Upgrading budget build, what parts first? $400-$500 budget

[zanyreef6798]

Hello there, I was looking for some help with upgrading my PC. I'm a beginner and this a first build using cheap and second hand parts. It runs really good but it definitely won't be handling any AAA titles. I now have a decent budget to slowly upgrade or build up a new system what do you recommend I change first, here are the specs:

CPU: Intel Core i3 550 - Was thinking of Ryzen 5 1600

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-P55-UD3 - Not sure for this one

RAM: 8GB (*4x2GB) Samsung DDR3-1333

Graphics: XFX Radeon HD 7770 Ghost Thermal 1GB

Power Supply: Cooler Master 460w OEM - This was with the second hand case don't even know if its good tbh no efficiency rating I believe

Case: Deepcool Tesseract Black Red w Window

Monitor: 24inch 60hz 1ms Benq Zowie

I am aware these parts are super old but I am a university student and now I'm confident in looking for decently priced parts. Really stuck with this one guys thanks in advance For reference at least looking to play Fallout 76 on medium/high 1080p

 

[dragonstar914]

I would start with your CPU, motherboard, and RAM. Ryzen 5 1600 is a good start. Stay away from low to mid range Gigabyte motherboards since some are of dubious quality. I would get a new PSU for the new parts, if for no other reason than because its old, and that some low end Cooler Master PSU's are not very good. The HD 7770 is a decent place holder till you can replace it with something like a GTX 1050 or RX 560, which should get you the performance you want.

 

[profoundnoah]

Why go for the 1600 when there is newer hardware on the market? I would stay away from the 560 or 1050. They have very poor value.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 2600 3.4GHz 6-Core Processor ($169.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock - B450 Pro4 ATX AM4 Motherboard ($91.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($160.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA - SuperNOVA G3 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($65.98 @ Newegg Business)
Total: $488.83
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-07-28 11:33 EDT-0400

16GB of RAM is up to you. Personally, I'd rather have more than less. Use the rest of your budget to get a decent-quality PSU that will be able to handle a new GPU when they come out.

I'd advise waiting for the 11-series (which is supposed to be out in August) before you go looking into buying a new GPU.

 

[dragonstar914]

Why go for the 1600 when there is newer hardware on the market? I would stay away from the 560 or 1050. They have very poor value.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 2600 3.4GHz 6-Core Processor ($169.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock - B450 Pro4 ATX AM4 Motherboard ($91.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($160.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA - SuperNOVA G3 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($65.98 @ Newegg Business)
Total: $488.83
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-07-28 11:33 EDT-0400

16GB of RAM is up to you. Personally, I'd rather have more than less. Use the rest of your budget to get a decent-quality PSU that will be able to handle a new GPU when they come out.

I'd advise waiting for the 11-series (which is supposed to be out in August) before you go looking into buying a new GPU.

The 1600 is just fine for that level of performance. It's plenty enough to run a GTX 1050 or 1060 with and can be found cheaper on sale than a 2600. Besides that the OP is asking for a particular game and settings and the GTX 1050 fits as the minimum they are looking for

 

[profoundnoah]

The 1600 paired with a B350 board will run the OP $30 ($20 if you go for an mATX board) cheaper. I'd much rather spend the $30 for better CPU performance/features then save $30 to use on who knows what. Fitting the bare minimum in the PC field usually isn't a good idea. There is a significant price difference between the 1050 and 1060. The OP should invest in main hardware first, then upgrade when something better for the money is available.

Even then, the idea behind the 1600 "being enough" for the OP is flawed. If the OP was looking to strictly game, and didn't care about that much other stuff, then even the Ryzen 5 1400 would fit the bill, which is a good bit cheaper than the 1600. OP, depending on how urgent the upgrade is, I'd advise waiting until AMD releases their quad-core Ryzen units, as they will likely be cheaper and have better performance.

 

[zanyreef6798]

I would start with your CPU, motherboard, and RAM. Ryzen 5 1600 is a good start. Stay away from low to mid range Gigabyte motherboards since some are of dubious quality. I would get a new PSU for the new parts, if for no other reason than because its old, and that some low end Cooler Master PSU's are not very good. The HD 7770 is a decent place holder till you can replace it with something like a GTX 1050 or RX 560, which should get you the performance you want.

Why go for the 1600 when there is newer hardware on the market? I would stay away from the 560 or 1050. They have very poor value.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 2600 3.4GHz 6-Core Processor ($169.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock - B450 Pro4 ATX AM4 Motherboard ($91.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($160.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA - SuperNOVA G3 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($65.98 @ Newegg Business)
Total: $488.83
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-07-28 11:33 EDT-0400

16GB of RAM is up to you. Personally, I'd rather have more than less. Use the rest of your budget to get a decent-quality PSU that will be able to handle a new GPU when they come out.

