Something that I’ve noticed is that GPU rendering does speed up the process, but it seems to lower the quality as a trade-off.
There may be certain scenarios where that isn’t the case, but I prefer a beefy CPU and software encoding.
Personally, I have an i7-6700 (non-K version).
It’s a quad-core with hyperthreading (8 threads).
I would take that over an i5 (quad-core without hyperthreading – 4 threads).
Of course, it’s more money.
If I had even more money, I would have gone with an i7-5820K (6 cores with hyperthreading).
You can do a 4 thread rig for $500, an 8 thread rig for $1000, and a 12 thread rig for $1500.
It comes down to your wallet.
Personally, I’m looking forward to getting the Radeon RX 480.
At $200 (if I can actually find one to buy), it should be a really good deal.
JJ