Question Seeking advice on selecting AMD CPU

[satimis_06]

Hi all,

What will be the difference in performance for my use on following AMD CPUs;
1)
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X Processor 12C 24T 76M Cache, up to 5.6GHz, Socket AM5

and

2)
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X Processor 16C 32T 80M Cache, up to 5.7GHz, Socket AM5

I'm prepared to build a new desktop PC with 64G RAM and 4K display card using for;

Graphic Editing

and

Virtualization (VirtualBox)
with 40 cloned websites running, duplicated on the live websites running on Internet. The 40 cloned websites are not open to public,

Which AMD CPU shall I selected.

Is there any other suggestion ?

Thanks in advance

Regards

 

[Aeacus]

Probably the most flexible would be:

Main PC:

• new 2TB NVMe SSD
• new GPU (better than GTX 1650 Super)
• new PSU (to go alongside new GPU)
• new monitor (if you need it)

Second PC:

• install GTX 1650 Super
• install good quality 550W PSU

Now, i know that you've tested CX550m and it works, but i, personally, wouldn't use it. Like i said above, CXm, at best, is mediocre quality unit. And while it can be used just fine for an office PC that never sees any high loads, but for home use in a gaming/workstation PC, where PC longevity is important factor, i'd use and also suggest using better quality PSU.

Different persons have different standards (some have higher standards while others have lower standards) and it's up to every person to decide how good of a build quality components are safe to use in their PC. But keep in mind that PSU is the most important component inside the PC since it powers everything.

Since i care a lot about all my PCs, i won't put a mediocre quality unit into my PC. In fact, i've gone above and beyond regarding PSUs in my PCs.
Some may call me nuts that i payed €206.80 for a PSU that sits in my Skylake build (Seasonic SSR-650TD) and my latest PSU purchase for Haswell build costed €205.50 (Seasonic SSR-650TR), while i would've been safe with a PSU that costs €80.50 (Seasonic GX-550). While that can be true and i could've saved a lot of money, i feel safe and comfortable that my two main PCs are powered by the best offered by Seasonic.

I won't suggest expensive PSUs in builds when the budget is way restricted. But i still suggest getting a PSU that at least meets all the ATX PSU standards, even if it's fully wired (like Seasonic SS-520GB or Seasonic GC-550). Also good PSU to go for is Seasonic SSR-550PX, which powers my AMD build and costed me €101.50 at the time of purchase.

 

[satimis_06]

Hi Aeacus,

Thanks for your advice.

I'll come back after finishing my test on gimbals.

First I'll test the available MSI 4K graphic card and psu on my daily PC with a new 2TB pcie gen 3 nvme SSD installed.

If it can't satisfy my work then I'll build a new PC
If it can satisfy my work I'll proceed on your suggestion.

Thanks

Regards

 

[satimis_06]

Hi Aeacus,

I'll purchase;
ADATA 2TB XPG SPECTRIX S40G RGB M.2 2280 AS40G-2TT-C PCIe Gen3 x4 NVMe 1.3 SSD

My Asus PRIME X570-P Motherboard provides with 2 M2(SOCKET3).

Please refer to;
1.1.2 Motherboard layout
P16/80
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/lit_files/589696.pdf

Unfortunately I can't upload the drawing here

Comment and/or suggestion would be appreciated.

Thanks

Regards

Edit
====
Furthermore;
Can PCIe Gen4 x4 package works on M2(SOCKET3) for PCIe Gen3 x4 package , disregarding slower in speed?

 

[Aeacus]

I'll purchase;
ADATA 2TB XPG SPECTRIX S40G RGB M.2 2280 AS40G-2TT-C PCIe Gen3 x4 NVMe 1.3 SSD

When it comes to M.2 NVMe SSDs, Samsung is best. WD (Western Digital) is also good, while the rest is best avoided.

Samsung is king in SSDs, both SATA and M.2. Sure, they may cost a bit more but there are no other to the reliability and performance to Samsung drives.
WD drives aren't as good as Samsung, but still solid.
And all others, either fall short on reliability, performance or both.

For example, here's review of the Adata drive you plan to buy,
link: https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/adata-xpg-spectrix-s40g-m2-nvme-ssd

It falls short on performance aspect.
And why would you want RGB on it?

