the last second. good job. I rewound a few times to double check what you had said. you do talk a bit fast. but, then again, there's no pleasing meeeee, lolz I'm gonna look for the FB dell group. ty! oh, uno question. did you say exactly which motherboard you used or did you say it came from a particular model if dell?

[@armis9411]

thanks for the vid was always wondering was it compatible.

[@TheGameBench]

No problem, glad I could help.

[@TonyHerson]

I bought a 7020 with a 4790 and put a 4790k in it and the only issue I ran into was os not recognizing it properly. I uninstalled the drivers for the 4790 and restarted the pc and it recognized the 4790k. My brother bought a 3020 with an i5 and we tried to put the 4790 in it and it wouldn't post. After updating the bios and it works just fine

[@TheGameBench]

Yeah, I've seen people saying that you lose 20% of performance with the i7's on the 3020. Which I don't buy.

[@TheLinkhawkins]

I still have the i5 in my 9020, I will probably wait to get the i7 or xeon version of the 4790 till prices go down just a touch

[@TheGameBench]

Seems like the prices on the 4790 and the 4790k haven't really changed since the middle of last year. Not sure on the matching Xeon counterparts. Though when I've looked they seem to be about the same price, at least on eBay. I would like to play around with some Xeons to do some testing to compare to the i7.

[@dylanallen7720]

Xeon 1271 v3 is the 4790 in pretty sure.

[@TheGameBench]

@@dylanallen7720 Yep, same clock speeds. Only differences are ECC support, no iGPU and the Xeon has better binned silicon. Might hold boost longer than the 4790, but it likely won't matter for gaming. Look for both, go for whichever is cheaper, unless you need the iGPU for whatever reason.

[@mrnafim6081]

Good Content! But if you add the Video Editing Performance of the Processor that will help us more. Thanks

[@TheGameBench]

Honestly, I wouldn't suggest these systems or a 4th Gen i7 for video editing. Maybe if you were doing some VERY basic, and small, 1080p edits or you're just trying it out. But really, my channel focuses on gaming, so I don't really get into productivity benchmarks.

[@madcat4563]

I am curious to know if the xeon e3 1270 v3 will work and how it compares.

[@Systemv1]

Super helpful. Thanks buddy ✨✨🔥

[@TheGameBench]

No problem. Just happy this video helped someone out.

[@phadodasdoktrin5559]

I changed the i5 4590 to a I7 4790k in my Optiplex 7020 and it worked with out any issues.

[@vernonsoredjo4594]

Optiplex XE2 here no problems with a 4790k. Combined with rx6400 now. 8700 waiting for a good xe3 barebone deal. Got any tips?

[@TheGameBench]

You might want to consider looking at the 5080 or 7080 and those could be found with 500 watt power supplies, where I think the XE3 only came with the 360. I've been looking at the XE3, and like the XE2, are scarce... so finding a good deal isn't going to be easy.

[@peterharband326]

Thanks bro. hope u are feeling better. I'm using a 3770 with a 580 now with a Lenovo Idea center circa 2012. No upgrade path until prices come down.

[@TheGameBench]

Yeah, I'm building a system right now with an i7 6700 and things aren't too bad for most parts. Half of the build cost was the 1080, and I got it under the current market value.

[@peterharband326]

@@TheGameBench Sounds like a solid build for 1080p.

[@dimitrioskoumentos820]

Awesome video!!! Gongrats! May i ask if i can use ddr3L (low power voltage)1.35V or only the 1.5V memory work?

[@TheGameBench]

Thanks! And yeah, DDR3L works fine in these system.

[@Bourbon-Canted-Ky-Windage]

Some of us picked up business class 9010s with i7, 32GB-1600 ram, 256GB SSD. Mine has 4 USB-3 ports on the front panel. I could spend around $300 and re-start with 9020 instead, but I rather soup-up the 9010 with the best upgrades. Xeon E3-1280V2, 1290V2 may show slight gains but seem to be astronomically priced! Even though its not used, does the presence of built in video on the processor create any loading? What vid card do I want in 2022? Your 2019 videos show vid cards for $100 or so that are now over $225 used! How about some links for power supply upgrades, cables, SSDs, etc. I would welcome your Amazon affiliate links! Thank you for all your efforts! You earned my subscription!

[@anthonyk]

I'm keeping my eyes out for a 1290 v2 rn I have a 1275 v2 and would like the extra clock speeds, is it worth it?

[@natehancock2423]

I have a dell opti 7020 w/i7 4790 with an evga gtx 1660 ti xc edition. I’m using a 6pin adapter and a paperclip to power it. Will it last a decent amount of time or would it short circuit because the adapter hasn’t really gotten hot so what do you think?

[@7Elwaybronco]

if you are using a paper clip as a wire for something I would recommend you remedy that immediately. Also nice Meatcanyon pic, you got 25 cents?

