Am I making a mistake building an AM4 PC now, then upgrading to the new 3000 cpus later?

[Mark A]

I was all set on getting a Asus 470x-f gaming motherboard as I was told it had more than enough headroom in terms of VRM for the new chips? But after doing more research I keep seeing comments on reddit and other places that have now made me think i'm making a mistake and should just try to wait until summer before building...

Like pci express 4, how is that going to affect things? Will I not be able to upgrade my gfx card in a few years time? I currently have a 1070ti, but I upgraded my monitor to 1440p and found my gfx card was then a bit weaker than I'd hoped, so I think a new one might be necessary before my usual 4 year PC cycle is up. If I buy the Asus 470x-f mobo now, will I then be stuck with the same gfx card until I upgrade the mobo?

Is there anything else that might cause issues buying a mobo now and then using the new cpus with it?

I have already bought a 2600 cpu for £144, which also comes with a free copy of the division 2, which I was going to use for now until the new chips are out in july, then sell it. I could sell it on ebay now and get back what I paid for it if I decide to wait.

If I still had a PC then I'd happily just wait, but i'm currently using a borrowed i3 laptop, so no gaming until I sort a new pc out.

Thanks in advance.

 

[lee32uk]

Hi

Hard to say what board you will need as it depends on what cpu you would be looking at etc. The Asus X470-F is a pretty decent board though. The MSI X470 Gaming Pro Carbon is also a good board for a bit less, or there is the B450 version and also the Tomahawk which are also fine for an 8 core.

As for pcie 4.0 that won't really affect anything. It will be backwards compatible anyway with pcie 3.0.

You would probably be better off skipping Ryzen 3rd gen and use the R5 2600 until next year. The AM4 socket is supported until 2020 so the next crop of cpu's will slot into current boards with a bios update. If you are just gaming then 6c/12t is enough for now.

 

[tamzzy]

If I still had a PC then I'd happily just wait, but i'm currently using a borrowed i3 laptop, so no gaming until I sort a new pc out.

this sorta answers your own question...
if you can wait, then wait. it's is always the best option (for computer tech specifically)
if you can't wait, then well, you'd have to buy

 

[Mark A]

this sorta answers your own question...
if you can wait, then wait. it's is always the best option (for computer tech specifically)
if you can't wait, then well, you'd have to buy

Yeah true, but i'm more asking if building now means I won't be able to buy gfx cards in future and whether or not this particular motherboard will actually work with the new 3000 series chips. AMD apparently said current motherboards will support future chips, but i'm seeing comments on reddit saying a lot of features wont be supported. I'm not a member on reddit, so cant ask them to go into more detail, so asked here instead. I was kinda hoping someone in the same boat might have some input to put my mind at ease so I can order lol.

Hi

Hard to say what board you will need as it depends on what cpu you would be looking at etc. The Asus X470-F is a pretty decent board though. The MSI X470 Gaming Pro Carbon is also a good board for a bit less, or there is the B450 version and also the Tomahawk which are also fine for an 8 core.

As for pcie 4.0 that won't really affect anything. It will be backwards compatible anyway with pcie 3.0.

You would probably be better off skipping Ryzen 3rd gen and use the R5 2600 until next year. The AM4 socket is supported until 2020 so the next crop of cpu's will slot into current boards with a bios update. If you are just gaming then 6c/12t is enough for now.

Thanks, so the next line of Nvidia or AMD cards should be fine with this mobo then?

As for the cpu, I'm not 100% sure, but the 8 core/16t chip that was about even performance with the i9 that they showed at CES looked ideal, would this mobo handle that do you think?

 

[tamzzy]

but i'm more asking if building now means I won't be able to buy gfx cards in future

pci-e 4 is (should be) backwards compatible with pci-e 3, so gpus shouldn't be an issue

this particular motherboard will actually work with the new 3000 series chips

amd said am4 would be supported until 2020, so i guess we'll have to take their word for it

of course they'll add in more features that may/may not appear in older mobos to differentiate the newer models from the older ones though.

 

[lee32uk]

Thanks, so the next line of Nvidia or AMD cards should be fine with this mobo then?

As for the cpu, I'm not 100% sure, but the 8 core/16t chip that was about even performance with the i9 that they showed at CES looked ideal, would this mobo handle that do you think?

Yes it will work, but obviously it will run at pcie 3.0 bandwidth. Not really an issue though.

The Asus Strix X470-F should cope no problem with a Ryzen 3rd gen 8 core if that is your plan. Some of the cheaper B450 boards can handle current 8 core cpu's ok i.e The MSI ones I mentioned earlier.

 

[ExoMale]

if you already own a 2600 then just build round it without question, b450/x470 boards are still viable and until ryzen 3000 comes out, nobody will know how it performs etc, that 'borrowed' laptop can only last so long and clearly you need to sort alternatives.

 

[Kelt]

I think you'd be mad to build a system now.

If you had no PC at all then fair enough, but you have access to a laptop.

Wait it out or buyer's remorse will be a monkey on your aching back for eternity once the Ryzen 3*** series launch .

 

[CuriousTomCat]

It sounds like you already made a mistake when you impulse bought the 2600 that you're not happy with. Why not wait 6 months for Ryzen 3000, read the reviews and then make a decision you're 100% sure of.

 

[lee32uk]

It might be longer than 6 months though. Depends on what sort of release it is. If they are in short supply at launch, then it might be weeks after before they are in stock.

 

[EsaT]

Yeah true, but i'm more asking if building now means I won't be able to buy gfx cards in future and whether or not this particular motherboard will actually work with the new 3000 series chips. AMD apparently said current motherboards will support future chips, but i'm seeing comments on reddit saying a lot of features wont be supported.

