Memory is in a pricing apocalypse, the likes of which we might not see the end of for a decade . As AI data centers gobble up supply, and DRAM manufacturers capitalize on newfound demand, we’re in a situation where only those with the capital to spare (and that’s really the correct word to use here) can foot the bill for those sweet chips. That puts a bit of a damper on that upgrade to DDR5 you were planning for Black Friday and Cyber Monday, now doesn’t it?
Although DDR5 is now the standard, we’re still in the transition away from DDR4, reinforced by three generations (two and a half, really) of dual DDR4/DDR5 support from Intel, and AMD’s continued support for AM4. Every upgrade is a dilemma: You can’t buy a new GPU and risk a CPU bottleneck, and you can’t upgrade to a Zen 4, Zen 5, or Arrow Lake CPU without setting aside an extra $300 (or more) for just a kit of memory.
Still, there are upgrades available that will let you squeeze out a last bit of life in your DDR4 kit, particularly if you want to capitalize on low GPU prices over the shopping weekend. This isn’t about making the best possible upgrade, money be damned. It’s about making the best of a bad situation.
Best in-place Intel CPU upgrades for DDR4 owners
Intel is the easiest place to start, because you can actually get pretty far with DDR4. Alder Lake, Raptor Lake, and Raptor Lake Refresh all support DDR4 and DDR5, and Raptor Lake Refresh smokes Intel’s latest Arrow Lake offerings when it comes to gaming. You lose some of that advantage with DDR4 compared to DDR5 , but the differences are marginal unless you compare the slowest DDR4 to faster DDR5 kits.
If you don’t already have an LGA1700 board with DDR4 support, stock has started to dry up. But you can still find some boards available if you shop around. This MSI Pro B760-P , for instance, is on sale for $60 off for Black Friday. And, frankly, if you’re still on 11th-Gen Intel or older, just about any new CPU/mobo combo is going to do wonders for your performance.
However, if you already have an LGA1700 motherboard paired with an older-gen Alder Lake or Raptor Lake chip, you can step up to a newer, faster model as a smart drop-in upgrade that will give your system newfound performance with your existing DDR4 kit.
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The clear upgrade on LGA1700 is the Core i7-14700K . It offers 97% of the performance of the Core i9-14900K in games, on average, for 70% of the price – and that’s with current sales. At the time of writing, the Core i7-14700K is out of stock at Amazon and Newegg, but available for $30 more than it was selling for at Best Buy . I’d pick up the Core i7-14700KF instead, which is available for $305 . It’s identical to the Core i7-14700K, minus the integrated graphics.
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