Question Swapping motherboards: Should I get an AM5 or an AM4

[WhatIsAMobo]

Hello.
I want to switch CPUs, since, for a couple years now, I ve been getting huge CPU usage whenever I play big game titles like Warzone, R6S, EFT, Battlefield 1, etc. Its something rather annoying at this point, specially with Warzone, since I cant have anything running in the background, otherwise I ll get random freezing from time to time. Usually this happens when the game is first loading up. (for example: I start up Warzone, the music that I was listening on YT stops, buffers, the whole PC gets slow, and it doesnt stop until I setup Warzone process to Realtime mode)
Talking about Realtime process, its caught my attention that whenever I play Warzone, the game caps at like 100 to 120 FPS with the process being on High mode, but then, when I put it on Realtime mode, it unlocks to like 160-220 FPS. (I use 144hz monitor so its kind of annoying when the FPS is lower than that, because I get little stutters in the screen).

Current equipment:
CPU: i7-9700 (non K version)
GPU: RTX 3060 ZOTAC AMP White
MB: TUF Gaming B365M Plus
RAM: 2x16 GB DDR4 2666MHZ CL16
(have in mind, some games are in either HDDs, SATA SSDs, or NVMEs, idk if that causes anything for the CPU)

My question is: Should I upgrade to a Ryzen 7 5800X3D, with new RAM, new Motherboard? (considering how cheap it is now compared to the new generation of CPUs)
Or now that AM5 is coming around, should I upgrade to that platform and wait for a Ryzen 7 7800X3D?

I ll be reading your thoughts! I m not very knowledgeable with all of these hardware upgrades, so I wouldnt know if this would help the issues I have with my current CPU.

 

[drea.drechsler]

AM5 definitely if you have the budget for it...but AM4 is still a beast with a 5800X3d and the right RAM.

But if serious about AM5 you'll wait a bit still for the new 7000X3d chips and reviews. It promises to be much better but nobody knows for certain until the reviews.

 

[XxDarkMario20xX]

You could try going to an 10900k-12900k with new motherboard and then you still can use your ram until you save up some more because 10900k has 10 cores and 20 threads and max is 5.30 GHz and where razer one is 8 cores with 16 threads and max speed is 4.4ghz because switching from Intel to razer you also have to think about your cooler!. But if not then agree with person above AM5 also Ryzen 7 7800X3D best choice

 

[WhatIsAMobo]

You could try going to an 10900k-12900k with new motherboard and then you still can use your ram until you save up some more because 10900k has 10 cores and 20 threads and max is 5.30 GHz and where razer one is 8 cores with 16 threads and max speed is 4.4ghz because switching from Intel to razer you also have to think about your cooler!. But if not then agree with person above AM5 also Ryzen 7 7800X3D best choice

I dont know... That one is too expensive for my budget. Thats why thought of the 5800X3D. Also I ve seen it work at lower usage in different game titles. Will it be better than the CPU I got now? Also yeah, I gotta buy a cooler. Wonder if I should buy a new AIO or just stick to a big heatsink with a fan.

AM5 definitely if you have the budget for it...but AM4 is still a beast with a 5800X3d and the right RAM.

But if serious about AM5 you'll wait a bit still for the new 7000X3d chips and reviews. It promises to be much better but nobody knows for certain until the reviews.

Do you think the 5800x3D will still be a long lasting choice? What kind of RAM would you suggest for it?
As for Motherboard, I ve been thinking of the ASRock X570 Steel Legend. Has 2 M.2 slots for PCIe 4.0 SSDs, 8 slots for SATA3 devices (perfect for a hoarder like me), and has a fair amount of USB 3 slots for me to, in the foreseeable future, add a USB hub for me to add more external hard drives for movies/series/anime storage and other devices that I need to keep connected.
Any thoughts on this motherboard?

 

[XxDarkMario20xX]

I dont know... That one is too expensive for my budget. Thats why thought of the 5800X3D. Also I ve seen it work at lower usage in different game titles. Will it be better than the CPU I got now? Also yeah, I gotta buy a cooler. Wonder if I should buy a new AIO or just stick to a big heatsink with a fan.


Do you think the 5800x3D will still be a long lasting choice? What kind of RAM would you suggest for it?
As for Motherboard, I ve been thinking of the ASRock X570 Steel Legend. Has 2 M.2 slots for PCIe 4.0 SSDs, 8 slots for SATA3 devices (perfect for a hoarder like me), and has a fair amount of USB 3 slots for me to, in the foreseeable future, add a USB hub for me to add more external hard drives for movies/series/anime storage and other devices that I need to keep connected.
Any thoughts on this motherboard?

I got all in one cooler and on my 12900k my idle temps are between 25-35 so getting an AIO is good choice better then fan coolers !

