[SOLVED] I am wondering what hardware I should buy to build new gaming PC?

[realghostbuster]

Hi there,

I am intending on building a new gaming PC and I'm unsure of what CPU, motherboard etc I should purchase.
I am hoping to build a PC that will last me the next 10 years approximately and will be able to handle high end games including VR games. I hope to purchase a HTC Vive at some stage in the future to use with the new PC.

What I was thinking of purchasing at the moment is the following:

Intel i5 9600K
ASUS Prime Z370-P II Motherboard
16GB 3200MHz Corsair DDR4 RAM
GTX 1050ti Graphics card

I already have a EVGA SuperNova 650 G3 PSU that I can use for the new build.

I was thinking of getting a Corsair Carbide 100R PC case show here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Corsair-CC-9011077-WW-Carbide-Mid-Tower-Computer/dp/B00RORBQSW/ref=pd_bxgy_img_2/261-9076447-4502513?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00RORBQSW&pd_rd_r=063832ef-b141-4591-99e6-fc01b428d3c4&pd_rd_w=GK16b&pd_rd_wg=Uqw10&pf_rd_p=106f838b-b7d1-46e9-83e0-f70facc857bf&pf_rd_r=24SD8WBDAKZKJ3F8TCZG&psc=1&refRID=24SD8WBDAKZKJ3F8TCZG

I'm just wondering could any one give me any advise on the hardware that I've selected based on what I want to use the PC for(VR gaming etc)?
Maybe someone might think I need a different motherboard or graphics card?

I would be grateful for any advice!

Kind regards

 

[jeremyj_83]

What is your budget for this build? If you are planning on using it for 10 years I personally would want a system with SMT.

 

[realghostbuster]

What is your budget for this build? If you are planning on using it for 10 years I personally would want a system with SMT.

My budget would be approximately 800 USD. But I can go over that amount if there's a good reason to do so. I don't really understand what SMT is. From looking online it stands for "Simultaneous multithreading" and it allows you to use 16 threads instead of 8? I think SMT is a term related to AMD's CPU's. Intel's equivalent is hyper-threading.

I've never used any AMD products before. My gut instinct is for me to continue using Intel products as I've been using a PC with an i5 2500 based system for the last 10 years and I had a good experience with it.

 

[jeremyj_83]

My budget would be approximately 800 USD. But I can go over that amount if there's a good reason to do so. I don't really understand what SMT is. From looking online it stands for "Simultaneous multithreading" and it allows you to use 16 threads instead of 8? I think SMT is a term related to AMD's CPU's. Intel's equivalent is hyper-threading.

I've never used any AMD products before. My gut instinct is for me to continue using Intel products as I've been using a PC with an i5 2500 based system for the last 10 years and I had a good experience with it.

What SMT/HT does is it allows a single core to work on 2 threads at once. This allows for better use of resources and increase in performance for things that can use extra threads. In this case the 9600K is 6c/6t whereas the entire 10th Gen are all hyper-threaded so the i5s are 6c/12t. The AMD equivalent CPUs that you can buy here in the USA are all SMT enabled as well. In all honesty you will not notice any difference between a system with an AMD CPU and an Intel CPU. The current Ryzen 3000 series gives a wonderful price/performance advantage over Intel as well. In current games when both are in stock clock configurations the 9600K and 3600/X trade blows. When it comes to productivity the Ryzen will tend to be ahead and in anything that can use more than 6c/6t the Ryzen jumps vary far ahead. https://www.anandtech.com/show/15787/amd-ryzen-5-3600-review-amazons-best-selling-cpu

Currently the 9600K is $30 more expensive than the 3600 before you include the added cost of a CPU cooler for the 9600K. The AMD CPUs come with coolers that are decent and really most people only change them out if the cooler is too loud. Whereas all K series from Intel do not come with a cooler and the non K series cooler is pathetically inadequate for any cooling.

Here are some examples of CPU, motherboard, RAM configurations for both AMD & Intel systems.
PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor ($167.00 @ Walmart)
Motherboard: ASRock B450M/AC Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($98.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory ($62.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $328.97
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-06-02 10:49 EDT-0400

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i5-9600KF 3.7 GHz 6-Core Processor ($194.99 @ B&H)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($34.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B365M Phantom Gaming 4 Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($96.95 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory ($62.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $389.92
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-06-02 11:00 EDT-0400

Intel only allows their K/KF series of CPUs to be overclocked on Z series motherboards where as if you want to overclock an AMD chip you can do it on a B or X series.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i5-9600KF 3.7 GHz 6-Core Processor ($194.99 @ B&H)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($34.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock Z390M Pro4 Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($117.51 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory ($62.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $410.48
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-06-02 11:03 EDT-0400
If you want to overclock and get the most out of the RAM.

