Need a FEW RECOMENDATIONS

[scrumruggin]

So I'm based in Florida and looking to build a budget pc.  It's both general purpose and some gaming.  I used to build way back in the day (owned a then current IBM PC I upgraded to a HDD from a cassette drive LOL, I'm pushing 60) but the last thing I built was maybe a pentium 4 don't remember much about it except i way over-payed for an all brushed aluminum Lian Li full tower case with like 6 5.25" external bays back when you could have a case in any color as long as it was beige with pebbled finish. nice case though. 

 

I don't play racing games, shooters because i have a reaction time of probably 200ms (I do however make an excellent target) or e-sports. I'm more a civ 6, or 4x guy so I'm planning on an AM4 Ryzen 3400G with the RX graphics, stock cooler. not planning to overclock. I'm thinking on using LPX Vengence ddr4 probably 3000 but when I buy i'll see what's the best value.  I have several problems though. 

 

1. i'm dirt poor (been out of work for 3 months and rocking an unrelated broken leg) so this is a 6 month+ window to build where i'll be buying like one component a month starting with PSU I think since it least likely to suffer obsolescence .

2. I do play things like Witcher 3 and Uncharted series so FPS isn't something I can completely ignore.

3. I have some old laptops I can re-purpose for the mechanical drives (a dual core Pentium and a I think a 17" gen 3 core I7 (can't remember which exactly but it ended in HQ. it was fast in its day but I can't charge either due to lack of the right sized power supply) with a 1tb 5400 boot drive running windows 7  and I have an acceptable mouse and KB for now but that's basically it unless I can reuse some ram but that's unlikely.  My current laptop is using a 3200u and blasting out 1.5 FPS in 3dmark. Need a monitor too, a 24" or better, wide would be nice.   going for an ATX mid tower.

 

My main problem is MOBO.  I want to use an MSI (best mobos by consensus) but i need displayport or at at least hdmi and wi-fi because my ISP supplied router an motorola SBG 3850? is very inconveniently placed.  I was leaning toward the msi B450 carbon AC but I don't have an gen 1 or 2 ryzen chip to flash the bios for the gen 3 so i need a solution for that. And if i'm not overclocking does the VRM cooling matter?

I follow LInus tech tips, tech quickie to get back up to speed on some terms like dank  and i think I've watched every video going back a year other than the WAN shows which are just too long for my taste (apologies to Mr Sebastien), jayztwocents (he's my homie, my brother from another mother), and just started gamer nexus which has a ton of info but is a little tough to watch

 

leaning toward a corsair cx550 but PCpartpicker says my power draw is about 200w but I don't think a 300w modular or semi exists unless it's way off brand and experience has taught me to not go cheap on that component. i'm not a cable management freak but i like the idea of semi or fully modular

 

Are all $50 mid tower atx cases horror shows to build in?  I've looked online at Corsair, THERMALTAKE, Rosewill, Phanteks and IDK how many others and i pay attention to the 1* reviews the most and they are not encouraging.  Don't need RGB but If a can get some why the hell not?  I do plan on upgrading the CPU and adding an nvidia gpu in the future.  i DON"T need pcie 4 and I cant find an X570 in my budget,  or a x470 with everything i need. should a go wifi usb dongle or pcie card. router is in the same room but i'd have to move a lot of furniture, add a barrel connector and run it over my front door so another 50 foot run to reach the PC. and if I don't do much online play why would I?

 

budget is 500 to 700 greenback.  I have like $30 in amazon gift cards and i'll be running win 10 eventually but the OS is NOT part of the budget.

 

 

[Herman Mcpootis]

1 minute ago, scrumruggin said:

1. i'm dirt poor (been out of work for 3 months and rocking an unrelated broken leg) so this is a 6 month+ window to build where i'll be buying like one component a month starting with PSU I think since it least likely to suffer obsolescence.

wait until you have the entire budget, then buy everything at once. you don't lose warranty then and it's easier for you if something comes DOA.