 

[drea.drechsler]

...
Do you think the 5800x3D will still be a long lasting choice? What kind of RAM would you suggest for it?
As for Motherboard, I ve been thinking of the ASRock X570 Steel Legend. Has 2 M.2 slots for PCIe 4.0 SSDs, 8 slots for SATA3 devices (perfect for a hoarder like me), and has a fair amount of USB 3 slots for me to, in the foreseeable future, add a USB hub for me to add more external hard drives for movies/series/anime storage and other devices that I need to keep connected.
Any thoughts on this motherboard?

I personally think just about any 5000 series CPU will be long lasting choice if for gaming. It depends entirely on your expectations though.

As for ram...a good 32GB, 2 stick 3600 rated B-die kit if you can find one.

Look carefully at the motherboard specs if you ever plan on using all 8 SATA sockets. It will quite likely steal some of those sockets for the 2nd NVME. Otherwise, I think it's a good board if a good price. I prefer B550 to keep cost in line but you have set a high bar for I/O.

 

[WhatIsAMobo]

I personally think just about any 5000 series CPU will be long lasting choice if for gaming. It depends entirely on your expectations though.

As for ram...a good 32GB, 2 stick 3600 rated B-die kit if you can find one.

Look carefully at the motherboard specs if you ever plan on using all 8 SATA sockets. It will quite likely steal some of those sockets for the 2nd NVME. Otherwise, I think it's a good board if a good price. I prefer B550 to keep costs in check but you have set a high bar for I/O.

Interestingly enough, I was reading in an Asus forum someone who suggested an X570 solely to get a better chance of having more SATA Sockets available, because what I ve encountered in most B550s is that 2 sockets get disabled when you plug two M.2 drives. I was reading the spec sheet but I didnt see anything that could state which of those 8 SATA Sockets get disabled (idk if you could take a look, maybe I skipped over it on accident). Only thing I read it was that if Thunderbolt something (idk what it means) is activated, Sata type M.2 will be disabled. I hope at least to keep 6 of them.
My expectations is to maybe reach over 120 FPS in most games at 1080p.
Can I plug 3600MHZ when AMD's page says the 5800X3D has a max memory speed of 3200MHZ allowed? I dont really understand what it means by 2x1,2x2, etc

 

[drea.drechsler]

..
Can I plug 3600MHZ when AMD's page says the 5800X3D has a max memory speed of 3200MHZ allowed? I dont really understand what it means by 2x1,2x2, etc

There are no guarantees since it is overclocking but people have been remarkably successful with getting 3600 speeds while just setting XMP if using a 2 stick kit. 4 stick kits are dicey even for getting rated speeds.

2x1R= 2 sticks, single rank
2x2R= 2 sticks, double rank
4x1R= 4 sticks, single rank

 

[WhatIsAMobo]

I got all in one cooler and on my 12900k my idle temps are between 25-35 so getting an AIO is good choice better then fan coolers !

Did you have any previous CPU to that one? What should I keep in mind before swapping motherboards besides the Windows Activation issues? I dont really know about upgrading chipset, drivers, what to uninstall, install, if my programs will work just fine, or nah, etc etc

 

[WhatIsAMobo]

There are no guarantees since it is overclocking but people have been remarkably successful with getting 3600 speeds while just setting XMP if using a 2 stick kit. 4 stick kits are dicey even for getting rated speeds.

2x1R= 2 sticks, single rank
2x2R= 2 sticks, double rank
4x1R= 4 sticks, single rank

Guess I ll stick to 2 sticks. Thanks for the suggestions. I m still somehow nervous, I dont want to screw this up. I dont want to think it was all a waste of money or <Mod Edit> up my system. I just want better performance and not have my CPU spiking up to 90% usage, freezing the entire PC on its path

 

[XxDarkMario20xX]

Did you have any previous CPU to that one? What should I keep in mind before swapping motherboards besides the Windows Activation issues? I dont really know about upgrading chipset, drivers, what to uninstall, install, if my programs will work just fine, or nah, etc etc

Did you have any previous CPU to that one? What should I keep in mind before swapping motherboards besides the Windows Activation issues? I dont really know about upgrading chipset, drivers, what to uninstall, install, if my programs will work just fine, or nah, etc etc

With getting new motherboard and CPU think its best to do an clean install to make sure everything runs smoothly!

 

[WhatIsAMobo]

With getting new motherboard and CPU think its best to do an clean install to make sure everything runs smoothly!

Problem is I have lots of programs that I dont want to lose. I have an AI program that runs with other stuff I dont even remember how to install again. I have several games that are locally installed (no clients where to install basic files for it to run, and I dont want to lose my save game files). My browser settings, and many other things.

 

[XxDarkMario20xX]

Problem is I have lots of programs that I dont want to lose. I have an AI program that runs with other stuff I dont even remember how to install again. I have several games that are locally installed (no clients where to install basic files for it to run, and I dont want to lose my save game files). My browser settings, and many other things.

I think with save games file you can place them onto pen drive and then restall your games and place the save files back. I did this with sims 4 saved all my files!.