[@TheGameBench]

I would tell you to buy a 6-pin to 8-pin adapter, and like Darth said, stop using it until you do. It's a bad idea for various reasons.

[@natehancock2423]

@@7Elwaybronco thanks and yeah I’m gonna replace it asap

[@WTBMrGrey]

Great video as usual.

[@TheGameBench]

Thanks man!

[@therealmichaelphelps]

Very good video Clint! Liked how you went into the details into the bios, and that it is indeed possible, but you showed clearly the issues you would run into. The likely scenarios someone would run into while making this swap. To me personally 3-7% improvement in any game makes no sense because once you get above a certain FPS it doesn't matter. 330-350fps who is really gonna tell the difference anyways? Someone could be blind testing both systems and have a hard time telling apart each one.

[@TheGameBench]

Yeah, most people won't see the difference. Competitive gamers, maybe. Pro gamers, for sure... but a pro gamer isn't using a 4th gen CPU, let alone an Opti.

[@therealmichaelphelps]

@@TheGameBench exactly

[@kekistanifreedomfighter4197]

have you tried installing a different cooler other than the stock Dell cpu cooler? I've been thinking about trying to get a cheap 1155 socket backplate & a "universal" cooler mount to replace the stock one & put a better cooler on my i7. But I've heard the holes that Dell puts on the motherboards are slightly larger than standard intel cooler mount holes. Can you vouch if this is true or not? I know that there are so many models it may vary but the one I have is a 7010 MT board if that makes a difference at all.

[@TheGameBench]

I don't know where they got that idea. It's try of a lot of the HP systems, but the all the OptiPlex models I've worked with have a standard 115x socket and the holes line up. Many people have changed the coolers out on these systems. That being said, with a locked processor, there's not much of a point beyond looks. It should be keeping your temps in the low 70's at max, in realistic scenarios. Like running Prime95 with small FFT's is going to get it pretty hot. But for gaming and normal use, it should stay cool enough that adding a better cooler wouldn't do much for you.

[@kekistanifreedomfighter4197]

@@TheGameBench Alright nice! Thanks for the quick response!

[@dezwilliamz]

I've had the 4790k in my optiplex for about a year now. Still working strong!

[@GlennMarshallRocks]

Did you upgrade the CPU cooler, or are you still using the stock one...?

[@hattymeni8177]

Hi. I have i7 4790 Optiplex and i want to change my motherboard to gigabyte GA-h81m LGA 1150 is this motherboard is compatible and work's perfectly? TY

[@mahomedfakir977]

You are using a standard cpu cooler for the I7 4790k what temperature while gaming beat??

[@TheGameBench]

Yeah, it was the standard cooler. In something like Cinebench, it got up into the 80s, but that's not really indicative of most things. The most I saw while gaming was the low to mid 70s, and that was using a graphite pad, so using thermal paste would see a drop of a few degrees.

[@hirschkuh1982]

The i7 4790k is still great, but there's no need to upgrade my i7 4790 at the moment, because I play on 2560x1440

[@massoudwazir6389]

How about 1080p ?

[@pearsth]

I have a 7020 MT with BIOS A18. I am getting 2, 3 power button flash sequence aftern installing the I7-4790K as an upgrade from an I5-4590. I reset the CMOS by removing the battery for about 15 minutes. There was a lot more light dancing when I turned it back on, including some duration when the power button LED was white, but it utimately went back to the 2, 3 flash sequence. System boots fine when putting the I5-4590 back in. Anyone else have this problem and find a way past it? I am thinking maybe I just have a bad CPU.

[@jeremebp]

Recently upgraded the i7-4770 in my 9020 to a 4790K. Only issue is the cpu fan error on startup with an aftermarket cpu cooler (Noctua NH-U9S.)

[@TheGameBench]

Yeah, I haven't been able to find a Noctua fan that the fan controller didn't hate. Hard to find fans that it works with. You could always find another one of the rear fans that come in the 9020 on ebay and try using that. Just keep in mind, they're thicker than a standard fan.

[@ArekoKrinket]

I tried this on an Optiplex 7020 Tower - with 550W PSU, GTX 1650 Super and this would not work, I'm super bummed.. I only got amber light blinking 3 times and turn off. I'm open to ideas, but i just think it's not possible on this model. I'm wondering if I'm just taxing the motherboard too much...

[@TheGameBench]

No, it shouldn't be too taxing on the board. In reality, there's so little difference between the 7020 and 9020 boards, that I would be comfortable calling them essentially the same. The only real difference I've seen is that sometimes the 7020 had three SATA ports instead of four. Also, I tried the 4790K in the 3020 as well, and it worked as well. The scores were pretty much about the same as the 9020 too. That's not to say that there's not something wrong with the board that the 4790K is exploiting. But perhaps it needs a different BIOS. Maybe you need a newer BIOS, or even an older BIOS. However, there's nothing different about the 7020 board from the 9020 that would prevent the 4790K from working.

