Question What should I upgrade first?

[hex7n]

I'm playing and using programs that are very CPU heavy and If possible I’d like to use most of the budget ($400 USD) on it


Mobo: ASRock B365m Pro4

Cpu: Intel i5 9400f

Gpu: Palit RTX 2060

Psu: Seasonic GM650

Ram: KLEVV Bolt X (2x8GB)


Thank you!

 

[logainofhades]

What's the speed on that ram?

 

[Avro Arrow]

The thing is that it's kind of hard to make a recommendation for only $400 because you're going to need a platform upgrade and the only platform that is currently viable is AM5. AM4 and LGA 1700 are both dead and any further upgrades from them would require a new motherboard again so neither of them are good directions to take because you'd be basically throwing away any money spent on a motherboard.

To upgrade your platform to AM5 (the only one worth buying right now) would require a CPU, motherboard and DDR5 RAM. I'll try to keep everything as cheap as possible and even with the cheapest parts, the performance would be like day and night compared to your i5-9400f. I'll keep it as close to $400 as I can:

CPU: R5-7600 - $233
Motherboard: Gigabyte B650M DS3H - $150
RAM: Patriot Signature Line DDR5-4800 2x8GB - $57
Total: $440

The Ryzen 5 7600 comes with a usable air cooler so you this is all you'd need to make a gigantic platform upgrade. To give you an idea of how fast the R5-7600 is, just look at this chart:

You'll see here that the R5-7600 is 15% faster than the i5-12400, a CPU that is three generations newer than your i5-9400f. None of the Intel 9th, 10th or 11th generation CPUs are fast enough to even be on this chart. Any task that is the least bit challenging to your i5-9400f would be child's play for the R5-7600 with one eye closed and one hand tied behind its back. It also has an RDNA2 IGP which, while not very useful most of the time for you, would be a life saver if your RTX 2060 ever started acting up.

I know that it's 10% above your budget but I truly believe that it's the best you can do for around $400 by a country mile. This AM5 motherboard will remain viable for many years to come (unlike an AM4 or LGA 1700 motherboard), and you'll discover the joys of drop-in CPU upgrades. This is as cheap as AM5 gets but it's totally worth it. As I said, for you it will be like night and day.

 

[John Chesterfield]

A GPU upgrade is no good because it'd be held back by the CPU. A CPU upgrade is no good because the 9900k is the most you can go to, but as said above, newer chips crush it in IPC.

Memory upgrade could be done if you have slow memory, but in all honesty, you need a platform upgrade. I'd stick with what you have and save some more until you can get a mobo, CPU and memory upgrade.

 

[geofelt]

Your strongest upgrade on the same motherboard would be a I9-9900K which sells for some $300 used on ebay. Not a great option, considering alternatives.

But a I5-13400 that sells for $240 would be even stronger.
You would also need a lga1700 based motherboard that sells for $100-$150.
Your DDR4 ram can be carried forward.
Intel is not particularly sensitive to ram speed.

 

[sonofjesse]

Sell your machine or parts and build a new one.

https://www.microcenter.com/search/...TK=all&page=2&cat=AMD-CPU-Combo-:-MicroCenter

 

[NaClKnight]

I'm playing and using programs that are very CPU heavy and If possible I’d like to use most of the budget ($400 USD) on it


Mobo: ASRock B365m Pro4

Cpu: Intel i5 9400f

Gpu: Palit RTX 2060

Psu: Seasonic GM650

Ram: KLEVV Bolt X (2x8GB)


Thank you!

The bigger question is how soon are you willing to buy new parts after this refresh?

The 1700 socket is "dead" but it's a very very powerful zombie. Intel 12600 or 13400 CPU and B760/B660 Mobo can had for that budget with ease and will allow you to keep your RAM/GPU/PSU.

That will tide you over for 3 years at least and you can focus your next refresh on your GPU and/or RAM

If you want to go mega cheap, AM4 is also technically a dead platform but strong B550 MBs and 5000 series CPUs can both be purchased for under $400 easily. You will again get to keep your RAM and stave off a rebuild for another 2-3 years while improving current performance

AM5 based builds promise more longevity but are the least affordable right now and you will struggle mightily to stay within the $400 envelope you mentioned because you'll also need DDR5 RAM

Or keep your current MB and find a used 9900K CPU, but those are already outperformed by many newer options