[scrumruggin]

Thanks but I don't think that's going to work for me, it is a good point though

[Herman Mcpootis]

5 minutes ago, scrumruggin said:

Thanks but I don't think that's going to work for me, it is a good point though

those parts will literally be sitting in a corner for god knows how long, no point in getting a single part now then waiting months before everything is put together.

[scrumruggin]

Yes. do you have any other recommendations?

[Herman Mcpootis]

3 minutes ago, scrumruggin said:

Yes. do you have any other recommendations?

just wait till 1-2 weeks before you're ready to build and ask us again.

[scrumruggin]

well like i said that's not really an option in my situation but thank you anyway

[Herman Mcpootis]

11 minutes ago, scrumruggin said:

well like i said that's not really an option in my situation but thank you anyway

why? 

[thx1138]

2 hours ago, scrumruggin said:

budget is 500 to 700 greenback.  I have like $30 in amazon gift cards and i'll be running win 10 eventually but the OS is NOT part of the budget.

 

 

 

 

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 5 3400G 3.7 GHz Quad-Core Processor	$148.90 @ OutletPC
Motherboard	MSI B450-A PRO ATX AM4 Motherboard	$84.89 @ OutletPC
Memory	Crucial Ballistix Sport LT 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory	$59.99 @ Amazon
Storage	Inland 240 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive	$32.99 @ Amazon
Case	Thermaltake Versa H22 ATX Mid Tower Case	$33.98 @ Newegg
Power Supply	Corsair CX (2017) 450 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply	$49.89 @ OutletPC
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total (before mail-in rebates)	$455.64
	Mail-in rebates	-$45.00
	Total	$410.64
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-08-24 00:31 EDT-0400

 

 

price/perf wise....a much better comp would be. 

 

3600 for 199$

rx570 for 120$

 

...

 

you ould also lower RAM...but...my civ 4 modded uses 8 gigs of RAM...so......

 

if you got the 3600 I would also recommend another 10-20$ in ram for 3200/3600/3800 speed

 

some boards have BIOS Flashback. so if you have a USB you can update BIOS

https://premiumbuilds.com/motherboards/list-of-motherboards-with-usb-bios-flashback/

 

also...Idk the Computers/parts Used Facebook Market or Craigslist  in florida...but.. there can be deals...I like cpu/mb/ram combos
 

[thx1138]

 

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor	$195.89 @ OutletPC
Motherboard	MSI B450-A PRO ATX AM4 Motherboard	$84.89 @ OutletPC
Memory	G.Skill Ripjaws V 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3600 Memory	$89.99 @ Newegg
Storage	Inland 240 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive	$32.99 @ Amazon
Video Card	Sapphire Radeon RX 570 4 GB PULSE Video Card	$119.99 @ Newegg
Case	DIYPC Zondda ATX Mid Tower Case	$38.88 @ Newegg
Power Supply	Corsair CX (2017) 450 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply	$49.89 @ OutletPC
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total (before mail-in rebates)	$642.52
	Mail-in rebates	-$30.00
	Total	$612.52
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-08-23 23:40 EDT-0400

 

my civ 4 also uses alot of VRAM so....

570 with 8gb =$140  (+20$ )

580with 8gb =  $160(-20 promo code. limited time. newegg) (+$40)

I personally have two of these cases...they were fine to build with...if a bit basic.

you can up storage amount. or go to nvme...Though...have you checked Win7 drivers???

I know some have support from manufacturers and such..but...i haven't really looked into it...cuz I am still on ddr3 win Win7

[Herman Mcpootis]

Just now, thx1138 said:

 

Power Supply	SeaSonic S12III 500 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply	$44.99 @ Amazon

not a good unit, a CX450 would be much better.

[VEXICUS]

I'll recommend something like this instead...