For comparison, here's the review of my Samsung 970 Evo Plus (2TB) M.2 NVMe SSD, that i have as an OS drive,
link: https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/samsung-970-evo-plus-ssd,5608.html

Sure, 970 Evo Plus doesn't have RGB on it, instead it has reliability and performance. Then again, SSD is meant to have good performance and reliability. But if you want eyecandy, better buy LED strips for your PC.

My Asus PRIME X570-P Motherboard provides with 2 M2(SOCKET3).

Please refer to;
1.1.2 Motherboard layout
P16/80
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/lit_files/589696.pdf

Unfortunately I can't upload the drawing here

Comment and/or suggestion would be appreciated.

You have 2x M.2 SSD slots, upper one is PCI-E 3.0 (due to your CPU) and lower one is PCI-E 4.0 (due to MoBo chipset). So, if you get PCI-E 4.0 SSD, better to install it into lower slot.
MoBo specs: https://www.asus.com/motherboards-components/motherboards/prime/prime-x570-p/techspec/

Can PCIe Gen4 x4 package works on M2(SOCKET3) for PCIe Gen3 x4 package , disregarding slower in speed?

Yes, it can.

 

[satimis_06]

Hi Aeacus.

Thanks for your advice.

I have purchased a Samsung 2TB 970 EVO Plus M.2 2280 MZ-V7S2TOBW PCIE GEN 3.0X4 NVMe 1.3 SSD. I shall install Ubuntu 22.04 desktop on it.

Steps to be performed;
1) Copy "VirtualBox VM" on 1TB SSD, including all folders and sub-folders, to the 4TB storage drive on this PC
2) Copy all files on Documents, Downloads, Music, Pictures and Video folders on 1TB SSD to 4TB storage drive
3) Remove the old 1TB PCIE GEN 3.0X4 NVMe 1.3 SSD and install the new 2TB 970 EVO Plus M.2 2280 MZ-V7S2TOBW PCIE GEN 3.0X4 NVMe 1.3 SSD on the PC
4) Install MSI GeForce GTX 1650 Super Gaming X graphic card
5) Replace the old PSU with Corsair CX550M PSU
6) Install Ubuntu 22.04 desktop and other daily use software on the 2TB SSD
7) Install VirtualBox on 2TB SSD
8) Copy "VirtualBox VM" folder on the 4TB storage drive to HOME on the 2TB SSD
9) Copy all files on Documents, Downloads, Music, Pictures and Video folders on 4TB storage drive to 2TB SSD
10) Install VMs on .vdi images on "VirtualBox VM" folder

Did I miss anything? Please advise. Thanks

Regards

On DropBox
screenshot_folders_on_VirtualBox_VM
https://www.dropbox.com/s/t9iitj2g60gndys/screenshot_folders_on_VirtualBox_VM.png?dl=0

 

[Aeacus]

Since you're going with fresh Ubuntu, this guide here is good and simple:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7SLkFSv-SI

It is also the best way to ensure that you accidentally don't install Ubuntu to any of your existing drives, since you'll be disconnecting all other drives prior to installation of Ubuntu.

After you've installed Ubuntu and can boot fine to OS, then plug back your other drives, make sure Ubuntu drive is #1 in boot priority (as seen in the end of the video) and then start all the copy/paste that you need.

Btw, with Virtualbox VM, you might need to install the emulator fresh, but you could copy/paste the user data over, so that you may not need to set it up all again.

 

[Karadjgne]

Reason why i suggested Intel CPUs is due to the iGPU in them, which is a great redundancy.

The Ryzen 7000 series also has an igpu.

Most ppl don't cpu render, they gpu render, especially if they have 40 web pages open.

Just saying. 😅

 

[satimis_06]

It is also the best way to ensure that you accidentally don't install Ubuntu to any of your existing drives, since you'll be disconnecting all other drives prior to installation of Ubuntu.

After you've installed Ubuntu and can boot fine to OS, then plug back your other drives, make sure Ubuntu drive is #1 in boot priority (as seen in the end of the video) and then start all the copy/paste that you need.

Thanks for your reminder.

I have other drives on this PC. It is my practice to disconnect them before installing OS on a new drive. Although "sudo fdisk -l" can find the path to the new drive, it is for safety measure.

Btw, with Virtualbox VM, you might need to install the emulator fresh, but you could copy/paste the user data over, so that you may not need to set it up all again.

