Question Which is best PC overall

Tomha1

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Oct 19, 2016
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Hey guys, not really updated on this. I'm about to buy a new PC but cannot decide which to pick. Mostly for gpu demanding games Posting specs here:

1st PC: Graphics:
Asus OC RTX 2080ti
Processor: i7-8700k
Ram: HyperX 16 GB 2999 MHz DDR4
Storage 1: NV1 NVMe M.2 SSD 500GB
Storage 2: 2 TB HDD
Processor Cooler : Corsair Hydro Series H60 CPU Cooler
Case: Fractal Design Define C Temp G
Power Supply: Corsair RM750x 750W PSU

2nd PC:
CPU: AMD AM4 Ryzen 9 3900X
RAM: HyperX Fury DDR4 3200MHz 2x16GB black (32 GB RAM total)
STORAGE: Corsair Force MP600 1TB M.2 PCIe SSD
NETWORK: Asus PCE-AC55BT AC1200
GPU: MSI GeForce RTX2080Ti VENTUS
MB: ASUS AM4 ROG STRIX X570-F GAMING
CPU COOLER: Cooler Master ML240L RGB
PSU: Corsair TX750M PSU 750W/SMOD/G
CASE: Corsair Carbide Series 678C White

Both are in same price range.

Storage doesn't really matter as I don't have a lot on my PCs.
 
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Phaaze88

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What is the price range?
What is the target resolution?
One could probably be assembled matching whatever the price is... but if DIY is off the table, well... you can't be forced to do it.

Both systems are on dead end platforms, but the 2nd allows for a Ryzen 5000 to be installed. Build 1 is an unknown, since you didn't list the motherboard.

Build 1:
-has the more favorable storage layout, but what is the speed of the HDD? 7200rpm would be preferable, a 5400rpm drive would be better served as a file archive, and not really for a game library.
-120mm CLC in a build like this? What a waste. I almost want to auto vote up Build 2 just for this thing, but...
-Depending on the motherboard, the 8700K/9700K probably is the best cpu(9900K) that can be used, which would be slower than a Ryzen 5000 that could go into Build 2.


Build 2:
-only has one drive. A little 500GB SDD would be good for an OS only drive; if you ever need to format or reinstall the OS for whatever reason - and it does happen - the process will go more smoothly if the OS is on its own drive. Some apps do force themselves on the C drive, but they're pretty easy to deal with.

-airflow is highly questionable in the Carbide 678C. This is the biggest con with Build 2.
 
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alexbirdie

Respectable
-airflow is highly questionable in the Carbide 678C. This is the biggest con with Build 2.

I cannot agree with you.

My components keep cool even on the hottest days( and I mean all components incl. RAM, VRM,chipset etc., and last but not least CPU and GPU.).

But my case is empty, that means all internal cases are removed. 2 fans in front blowing in, 1 back for exhaust, and the AIO in the top blowing out (filter and coverage removed, that means the top is open).

And while running, the front door is open.
 

Tomha1

Honorable
Oct 19, 2016
35
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10,535
What is the price range?
What is the target resolution?
One could probably be assembled matching whatever the price is... but if DIY is off the table, well... you can't be forced to do it.

Both systems are on dead end platforms, but the 2nd allows for a Ryzen 5000 to be installed. Build 1 is an unknown, since you didn't list the motherboard.

Build 1:
-has the more favorable storage layout, but what is the speed of the HDD? 7200rpm would be preferable, a 5400rpm drive would be better served as a file archive, and not really for a game library.
-120mm CLC in a build like this? What a waste. I almost want to auto vote up Build 2 just for this thing, but...
-Depending on the motherboard, the 8700K/9700K probably is the best cpu(9900K) that can be used, which would be slower than a Ryzen 5000 that could go into Build 2.


Build 2:
-only has one drive. A little 500GB SDD would be good for an OS only drive; if you ever need to format or reinstall the OS for whatever reason - and it does happen - the process will go more smoothly if the OS is on its own drive. Some apps do force themselves on the C drive, but they're pretty easy to deal with.