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor  ($195.89 @ OutletPC) Best mid-high end CPU at present.
Motherboard: ASRock B450M/AC Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($74.99 @ Amazon) Supports Zen2 CPUs on all of its BIOS revisions. It will work out of the box with Zen2 CPUs.
Memory: Team T-FORCE VULCAN Z 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory  ($62.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: HP EX900 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive  ($56.99 @ Amazon) NVME SSD, much much faster than traditional hard drives.
Video Card: XFX Radeon RX 580 8 GB GTS XXX ED Video Card  ($169.99 @ Amazon) 
Case: Cooler Master MasterBox Q300L MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($38.00 @ Amazon) 
Power Supply: BitFenix Formula Gold 550 W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply  ($69.99 @ Newegg) 
Total: $668.84
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-08-23 23:30 EDT-0400

 

Link to the power supply - https://www.newegg.com/bitfenix-formula-gold-series-bp-fm550ulag-7r-550w/p/N82E16817376010

[thx1138]

20 minutes ago, Herman Mcpootis said:

not a good unit, a CX450 would be much better.

https://www.corsair.com/us/en/Categories/Products/Power-Supply-Units/cx-series-config/p/CP-9020120-NA

 

with sale only 5$ more.
 

for a slightly better minor rail.....if on extreme budget...doesn't matter..but if you can throw the extra 5$ it is not a bad place to put it

[thx1138]

21 minutes ago, VEXICUS said:

I'll recommend something like this instead...

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor  ($195.89 @ OutletPC) Best mid-high end CPU at present.
Motherboard: ASRock B450M/AC Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($74.99 @ Amazon) Supports Zen2 CPUs on all of its BIOS revisions. It will work out of the box with Zen2 CPUs.
Memory: Team T-FORCE VULCAN Z 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory  ($62.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: HP EX900 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive  ($56.99 @ Amazon) NVME SSD, much much faster than traditional hard drives.
Video Card: XFX Radeon RX 580 8 GB GTS XXX ED Video Card  ($169.99 @ Amazon) 
Case: Cooler Master MasterBox Q300L MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($38.00 @ Amazon) 
Power Supply: BitFenix Formula Gold 550 W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply  ($69.99 @ Newegg) 
Total: $668.84
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-08-23 23:30 EDT-0400

 

Link to the power supply - https://www.newegg.com/bitfenix-formula-gold-series-bp-fm550ulag-7r-550w/p/N82E16817376010

Also an okay build especially for the case. and that upgrade to nvme is definitely viable

 

.though I would still recommend 3600/3800 speed RAM for optimal performance.

and I don't personally like onboard wifi. I like USB adapters. much easier to fix any issues that might come up.

though i agree that with this budget and with wifi in mind. that board wouldn't be a bad choice 

 

 

[thx1138]

on monitors....

for 120$ you can get 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B072M34RQC

 

Which has a decent stand. you can get similar panel for 100$, but much much worst stand.

 

PSU/Case/monitor can be bought early.....on mail-in rebates....

other things should be bought together....cause if something is DOA then need to be on that 7-day/14-day return policy. you don't want to warranty something unless you have to.

 

 

 

Good luck.

[VEXICUS]

26 minutes ago, thx1138 said:

Also an okay build especially for the case. and that upgrade to nvme is definitely viable

 

.though I would still recommend 3600/3800 speed RAM for optimal performance.

and I don't personally like onboard wifi. I like USB adapters. much easier to fix any issues that might come up.

though i agree that with this budget and with wifi in mind. that board wouldn't be a bad choice 

 

 

• "3600/3800 speed RAM for optimal performance" I totally disagree with that. The infinity fabric can be tweaked to get the best performance out of the memory. Not worth extra $25-30 over a 3200mhz cl16 kit.

• I personally don't prefer USB wifi dongles as they take up one USB slot. And I need a lot of USB ports.
• The board that I chose supports zen2 CPUs on all of its BIOS revisions. Meaning Zen2 CPUs will work out of box on that board. Less hassle for a new builder.
• Also have a look at this..