As you can see from the price/performance perspective going with AMD is a better overall value especially with an $800ish budget.

 

[realghostbuster]

Thanks so much for the very informative reply. I've learned a lot from your answer. After doing a lot of research based on what you have stated I'm warming up to the idea of getting a Ryzen 7 3700X because it has 8 cores and 16 threads compared to the Ryzen 5 3600. The price difference between the two is about 140 Euros but I think it might be worth it years from now when more games are being released that avail of more SMT/Hyperthreading.
The Intel equivalent to the Ryzen 7 3700x is the Intel Core i7 9700K and the 3700K is 70 Euros cheaper in my country and has twice the amount of threads.

Am I correct in saying that videogames in the future will be developed in such a way that the more cores and threads that your CPU has will become more and more of an advantage when playing high-end videogames?

Also I was wondering if I purchased the 3700x and 6 years from now I wanted to upgrade it to a new AMD CPU would I have to buy a new motherboards to accommodate the new CPU?

Thanks

 

[jeremyj_83]

Thanks so much for the very informative reply. I've learned a lot from your answer. After doing a lot of research based on what you have stated I'm warming up to the idea of getting a Ryzen 7 3700X because it has 8 cores and 16 threads compared to the Ryzen 5 3600. The price difference between the two is about 140 Euros but I think it might be worth it years from now when more games are being released that avail of more SMT/Hyperthreading.
The Intel equivalent to the Ryzen 7 3700x is the Intel Core i7 9700K and the 3700K is 70 Euros cheaper in my country and has twice the amount of threads.

Am I correct in saying that videogames in the future will be developed in such a way that the more cores and threads that your CPU has will become more and more of an advantage when playing high-end videogames?

Also I was wondering if I purchased the 3700x and 6 years from now I wanted to upgrade it to a new AMD CPU would I have to buy a new motherboards to accommodate the new CPU?

Thanks

The general feeling is that once the next gen consoles are released that games will really start using more CPU threads. Both the PS5 and Xbox Series X are using an 8c/16t Zen 2 Ryzen, which will basically be a specialized version of the Ryzen 3700X. AAA titles right now can use 4-6 threads and that will probably keep increasing in the future. More threads will allow for better physics and AI. If you plan to stream and game at the same time having more threads make a huge difference as well.

Right now all we know is that the B450, X470, B550, and X570 chipsets are going to support Ryzen 4000 series. In 6 years the CPU socket will be different and the CPUs will be using DDR5 RAM instead of DDR4 so those new CPUs won't work in the current AM4 motherboards.

 

[realghostbuster]

The general feeling is that once the next gen consoles are released that games will really start using more CPU threads. Both the PS5 and Xbox Series X are using an 8c/16t Zen 2 Ryzen, which will basically be a specialized version of the Ryzen 3700X. AAA titles right now can use 4-6 threads and that will probably keep increasing in the future. More threads will allow for better physics and AI. If you plan to stream and game at the same time having more threads make a huge difference as well.

Right now all we know is that the B450, X470, B550, and X570 chipsets are going to support Ryzen 4000 series. In 6 years the CPU socket will be different and the CPUs will be using DDR5 RAM instead of DDR4 so those new CPUs won't work in the current AM4 motherboards.

I'm just trying to understand your last paragraph. Are you saying the that the four chipsets that you have mentioned are compatible with the Ryzen 3700x and the CPU's that are part of the new Ryzen 4000 series?

Could I ask your opinion on what kind of chipset I should select when choosing a motherboard for the Ryzen 3700x?
I have come across this one on Amazon and I was wondering do you think that it would be suitable for my purposes?: https://www.amazon.co.uk/ASUS-Gamin...ywords=ASUS+X570-E&qid=1591210651&sr=8-1&th=1

 

[jeremyj_83]

I'm just trying to understand your last paragraph. Are you saying the that the four chipsets that you have mentioned are compatible with the Ryzen 3700x and the CPU's that are part of the new Ryzen 4000 series?

Could I ask your opinion on what kind of chipset I should select when choosing a motherboard for the Ryzen 3700x?
I have come across this one on Amazon and I was wondering do you think that it would be suitable for my purposes?: https://www.amazon.co.uk/ASUS-Gaming-X570-Plus-Motherboard-Socket/dp/B07TNSYXXV/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=ASUS+X570-E&qid=1591210651&sr=8-1&th=1

All 4 of those chipsets will work with the current Ryzen 3000 series & when available Ryzen 4000 series with a BIOS update. Note that some B450 & X470 motherboards still need a BIOS update before they will work with the 3000 series.

That X570 is good. For reference here are the recommendations from Tomshardware for the AMD motherboards. https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-motherboards,3984-2.html