Best way to narrow down options for CPU and MB

xenon20

xenon20

xenon20

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28 Aug 2013
Posts
58
Hi All,

Thinking about upgrading my PC, but I'm aware based on past experience that it can be bewildering trying to make decisions on what hardware will suit my needs best.

Just wondering if there is any tools / sites out there that can help guide me. For example, where you can input information about how you will use the PC which will steer you towards specific CPU's, and where you input what kind of connectivity and functions you need which steer you towards specific motherboards that have all of what you need but nothing you don't etc?

What's the best way to spec new system components for non-experts/geeks that doesn't involve weeks of trawling, watching hundreds of videos, and just ending up taking a stab on something because you've overwhelmed yourself with too many specs / information overload etc?

What's the bottom line?

Also, is now a good time to buy?

Thanks
X20
 
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Ok thanks,

My current system:
Windows 11
Ryzen 7 5700X (not overclocked)
ASRock X470 Taichi
EVGA RTX2070 XC Ultra Gaming (not overclocked)
32 GB DDR4 Corsair Vengeance 3200 (not overclocked)
EVGA 650 G6 PSU
Thermalright Peerless Assassin CPU cooler
Be Quiet! Silent Base 601 mid tower case
Samsung 970 EVO M.2 500GB system drive
Samsung 850 EVO SATA 500GB games drive
2x Toshiba X300 4TB HDD's data drives
Samsung Q85T 4K TV main monitor
Dell U2412M second monitor

Audio
------
Audient ID14 Mk2 Audio I/F
Novation Launchpad Pro Midi pad controller
Arturia Keystep 37 midi keyboard
DJTT Midifighter Twister midi controller

PC is multi use:

Gaming
Mostly single player, get on fine with my current GPU in most situations, don't care for high frame rates in online play etc etc but like to have the option to play most games in at least medium quality settings.

Music Production
Mostly In the box, Bitwig Studio, heavy use of plugins, some sample based instruments

Video Editing / Photo Editing
Davinci Resolve, working with 4K footage from GoPro, Photoshop

General use, documents, web browsing etc

I haven't overclocked anything because I don't really know what I'm doing and tend to shy away from it - too much info online about how to go about it! Probably prefer to stick to good performance without the need to tweak, although recognise that I can probably get better performance from my current setup.

I don't seem to be able to use that many plugins in my DAW before CPU meter starts to spike and cause issues. Ideally I'd like to be able to use lots without worrying about having to bounce to audio. Not sure if single core clock speeds or multiple threads are better for this kind of stuff.

Like to be able to use fast ample storage for quick file transfers. Thinking PCIe 4 or 5 M.2 NVMe.

Use direct Ethernet, no need for WiFi MB. Need Display port (dell), HDMI (TV), USB-C (Audio I/F). Plenty of (pref. fast) USB connections for peripherals. The ability to upgrade to better GPU in the future.

If I upgraded now, I wouldn't again for at least 8-10 years (except possibly GPU)

Don't NEED to upgrade. Just toying with the idea right now. Budget is flexible within reason.
Thinking of just upgrading CPU, MB, Storage. Possibly DDR5 RAM. Also guessing that 650W PSU may not cut it.

Any thoughts welcomed / appreciated!

Cheers,
X20
 
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In the way that I use the music software, which is more serial plugins on less overall number of tracks it sounds like single core performance is prioritised.

Any reason why you selected AMD over Intel?

Also how much life is left in Socket AM5? If I buy a new MB I'd be keen to ensure I have options to plonk a better CPU in it further down the line should I decide to (because at that point the best chips for (x) socket have gotten much cheaper which is what I did with my current board and CPU).

Regarding RAM, would I notice much difference in performance with DDR5 over my current DDR4?

And would my (Brand new due to RMA) 650w PSU cut it for either of the baskets you proposed? Can't really justify a new PSU seeing as the one I've got came through the post 5 days ago :cry:
 
I'm thinking @pastymuncher might be right. Stick with my current MB, buy an AM4 chip and learn how to OC it. Use saved money to put towards new GPU (also used for video rendering), Best Gen3 + Gen2 NVMe m.2 drives for current MB and possibly another 32GB of DDR4 (although not sure if it's ok to buy an identical RAM set to put in 2 spare slots?)
 
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Na. Decided to stick with current MB and CPU. Going to learn how to OC to get clock speed up to 4.6GHz (or close). Should meet my requirements and makes sense seeing as I've spent money on unlocked components that I try to get the best from them. Going to spend money on New Storage and better GPU.

Can anyone recommend a good beginners tutorial on how to go about overclocking my CPU and RAM?

GPU wise, what's good bang for buck right now? Radeon vs Nvidia?
 
Had a go at OC'ing my CPU last night with Ryzen Master.

Cinebench 2024 baseline:

Single: 92
Multi: 794
MP Rato: 8.59 x

1. Tried auto OC across all cores (in basic view - it took about 45 mins to determine optimised setings)

Single: 94
Multi: 818
MP Ratio: 8.66 x

Temps stayed around 70-75

2. Tried auto OC in detailed view, left all cores at 3400, left PPT, TDC & EDC at default (max) values of 1,000 / 480 / 650 respectively, set Boost Override CPU value to 200.

Single: Didn't test
Multi: 810

Temps were 80-85

Doesn't really seem like much of an increase. It is actually worth overclocking it for a few extra % ? Maybe there's better ways / settings that I'm not aware of but I'm not sure I have the patience to manually tweak and stress test at every setting.

Would it make any difference if RAM and GPU were overclocked first? and is that easy to achieve for an OC'ing noob?

Thanks :)
 
Undervolting and power limiting are more common than overclocking nowadays
Click to expand...

Ryzen CPUs are twitchy if you go too far, so I wouldn't do it, especially if you value stability due to your work.
Click to expand...

Because I'm not really that bothered about OC'ing and from your statements above, does this mean that if I were to buy another Ryzen CPU then a non-X chip would be better suited for me?
 
Still debating.

Single thread performance over multi.

Looks like the i7-13700KF is a good price at the moment (£289) for a thread/cpu mark of 4348/46209.

Obviously hesitant because of the current Intel scenario, read that most MB manufacturers have BIOS updates or will have.

Is the situation blown out of proportion? would you buy intel 13th or 14th gen right now?

Is the thread mark of 4348 based on max performance with an OC? Does it make sense to buy this chip if I decided not to overclock it?

Looks like the best (reasonable value) Ryzen alternative would be the R7-9700X for £339 (4489/37489)

What motherboard would you pair with either chip that has PCIe 5.0 & 4.0 M.2 that is reasonably priced?
 
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