 

[thx1138]

10 minutes ago, VEXICUS said:

• "3600/3800 speed RAM for optimal performance" I totally disagree with that. The infinity fabric can be tweaked to get the best performance out of the memory. Not worth extra $25-30 over a 3200mhz cl16 kit.
• I personally don't prefer USB wifi dongles as they take up one USB slot. And I need a lot of USB ports.
• The board that I chose supports zen2 CPUs on all of its BIOS revisions. Meaning Zen2 CPUs will work out of box on that board. Less hassle for a new builder.

I think the extra 25$ is worth it for a 3600 cl16 kit. especially if there is a future upgrade path....though if he goes with his original plan of a 3400g then I had slightly slower/cheaper RAM in the original build.

 

I use all my usb slots plus have a hub....but the hub sorta takes care of that...and i don't have to reach down to the case....I also like being able to unplug my usb wifi....or upgrade it ...or replace it....or transfer it....or fix it...

 

That is cool that asrock does that. and that its cheaper and has built-in wifi....I would still choose the MSI with BIOS Flashback

[VEXICUS]

7 minutes ago, thx1138 said:

I think the extra 25$ is worth it for a 3600 cl16 kit. especially if there is a future upgrade path....though if he goes with his original plan of a 3400g then I had slightly slower/cheaper RAM in the original build.

 

I use all my usb slots plus have a hub....but the hub sorta takes care of that...and i don't have to reach down to the case....I also like being able to unplug my usb wifi....or upgrade it ...or replace it....or transfer it....or fix it...

 

That is cool that asrock does that. and that its cheaper and has built-in wifi....I would still choose the MSI with BIOS Flashback

You don't get my point, you invested heavily on your ram and went with an inferior GPU. This is a budget build, not balls to the walls build. We have to make some compromises for getting additional performance.

 

You went with a $120 rx570, when that extra cash spent on ram could have been used for getting a rx580.

 

Also, you included a terrible power supply in my opinion. @LienusLateTipsand @LukeSavenije help you more regarding power supplies. 

[thx1138]

26 minutes ago, VEXICUS said:

You don't get my point, you invested heavily on your ram and went with an inferior GPU. This is a budget build, not balls to the walls build. We have to make some compromises for getting additional performance.

 

You went with a $120 rx570, when that extra cash spent on ram could have been used for getting a rx580.

 

Also, you included a terrible power supply in my opinion. @LienusLateTipsand @LukeSavenije help you more regarding power supplies. 

......The gpu can be upgraded easily...while RAM usually lives with the mobo/cpu until system rebuild.......so putting more money to something that is very hard to justify later upgrading......can be a smart future-proof early investment.

i recommended the 570 as the cheapest option that is available at a decent price/perf....while suggesting he upgrade to a 8gb or 580 card for the 20-40$ because it would be the better option.

20 years ago...I would've been called a PSU snob.........Look...its called diminishing returns....once you get to a certain quality and price where you are paying 40$ for something that is going to last 10+ years....if you actually kept it around that long...

yes....you can spend more...and get an extremely slightly better psu...99.999% will it matter? no........it can....its just not often. and i don't think its worth the extra money at this level of budgeting.
 

and I would rather go to jonnyguru, anandtech, techpowerup, etc on power supply reviews....before this forum....

[LienusLateTips]

36 minutes ago, thx1138 said:

20 years ago...I would've been called a PSU snob.........Look...its called diminishing returns....once you get to a certain quality and price where you are paying 40$ for something that is going to last 10+ years....if you actually kept it around that long...

yes....you can spend more...and get an extremely slightly better psu...99.999% will it matter? no........it can....its just not often. and i don't think its worth the extra money at this level of budgeting.
 

and I would rather go to jonnyguru, anandtech, techpowerup, etc on power supply reviews....before this forum....

What PSU was initally used?

 

Also, yes, most of the reviewers you talk about agree with us. DC-DC regulation is important in modern systems, and working protections is important in ALL systems.

