Help Picking Budget System

[Brace]

I'm helping a friend build a system and I haven't really been in the loop of new hardware since I built my PC 2.5 years ago so I need some help parting it out. Looking to spend about 500-700 USD. The system will be used for mostly minecraft and skyrim at 1080, maybe some light photo editing. I have a friend with a rx 580 for $70 so take $100 off both reference builds. Thanks for any help in advance.

 

$540 ryzen: 

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 5 1600 (12nm) 3.2 GHz 6-Core Processor	$104.99 @ Amazon
Motherboard	MSI B450M PRO-M2 MAX Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard	$74.99 @ Walmart
Memory	ADATA XPG SPECTRIX D60G 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 CL16 Memory	$74.99 @ Walmart
Storage	Western Digital Blue 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive	$63.99 @ Amazon
Video Card	XFX Radeon RX 580 8 GB GTS XXX ED Video Card	$169.99 @ Best Buy
Case	Thermaltake S100 Snow Edition MicroATX Mini Tower Case	$73.98 @ Newegg
Power Supply	EVGA BQ 600 W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply	$81.87 @ Newegg
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	$644.80
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-06-25 11:50 EDT-0400

 

$610 intel:

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	Intel Core i3-10100 3.6 GHz Quad-Core Processor	$142.50 @ B&H
Motherboard	ASRock B460M Pro4 Micro ATX LGA1200 Motherboard	$93.98 @ Newegg
Memory	Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory	$87.99 @ Amazon
Storage	Western Digital Blue 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive	$63.99 @ Amazon
Video Card	XFX Radeon RX 580 8 GB GTS XXX ED Video Card	$169.99 @ Best Buy
Case	Silverstone PS15 MicroATX Mid Tower Case	$73.66 @ Amazon
Power Supply	EVGA BQ 600 W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply	$81.87 @ Newegg
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	$713.98
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-06-25 11:51 EDT-0400

 

[eeeee1]

go amd

[Hairless Monkey Boy]

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 3 3300X 3.8 GHz Quad-Core Processor	$134.99 @ Newegg
Motherboard	MSI B450M PRO-M2 MAX Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard	$74.98 @ Amazon
Memory	G.Skill Ripjaws V 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3600 CL16 Memory	$81.99 @ Newegg
Storage	Silicon Power A60 512 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive	$62.99 @ Newegg
Video Card	XFX Radeon RX 580 8 GB GTS XXX ED Video Card	$169.99 @ Best Buy
Case	Thermaltake S100 Snow Edition MicroATX Mini Tower Case	$73.98 @ Newegg
Power Supply	EVGA BQ 600 W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply	$81.87 @ Newegg
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	$680.79
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-06-25 12:09 EDT-0400

• 3300X would be better for gaming, although 1600 might be better for productivity.
• 3600Mhz CL16 is the best choice for RAM with the 3300X
• Storage can be NVME for the same price.

[Bombastinator]

1600 is often the 1600af lately which means it’s more like a 2600.  They can be quite pricey though since it’s well known.  As a result 12nm 1600s often go for only a few dollars less than 2600s making them a not-so-good buy.  
 

the 14nm (old) 1600 vs the 3300x is an iffy thing. The 1600 has two more cores, but it’s slower, has memory speed limitations that are annoying to try to get around, and is notoriously picky about what memory it will accept.  The QVL list actually came back into use because of ryzen1.  Imho a 1600af is better than a 3300x if it can be gotten for reasonable money it’s a better chip long term.  Still slower for current games than the 3300x.  That word “current” is important though.  No one who knows is saying what the new consoles will bring.

[Avocheeseado]

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 3 3300X 3.8 GHz Quad-Core Processor	$134.99 @ Newegg
Motherboard	ASRock B450M PRO4 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard	$93.98 @ Newegg
Memory	Team T-FORCE VULCAN Z 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory	$57.99 @ Newegg
Storage	Crucial P1 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive	$62.99 @ Adorama
Video Card	MSI GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER 6 GB VENTUS XS OC Video Card	$229.99 @ Newegg
Case	Phanteks Eclipse P300 ATX Mid Tower Case	$59.99 @ Amazon
Power Supply	Cooler Master MasterWatt 550 W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply	$65.14 @ Amazon
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total (before mail-in rebates)	$715.07
	Mail-in rebates	-$10.00
	Total	$705.07
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-06-25 12:58 EDT-0400

save a bit by going for 3200 ram and you can get a 1660 super - much better than an rx580..

[Hairless Monkey Boy]

1 minute ago, Avocheeseado said:

save a bit by going for 3200 ram and you can get a 1660 super - much better than an rx580..

He is getting the 580 for $70.

1 hour ago, Brace said:

I have a friend with a rx 580 for $70 so take $100 off both reference builds.

 

[Avocheeseado]

1 hour ago, HairlessMonkeyBoy said:

He is getting the 580 for $70.

 

Yep didn't see that

[Avocheeseado]

Just now, Avocheeseado said:

Yep didn't see that

I would put the money into a better motherboard