Yes, I'll install new VirtualBox Manager

It'll take me sometime to complete all steps. I'm now searching on Internet to find a more easy way. Whether I can clone/duplicate the old 1TB SSD on the new 2TB SSD ? It'll save me lot of time. The only disadvantage is the OS. Ubuntu 22.04, is not freshly installed on the new 2TB SSD

Regards

 

[satimis_06]

The Ryzen 7000 series also has an igpu.

Most ppl don't cpu render, they gpu render, especially if they have 40 web pages open.

Just saying. 😅

Hi Karadjgne,

Thanks for your advice

Regards

 

[Aeacus]

It'll take me sometime to complete all steps. I'm now searching on Internet to find a more easy way. Whether I can clone/duplicate the old 1TB SSD on the new 2TB SSD ? It'll save me lot of time. The only disadvantage is the OS. Ubuntu 22.04, is not freshly installed on the new 2TB SSD

Samsung Data Migration tool is the one that clones your OS drive to new Samsung drive and makes it bootable as well. This is easiest. Sadly, it only works in Windows and also requires Samsung NVMe Driver as a prerequisite.

Though, there are other cloning programs as well, like Macrium Reflect and Acronis True Image.

Macrium Reflect works only in Win and doesn't support GNU/Linux distros. Looked around a bit and Clonezilla Live seems to be like Macrium Reflect, but for GNU/Linux. Though, using Clonezilla Live has same steps as installing GNU/Linux straight, by using bootable USB thumb drive. And it doesn't seem that easy to use either,
link: https://clonezilla.org/clonezilla-live.php

Acronis True Image doesn't care about the OS, but it isn't free. I got my Acronis True Image when i bought my Kingston SSD. It was bundled with it and comes on a bootable CD. And when you don't have CD/DVD drive (most people nowadays don't, while i still have it), then it will be useless.

For other options for GNU/Linux, besides Clonezilla Live,
further reading: https://www.tecmint.com/linux-disk-cloning-tools/

All-in-all, easiest for you is to use the video guide i linked above.

Most ppl don't cpu render, they gpu render, especially if they have 40 web pages open.

With render, most folks yes, use GPU render since it's far faster than CPU render. But it is also error prone.
Though, with render, best to use GPU render for previews/mid render and do final render with CPU.

 

[Karadjgne]

With render, most folks yes, use GPU render since it's far faster than CPU render. But it is also error prone.
Though, with render, best to use GPU render for previews/mid render and do final render with CPU.

I have no doubts about that. However, that's a more professional and educated approach by ppl looking for best quality, flawless renders. Which is very minimal. Most ppl nowadays are backyard you-tubers and tik-tokrs, aren't shooting in 4k, aren't using H265, and are just looking for 480/720p quickness, or at best 1080p for wider market use.

So I guess much is going to depend on the level of expertise of the renderer and the expected results.

 

[satimis_06]

Hi Aeacus,

I'm running both Windows and Linux systems. I have Windows 11 running on this PC.

The video shows new installation. Usually I do it this way to install OS on a new drive. But after finish still I have to copy all data listed on #30 above to the new 2TB SSD and re-install all VMs. It'll take me sometimes to complete.

What I'm looking for is to clone/duplicate an old drive onto a new drive. I have done that before, long time ago. It worked for me. Unfortunately I forgot the steps.

On Internet searching I found following link;
How to Clone Your Linux Hard Drive: 4 Methods

How to Clone Your Linux Hard Drive: 5 Methods

Need to clone your Linux hard disk drive or partition? Use one of these drive cloning tools to clone your Linux disk.

www.makeuseof.com

Running dd command on Linux(Ubuntu 22.04 here) Terminal is the easiest way. I'll go through the link first making sure it won't demage the old 1TB SSD before doing it. OR copy all data as listed on #30 abvoe first before starting my adventure.

Regards

 

[Aeacus]

I'm running both Windows and Linux systems. I have Windows 11 running on this PC.

If you want to clone your Win11, then Samsung Data Migration Tool is the best for it.
Download and guide: https://semiconductor.samsung.com/consumer-storage/support/tools/

This doesn't clone your GNU/Linux. For GNU/Linux clone, use the method you found.

 

[satimis_06]

Hi Aeacus,

I have finished cloning the system on 1TB disc to 2TB disc. None of the methods suggested worked for me seamlessly, 100% perfect. After finishing cloning there are lots of work to make the new system working without problem.

My conclusion;
There is no easy way upgrade the hard drive from 1TB to 2TB . It is best to do a clean installation on the new 2TB

I'm now preparing building a new AMD Ryzen 7950/7900 PC. I'll wait a while because now the motherboard is quite expensive. There is no urgency for me.