-airflow is highly questionable in the Carbide 678C. This is the biggest con with Build 2.

Thank you
And the prices are both 10.500NOK (about 1070USD)
Storage is not as important as of yet, 1TB should be good.

So in total the build nr.2 is superior other than storage?
 

Phaaze88

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But my case is empty, that means all internal cases are removed.
What does this line mean? You've got a case in a case, what?

(filter and coverage removed, that means the top is open).

And while running, the front door is open.
The top filter I get, because active exhaust needs no filtration, but why did you do the other 2?


1TB should be good.

So in total the build nr.2 is superior other than storage?
My issue with it isn't capacity, but that there's only one drive; don't have all your eggs in one basket scenario.
This is new, right? Another drive isn't being carried over.


How do you feel about running the Carbide 678C like alexbirdie does - top cover removed and front door open? Some users would be picky about these kinds of things.
 
Hey guys, not really updated on this. I'm about to buy a new PC but cannot decide which to pick. Mostly for gpu demanding games Posting specs here:

1st PC: Graphics:
Asus OC RTX 2080ti
Processor: i7-8700k
Ram: HyperX 16 GB 2999 MHz DDR4
Storage 1: NV1 NVMe M.2 SSD 500GB
Storage 2: 2 TB HDD
Processor Cooler : Corsair Hydro Series H60 CPU Cooler
Case: Fractal Design Define C Temp G
Power Supply: Corsair RM750x 750W PSU

2nd PC:
CPU: AMD AM4 Ryzen 9 3900X
RAM: HyperX Fury DDR4 3200MHz 2x16GB black (32 GB RAM total)
STORAGE: Corsair Force MP600 1TB M.2 PCIe SSD
NETWORK: Asus PCE-AC55BT AC1200
GPU: MSI GeForce RTX2080Ti VENTUS
MB: ASUS AM4 ROG STRIX X570-F GAMING
CPU COOLER: Cooler Master ML240L RGB
PSU: Corsair TX750M PSU 750W/SMOD/G
CASE: Corsair Carbide Series 678C White

Both are in same price range.

Storage doesn't really matter as I don't have a lot on my PCs.
The 3900X makes much more sense in 2022.
 

alexbirdie

Respectable
You've got a case in a case, what?
Sorry, my english is not perfect. I meant the disk-CAGES, not case.

"but why did you do the other 2? "

The front and bottom-filter are in place, I did not remove them, but clean them from time to time. And keeping front door open improves the airflow very well.

But your are right. In stock-configuration ( as it comes from corsair), airflow is really bad.
 

punkncat

Champion
Ambassador
Your probably unlikely to want to do this, by the time you think about upgrading the 5000 series would have long been replaced and difficult to get hold outside of ebay.

It is of consideration that the 8th gen is already to the point you discuss, and 9th gen really isn't an optimal platform TO upgrade to. A 3900X is still a very powerful and relevant CPU. The 8700K is on the back edge of that IMO.
 
It is of consideration that the 8th gen is already to the point you discuss, and 9th gen really isn't an optimal platform TO upgrade to. A 3900X is still a very powerful and relevant CPU. The 8700K is on the back edge of that IMO.
I would agree a 3900X is still very capable, unless the OP wants to play at very high frame rates, I would expect a 3900X still to have good lifespan left. The 8700K is still perfectly capable today if you already have one, but I wouldn't invest in one now. It would make more sense to build a new machine with a i5 12400 instead.
 

Tomha1

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Oct 19, 2016
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I would agree a 3900X is still very capable, unless the OP wants to play at very high frame rates, I would expect a 3900X still to have good lifespan left. The 8700K is still perfectly capable today if you already have one, but I wouldn't invest in one now. It would make more sense to build a new machine with a i5 12400 instead.

I’m playing at 140hz 1440p. Is the second build superior for gaming or are they about the same? The Amd one has double the cores, that means better computing? Is the intel just as good as amd for gaming in this case?
 

