Question New CPU/Mobo/RAM Gaming (Compatibility Advice)

[airwalkrr]

I'm looking to update my CPU/Mobo/RAM to take advantage of sales and updagre to Windows 11 since support for Windows 10 is ending. I mainly game, but I'm not looking for a performance boost, just some future proofing and headroom to upgrade video card when there are decent sales or my current card can't cut it anymore. Compared the 14900K to the 9950X and 14900K just seems better in price and performance. Did I miss anything? Any good sales I overlooked? Specs say the cooler fits the form factor, but PCPartPicker says I might need an adapter; is this correct? If so, where do I get an adapter or would it be better to just get a new cooler? (Old cooler still keeps things about 40 C.)

Thank you so much for taking the time to look and help!

Approximate Purchase Date: this week

Budget Range: $800 USD before tax for CPU/Mobo/RAM (not including Windows 11)

System Usage from Most to Least Important: gaming, blu-ray

Are you buying a monitor: No

Parts to Upgrade: CPU/Mobo/RAM

Do you need to buy OS: No

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg, Amazon, B&H

Location: Texas

Parts Preferences: Intel or AMD with slight preference for Intel

Overclocking: Yes

Multiple GPUs: No

Your Monitor Resolution: up to 4K

Additional Comments: Clair Obscur and Baldur's Gate 3 are the most graphically demanding games I play, but I'm not expecting a graphics update with this upgrade

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: Free Windows security updates are ending in October and I'd like to take advantage of current sales.

PC Part Picker
TO BUY
Intel Core i9-14900K 3.2 GHz 24-Core Processor $364.00 Amazon
Asus Z790 GAMING WIFI7 ATX LGA1700 Motherboard $159.99 Newegg
G.Skill Flare X5 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL36 Memory $83.99 Amazon

ALREADY HAVE
Crucial P3 Plus 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive
Noctua NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler
ASRock Radeon RX6700XT CLD 12G Radeon RX 6700 XT 12 GB Video Card
Phanteks Enthoo Pro ATX Full Tower Case (I know the front USB isn't USB5, and I don't care.)

 

[Why_Me]

DDR5-6000 CL30 > DDR5-6000 CL36

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: *AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor ($369.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: *MSI B850 GAMING PLUS WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard ($169.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: *TEAMGROUP T-Create Expert 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($86.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $626.97
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-07-09 13:00 EDT-0400

 

[airwalkrr]

Thank you for the catch on the CL30. I completely overlooked it.

I can't believe I overlooked the 7800X3D. That's a superb choice. AMD has really come a long way in the last decade. Thank you!

 

[artk2219]

I'm looking to update my CPU/Mobo/RAM to take advantage of sales and updagre to Windows 11 since support for Windows 10 is ending. I mainly game, but I'm not looking for a performance boost, just some future proofing and headroom to upgrade video card when there are decent sales or my current card can't cut it anymore. Compared the 14900K to the 9950X and 14900K just seems better in price and performance. Did I miss anything? Any good sales I overlooked? Specs say the cooler fits the form factor, but PCPartPicker says I might need an adapter; is this correct? If so, where do I get an adapter or would it be better to just get a new cooler? (Old cooler still keeps things about 40 C.)

Thank you so much for taking the time to look and help!

Approximate Purchase Date: this week

Budget Range: $800 USD before tax for CPU/Mobo/RAM (not including Windows 11)

System Usage from Most to Least Important: gaming, blu-ray

Are you buying a monitor: No

Parts to Upgrade: CPU/Mobo/RAM

Do you need to buy OS: No

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg, Amazon, B&H

Location: Texas

Parts Preferences: Intel or AMD with slight preference for Intel

Overclocking: Yes

Multiple GPUs: No

Your Monitor Resolution: up to 4K

Additional Comments: Clair Obscur and Baldur's Gate 3 are the most graphically demanding games I play, but I'm not expecting a graphics update with this upgrade

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: Free Windows security updates are ending in October and I'd like to take advantage of current sales.

PC Part Picker
TO BUY
Intel Core i9-14900K 3.2 GHz 24-Core Processor $364.00 Amazon
Asus Z790 GAMING WIFI7 ATX LGA1700 Motherboard $159.99 Newegg
G.Skill Flare X5 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL36 Memory $83.99 Amazon

ALREADY HAVE
Crucial P3 Plus 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive
Noctua NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler
ASRock Radeon RX6700XT CLD 12G Radeon RX 6700 XT 12 GB Video Card
Phanteks Enthoo Pro ATX Full Tower Case (I know the front USB isn't USB5, and I don't care.)

If youre looking for future proofing AM5 is the better bet as it will be supported until 2027 or so, LGA 1700 is already EOL. The 7800X3D setup why_me recommended should last you for a while, and then you would have an upgrade path in the future if you needed more performance.