I'll start a now post later

Regards

 

[Aeacus]

It is best to do a clean installation on the new 2TB

This is what i suggested to you from the get-go.

Install fresh OS (easy and simple to do) and then copy/paste your data over (also easy and simple to do). Only real labor would be installing all the programs back, one-by-one and setting them up as they were.

If you would be Win user, then Samsung Data Migration tool would've been the best, since it clones the OS from source drive to new drive, while also making it bootable.

 

[satimis_06]

This is what i suggested to you from the get-go.

Install fresh OS (easy and simple to do) and then copy/paste your data over (also easy and simple to do). Only real labor would be installing all the programs back, one-by-one and setting them up as they were.

If you would be Win user, then Samsung Data Migration tool would've been the best, since it clones the OS from source drive to new drive, while also making it bootable.

The most time which I spent is to re-create all cloned websites on VM of VirturalBox. I have 38 websites running locally which are cloned on live sites running on Internet. They are not open to public. If I can successfully upgrade the hard drive from 1TB to 2 TB, It would save me lot of time.

 

[satimis_06]

Hi Aeacus,

This is a furtherance to my previous post #39.

Now this is a fresh and clean installation of Ubuntu 22.04 desktop on the 2TB NVME SSD, running as Host of Oracle VirtualBox. Also I install the latest version of VirtualBox Manager

Then I re-created all VMs (Ubuntu and Windows) on their VM images (.vdi). I have WordPress websites (about 38) installed on VMs. They are the cloned copies of the Live websites running on Internet. They are not open to public

They are Ubuntu 20.04 VMs. After upgrading Ubuntu 20.04 to 22.04 all websites can't be browsed on local network. I think the best way is creating Ubuntu 22.04 VMs, install LAMP server on them and then build cloned copies of all local websites on Duplicator packages download on the Internet websites. There is no easy way. (I'll do it on the new PC)

Then I add MSI GeForce GTX 1650 Super Gaming X graphic card on the PC. I can select the Refresh Rate=60 HZ. There is no problem on the Host. The colour seems the same as running graphic on the AMD CPU in the PC.

However another problem starts. I can't start all Linux VMs, aborted automatically after login. Windows VM can login and work but the screen resolution is 1600 x 1200 max.

This PC is connected to a 32" 4K Dell Display.

That is the present situation. I won't put further effort on this PC. I would remove the MSI GeForce GTX 1650 Super Gaming X graphic card and use this PC until I build a new PC.

Regards

 

[Aeacus]

However another problem starts. I can't start all Linux VMs, aborted automatically after login. Windows VM can login and work but the screen resolution is 1600 x 1200 max.

This is above my paygrade since i don't use GNU/Linux on daily basis and i haven't used VMs at all. I'm specialized on hardware and it's issues.

But if you need further assistance, you can always make a new topic in Open Source subforum: https://forums.tomshardware.com/forums/open-source.22/

 

[satimis_06]

This is above my paygrade since i don't use GNU/Linux on daily basis and i haven't used VMs at all. I'm specialized on hardware and it's issues.

But if you need further assistance, you can always make a new topic in Open Source subforum: https://forums.tomshardware.com/forums/open-source.22/

I figured out the problem of Linux VMs aborting after login. It is because the 4K MSI graphic card doesn't support 3D acceleration. Before adding the 4K MSI graphic card the graphic comes from AMD CPU. AMD CPU graphic supports 3D acceleration. The only disadvantage is the Refresh Rate unable to set 60HZ, maximum 30HZ. There is no color improvement on MSI graphic card. To run 3D acceleration on MSI graphic card, I need to install a specific driver.

Still I couldn't solve the problem of Win 10 VM unable to set 4K resolution. I'll post it on your link. Thanks

I'll test building my own Linux OS, Linux From Scratch (LFS), on the new PC. I have done it once on a single core AMD PC, more than 10 years ago. It took me 5 days and nights continuously to finish building its core. After finish there was only one Text Editor to use and then I have to continue installing other applications such browser, office etc.

I do hope that on an AMD Ryzen 9 16-core 7950X CPU PC it would take much less time. The advantage of LFS is that it is a light-weight Linux OS. You won't have other applications of the Linux OS, download on Internet, which you won't use in your life time. Besides it won't be easy to be hacked. Hackers don't know how you build and configure the core.

Regards