[@garyn7067]

Currently running a 4770, and am trying to put off buying a new system. But without putting a lot of $$$ into the old system. As neither the 4770 nor 4790K will run Win11, I will eventually be forced to a new system. When doing Powerpoint video generation, the CPU is up at about 90+%, and these video generations run a while. Powerpoint does not seem to utilize the GPU, just the CPU. So I have been considering upgrading the CPU to the 4090K, to see if I can speed up the video generation. But from the 4770 to 4790K, that is only about 11% clock speed increase. I don't know if 11% will be a visible/decent increase. If a 20 minute video generation goes down to 18 minutes, to me, that really isn't a visible change. But, I might do it anyway. And thanks. I am now running a GTX 1650, so I can do AI noise reduction in my photo editing. Never needed a GPU until the AI photo editors came out.

[@theHardwareBench]

4770k is the best CPU for a Haswell Optiplex, I've tested the 4790K but by the time you've updated the bios to take the slightly newer and more powerful CPU all you get is higher temps, more fan noise and a 1% boost at best. Main reason is you can't optimise the cache speed with an Optiplex which is a bit too fast by default. I had no problems running the 4790K in my 3020 MT Optiplex apart from extra heat and fan noise. The 4790K cost 50% more for 1% more performance max so not good value for money over the 4770K.

[@rathstar]

Nice video, my partner has a 4790 (in an HP prebuild) and I was wondering whether to buy a 4790k. Although she uses the pc for photoshop so may see closer to the improvement shown in the cinebench scores, I think for the price its better just saving up to give her a newer modern system.

[@utemuller9655]

not worth it as long she doesnt big batches it makes no sense just wait 1Minute :-P

[@unrelentingstrength]

I only got an optiplex 790 small form factor, can I upgrade to at least i54790? Many thanks Clint!

[@TheGameBench]

Hey! Unfortunately, no. The 790 will only work with 2nf Gen Sandy Bridge CPUs. So, really best case scenario is the i7 2600.

[@unrelentingstrength]

@@TheGameBench Oh crap! I forced it without waiting for your advice, and now my Optiplex can't even boot up. Now I don't know if it was the motherboard that was damaged or the CPU. Stupid me. But, thank you for the advice. really appreciate your videos.

[@tonywrightuk]

Any idea if the same bios 'fix' would work for installing an i7-3770K in an Optiplex 7010 MT?

[@TheGameBench]

I've not heard anyone having this issue with a 3770K and I know that it works in the 7010. But if you have weird behavior like this, the first thing I would do is try that. If that didn't work, I would reset the BIOS. That being said, the 3770K isn't going to over you anything besides a 100MHz bump on the base clock. There's going to be zero difference between it and the 3770 in your system. It might clock a little higher, for longer. But it won't really translate to better performance outside the margin of error. If you just want to, because you can... well, I can't argue with that.

[@tonywrightuk]

@@TheGameBench Thank you for your reply, I bough the K version of the 3770 and the 7010 didn't like it but I didn't try any fixes just got 3770 instead. Sounds like there is barely any benefit in this case. I did upgrade a 9020 with a 4790 instead of a 4790K due to my earlier experience then saw your video and thought it might be worth swapping at some point.

[@TheGameBench]

@@tonywrightuk I doubt you'd be able to measure a difference between the 3770 and the K, outside the margin the error in benchmarks. That being said, there's a difference between the 4790 and the K, but it's only really worth it for a couple of use cases. For most, the extra speed doesn't really translate to much.

[@ezequielmartinez5927]

You mentioned something about using the bios a18 only I have a20 and it keeps crashing when I use 16 gb of ram would the downgrade fix my problem

[@TheGameBench]

It's more likely that there's an issue with the RAM, the slot or the memory controller on the CPU. It's possible the BIOS could be corrupt and causing an issue, but highly unlikely. I would start by using Memtest86 to test the RAM. Also, the RAM might not be bad, it just might be incompatible with the board.

[@pranav1790]

Hey, I have an i5 2400 paired with an 1060 6gb, and it runs things fine, but the 4core no hyperthreading sometimes stutters a lot. Would it be worth it to get something like an E3 1240 or an E3 1270? Or is the 2600 just better than the xeons? I was planning to get into a bit of streaming a bit, wondering if I should update. And 3rd gen is out of question as I have an intel h61 Mobo, and bios updates are non-existent / hard to find.

[@TheGameBench]

I'd look for the E3 1270 or the 2600 and grab whichever is cheaper. They should perform pretty identical since they have the same base and boost clocks. And yes, I would definitely upgrade to something with hyperthreading. With the 2600/1270 the 1060 will be the limiting factor. Just keep in mind that some games will have trouble on any quad core, hyperthreaded or not. They're just not optimized for lower core counts. As for streaming, might be best to try and use the hardware encoder on the 1060 rather than the software encoder on the CPU.

