Build Advice Can you help me with how to upgrade this build?

[tonoman]

Hello community,

since i would call myself a newbie at building PCs, i am here to reach for a help. My wife plays games ranging from -+ 2005 up to the most recent ones (Hogwarts Legacy for example). The newer titles are high demanding on CPU, not only during gameplay but loading screens (or booting the game up) as well.

My wife's current PC setup is:

CPU: AMD FX-8320E non-stock cooler with 1x90mm fan
GPU: AMD Radeon 5700XT BE Sapphire Nitro
PSU: EVGA SuperNOVA 550 GT (Plus Gold)
RAM: HyperX Savage 4x8GB DDR3 (1600MHz i believe)
Motherboard: MSI 970 gaming
Storage: 1x 240GB Sandisk SSD, 1x Verbatim Vi550 S3 256GB SSD, 1x WD Red 1TB
Case: Lian Li LANCOOL II with 4x 120mm fans
OS: W10 latest
Monitor: Asus TUF Gaming VG27AQ, QHD 144Hz

Budget: up to 300$

Upgrade goal: CPU + motherboard + RAM memory

Some factors to be considered:
- CPU not to be an overkill for the GPU (but sufficient for future GPU upgrade - performance of RTX3070 or something similar)
- Windows 11 compatible (not necessary if older games wouldn't run)
- 32GB RAM ideally - 16GB seems not enough recently
- Compatible with older games (such as The Sims 2)
- Keep current PSU

Screen resolution is 2K, but my wifey doesn't care about FPS unless it drops below 20. And the motherboard should to have the new ssd slot (not only SATA) - it is called M2 i believe (which i am able to obtain for free).

I am kinda lost and don't know whether 300 bucks would be enough or the better option is to wait and save little more money.

Can anybody give me an insight into what would be the most preferable way to solve this situation?

Thank you so much for any advice!

 

[dark_globe]

300 bucks is not enough , unless you are wiling to buy second hand parts .
for this to make sense you need at least ryzen 5600 (bare minimum -
good enough for current video card (or slightly more powerful cards)
but not good enough for 4xxx nvidia series or radeon 79xx )

or better ryzen 5700x / intel i5 13400f/i5 13500 + 2x16gb of ddr4 memory and a
decent motherboard B550 - AM4/B760-LGA1700 (intel)

ideally you want to go AM5 , because both AM4 and LGA1700 are basically dead platforms already .
and for AM5 you would need at least 500-600 -
ryzen 7600 + B650 motherboard + 2x16gb of DDR5 memory 6000MHz cl32 or better .
(and also new NVMe drive (preferably 2tb , but at least 1tb) )

 

[Math Geek]

it's cutting it close but you can do it for roughly $300

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 5600 3.5 GHz 6-Core Processor ($141.00 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B550M Phantom Gaming 4 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3600 CL18 Memory ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $300.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-04-14 09:12 EDT-0400

for about $25 more you can bump up to a 5700x for the extra 2 cores.

the 5700x does not come with a cooler so you'll also need to factor in another $30-40 for a cooler for it on the low end.

 

[geofelt]

The FX-8320E has abysmal single thread performance, and that is what games need most.
Run the CPU-Z bench and look at your single thread performance rating.
It should be about 218:

CPU-Z Benchmark for AMD FX-8320E (1T) - CPU-Z VALIDATOR

Best CPU performance - 64-bit - April 2024

valid.x86.fr

A $101 i3-12100 will rate about 647.

https://www.newegg.com/intel-core-i3-12100-core-i3-12th-gen/p/N82E16819118370?Item=9SIBJW3JMN7179&quicklink=true

It comes with an adequate cooler.
12100 despite the same 8 threads is about 2x as capable in fully loaded batch apps.
Here is a review:

Intel Core i3-12100 Review: The Little Gaming Giant

Lowly quad-core serves up big gaming performance.

www.tomshardware.com

Of course one could go better but on a budget, it is a good upgrade.
You will need a lga1700 motherboard.
I would not buy the lowest H110 chipset, but B660 motherboards will still be <$100.
For example, an ASrock B660m:

https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16813162048?Item=N82E16813162048&quicklink=true

There is no difference in performance between DDR4 and DDR5.
A 2 x 16gb DDR4 g.skil ram kit can cost $65

https://www.newegg.com/g-skill-32gb-288-pin-ddr4-sdram/p/N82E16820232885?Item=N82E16820232885

Intel, unlike ryzen, is not dependent on fast ram for performance.
3200 speed is fine.

 

[Math Geek]

the 12100 is a good budget choice with the 12400 being a good bang for the buck buy as well. similar mobo and ram would keep the price around the same $300

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i5-12400F 2.5 GHz 6-Core Processor ($159.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B660M-HDV Micro ATX LGA1700 Motherboard ($84.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Aegis 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory ($63.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $308.97
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-04-14 10:41 EDT-0400

the 12100 is about $25 less if you want to save that bit and it would have the built in graphics the 12400f does not have but you do lose 2 cores in exchange

 

[ohio_buckeye]

300 actually isn't as bad as you think. Do you have a microcenter nearby if you are in the USA? If so here's what I'd likely get for 300.

AMD Ryzen 5 5600X, ASUS Prime B450M-A II, CPU / Motherboard Combo - Micro Center

Get it now! Find over 30,000 products at your local Micro Center, including the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X, ASUS Prime B450M-A II, CPU / Motherboard Combo

www.microcenter.com

TeamGroup T-FORCE VULCAN Z 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3600 PC4-28800 CL18 Dual Channel Desktop Memory Kit TLZGD416G3600HC - Gray - Micro Center

Get it now! Designed for complete protection and enhanced heat dissipation, the heat spreader is formed by punch press process with a 0.8mm thick, one-piece alloy aluminum to reinforce the body structure.

www.microcenter.com

That combo should put you just over 250-260. Maybe a higher wattage psu wouldn't be a bad idea, but your current one theoretically should still handle it I would think.

Or if you want 32gb, this should do it.

https://www.microcenter.com/product/627011/teamgroup-t-force-vulcan-z-32gb-(2-x-16gb)-ddr4-3600-pc4-28800-cl18-dual-channel-desktop-memory-kit-tlzgd432g3600hc-gray

 

[ohio_buckeye]

The 12400 might be a better option than what I posted though. You’ve got good options.