Socket compatibility was confirmed in CES keynote.
Until DDR5 memory is here, AMD would be shooting itself on foot with shotgun by changing socket for no reason.
(like Intel does just for the fun of screwing buyers to butt)

And at least in well designed motherboards signal routing of x16 slot connected to CPU's PCI-e lanes qualifies for 4.0 speed, which motherboard maker can enable in BIOS update.
https://www.tomshardware.com/news/amd-ryzen-pcie-4.0-motherboard,38401.html
Hard limit is in PCB trace length limit before 4.0 signaling needs kind of signal "amplifier/repeater".

Of course all slots connected to chipset won't get any speed increase, or chipset's connection to CPU.
But normal user doesn't really need more bandwidth for those.
That includes M.2 slots:
Those benchmarketing numbers used in ads for selling those very expensive per GB drives benefit normal user only in copying files back and worth.
In loading times of Windows or games differences to SATA signaled SSDs are between small and measuring accuracy.

As for the cpu, I'm not 100% sure, but the 8 core/16t chip that was about even performance with the i9 that they showed at CES looked ideal, would this mobo handle that do you think?

Power consumption was so much lower, that they could have likely added another four cores at same clocks and still be easily below 9900K.
(around 100W draw)
X470-F won't be struggling any with 12 cores without some notable overclocking.
Unlike Intel AMD is quite honest in their TDPs and Zen2s are made on latest tech high performance manufacturing node.
Instead of originally low clocks phone/tablet CPU node pushed next to its limits, like in current GlobalFoundries made Zen1 Ryzens.

 

[BongoHunter]

If you've got the CPU already - buy the cheapest mobo you can and just use that for now, some AM4 boards can be had for £50-60.

DDR4 will still be the same with Ryzen 3K - and you can get 16gb of the Team Group 3000 MHz stuff for a little over £100 and reuse that when you finally get hold of a Ryzen 3000 series and mobo to go with it.

 

[Relentless81]

I'm buying now as I don't have a pc, I think I'll just skip the next gen and see what happens in 2020 when a new socket comes out, the difference in gaming can't be worth waiting another few months id rather just enjoy gaming

 

[ale bro]

Buildzoid did a youtube video on AM4 boards - he says that MSIs have the highest quality VRM components.

 

[orbitalwalsh]

Buildzoid did a youtube video on AM4 boards - he says that MSIs have the highest quality VRM components.

technically is asus Strix E - 5x ir3553 40A "doubled" + 2 - but good luck getting the board - basically, B550

if you can afford MSI X470 Carbon thats a good shout without spending £200+ for flagship X470 which can handle 8+ core ryzen easily (400+ amps across vcore)

hint though, some x570 should be 12+ * phase set up

 

[ale bro]

I'm hoping my MSI B450i gaming plus AC will be able to handle one of the new parts, but I'm only running on hope and guesswork.

 

[Mark A]

It sounds like you already made a mistake when you impulse bought the 2600 that you're not happy with. Why not wait 6 months for Ryzen 3000, read the reviews and then make a decision you're 100% sure of.

It wasn't an impulse buy really as I have been planning to use a 2600 for a while and just saw a good deal for it on hotukdeals, which pushed me to buy it then. I was all set on ordering the mobo and ram last night, but then after seeing a few comments about it being better to wait I wasn't sure.

if you can afford MSI X470 Carbon thats a good shout without spending £200+

So this would be better than the Asus? It's only about £9 cheaper than the Asus, so not much in it price wise. What is the second 8 pin connector for? I don't even think my current psu has 2x8pin power connectors.

Thanks for the replies, I think i'm just going to go for a build now and hope the new cpus will work ok in future. I'm gutted my pc died as it seems like the worst time to be building a new pc with pcie4 and ddr5 coming, plus the prices are sky high at the moment. My last PC, 4 years ago cost like £300 for the gtx970 and then a further £300 for the cpu and motherboard (Asus maximus ranger Vii + i5 4670k) Then OcUK had a good deal on for 8gb of Hyperx Beast 2400hz ram @ £45. Nice little system that has held up very well for the past 4 years and the mobo and ram are selling second hand for the same price I paid for them near enough lol. I wish I knew whether it was my CPU or Motherboard that has died, then I could sell the other and help pay for the new parts.

 

[tamzzy]

So this would be better than the Asus?

 

[orbitalwalsh]

as above the strix SHOULD be stronger, 6 IR3555 integrated power stages will always be better then 2 lo/2hi mosfet designs but unfortunately 4 of the 6 are for CPU , unlike MSI its all on the Vcore and has etc for SoC etc

you'll notice MSI ITX board is actally better then there boards. It is a shame Strix E isn't out as that list is wrong and would be hitting on the Top tier but as mentioned, thats next B/X board launch specs

I think MSI are finally going IR units for X570 , using 4C029N is a lot cheaper though~

again, wouldn't upgrade to 3*** for 2000 series, would wait till 4*** then make the jump

power requirements should be more refined etc

 

[EsaT]

That four phase C10B for high side and 2x 4C06B for low side of Asus is still garbage.
In The Stilt's testing 12 minutes of x264 encoding on stock 2700X overheated B450-F's VRM.
ASRock B450 Pro4's VRM is actually more capable.

as above the strix SHOULD be stronger, 6 IR3555 integrated power stages will always be better then 2 lo/2hi mosfet designs but unfortunately 4 of the 6 are for CPU , unlike MSI its all on the Vcore and has etc for SoC etc

All six IR3555s of X470-F are for Vcore.
SoC has four more of them.