[@MrSeanselleck]

I was able to get my 4770 to stay at max with 3.9ghz using thottlestop. I undervolted by 98.6. I also got it to install windows 11 and it runs fantastic and frosty at idle 83 Fahrenheit, and 138 on load for 5 minutes (stock cooler, new thermal paste, crazy case fan mods to vastly increase airflow). I was surprised that throttlestop actually worked on windows 11. I am interested in the 4790k, as it is around 80 dollars used and I was wondering if it would overclock on the dell 9020?

[@richardedwards1979]

Windows 11 works on 4770?

[@n3tw0rk_n3k0]

Currently on my Optiplex: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-4790 CPU @ 3.60GHz 3.60 GHz, 32.0 GB RAM, GTX 1060

[@spikerbrad23]

I installed a 4790k in an OptiPlex running the A25 bios and it worked right away. No warnings, didn't have to enter the bios either.

[@andamoonforthesky]

Xeon support would be an interesting thing to cover with these Optiplexes. I know some people have had luck upgrading to something like an e3-1240v2 after updating the BIOS. I've seen i3 systems be sold on craigslist as home office PCs for ~$80. Would it be a decent deal to buy a cheap Ivy Bridge i3 Optiplex and throw in the 4c/8t e3 1240v2, which is more or less on par with the i7-3770?

[@TheGameBench]

Just depends on what you can get the 1240v2 for. It will perform about as well as the 3770, but even they're going for close to $100 right now. If it's the same for the 1240v2, you'd be paying about as much as just buying a 7010 or 9010 with a 3770 already in it.

[@andamoonforthesky]

@@TheGameBench I picked one up off of eBay for $45 about 3 months ago, but looks like they're going for about $55 now. The only reason I mention it is because those i7 Optiplexes are overpriced as hell, even on more niche surplus sites. If a cheap i3 build can run a Xeon, then it might be worth the trouble.

[@pantoufsbird9914]

Hello, I am sorry for commenting on a video that is 1 year old. I came across your channel , because I wanted to do this optiplex 9020 mt thing. Because of you, everything worked perfectly fine so thank you for that. I have only one question good sir. I want to upgrade my cpu to either a i7-4790k either a 4770k since they're quite cheap in my country. If I will want to overclock these processors , would I need to replace the coolers?(because I currently have the stock intel cooler) Thank you again for this amazing channel you created. Every day I an looking forward to watching ur videos.

[@TheGameBench]

No worries, and glad I could help. Unfortunately, you can't really overclock with the systems. The BIOS just doesn't have any way to overclock them. You might be able to push the CPU a little further with something like Throttle Stop and there's always Intel's XTU, but XTU can be problematic and you're going to be power limited more than anything with the VRM's on the OptiPlex motherboard. Regardless, putting a 4790K, and especially the 4770K, I suggest replacing the cooler regardless. In gaming it will probably be fine if you've got decent airflow with the stock cooler, but it can get up into the 80s... which is technically fine, but I'm not really happy with anything higher than the 70s.

[@dajBok]

Really interesting topic and love the videos so far. I recently bought 3020 and now looking to upgrade it but on a really tight budget. What do you think about putting in Xeon e3 1271 V3? It has the same clock's and core count as i7 4790 but a bit lower TDP at 80W and is about 40$ cheaper on Aliexpress.

[@TheGameBench]

If you can get it for $40 less, go for it. The reason for the lower TDP is the lack of integrated graphics. So as long as that's not an issue for you, they should perform the same. If anything, the Xeon should theoretically perform "better" since it has higher binned silicon, but in reality, I feel like the performance should be within the margin of error between the 1271 v3 and the 4790. Hell, I might have to grab one to do some testing.

[@dajBok]

@@TheGameBench Thank you for the response. I`ve got really good experiences with Xeons since all my builds were budget oriented and Xeons tend to go cheaper. In Dell 780 I`ve had X3363 and it worked great but today its just obsolete. And I agree the performance will probably be within margin of error.

[@severussnap4373]

i swear they used to come with a 4790k at one point .there was a guy who used to buy these office machines and turn them into gaming machines because they had that proc.

[@TheGameBench]

As far as I can see, they only ever shipped these systems with the locked SKUs, never the K. He was probably adding them, as there is no indication that ordering an Optiplex with a 4790K was ever an option from Dell. You can find newer OEM workstation systems that come with K SKU's, likely because Intel has shifted and made the base clocks drastically lower on the locked processors, which is problematic for all core workloads. However, that can mostly be overcome using XTU or ThrottleStop and increasing the PL1 and PL2 power levels.

[@1973Hog]

Love your videos!

[@heyhogan]

Have you done a video on the caseless Pc that in the lower right corner? That look like a great rig for testing video cards

[@TheGameBench]

No, not yet. It's definitely been incredibly useful for some of my videos where I've had to swap a lot of CPUs and GPUs. I was planning on talking about for an upcoming series that I had planned, but everything has been benched for the time being.

