[SOLVED] Should I Upgrade my ITX Build or Change to Micro-ATX?

[Tomytoby]

About 3 years ago, I received a mini-ITX build in a trade, which consists of: -ASRock Z270M ITX mobo, Gigabyte RX 480 G1 4gb, i5 6402p, EVGA 500BR PSU, Thermaltake Core P1 mini-ITX case, Cryorig H7 cooler.

However, I wanted to upgrade the PC so I can play more demanding games and have higher framerates by buying either an i5 8600k or an i5 9400f, as well as a GTX 1660s or GTX 1070. However, the ITX motherboard I own is outdated and doesn't support these processors, so I am faced with the choices of: upgrading the ITX motherboard to a newer one, keeping my original PC case, and then upgrading the processor and GPU. Or, I could buy a cheap micro-ATX motherboard such as the Gigabyte B365M, and an ATX case like the NZXT H510 for $70, and then upgrade the processor and GPU.
If I take the second option, I could sell the mobo and case and get some money back, along with selling the old processor and GPU. Considering that I will likely continue to upgrade my PC in the future, should I just go ahead and buy a micro-ATX instead? Space isn't really a problem for me, so I don't really need the compactness that a mini-ITX build gives me.

I am very inexperienced with building PCs, so thank you and please let me know if there is something wrong with my post or knowledge. Also, I would appreciate any other recommendations for GPU, CPU, and mobo upgrades! My budget is around 500 dollars, but can go over if needed.

I live in the United States, and here is the upgrade list on partpicker: https://pcpartpicker.com/user/tomytoby/saved/h4vW3C

Thank you!

 

[g-unit1111]

What is your current CPU? You probably won't gain much by going with an 8600K, you're better off getting a better PSU and GPU. Get something like a Corsair SF600 Platinum or a Seasonic Focus, and then upgrade your GPU to a 2070.

 

[Tomytoby]

What is your current CPU? You probably won't gain much by going with an 8600K, you're better off getting a better PSU and GPU. Get something like a Corsair SF600 Platinum or a Seasonic Focus, and then upgrade your GPU to a 2070.

I currently have an i5 6402p, wouldn't a 2070 bottleneck it like crazy?

 

[g-unit1111]

I currently have an i5 6402p, wouldn't a 2070 bottleneck it like crazy?

I'm not too familiar with that particular CPU but it looks like it's just a variant of an i5-6400. That might not bottleneck like crazy but could be a minor inconvenience. The i5-6400 is from 2017, so it is still fairly recent. Yeah you probably could get a better CPU, your motherboard should support at least up to the 8600K with a BIOS update. But I wouldn't invest too much money in that particular platform when it will be out the door in a few months.

 

[ttower2020]

Your best bet is probably getting a mATX system. The parts are cheaper than ITX (usually), and are generally easier to upgrade. Upgrading your CPU and GPU will mean almost replacing the entire PC anyway, so you might as well build and entire second machine, and then you can sell the old (but still decent) ITX PC for a decent amount. The issue with this could be you might be spending extra on new RAM, but it will be easier to sell the old PC as a whole rather than parts, and that might end up being better for you, since 8GB of average DDR4 shouldn't be more than $50, and you can probably make that back selling a whole system.

I would also highly recommend a Ryzen system over an Intel one. They are better/the same performance for just about everything, at a generally lower cost.

 

[g-unit1111]

Your best bet is probably getting a mATX system. The parts are cheaper than ITX (usually), and are generally easier to upgrade. Upgrading your CPU and GPU will mean almost replacing the entire PC anyway, so you might as well build and entire second machine, and then you can sell the old (but still decent) ITX PC for a decent amount. T

That is not true at all. Most ITX systems can use the same parts that you'd build in a desktop system, and are just as easily replacable. I just upgraded my ITX system with an AMD B450 motherboard and a full size 5600XT GPU. The only difference is that an ITX system requires a lot more planning due to extremely tight space restrictions.

