[SOLVED] How to determine for myself if core system is too outdated.

[Rasphar]

I couldn't find this elsehwere, so if this is addressed in another thread, please redirect me. Basically, I enjoy DIY and researching, but I'm having trouble with determing if my build (built in ~ 01/2015) is too outdated for my needs or if there is just a weak link I can upgrade. I love to learn about these things, so I'm here for tips and ideas on decision making. I like gaming with my Discord buddies I'm perfectly happy if I can run a smooth game (PUBG, MMO's, RTS's) on HIGH settings (1080p, 60Hz, 30-60 fps) rather than the ULTRA settings. Here is the build:

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5 GHz 6-Core Processor
MOBO: Asus M5A99X EVO R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16 GB (4 x 4 GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Storage: Seagate Barracuda Compute 2 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive <--- (Recently upgraded to this, with Win10 fresh install)
GPU: XFX Radeon R9 270X 2 GB
PSU: Rosewill 600 W Semi-modular ATX Power Supply

I'm looking into this because lately games have had a slower than normal start up and level loading and anything higher than MEDIUM settings start to cause intermittent freezes then catching up (is the correct term "rubber banding"?). Using the Radeon monitoring overlay during games, everything hovers just under 50% and none of the usage goes over ~75% at highest. I've never messed around with overclocking or BIOS stuff past inital installs. I've tried researching and understanding read/write speeds, transfer speeds, bus protocols, to try and determine if there is a single component or two that can be upgraded or if I've gotten my money's worth and need to invest in a whole new rig. What thought process should I have? What is order of precedence in these matters? Any tips, advice, and tricks and general rules of thumb would be greatly appreciated. I look forward to learning something new here.

 

[Obakasama]

When does a system become outdated for your needs? The boring answer is when it no longer performs the way you want it to for the tasks you use it for.

That said, a new core upgrade of CPU, motherboard and RAM would be quite a difference.

 

[ScrewySqrl]

Its definitely an aging system. the FX6300 is basically a decade old now. the 270X is of similar age (6 or 7 years). Its definitely time to upgrade.

What sort of Budget can you dedicate to a new machine (you can keep that new seagate drive as well)

 

[Rasphar]

Hmmm, my budget is solely dependent on how many weeks I save... But I was estimating about $1200 for tower and guts, peripherals separate. And if the majority opinion is "core upgrades" of multiple items, I see that as "she's old, time to retire".

Edit: What traits make it "old" besides the age? What has changes between 5 years ago and today where the system seems to be performing slower than it did? Degradation of circuits? Drivers not being good enough? Higher demand of software and games today?

 

[Obakasama]

Higher demand of software is the main factor. But even then it depends on what demands it is making of the hardware.

Modern games are starting to see better utilisation of multiple cores/threads. For those games which still heavily depend on clockspeed (really IPC), then there are increases since those FX CPUs. But if, for example, you only play retro games from before that hardware's time then those limitations may not apply.

Seeing you have fresh installed Windows then it would appear to rule out bloat from years of use.

 

[ss202sl]

If it does what you need at the performance level you're happy with, then there is no need to upgrade.

 

[Rasphar]

If it does what you need at the performance level you're happy with, then there is no need to upgrade.

Oh, I meant to clarify, the system USED to do everything I ever pushed on it, but there have been major issues in recent months where it acts as if it's "bogged down" during gaming sessions, or even multitab browsing, but key components don't show high utilization. I spoke in a tone of simple needs just to relay the fact that I'm not aspiring for a multi-screen, HD-streaming, God-tier, gaming super machine like some people aim for.

But you're right, I wouldn't be diving into this if the system hadn't shown continuous symptoms of, for lack of better terms, 'old age'. lol

 

[ScrewySqrl]

if you never reinstalled windows in that 5 years, it could just be all the cruft that windows builds up over the years slowing things down. Could be the HDD is starting to fail with some bad sectors here and there. LAck of Driver updates can also affect it, and yes, system demands are probably higher on newer programs.

$1200 is enough for significant upgrades though. Enough to just call it a new PC

 

[Rasphar]

Higher demand of software is the main factor. But even then it depends on what demands it is making of the hardware.

Modern games are starting to see better utilisation of multiple cores/threads. For those games which still heavily depend on clockspeed (really IPC), then there are increases since those FX CPUs. But if, for example, you only play retro games from before that hardware's time then those limitations may not apply.

Seeing you have fresh installed Windows then it would appear to rule out bloat from years of use.

This is helpful knowledge. I do like to dive into new games every couple months or so, and it would make sense, if I understand correctly, that the demands are not only greater, but have shifted from when my hardware was first built.

 

[ScrewySqrl]

heres a $1200 PC:

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 3700X 3.6 GHz 8-Core Processor ($299.63 @ Walmart)
Motherboard: ASRock X570 Phantom Gaming 4 ATX AM4 Motherboard ($143.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Patriot Viper Steel 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3733 Memory ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Crucial P1 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($99.99 @ B&H)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda Compute 2 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($53.98 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI Radeon RX 5700 XT 8 GB EVOKE OC Video Card ($334.99 @ B&H)
Case: Rosewill CHALLENGER S ATX Mid Tower Case ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Antec NeoECO Gold ZEN 600 W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1147.55
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-03-03 16:10 EST-0500

 

[Rasphar]

heres a $1200 PC:

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 3700X 3.6 GHz 8-Core Processor ($299.63 @ Walmart)
Motherboard: ASRock X570 Phantom Gaming 4 ATX AM4 Motherboard ($143.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Patriot Viper Steel 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3733 Memory ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Crucial P1 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($99.99 @ B&H)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda Compute 2 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($53.98 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI Radeon RX 5700 XT 8 GB EVOKE OC Video Card ($334.99 @ B&H)
Case: Rosewill CHALLENGER S ATX Mid Tower Case ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Antec NeoECO Gold ZEN 600 W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1147.55
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-03-03 16:10 EST-0500

This looks solid. I'm saving this build as my goal as of right now. I originally was looking at Gigabyte mobos and a r5 3600... You think the r7 performance is worth the money? Or is it a longevity strategy for future demands?

 

[Obakasama]

Likely longevity.

With Ryzen 3000 series CPUs, AMD have reached IPC parity with Intel (some even suggest they've surpassed Intel) so software which favoured Intel's IPC advantage no longer benchmarked as well as previously. The actual clockspeed is still lower than Intel's though, so on a practical level Intel still has an advantage there.

That said, the new consoles are going with 8 cores. If game development continues the way we would hope/expect then an 8 core/16 thread CPU is better for scaling than a 6 core/12 thread. That's my speculation though.

Whether a 3700X is worth the price over a 3600 will depend on the demands of the software, and how long the system will be used for. So there is an element of 'future proofing' in play. Given what I could see on PCPartPicker it is quite a substantial price difference with the 3600 being $175, and the 3600X at $215.

 

[ScrewySqrl]

yes, I think an 8 core is going to be more viable as a gaming PC going forward.