[@cristianchacon740]

literally a week ago I got a Dell OptiPlex 7020 MT from my job since they didn't need it so I got it for free. It came with a 1TB SSD in it and it has a i5-4590 in it, I'm assuming for CPU upgrade the 4790k is a good option? Also really surprised there's a big community for the OptiPlex.

[@TheGameBench]

Yeah, I had no idea until I started playing with them before I made my first video about one. And yeah, if you're on an i5 and you're willing to spend an extra $50, the 4790k isn't a bad option, but something I forgot to mention in the video was that it gets a little hot with the stock cooler, so I'd suggest replacing it, which really factors into the cost. And, you can always sell your i5 to get some of that money back.

[@agsechogd6406]

hi i have put in a xeon e3 1281 v3 into my optiplex 9020, however, its not reaching past its base clock. i tried everything from restoring everything to defaults, double checking intel turboboost, and flashing to a18 bios. none of these solutions made the optiplex reach more than 3.67ghz. What do i do??

[@TheGameBench]

What are you using to measure and what kind of workload are you running to test?

[@agsechogd6406]

@@TheGameBench hi so i am using an optiplex 9020, and used task manager to monitor the ghz, and used cpu z to stress the cpu. I noticed that for whatever reason, intel speedstep made it go slightly higher, capping out at 3.85ghz however i know it could go above 4ghz. I really dont know how to fix this issue and i honestly think using another motherboard would solve the issue.

[@azoozxa]

@@agsechogd6406 same problem did you fix it ?

[@agsechogd6406]

@@azoozxa nah, i dont have the pc anymore, but try different bioses and turn off speedshift

[@thomasd2695]

4790k is $65 on aliexpress right now. Should I do it or trust it coming from China? I'm looking for a boost in CPU intensive games like Warzone and getting prepped for Starfield.

[@robomarston8253]

Now I got a decision to make about replacing my 4570 for WoW. Thanks for the info

[@TheGameBench]

No problem. Glad I could help.

[@paulwestphal7336]

Hey Brother - Do I really need all that intel power management crap from the dell website? I'm thinking Win10 will do a better job of it. The only thing I really need is the Realtek Audio Manager and BIOS update from them. What's your take?

[@humb707ldtkali7]

What about a 4690k in optiplex 3020 sff? (I'm just wondering if that works?)

[@TheGameBench]

Absolutely... but the clockspeeds on the 4690K are exactly the same as the 4690. If they're the same price, I guess it doesn't really matter which you use, but def don't pay more for the 4690K.

[@humb707ldtkali7]

@@TheGameBench I got a 4690k on ebay for $22 after a $10 coupon.

[@lwood5375]

What's the best optiplex sff for around $250-300?? For office, streaming.

[@TheGameBench]

Is it just going to be a streaming system, or is it going be gaming and streaming?

[@lwood5375]

@@TheGameBench just office use, web surfing and streaming videos on KZbin. I was thinking i5 6500 or i7 6700 maybe?? Idk much about them.. Thanks for the reply 👍

[@TheGameBench]

@@lwood5375 Oh, for basic office tasks, the 6500 would be more than enough. The 6700 might stay relevant longer since it has extra threads, but I don't think you'd notice the difference right now for basic office use.

[@lwood5375]

@@TheGameBench right on, thank you for taking the time to help me out, I appreciate it!

[@pruj1777]

Will the i7 4790k work with 3020 sff

[@wahidfeb]

I can get a dell optiplex 9020 sff with i7 4770 + 16gb ram + 1tb sata ssd for a total of 200 usd. But the problem is the case does not fit a gpu like gtx 1650 (low profile version too expensive). Is it fine if i take out all the parts out of the case and run it for daily computer without the case to make it fit for a normal gtx 1650? the power supply will be the default 255w

[@TheGameBench]

Yes, that would be fine, though I would say that $200 is a little expensive for that system, especially a SFF, at least in the U.S. I'm not sure what the going rate is in your area. But I assume you've shopped around? That being said, yes... the standard 1650 would be fine with the stock power supply. The system shouldn't consume more than about 160 to 170 watts with that hardware.

[@wahidfeb]

​@@TheGameBench optiplex 9020 sff without cpu, ram, storage = 47 usd *used i7 4770 = 61 usd *used 2x8gb ddr3 1600mhz = 28 usd * used 1tb patriot p210 sata ssd = 69 usd *new sapphire pulse rx 6400 = 174 usd *new total price =~ 380 usd for the graphics card i found out that rx 6400 have a lot better price for a brand new gpu instead of a used low profile gtx 1050 ti or gtx 1650. the MT version is rare in indonesia, most of them are SFF

[@JalapenoPrime]

I have an Optiplex 7040 with an i7 6700, it's advertised to reach up to 4.0 GHz, but I never see it get that high, even when loading windows it usually peaks at 3.8 or so, any reason why? EDIT: the CPU barely reaches 70c while using a i71c CPU cooler.

