Question AM5 Motherboard / CPU Recommendations ?

[RM Nimbus]

Can anyone recommend a decent AM5 motherboard and CPU?

Primarily I want it for basic stuff but I may wish to play a few games at some point so I would like it to be basic but capable.

The stuff I have in mind so far are as follows...

GPU: 4gb or 6gb
RAM: 32gb or 64gb or 48gb
HDD: 1tb m2
PSU: 750w

At first I was enjoying putting together a list of stuff but then I started reading the reviews for motherboards and they certainly know how to put a downer on things.

I prefer to have a GPU than having onboard, so rather than spend extra bucks trying to get a CPU with graphics, I would like the extra bucks to go on performance or quality of the motherboard.

Things I have read...

Asus boards should apparently be avoided?
AS Rock boards are apparently cheap versions of Asus boards?
Gigabyte bords are apparently cheap and nasty?

What about MSi boards?

I was looking at a Gigabyte GeForce 3050 6gb graphics card - if their motherboards aren't good, are the graphics cards?

Any suggestions or recommendations would be appreciated

 

[Eximo]

There are really only a few motherboard manufacturers left. They all have issues from time to time.

ASRock started as a bargain brand of ASUS, but they split off a long long time ago now. Their products are just fine. ASUS is the most recent in the news for a catastrophic mistake (backwards capacitors), but I tend to avoid them these days because they tend to cost more than the competition, and during round ups, often perform at the bottom of the pack.

My two most recent boards are ASRock, my board before that was Gigabyte, and in the past when ASUS was well regarded, almost all of my boards. Haven't had an MSI board since single core days, I often recommend them though.

4-6GB is a very low end GPU these days. RX6600 8GB is about the minimum GPU worth buying. RTX 3050 6GB is a great low power option for upgrading existing systems with small power supplies.

32GB of system memory is plenty for normal use and gaming.

750W PSU offers support for quite large GPUs, up through the mid tier cards. For an RTX 3050 6GB, as low as 550W is still overkill, but about the smallest size you can get in a desktop these days.

All that said, what are you looking to spend? Do you need peripherals?

 

[Lutfij]

Welcome to the forums, newcomer!

The stuff I have in mind so far are as follows...
GPU: 4gb or 6gb
RAM: 32gb or 64gb or 48gb
HDD: 1tb m2
PSU: 750w
You will need to clarify what the makes and models of these parts are. To add, where are you located? What is your budget for a motherboard? What is your preferred site for purchase? These are questions that have been asked of here;

*How to Ask for New Build or Upgrade Advice*

How to Ask for New Build or Upgrade Advice First off, respect where respect is due - this is an adaptation of the Animal's *How To Ask For New Build Advice* Sticky. I created this because there's a lot of posts nowadays asking for upgrade advice both on here and on the CPU forums, and I feel...

forums.tomshardware.com

and you're advised to stylize your thread with relevant info so users can provide the best advise for your build.

What sort of features are you looking for out of your motherboard purchase? Good audio, small form factor, more storage upgrade options down the road? Listing all the app's/tasks you wish to tax your proposed build with will be a great idea.

If your build doesn't draw that much power, you could get away with a 650W or lower,, reliably built PSU.

 

[Eximo]

Basic AMD build. In practice I would probably swap the Micro ATX board for an ATX one, or get a Micro ATX case if you want the computer to be smaller.

https://pcpartpicker.com/product/mP88TW/msi-pro-b650-s-wifi-atx-am5-motherboard-pro-b650-s-wifi

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 7600X 4.7 GHz 6-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Assassin X 120 Refined SE 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler ($17.89 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B650M Pro RS WiFi Micro ATX AM5 Motherboard ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Flare X5 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($95.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: TEAMGROUP MP44L 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: ASRock Challenger D Radeon RX 6600 8 GB Video Card ($189.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Zalman S2 ATX Mid Tower Case ($48.90 @ Newegg Sellers)
Power Supply: MSI MAG A650GL 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.48 @ Amazon)
Total: $827.22
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-01-29 14:35 EST-0500

 

[RM Nimbus]

Thanks for the replies

Good point about the motherboard reviews, I personally intend to stick it together and then use it, I'm not into overclocking so hopefully I won't run into any big issues

I was looking at the MSi Tomahawk B650 motherboard - the reviews for that are mostly good

The first part I'm looking to purchase is the memory but it seems that depends on which CPU I choose,

The budget will be $600 upwards, I have a few retro game consoles which I'm hoping to sell to push it towards $900,

The games I'd like to play are Football Manager and probably a Flight Simulator game, but I have a short attention span for games so after about 2 weeks the novelty will wear off and I'll go back to using it for YouTube, shopping and website design,

That ASrock Challenger GPU you pointed out looks like good value for money, this may be a silly question but do they only with AS Rock motherboards?

I'll leave the monitor till last, hoping to get the engine room sorted first

 

[Eximo]

Component brand does not matter for compatibility. All discrete GPUs, and most other components, communicate over the PCI Express standard. You can freely mix Intel, AMD, Nvidia, from various brands. The only important thing is CPU and Motherboard compatibility, that is an absolute. CPU cooler compatibility as well, though most are designed for the recent sockets.

The latest MS Flight Simulator 2024 does call for a more powerful GPU. RX6600 is about the minimum. Next class of GPU is going to add about $100, RX 7600 is only about $55 more, would gain you a little bit.

RX 6750 XT, RX 7600, RTX 4060

https://pcpartpicker.com/product/BY...deon-rx-7600-xt-8-gb-video-card-rx7600-cl-8go

https://pcpartpicker.com/product/qnGhP6/pny-verto-geforce-rtx-4060-8-gb-video-card-vcg40608dfxpb1

https://pcpartpicker.com/product/4R...eedster-qick-319-core-video-card-rx-675xyjfdp

 

[steveb1976]

most motherboard brands are good. (the hate comes from people who prefer 1 brand over another).. ideally you want to avoid and "A series" boards as the are limited with 2 ram slots and only 1 nvme, and not great for gaming.//

motherboard= b650 amd.
cpu= ryzen 5 7500f/7600/7700.
cpu cooler== 240/360 aio recommended,(but you could get away with standard type cooler)
gpu. nvidia 3060 12gb or higher. .. amd 5700xt 8gb or higher.
memory= 2x16gb ddr5 6000mts or higher (cl30 or cl32 recommended)
hard drive = 1-2tb nvme.. (or 1-2 tb ssd, if your not worried about speed)
case== user preference.

 

[RM Nimbus]

Thank you both for the suggestions,

Is CL30 the CAS? I did see some ram which says: 'CAS 30-36-36-76' would that be CL30?

 

[steveb1976]

Thank you both for the suggestions,

Is CL30 the CAS? I did see some ram which says: 'CAS 30-36-36-76' would that be CL30?

yes its the same.. CAS is often called "CAS LATENCY" = "C.L". some people also call them clock speeds.