Upgrade - Bundle or same components + better motherboard?

Mel_P · 27 Oct 2020 at 23:31

mickyflinn said:
Drop in your 580 will be good for 1080p and keep saving, then upgrade to maybe a 3060 or 3070 .

Ah but how do I pursuade my grandson to do the swap - he has borrowed my "spare" of for games. That has the 580 card in it ( an i5 board).

Mel_P · 28 Oct 2020 at 10:44

3060 or 3070 look a bit more than I want to pay - if web site "guessers" are right in their pricing? What performance boost could I expect? And how would I measure it?

Mel_P · 11 Nov 2020 at 18:52

Plec said:
Here you go:

https://uk.msi.com/Promotion/back-to-school-2020#AMD-Motherboard

Scroll down.

Just registered to get my £36 - have to wait 30 days. Thanks.

Mel_P · 21 Nov 2020 at 16:11

Plec said:
Here you go:
https://uk.msi.com/Promotion/back-to-school-2020#AMD-Motherboard

£36 0n the way (well in a few weeks...)! Need a 240GB SSD, as a backup, to clone my Gen 8 HP Microserver SSD which I have just upgraded to Windows 10 (from Win 7) - that's £28 gone. Thanks Plec

Plec · 21 Nov 2020 at 17:27

Mel_P said:
£36 0n the way (well in a few weeks...)! Need a 240GB SSD, as a backup, to clone my Gen 8 HP Microserver SSD which I have just upgraded to Windows 10 (from Win 7) - that's £28 gone. Thanks Plec

No worries, @Mel_P - glad to read you had success with it.

*A bit late replying:

Mel_P said:
3060 or 3070 look a bit more than I want to pay - if web site "guessers" are right in their pricing? What performance boost could I expect? And how would I measure it?

Over your RX 580(?) - irrelevant really, both would slaughter your present card at 1080p but the 3060's price would be more palatable. Depends on present/future screen plans - Hz/res? But since your post the 6000 release have muddied the waters - that and supply issues. I would take a beat, if you have the time, and wait a few months until supply isn't such a PITA.

Mel_P · 21 Nov 2020 at 18:01

With the lockdown and children back at school and uncertainty over Christmas - I don't see the PC being used much for "strenuous tasks" (grandsons gaming)- so will hold off for now. The Ryzen 5 3600 is certainly much snappier with Lightroom and photoshop over my ageing i7 920 (which is still adequate).

My main monitor is an ASUS ProArt model:

Screen Size 24.1 Inches
Brand ASUS
Model Name PA248Q
Resolution UXGA Wide
Hardware Interface DisplayPort, HDMI, USB 3.0
Display technology LED
Aspect Ratio 16:10
Response Time 6 Milliseconds
Refresh Rate 60 Hz
Resolution up to 1920 x 1200

I have no idea how it rates for games - I bought it for its colour rendering.

Plec · 22 Nov 2020 at 12:49

Mel_P said:
>snip<

I use 27" 1440p DELL Ultrasharps which are similar in response/Hz and i too prefer the 16:10 (1920x1200) format for work. Your Asus is fine for casual gaming and your RX 580 won't be limited by its refresh rate but if you ever get a 3000/6000 GPU then you may want to consider a 144Hz panel - there are quality IPS versions which would compliment your editing software.

After trying out a couple of 144Hz panels for family builds i'm 'converted' and considering getting a quality high refresh 1440p IPS, or even a 4K panel - given recent release of GPUs. @EsaT is a fan of the 4K LG 27GN950 - and if you can overcome the eye watering price (especially if you need more than one) the panel reviews well and is a great all-in-one screen. That said, I would miss the ease of the DELL warranty...

*There are lower res options and a 27" 1440p is still the optimal middle ground for price to performance ratio for a gaming work panel.