[@TheGameBench]

Well, the boost algorithms take a lot of variables into account. Temperature is one of those things, but your temp is more than fine, so that's not the issue. Have you paid attention to CPU utilization? If your utilization is high enough, you'll never see max boost, regardless of any other factor. Another is power. If the VRM on the motheboard isn't up to the task, it will limit how high they CPU will boost as well, but these Optiplex boards are generally fine for the locked CPUs. An aftermarket board with a more robust VRM might hit max boost more often and hold it longer, provided you're within limits for all other variables. But the perf difference is going to be quite negligible between the two. Likely within margin of error. More than likely, the CPU utilization is what's holding it back. It's all too easy these days for CPU utilization on a quad core CPU, even one with hyper-threading, to hit a point where it limits boost behavior. And even in ideal conditions, hitting that 4GHz boost speed is going to be rare and for very short duration. If you run something like Heaven, you might occasionally see it get close for a split second here and there. Running a single core pass in something like Cinebench might do the same thing. Geneally, you'll only ever see it come near 4GHz is in a very lightly threaded, single core workload.

[@JalapenoPrime]

​@@TheGameBench sorry for the super late reply, but I've managed to even get my hands on a 6700k and try it on the 7040 motherboard, it's advertised at 4.01GHz base speed in task manager, but the highest I ever see it go is 3.82ghz while gaming and even on a modern emulator, I've checked and I have turbo boosts enabled in the bios, even with a nice aftermarket cooler it doesn't mention anywhere of the 4.2ghz max boost. Which I find weird because it seems like the 4790k and your system is boosting to almost 4.1ghz, which doesn't make that much sense, considering somehow I'm losing 300-400mhz somewhere, also using 2133mhz ram if that matters lol

[@wayneh397]

What about coming from a i7 4770 ? Thanks

[@TheGameBench]

Not much different from the results here. I imagine if I tested the 4770 against these results, they would be within margin of error of the 4790. So, maybe a percent or two difference.

[@lilsleeper7043]

What about the Lenovo M73

[@TheGameBench]

I wish I could say for sure. Unfortunately, I don't have any Lenovo systems to test with.

[@nahpets2345]

I have a 4790 non k on my Optiplex 3020 and it's working perfectly

[@TheGameBench]

Not too concerned about it working. I just keep people saying that the 3020 will hold the 4790 back, like 20%... and I don't buy it. So, I'm going to put that one to rest too. I doubt there will be much of a difference from the 7020 and 9020.

[@evanlyhus7462]

I have a question regarding Pcie slots: I recently installed a 1050ti into a dell optiplex 9020 SFF. I had to put it into the Pcie x4 2.0 slot as it wouldn't fit in the x16 slot. The problem is that apparently the x4 slot is only supposed to provide 25W of power while the 1050 ti needs 75W. I have been running the 1050ti for awhile and I can see that it clearly draws more than 25W of power. Is there a reason the 1050ti is able to draw more than 25W from the x4 pcie lane? I think it has to be something with the 12V and 3.3V rails.

[@TheGameBench]

Could you link me to some documentation where the x4 slot only provides 25 watts? I've not seen that anywhere and I know several people running 1050 Ti's and 1650's in the 7020 and 9020 in the x4. If it were limited to 25 watts, you should get a no video situation. I just Googled it and I found a post on the Dell community forums talking about... and I almost wanted to say something about this, but I'd avoid the Dell forums. There's a lot of bad information over there. It's a big reason why I had to make this video. Anyways, there's nothing printed on the 9020 board saying either slot is limited to 25 watts and the 1050 Ti or the 1650 wouldn't work on a 25 watt slot. Though, sometimes... that's not really really the case and it's not a 25 watt slot, it's just to keep people from installing the card. Regardless, toss that 1050 Ti in there and have fun, you'll only take a slight hit to performance due to the x4 slot.

[@richardedwards1979]

​@@TheGameBenchlots of confidently incorrect replies on the Dell optiplex forum, I have realised!

[@curvingfyre6810]

If you're really set on maxing out the 1150 platform, wouldn't the i7 5775c be a stronger option? They're expensive sure, but if you have time to wait for a steal off an ebay auction, why not get the longest lived option, especially with the extra performance it gets from a dedicated GPU?

[@TheGameBench]

The 5775c is a mixed bag. I has less L3 cache than the 4790K and MUCH lower clocks. However, the 5775c has an interesting L4 cache and, how much that matters depends on the game. It might be interesting to test, but I HIGHLY doubt the 5775c would be supported in the Optiplex anyways. However, I might be tempted to grab one, if I can find one for a good price, to test it.

