Platform/CPU upgrade for chess

Posted by MrGoose48@reddit | buildapc | View on Reddit | 15 comments

Currently using a 7800x3D and I was wondering if there is a viable upgrade for specifically chess calculations. I don't quite understand the workload but would going with a 270k plus or a 9950x3D2 be better? Would love to get some feedback.

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boshbosh92@reddit

For pure chess calculation, core count and sustained clocks usually matter more than 3D V-Cache. X3D cache helps massively in some games, but Stockfish does not benefit from giant cache as dramatically as games like Factorio or some MMOs. Stockfish is more about fast integer execution, branch prediction, memory latency, SIMD support, and scaling across threads.

A 14900k will benefit you more than an x3d chip in this case. A 9950 it 9950x3d would also be good but if you're not gaming at all, I might actually recommend a 14900k or a core ultra 285.

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moragdong@reddit

Considering MMOs are quite old, there are barely any new mmos, would that cache still help?

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MarxistMan13@reddit

From Stockfish benchmarks I'm seeing, it looks like it only really cares about total multi-core performance, and has no affinity for cache. Easiest swap for you would be a 9950X, which would be a bit more than double your current performance.

More expensive options exist, but beyond the 9950X you're looking at spending thousands for Threadrippers or EPYC server hardware.

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ThatOnePerson@reddit

Some benchmarks for stockfish: https://openbenchmarking.org/test/system/stockfish

Only X3D comparison there seems to be 9900X3D vs 9900X. For a ~1% improvement!

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MrShItAsIaN@reddit

get a threadripper

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L583@reddit

I mean a 9950x3D2 would be the easiest swap and still leave you some upgrade path in the future.

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trashcanbecky42@reddit

Found this https://www.jens-hartmann.at/Fritzmarks/

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MrGoose48@reddit (OP)

Thanks!

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camdalfthegreat@reddit

I don't think 3d v ache will benefit you much.

I guess I don't know anything about chess calculations but I feel like you'd benefit most from multi core performance

I would look into the program youre using and see how it utlizes your hardware if you're really trying to maximize your chess calculating abilities lmao

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MrGoose48@reddit (OP)

That answer really doesn't help me at all

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2raysdiver@reddit

My research suggest that ChessX and Stockfish benefit more from more cores. It will benefit from additional cache, but by how much is open for discussion. You may want to ask on r/chess.

You could get some hardware monitoring software, like CPUID's HWMonitor and monitor individual core utilization. If you see significant utilization of ALL cores during these calculations, then that is an indication that more cores would help. As to which CPU you should get, that is a tough one. Most of the people here are into FPS games, with a dose of Blender, Adobe Premier, and a few other odds and ends. Again, r/chess is probably a good place to start.

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MrGoose48@reddit (OP)

Thanks for the feedback. When im running line analysis the cores get sent straight up to 100% utilization (or bounce around) and ram starts to fill up a bit.

On a side note I have zero idea why people are downvoting me when the dude gave no information other than "go look yourself".

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