Karadjgne

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2nd build, it's not even a competition. The 8700k is slower overall than the 3900x, and a 8700k with a H60 120mm AIO is just a joke with almost Zero possibility of any OC to make up the difference.

The 8700k has 12 threads. That's absolutely fine for gaming, the best budget 12th gen has only 12 performance threads, Amd's 5600/5600x only has 12 threads, it's more than enough.

Intel has historically had better IPC, instructions per clock-cycle, so has had the advantage. Ryzens went a long way to negating that and the 5800X3D is the strongest gaming cpu currently, topping the 12900k in multiple games. So at that level, core/thread count is basically moot for gaming purposes.

What's going to matter is the IPC and L3 cache, which the Intel is way behind, and the Intel is basically maxed out as it sits, the amd can be upgraded to multiple other cpus for even better performance without changing anything else.
 
I’m playing at 140hz 1440p. Is the second build superior for gaming or are they about the same? The Amd one has double the cores, that means better computing? Is the intel just as good as amd for gaming in this case?
Intel until Ryzen 5000 was better at high fresh rate gaming. Games are limited in the number of cores and threads they can take advantage of and you get diminishing returns as you add more. Intel has an architectural advantage, it's CPU's are monolithic, meaning that all of the cores and other components such as the memory controller and caches are part of a single CPU die,. This means the cores can talk to each other faster and access the CPU cache faster than they can on Zen 2 CPU's (Ryzen 3000). While in most workloads this doesn't really matter, it allowed them to best AMD at high refresh rate gaming.

The 3900X has roughly double the computational power yes, however as above unless games can use the additional cores then it won't perform any better. However some newer triple A games will push a 6 core/12 thread chip like the 8700K to it's limit. I've tested it, on Cyberpunk an 8700K will run at 100% permanently if you are using Ray Tracing, as such you will get a smoother more enjoyable experience on the 3900X even if there's not that much between them in frame rate.

If you want a simple answer I would say yes the 3900X is a better gaming CPU in 2022 and has plenty of power in reserve should you want to do any additional things whilst gaming or should games start to benefit from higher core counts. In the previous Battlefield games for example, the 8700K would beat a 3900X, it now loses in Battlefield 2042.

The 3900X is one of my favourite CPU's, I'd take it over an 8700K all day long. However if frame rates are everything then Intel's 12th gen Alder Lake is the current leader, an i5 12600K or i7 12700K would be my pick's. I don't know what prices are like where you are though.
 
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Tomha1

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Oct 19, 2016
35
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Intel until Ryzen 5000 was better at high fresh rate gaming. Games are limited in the number of cores and threads they can take advantage of and you get diminishing returns as you add more. Intel has an architectural advantage, it's CPU's are monolithic, meaning that all of the cores and other components such as the memory controller and caches are part of a single CPU die,. This means the cores can talk to each other faster and access the CPU cache faster than they can on Zen 2 CPU's (Ryzen 3000). While in most workloads this doesn't really matter, it allowed them to best AMD at high refresh rate gaming.

The 3900X has roughly double the computational power yes, however as above unless games can use the additional cores then it won't perform any better. However some newer triple A games will push a 6 core/12 thread chip like the 8700K to it's limit. I've tested it, on Cyberpunk an 8700K will run at 100% permanently if you are using Ray Tracing, as such you will get a smoother more enjoyable experience on the 3900X even if there's not that much between them in frame rate.

If you want a simple answer I would say yes the 3900X is a better gaming CPU in 2022 and has plenty of power in reserve should you want to do any additional things whilst gaming or should games start to benefit from higher core counts. In the previous Battlefield games for example, the 8700K would beat a 3900X, it now loses in Battlefield 2042.

The 3900X is one of my favourite CPU's, I'd take it over an 8700K all day long. However if frame rates are everything then Intel's 12th gen Alder Lake is the current leader, an i5 12600K or i7 12700K would be my pick's. I don't know what prices are like where you are though.

Great explanation, thank you. I went with the Ryzen build. 😃
 
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