[@dirtygerty577]

i got a i5-4590 in a 3020 optiplex would it be a pretty big upgrade to a 4790k?

[@TheGameBench]

I also tested the 4790k in the 3020 and the performance was about on par with the 9020. So my advice is about the same. If you can get a good deal on the 4790k, then I don't see why not. In gaming it just won't present much of a difference from the 4790, at least not one you'll see outside of benchmarks. So, if they're close to the same price, go for the 4790k, but if it's a lot more, I wouldn't. Also, keep in mind that cooling can become an issue with the 4790k and the stock cooler as it pulls a little over 20 more watts than the 4790. It wasn't a problem for me while gaming as it stayed mostly in the 70s with a 20 degree ambient, but if you do anything that pushes the bulk of the cores, it will get up into the 80s pretty easy. Now I should mention that there's a program called Throttle Stop that let's you manipulate the booting behavior of the CPU. You might be able to get more performance out of it without overclocking this way, but the temps are going to go way up as a result, so you will likely need to add some airflow and a better heat sink to do this. And like overclocking, there are risks to doing this, so keep that in mind as well.

[@randy206]

I have a dell xps that came stock with a 4790. The 4790k is just too expensive to justify buying to put it in there when a brand new 80-90 dollar ryzen 5 and 60-70 dollar motherboard is going to run circles around it.

[@TheGameBench]

Absolutely.

[@Vladdemon69]

I enjoy your videos, you should do a video about using Xeons E3-1270 instead of i7s to save a few dollars.

[@anthonyroom]

Where I am it's only a £10 difference between the two, so when I upgrade, I'll be getting the K variant for sure

[@metalvideos1961]

This is Still my Main Chip. Works Amazing Still

[@khoihuynh9759]

I have a Optiplex 3020M (small).Is it compatible with i7 4790k?

[@TheGameBench]

If you're talking about the micro system, I haven't tested it in particular, but I can't imagine it wouldn't be. However, I wouldn't suggest it for the mere fact that the cooler is not going to be able to keep up with the thermal load, and in a micro system, there's nothing that you're really going to be doing that is going to show a noticeable difference between it and the 4790. For a micro system, I would suggest something like the 4770S or 4790S.

[@MuhammadUmar-qq8df]

Liked before watching.

[@abritabroadinthephilippines]

What's the difference between the 7020 and the 7010 please anyone ?

[@TheGameBench]

The 7020 is a generation newer, so the 7020 uses 4th Gen Haswell CPU's where the 7010 uses 3rd Gen Ivy Bridge CPU's. There are some more differences between the xx10 models and the xx20 models... mostly the SATA port and USB3 port locations being a potential interference with longer GPU's. I have a video talking about that, the OptiPlex buyer guide, that goes into more detail.

[@steve37uk]

great video,cant wait to see if it works in the 3020

[@TheGameBench]

Thanks! I'm working on it right now. Should be within' the next couple of videos.

[@isha380]

@@TheGameBench did this work on the 3020?

[@TheGameBench]

@@isha380 Sorry... I did all the testing, but never made the video due to the poor performance of this video. Anyhow, yep... it works, and the performance is pretty much the same.

[@isha380]

@@TheGameBench thanks for the fast response! Gotcha, glad to know that it will work on a 3020! Keep up the awesome videos and helping us all out! We appreciate you Sir!

[@isha380]

@@TheGameBench I just received my i7-4790K for my 3020. It’s seated properly but it’s not booting. It try’s to boot but it won’t. It’s trying to boot up but it will beep and restart. After a few restarts it does 3 amber blinks. Do you know what could be wrong?

[@brendenns3926]

Im having some difficulty identifying an optiplex mother board, any chance i can send you a picture and you can help me identify it? If so, how do i send it to u

[@spamton.gspamton7784]

What socket is that for the processor?

[@TheGameBench]

Intel socket 1150, compatible with Haswell/Devil's Canyon processors.

[@Chris-tf7gi]

Alright. You described me. I just went on the Ebay and HAD to get a 4790k to replace my 9020 MT's 4790. Perhaps a 5% frame increase? Yep. We're specking this thing out to the max. Because why not! (Also! The 4790 non-k will head right on over to my 9020 SFF build with the RTX A2000. The spare 4790 will replace the SFF's 4770. BECAUSE!) So. Two computers get upgraded for the cost of one CPU? Not AS indulgent now. ??? Yes I have benchmarked the two Optiplex 9020s. The 9020 MT with a 4790 and RTX 2060 get about 25% more frames in Heaven than The 9020 SFF with 4770 and RTX A2000. The 9020 MT with RTX 2060 runs Red Dead 2 at 60 FPS consistently without DLSS, while the 9020 SFF needed DLSS to do that. Played through the entire game on the SFF Dell, so its awesome. They both are. Yes. (DLSS in a low profile RTX graphics card in a SFF case.) There's no doubt the mid tower (MT) is better. But damn does that small form factor 9020 pack a real punch. Maybe with a 4790 in the SFF system, the gap will narrow just a little more between the two systems. And NOW? I know I'll get some weirdness that should go away once I enter and exit the bios. Appreciate it man!