I'd advise waiting for the 11-series (which is supposed to be out in August) before you go looking into buying a new GPU.

The 1600 is just fine for that level of performance. It's plenty enough to run a GTX 1050 or 1060 with and can be found cheaper on sale than a 2600. Besides that the OP is asking for a particular game and settings and the GTX 1050 fits as the minimum they are looking for

I agree the 1600 is definitely is a good option for my price range I had no idea about the other newer Ryzen having a look those 6 cores could come in handy I'm not sure. I've had a look at GTX 1050 and it certainly seems a quality card for the price.. Also thank you both for taking your time. Yes I will be waiting a while for a new gpu they are very expensive here in AUS

 

[profoundnoah]

OP, if you are not aware of the new AMD APU's, I would HEAVILY recommend taking a look at them: https://pcpartpicker.com/product/FGPKHx/amd-ryzen-5-2400g-36ghz-quad-core-processor-yd2400c5fbbox. Although they aren't as good as a regular 1050, they will deliver performance that exceeds your 7770 for sure. That would make your wait for a new, more powerful GPU both more enjoyable and also less expensive!

 

[dragonstar914]

The 1600 paired with a B350 board will run the OP $30 cheaper. I'd much rather spend the $30 for better CPU performance/features then save $30 to use on who knows what. Fitting the bare minimum in the PC field usually isn't a good idea. There is a significant price difference between the 1050 and 1060. The OP should invest in main hardware first, then upgrade when something better for the money is available. Even then, the idea behind the 1600 "being enough" for the OP is flawed. If the OP was looking to strictly game, and didn't care about that much other stuff, then even the Ryzen 5 1400 would fit the bill, which is a good bit cheaper than the 1600.

The 1600 motherboard combo can run $50+ cheaper if you catch a good sale and the OP has stated a game , settings which they are aiming for, and a budget range.

Something like this with a discount on the 1600 fits what the OP is asking for.
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/qBQ7pG

 

[dragonstar914]

OP, if you are not aware of the new AMD APU's, I would HEAVILY recommend taking a look at them: https://pcpartpicker.com/product/FGPKHx/amd-ryzen-5-2400g-36ghz-quad-core-processor-yd2400c5fbbox. Although they aren't as good as a regular 1050, they will deliver performance that exceeds your 7770 for sure. That would make your wait for a new, more powerful GPU both more enjoyable and also less expensive!

The Vega 11 barely exceeds the HD 7700. It might make a good place holder but it's basically a lateral move and requires more expensive memory for good performance.

http://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/AMD-RX-Vega-11-Ryzen-iGPU-vs-AMD-HD-7770/m401440vsm7710

 

[profoundnoah]

The 1600 paired with a B350 board will run the OP $30 cheaper. I'd much rather spend the $30 for better CPU performance/features then save $30 to use on who knows what. Fitting the bare minimum in the PC field usually isn't a good idea. There is a significant price difference between the 1050 and 1060. The OP should invest in main hardware first, then upgrade when something better for the money is available. Even then, the idea behind the 1600 "being enough" for the OP is flawed. If the OP was looking to strictly game, and didn't care about that much other stuff, then even the Ryzen 5 1400 would fit the bill, which is a good bit cheaper than the 1600.

The 1600 motherboard combo can run $50+ cheaper if you catch a good sale and the OP has stated a game , settings which they are aiming for, and a budget range.

Something like this with a discount on the 1600 fits what the OP is asking for.
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/qBQ7pG

Building a PC for the BARE minimum is like buying just enough food for people at a party. You never know who's going to show up, and how much everyone else going to eat anyway. There's no harm in getting more food, as you could just finish the rest later on. Replace food with his pc's performance and the people with potential tasks and you've got yourself an explanation.

Plus, going with a 430W PSU doesn't really make much sense when you can get a high-quality, higher capacity EVGA unit for about $10 more. Also, if the OP ever wanted to upgrade to a better GPU/overclock (which he'll want to do with the 2400g), I certainly wouldn't be comfortable with only 430W. I don't think the $10 is worth sacrificing expandability with future hardware for. You shouldn't be basing your componentry pricing on "if you catch a good sale." Personally, I believe that the OP should go with a 2400G and a B450 board.