 

[drea.drechsler]

Problem is I have lots of programs that I dont want to lose. I have an AI program that runs with other stuff I dont even remember how to install again. I have several games that are locally installed (no clients where to install basic files for it to run, and I dont want to lose my save game files). My browser settings, and many other things.

Keep this in mind: a 5800X3d is pretty much a special purpose processor in that it's targeted application is gaming alone. It's really mediocre, or at best not spectacular, in it's class (8 core processors) for conventional HEDT work. Again, it's yet to be determined just how the 7000 series X3d processors will perform at all.

If your games have been installed through Steam or another launcher then your saved games will be saved in their cloud and recovered when you re-install Steam. Just make sure you've enabled cloud saves in each of the launchers.

As far as trying to get along without a clean Windows install...it's very sketch when changing platforms especially. Your odds might be improved if you do a repair install which leaves all settings and installed apps untouched but you're at risk of unstable operation. Something like your AI program in particular may itself need to be re-installed so it can configure itself for an entirely new CPU and platform. Besides, it's best to always have a recovery plan so you need to develop one, to include reinstalling your AI program and it's supporting apps, anyway. Backups alone won't get it since they're usually going to only recover user data files into a fresh Windows installation, leaving you to re-install apps.

 

[WhatIsAMobo]

Keep this in mind: a 5800X3d is pretty much a special purpose processor in that it's targeted application is gaming alone. It's really mediocre, at best, in it's class (8 core processors) for conventional HEDT work. Again, it's yet to be determined just how the 7000 series X3d processors will perform at all.

If your games have been installed through Steam or another launcher then your saved games will be saved in their cloud and recovered when you re-install Steam. Just make sure you've enabled cloud saves in each of the launchers.

As far as trying to get along without a clean Windows install...it's very sketch when changing platforms especially. Your odds might be improved if you do a repair install which saves all settings and installed apps but you're at risk of unstable operation. Besides, it's best to always have a recovery plan so you need to develop one, to include reinstalling your AI program and it's supporting apps, anyway. Backups alone won't get it since they're usually going to only recover user data files into a fresh Windows installation, leaving you to re-install apps.

So far I want it for gaming mostly. i dont do much with the PC. How bad/mediocre is it? Am I better off wiwth something else?

Problem is... These games were installed by other means (ARRRGH). No launcher at all, no access to the cloud. All locally installed on my drives and the save game files are somewhere in the C drive.

I wish I had a drive just for backups... I m low on cash and I wouldnt know whats the best way to do one. So far I dont want to lose my AI programs, the ability to execute my games (they are in other drives, not the C drive, but I worry that some folder in the C drive is necessary for it), tex to speech program and its license, my video editing program (also ARRRGH), MMD, etc. Some of these games are really heavy (RDR2 specially). Also I wouldnt know what to do once I install a new copy of W10. I dont know how to get a new key (lost my old account associated to my last key), I dont know what to install, what is a chipset driver.
Sorry for being so ignorant, but damn... I dont know where to start
(thx so far for the replies)

 

[drea.drechsler]

So far I want it for gaming mostly. i dont do much with the PC. How bad/mediocre is it? Am I better off wiwth something else?

Problem is... These games were installed by other means (ARRRGH). No launcher at all, no access to the cloud. All locally installed on my drives and the save game files are somewhere in the C drive.

I wish I had a drive just for backups... I m low on cash and I wouldnt know whats the best way to do one. So far I dont want to lose my AI programs, the ability to execute my games (they are in other drives, not the C drive, but I worry that some folder in the C drive is necessary for it), tex to speech program and its license, my video editing program (also ARRRGH), MMD, etc. Some of these games are really heavy (RDR2 specially). Also I wouldnt know what to do once I install a new copy of W10. I dont know how to get a new key (lost my old account associated to my last key), I dont know what to install, what is a chipset driver.
Sorry for being so ignorant, but damn... I dont know where to start
(thx so far for the replies)

I'd suggest checking out GamersNexus' reviews of the 5800X3d to understand it's performance in desktop apps.

Well...only certain types of Win10 licenses can be moved to a new motherboard. Most people have what's called an OEM license for which you'll have to obtain a new key in any case to validate it. Retail licenses, that aren't pegged to the motherboard, are much more expensive. What's worse is Win10 keys are going to start getting scarce since MS stopped "manufacturing" them. An upgrade to Win11 is highly recommended.

It's entirely possible that many of those installed app licenses will also have to be re-validated once the motherboard changes. After all, the software vendors also want to protect themselves against pirates who would simply image an installed app to another computer and go for it.

Get your chipset driver from AMD support web site after the system is set up and running. You'll need to also install other drivers, possibly for your NVME drives since some need one too. You'll need to get those from the drive mfr (Samsung, Micron/Crucial, etc.). Oh yes...and your GPU driver. Otherwise, you can generally let Windows install default drivers for network and sound and you'll be OK.