[@anthonyk]

2060 work with a i7-4790 without the k?

[@Chris-tf7gi]

@@anthonyk Yes it is worth running an RTX 2060 with a non-K processor. My second Optiplex box is a 9020 SFF. That? It received the i7 4090 that came from the 9020mt where I dropped the i7 4090k. The SFF has an RTX A2000 in it. . . which is also overkill. (Its basically an undervolted RTX 3060. Runs in practice more like an RTX 3050. . . very similar to an RTX 2060, which is GOOD in a SFF system. Its pretty similar to a 1080ti too. A good fit for 1080p.) So yes, still worth it. IF I PUT the two Optis' side by side without running benchmarks, you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference playing games. (I can in a specific situation or two. But I built the systems.)

[@anthonyk]

@@Chris-tf7gi could the i7-4790k run flight simulator? It's a very demanding game and I'm looking to pair it with a gpu and I'm running 32gb ram

[@Chris-tf7gi]

@@anthonyk I played MFS just fine on a R7 2700x and the RTX 2060 that's in my Optiplex now. The edge will still go to the i7 4790k if you're not talking multi-core performance. So, should work. I'd call it a win if you get a solid 30 or 40 FPS. You probably can. Since I have a R9 with RTX 3080ti sitting "right there" with MFS on it, I have NOT tried running MFS on my Optiplex with the i7 4790k. But you know, I think I will. I suspect MFS could be fun on the large screen TV the Opti is on. (Don't wait up. Downloading will take a while.) You can also search on KZbin for "4790k flight simulator 2020." Sure looks like that'll run to me. DDR3 in all its glory with a 4790k. :)

[@mikemarrs9946]

What is the GPU you would put in a 9020, and I am willing to upgrade mu power supply. Open to other upgrades.

[@TheGameBench]

Depends... which CPU do you have?

[@mikemarrs9946]

@@TheGameBench i7 4790

[@TheGameBench]

@@mikemarrs9946 If you don't want to change out the power supply, the 1660 Super/Ti/3050... and MAYBE an RX 6600, but I haven't gotten one to test yet. If you're fine replacing the power supply, the 1070, 1080, 2060, and the RX 5700. Much more than those, and you're looking at a pretty heavy bottleneck at 1080p where you won't see more perf outside of anything save for some highly optimized esports titles. If you want to get a faster card, you'd want to step up to 1440p.

[@eric81766]

You say here that you use A18 - I currently have A23 on my 9020 SFF - should I down it to the A18? What do you mean when you say that the management engine firmware can't?

[@TheGameBench]

If you're on A23 and it's working fine, I wouldn't bother changing it. I don't on systems I get in. I'm just saying that if it has an older BIOS than A18, that's what I flash to. As for the Management Engine, that's an Intel technology that has it's own firmware that will be flashed at the same time, but it can't be downgraded. So that portion of the BIOS flash would fail, but it shouldn't cause a problem.

[@eric81766]

@@TheGameBench Thank you. I won't mess with it then.

[@wsrussell7]

Hey I am buying some computers for my startup business and looking to save some money. I was looking at buying some refurbished 9020 optiplexes with i7 4790s. When I spoke to the IT company who is going to help wire and setup our server he about had a heart attack. He said it would have a lot more issues installing and running stuff vs a newer 10th gen cpu. Is this true, I can't see why? Any issues from a security standpoint as well? The PC's will be doing bare minimum processing wise like Microsoft office and Google chrome. Thanks for the help!

[@TheGameBench]

I guess that depends on what you're installing and what you're running. For basic office applications like Word and Excel, email and web browsing they're just fine. Objectively a 10th gen i7 is faster, but I've actually just tested both and there's a measurable difference in the day to day use, but not on the order of magnitude that the 4790 is unusable or even that much slower. I think someone would have a hard time in basic usage to tell the difference in a blind A/B test. Even doing Windows update wasn't a very noticeable difference. Granted, you could go with the 10th gen i3 and get a similar experience as the i7 for basic tasks and spend a lot less. My suggestion would be to put together a new basic build with something like a 10th gen i3 and see how much that will cost you vs. the OptiPlex. It will be viable longer, especially if you plan to move to Windows 11 any time soon. Just remember that anything with the 4790 won't be able to run Windows 11 securely, unless Microsoft changes their minds. And that would be my biggest detractor for a business making a decision like this right now. And it will cost more, but it might not be enough to justify the savings on the OptiPlex. Especially if you're having to add RAM and an SSD to each system, and you will NEED to add at least an SSD as the boot drive. If you use a HDD, the IT company is right, it will be unbearably slow, but not because of the 4790s.