The iGPU in the 2400g will offer a bit more than the 7770, which will make the wait a bit more bearable until he can save up for a quality GPU. That comparison is also a bit skewed since you decided to get rid of the 16GB. Personally, I'd much rather go for the 16GB as of now and avoid the trouble of matching kits later on. Also, OP, do note that the RAM paired in that list is clocked at a very low speed. Ryzen 1st gen LOVES fast RAM, so if you do go with his build, please dont get 2133Mhz RAM. 2400Mhz will net you a bit more for a relatively small premium. If you think you'll be satisfied with the 1050Ti for your use case AND future games, then by all means, get it. It's just that with the 11-series right around the corner, I'd recommend sitting tight and seeing what your options are.

 

[dragonstar914]

The 1600 paired with a B350 board will run the OP $30 cheaper. I'd much rather spend the $30 for better CPU performance/features then save $30 to use on who knows what. Fitting the bare minimum in the PC field usually isn't a good idea. There is a significant price difference between the 1050 and 1060. The OP should invest in main hardware first, then upgrade when something better for the money is available. Even then, the idea behind the 1600 "being enough" for the OP is flawed. If the OP was looking to strictly game, and didn't care about that much other stuff, then even the Ryzen 5 1400 would fit the bill, which is a good bit cheaper than the 1600.

The 1600 motherboard combo can run $50+ cheaper if you catch a good sale and the OP has stated a game , settings which they are aiming for, and a budget range.

Something like this with a discount on the 1600 fits what the OP is asking for.
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/qBQ7pG

Building a PC for the BARE minimum is like buying just enough food for people at a party. You never know who's going to show up, and how much everyone else going to eat anyway. There's no harm in getting more food, as you could just finish the rest later on. Replace food with his pc's performance and the people with potential tasks and you've got yourself an explanation.

Plus, going with a 430W PSU doesn't really make much sense when you can get a high-quality, higher capacity EVGA unit for about $10 more. Also, if the OP ever wanted to upgrade to a better GPU/overclock, I certainly wouldn't be comfortable with only 430W. I don't think the $10 is worth sacrificing expandability with future hardware for. You shouldn't be basing your componentry pricing on "if you catch a good sale." Personally, I believe that the OP should go with a 2400G and a B450 board.

The iGPU in the 2400g will offer a bit more than the 7770, which will make the wait a bit more bearable until he can save up for a quality GPU. That comparison is also a bit skewed since you decided to get rid of the 16GB. Personally, I'd much rather go for the 16GB as of now and avoid the trouble of matching kits later on. Also, OP, do note that the RAM paired in that list is clocked at a very low speed. Ryzen 1st gen LOVES fast RAM, so if you do go with his build, please dont get 2133Mhz RAM.

Not sure what you are talking about with a 430w PSU. Not sure what you are talking about with the 2400g either because it's a lateral move on the GPU side. As stated the OP gave some perimeters like price and performance and a 2400g does not fit that with out adding a GPU. Which makes a 2400g pointless then since even if they wanted to wait to upgrade the GPU the HD 7770 is about as good.You can do 8gb RAM with a 1600. You almost have to have 16gb of expensive high speed RAM for the 2400g. The HD 7770 is almost as good, and a 1600 has 50% more threads and can be found for about the same price on sale. The 2400g is a bad investment with an HD 7770 already available as a place holder

 

[profoundnoah]

I don't want to verge off topic here, but yes, it is true the 2400G would be a lateral upgrade graphically. However, it most certainly will not be one CPU-wise. The 2400G is an afterthought, really. It was just if the OP wanted to go ahead and upgrade his CPU/get rid of his GPU and be able to slot in a new 11-series chip when they come out. My main recommendation still stays with the 2600.

Given the parameters that the OP specified, yes, the 1600+ the 1050Ti would get what the OP wanted done. BUT, the specs that go along with the build you suggested don't make that much sense. If the OP ever wanted to upgrade his GPU to something a little more beefy (let's say the 1070), and wants to OC his 1600 to 3.8 with a more beefy cooler, then an OC calculator would put his recommended wattage at 460W. Point is, there's no harm in spending a bit extra to get a better PSU.

The parts you specced are egregoiusly overpriced in Australia, as mine possibly are. If you're going to be buying the parts in Australia, OP, I would advise looking into these parts if you go with the other poster's arrangement:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 1600 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor ($208.00 @ Shopping Express)
Motherboard: ASRock - AB350M Pro4 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($88.00 @ Shopping Express)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($119.00 @ Shopping Express)
Video Card: Inno3D - GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB Twin X2 Video Card ($239.00 @ Umart)
Power Supply: Corsair - TXM Gold 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($105.00 @ Shopping Express)
Total: $759.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-07-29 03:38 AEST+1000