 

[Tomytoby]

Your best bet is probably getting a mATX system. The parts are cheaper than ITX (usually), and are generally easier to upgrade. Upgrading your CPU and GPU will mean almost replacing the entire PC anyway, so you might as well build and entire second machine, and then you can sell the old (but still decent) ITX PC for a decent amount. The issue with this could be you might be spending extra on new RAM, but it will be easier to sell the old PC as a whole rather than parts, and that might end up being better for you, since 8GB of average DDR4 shouldn't be more than $50, and you can probably make that back selling a whole system.

I would also highly recommend a Ryzen system over an Intel one. They are better/the same performance for just about everything, at a generally lower cost.

I've looked at many different motherboards for the Ryzen 5 3600, but partpicker displays the following warning: "Warning!Some AMD B450 chipset motherboards may need a BIOS update prior to using Matisse CPUs. Upgrading the BIOS may require a different CPU that is supported by older BIOS revisions."

What does this mean?

 

[g-unit1111]

I've looked at many different motherboards for the Ryzen 5 3600, but partpicker displays the following warning: "Warning!Some AMD B450 chipset motherboards may need a BIOS update prior to using Matisse CPUs. Upgrading the BIOS may require a different CPU that is supported by older BIOS revisions."

What does this mean?

What that means is that the Ryzen 3600 was manufactured after the motherboard you plan to buy, so you would need a CPU that was made when that board was made (mainly Ryzen 2nd gen) to update the BIOS to be compatible with the new CPU.

 

[Tomytoby]

What that means is that the Ryzen 3600 was manufactured after the motherboard you plan to buy, so you would need a CPU that was made when that board was made (mainly Ryzen 2nd gen) to update the BIOS to be compatible with the new CPU.

So I need to buy a R5 3600 as well as a 2nd gen Ryzen card that I won't use just to update the BIOS?

 

[g-unit1111]

So I need to buy a R5 3600 as well as a 2nd gen Ryzen card that I won't use just to update the BIOS?

Not in all cases, it entirely depends on the motherboard. Some should say that they are Ryzen 3000 compatible right out of the box. Check with the manufacturer to make sure.

Alternately, AMD has a CPU lending program where they will send you a 2nd gen Ryzen CPU to update your BIOS to the current version and then you send them the CPU back.

 

[SkyNetRising]

please let me know if there is something wrong with my post or knowledge. Also, I would appreciate any other recommendations for GPU, CPU, and mobo upgrades! My budget is around 500 dollars, but can go over if needed.

Upgrade graphics card (and may be PSU) first. Then see, how that performs.
If you still feel, cpu upgrade is necessary, then consider upgrading to i7-6700 or i7-7700 instead. That will not require motherboard upgrade.

 

[ttower2020]

That is not true at all. Most ITX systems can use the same parts that you'd build in a desktop system, and are just as easily replacable. I just upgraded my ITX system with an AMD B450 motherboard and a full size 5600XT GPU. The only difference is that an ITX system requires a lot more planning due to extremely tight space restrictions.

I do realize this now. I have been thinking on the SFF side of ITX. I have a friend who I plan to build a PC for who needs a SFF ITX Case that he can move easily. Therefore, the front on my mind is that ITX parts need to fit into the SFF form factor, which is not always true. However, an ITX build does still require more planning and build difficulties, so it still may be not worth it if you don't need the space saving.

 

[g-unit1111]

I do realize this now. I have been thinking on the SFF side of ITX. I have a friend who I plan to build a PC for who needs a SFF ITX Case that he can move easily. Therefore, the front on my mind is that ITX parts need to fit into the SFF form factor, which is not always true. However, an ITX build does still require more planning and build difficulties, so it still may be not worth it if you don't need the space saving.

SFF builds are worth it if you know what you are doing and plan ahead accordingly. I just built one so I am speaking from my own experience. Mini ITX motherboards do use the same desktop components like CPUs, RAM, HDs, and GPUs. But putting everything together requires a lot more planning and patience than your standard Micro ATX and ATX builds. The biggest headaches when planning such a build are the cooling and space constraint requirements. Picking out cooling components for an mITX build is a bit more challenging than a standard form factor.

The bottom line is that if you don't have the patience to work with the small form factor, then it's not for you. The payoff, once the build is completed, is definitely worth it. But it can be a very long and frustrating process to get there if you don't know what you are doing.