Question I need budget gaming computer advice

[Ely519]

Hello,

I want to build a mid-range budget gaming computer that will be able to run most current games on high to ultra settings while keeping good frame rates, also, something that will be "future-proof" and that will be able to run next generation games without a problem at least in medium to high settings. I am confused about which CPU and GPU to pair together so i can get the most performance out of them without experiencing any bottleneck issues on either sides.

First option:

• Motherboard: Asus prime A320M-k
• CPU: AMD Ryzen 3 1200
• GPU: ASUS ROG STRIX RX570 8GB
• RAM: TEAMGROUP ELITE 1x8 GB DDR4 2666 MHZ
• Storage:
  • SSD: TEAM GROUP GX1 2.5 120 Go
  • HDD: Seagate Barracuda 1 To
• PSU: Cooler Master MWE Bronze 550W V2

For this option, the RX570 will work fine with the Ryzen 3 1200 producing only a 6.01% bottleneck.
Source: https://pc-builds.com/calculator/Ryzen_3_1200/Radeon_RX_570/0MR0Yl28/

However i am concerned about the processor being 3 years old and being only a quad core, will it be able to run most current games perfectly in high to ultra settings? and will it cause any performance issues for future games?

Second option:

• Motherboard: Asus prime A320M-k
• CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 1600AF
• GPU: ASUS ROG STRIX RX570 8GB
• RAM: TEAMGROUP ELITE 1x8 GB DDR4 2666 MHZ
• Storage:
  • SSD: TEAM GROUP GX1 2.5 120 Go
  • HDD: Seagate Barracuda 1 To
• PSU: Cooler Master MWE Bronze 550W V2

For this option however, the RX570 will produce a 38.66% bottleneck with the Ryzen 5 1600AF
Source: https://pc-builds.com/calculator/Ryzen_5_1600/Radeon_RX_570/0M80Yl28/

Will this be an issue? or should i go with this option and upgrade the video card in the future?

Please consider the fact that where i live we have limited hardware choice and prices are a bit expensive , this is why i considered AMD processors which are cheaper than intel, and i can't put more money for something like a GTX 1650 SUPER to pair with the Ryzen 5 1600AF for the GPU (at least not of right now)

CPUs i have available: (website in french)
http://www.sbsinformatique.com/tunisie-processeurs

GPUs i have available: (website in french)
http://www.sbsinformatique.com/tunisie-cartes-graphiques

Thank you for taking your time to read this, i am awaiting your advice about which option i should choose and about what needs to be changed.

 

[siaan312]

4 cores is fine for gaming. you said you want to future proof. for that you should first get 16 gigs of ram, or atleast think about it for the future, but more importantly
get a b450 board. its a few dollars more, yes. but its better for any future upgrades that might warrent the "future proofing" you desire.

also, there is a 1200 af just like the 1600 af. its a good deal, though that site doesnt seem to have it.
though, sometimes they are so popular the price rises and theyre to the same as the 3100.

anyway. the 1200 is fine if you want to save a buck.
but you should think about that b450 board.

 

[Ely519]

"4 cores is fine for gaming " with current and next generation consoles having 8 core processors, don't you think the purpose behind it is that some games may need more than 4 cores? not sure if the same applies to PC but logically it should.

"you should first get 16 gigs of ram" I will, it is the reason why i chose to go with a single 8GB stick instead of 2x4 since the motherboard i chose only has 2 RAM slots, temporarily sacrificing dual-channel speed for the ability to be able to add another 8GB stick in the future instead of having to buy whole new RAM sticks.

"more importantly get a b450 board. its a few dollars more, yes. but its better for any future upgrades that might warrent the "future proofing" you desire." What exactly does that motherboard have that makes it better for potential upgrades compared to the one i chose?

"there is a 1200 af just like the 1600 af" Yes i'm aware, unfortunately, as you mentionned, i wasn't able to find it.

 

[Deleted member 2720853]

For running next gen games on medium to high, 4 core 8 thread is indeed the minimum. Not all games are optimized to use cores the same, some barely use them, some use them all up.

You could wait for the B550 boards that release very soon, they are backward compatible with current gen Ryzens and will support future Ryzen 4000 processors, hence why you get more bang for your buck that way, and more futureproofing.

 

[siaan312]

For running next gen games on medium to high, 4 core 8 thread is indeed the minimum. Not all games are optimized to use cores the same, some barely use them, some use them all up.

You could wait for the B550 boards that release very soon, they are backward compatible with current gen Ryzens and will support future Ryzen 4000 processors, hence why you get more bang for your buck that way, and more futureproofing.

from leaks we've seen, b550 boards are gonna be quite expensive for a while. starting at around 80 usd or so, while you can get b450 board for much less.
also b550 wont support 1st gen and 2nd gen.
and that is correct. 4 cores is a minimum and definitely the fact that the new consoles have more cores will make games also utilize more, but for a budget rig,4 cores is fine. especially sine it has that upgrade potential with the b450 boards. (they will get 4th gen support too.) remember that b550 will probably be the end of am4, since b650 or whatever 5th gen ryzen will be on is almost certain to run ddr5 which will not be intercompatible with older boards or older chips.

"4 cores is fine for gaming " with current and next generation consoles having 8 core processors, don't you think the purpose behind it is that some games may need more than 4 cores? not sure if the same applies to PC but logically it should.

"you should first get 16 gigs of ram" I will, it is the reason why i chose to go with a single 8GB stick instead of 2x4 since the motherboard i chose only has 2 RAM slots, temporarily sacrificing dual-channel speed for the ability to be able to add another 8GB stick in the future instead of having to buy whole new RAM sticks.

"more importantly get a b450 board. its a few dollars more, yes. but its better for any future upgrades that might warrent the "future proofing" you desire." What exactly does that motherboard have that makes it better for potential upgrades compared to the one i chose?

"there is a 1200 af just like the 1600 af" Yes i'm aware, unfortunately, as you mentionned, i wasn't able to find it.

What makes it better about upgrading? we'll first of all, not even all a320 boards support 3rd gen ryzen (the one you chose does, but not all do) while all b450's do. they have usually 4 slots of ram instead of 2 for future upgrades and they are gonna get a bios update for 4th gen ryzen, while a320 is not. amd specifically said they would allow vendors to do it for b350 if they desired (though unlikely they'll put the work into it), but not a320.

 

[Ely519]

I see, i will look into the b450 motherboard.

"and that is correct. 4 cores is a minimum " so do you recommend i get the Ryzen 5 ? it's a small price difference.

 

[siaan312]

I see, i will look into the b450 motherboard.

"and that is correct. 4 cores is a minimum " so do you recommend i get the Ryzen 5 ? it's a small price difference.

Here's the thing. the r5 1600af might have 6 cores instead of the 4 that the 3100 and 3300X have, they are much slower cores, and in some games that might matter, and in others the r5 would be faster.

I'd get the r5 if its around the same or just a little more.
it would future proof a little better since going into the future games will support more cores.

 

[Ely519]

If i get the R5 will it work well with the selected GPU?

 

[siaan312]

If i get the R5 will it work well with the selected GPU?

every gpu will work with any cpu, the question is if they match and aren't bottlenecking each other, and those won't.

 

[mdd1963]

If you've not reviewed the performance of the R3-3300X relative to the 1600 and 1600AF...I'd do so before purchasing....(and you want a B450 board if at all possible, I'd pass on most A320 boards)