[SOLVED] new build - AMD 5700G or 5600G

[parsimonius]

Apologies if my post is OT for this forum group. Couldn't figure most appropriate group.

I'm thinking of building a new pc. I would like to use either the AMD Ryzen 7 5700G or the Ryzen 5 5600G because they have built-in graphics. I'd prefer not having to buy a graphics card if I don't need to do so and spend the money on other stuff. I'll be using the pc for the usual such as email, web surfing, watching YouTube, and playing older games such as RPG. I play around with VM, but not much. I don't intend to do video editing. Nor do I intend to overclock. Based on my past experience, I'll probably use the new pc for 7+ years. I would also like to upgrade my monitor to one that can display at least 2K if not 4K content.

Would the CPUs be able to handle the graphics demands of older RPG games such as the Baldur's Gate series (ca 2000) or Morrowind (TES3). What about YouTube's 4K video content? I don't know what games I might purchase in the future. One possibility might be Witcher 3. Would the graphics of that game play well using one of these CPUs? Would VM overtax the CPUs? I use Virtualbox as the VM software.

I've read some of the THG CPU analyses of the two CPUs. The 5600G is considered the winner if going for a budget gaming pc. But given that I'm also interested in playing with VM machines and watching 4K content, it's not clear to me if the 5600G is the better choice, especially for the VM. By that, I mean I'd like to open up a VM and have it fairly "fast". I read in one THG analysis mentioning PCIe-4. I couldn't figure out if that is a feature that would have benefit for what I do with my pc. Anything that speeds up the flow of games or watching video is something that sparks my interest. And considering that I'll probably keep a new pc for 7 years or more means that it may be better for me to pay more now if it extends the time I'll use a new pc. Does this affect my choice?

Thanks.
John

 

[Lutfij]

Games, you might and probably will have to reduce the resolution and details for newer titles. Older titles should be good. As for the build, if budget isn't much of a concern, you should get the Ryzen 7 5700G. If on a budget, then the Ryzen 5 since they both have the same iGPU with a minor bump in clocks but the Ryzen 7 has more cores and a higher clock speed. You're going to get PCIe 3.0 functionality across all fronts, not PCIe 4.0(when using M.2 NVMe SSD's and discrete GPU's).

 

[Eximo]

Well, buying a GPU later will always been an option, they just plug into a PCIe slot. So considering the difference in core count, and your desire for VMs the 5700G would make more sense. It has two more cores and a slightly larger GPU 7 vs 8. Also a little more cache.

You can certainly hook any display type up, but your performance may vary when it comes to 4K video playback. Depends on the bit-rate and encoding. RAW 4K probably won't go down well, but I might be surprised.

PCIe bandwidth is not strictly important outside of storage, graphics cards, and high performance networking. 4.0 just means more bandwidth is available per lane. But the 5600G and 5700G do not support PCIe 4.0. Additionally some PCIe lanes are internally connected to the onboard GPU, so you only get 8x lanes to main x16 slot.

 

[drea.drechsler]

I never got the impression either of these provided suitable GPU performance for 4k gaming. For serious gamers, these are really only a stop-gap until high-end GPU's become cost-available.

I'm aware of a couple people using 4650G's and 4750G's for their dedicated 4K HTPC and are very pleased with its performance. I'd have to think either the 5600G or 5700G will only be better.

If your needs include running VM's the 8 core in the 5700 can only help....or even be essential if doing demanding work such as development.

 

[Eximo]

Definitely not 4K gaming, 1080p renders just fine on a 4K display though.

And most of the titles listed above may run well below that.

I know my old 4K display won't go below 720p. It would do it with no scaling, so black bars top and bottom as well as either side with 640x480 or less. (It was a 60" so it was still plenty useable when I got the urge to do big screen DOS games)