[VEXICUS]

7 minutes ago, LienusLateTips said:

What PSU was initally used?

 

Also, yes, most of the reviewers you talk about agree with us. DC-DC regulation is important in modern systems, and working protections is important in ALL systems.

Lol, he had initially recommended a S12III. He edited it.

[VEXICUS]

46 minutes ago, thx1138 said:

......The gpu can be upgraded easily...while RAM usually lives with the mobo/cpu until system rebuild.......so putting more money to something that is very hard to justify later upgrading......can be a smart future-proof early investment.

i recommended the 570 as the cheapest option that is available at a decent price/perf....while suggesting he upgrade to a 8gb or 580 card for the 20-40$ because it would be the better option.

20 years ago...I would've been called a PSU snob.........Look...its called diminishing returns....once you get to a certain quality and price where you are paying 40$ for something that is going to last 10+ years....if you actually kept it around that long...

yes....you can spend more...and get an extremely slightly better psu...99.999% will it matter? no........it can....its just not often. and i don't think its worth the extra money at this level of budgeting.
 

and I would rather go to jonnyguru, anandtech, techpowerup, etc on power supply reviews....before this forum....

There's nothing like "future proof" build.

2-3years ago, 7700k was the top dog, but see, now nobody cares to buy it even second hand. A R5 1600 second hand is a comparitively better deal.

[thx1138]

12 minutes ago, LienusLateTips said:

What PSU was initally used?

 

Also, yes, most of the reviewers you talk about agree with us. DC-DC regulation is important in modern systems, and working protections is important in ALL systems.

From my understanding(lurking the many psu forums) the topology of the seasonic iii has DC-DC on the primary but not on the minor rails. while the cx does...which is better...for 5$ more...though doesn't matter if much $ more.

but considering that 20$ PSUs do actually work...for computers.....for years......without issue.........and thus if you spend 40$ more...it was a a waste price/perf for many people that don't push the PSUs out of ordinary operation.

I live on old farmland and have to deal with Lightning strikes extremely regularly...so have always been(for 18 years at least) a PSU snob....

 

There are diminishing returns to your investment...while there is also stacking the deck against future problems....just like everything else...you need to balance that with the budget and plan for the build/application

[VEXICUS]

2 minutes ago, thx1138 said:

From my understanding(lurking the many psu forums) the topology of the seasonic iii has DC-DC on the primary but not on the minor rails. while the cx does...which is better...for 5$ more...though doesn't matter if much $ more.

but considering that 20$ PSUs do actually work...for computers.....for years......without issue.........and thus if you spend 40$ more...it was a a waste price/perf for many people that don't push the PSUs out of ordinary operation.

I live on old farmland and have to deal with Lightning strikes extremely regularly...so have always been(for 18 years at least) a PSU snob....

 

There are diminishing returns to your investment...while there is also stacking the deck against future problems....just like everything else...you need to balance that with the budget and plan for the build/application

All I am saying is, for $20 more you can get a way better power supply.

https://www.newegg.com/bitfenix-formula-gold-series-bp-fm550ulag-7r-550w/p/N82E16817376010

[thx1138]

30 minutes ago, VEXICUS said:

There's nothing like "future proof" build.

2-3years ago, 7700k was the top dog, but see, now nobody cares to buy it even second hand. A R5 1600 second hand is a comparitively better deal.

....yes......but anyone with a brain could see that intels 3rd refresh of 4core 8 thread...and their intentional attack on multi-cpu support(see win7 updates that fixed mutli-cpu scheduling for intel cpus but not amds) it was generally obvious that price performance didn't exist in that space.

 

Back in the day...grabbing a 700-1000watt PSU was seen as future-proofing......but was wrong....

However...AMD stated that the socket will last to 2020....and every single ryzen iteration likes more and more RAM speed....Thus we can conclude...that There is some future upgrades we can plan for now...

 

comparing that to the height of the intel lead stagnation with new motherboards every single launch.......its a different tech space today than then.