Early 2021 System Upgrade: LGA1155 to AM4! Help me choose CPU (R3 3100 or 1600AF?) & Motherboard

[Sonmambulist]

Budget (including currency): as close to or under £400 as possible. Great British Pounds (£)

Country: United Kingdom

Games, programs or workloads that it will be used for: CoD:MW/ColdWar (and new, subsequent releases), CSGO, Cities Skylines, Sims 4 and some indie games like House Flipper and BeamNG + Automation etc

Other details (existing parts lists, whether any peripherals are needed, what you're upgrading from, when you're going to buy, what resolution and refresh rate you want to play at, etc):

 

My current rig is in my sig but to simplify here is a basic overview;

i7 2700k @ 4.6Ghz cooled by a Corsair 110GT 

16GB Corsair Dominator RAM 1600Mhz

Asus P8-Z77 LX Motherboard

Zotac GTX 1070 Mini

Acer 144Hz Monitor 1080p (planned upgrade to an 200hz 3440p Ultrawide in a few years.)

 

So, here goes; I've still got a 10 year old CPU. She's needing retirement (or re-homing from daily use to my GFs updated system) and I'm going back to team red. Below the PartPicker BBs explains in more detail.

 

I've got two distinct but very different PCPartpicker lists;

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: *AMD Ryzen 3 3100 3.6 GHz Quad-Core Processor  (£116.40 @ Alza) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte B550M AORUS ELITE Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£96.22 @ CCL Computers) 
Memory: *Patriot Viper Steel 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory  (£59.16 @ More Computers) 
Storage: Crucial P2 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive  (£47.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Power Supply: Gigabyte P GM 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  (£84.10 @ SmartTeck.co.uk) 
Total: £403.87
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-12-16 02:37 GMT+0000

 

Above with a Ryzen 3 3100 and a B550 Mobo and below with a R5 1600AF and a B450 Mobo.

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 1600 (12nm) 3.2 GHz 6-Core Processor  (£114.40 @ Alza) 
Motherboard: ASRock B450 Steel Legend ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£87.38 @ CCL Computers) 
Memory: *G.Skill Ripjaws V 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3600 CL16 Memory  (£104.13 @ Newegg UK) 
Storage: Crucial P2 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive  (£47.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Power Supply: Gigabyte P GM 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  (£84.10 @ SmartTeck.co.uk) 
Total: £438.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-12-16 02:39 GMT+0000

 

 

The 6-Core system is more expensive overall, but I can bite that cost for the extra cores. My point in even making this post is; whats better? I am using a decade old (almost) CPU now, that feels like it's on it's last legs 1.4v for a good 5 years of me owning it has taken it's toll. I don't upgrade that often. Sill using a 240GB Samsung 840EVO SSD that was in the system when I paid my friend £300 for the thing about 5 years ago.

 

What's going to last longer? A Ryzen 3 CPU with a 7nm process or a Ryzen 5 with a 14nm process? I'm still on bloody 32nm.

 

This is a large purchase for me and I really don't want to waste money on it. It'll be paired with a GTX1070 for a good year or more, until I save enough for a new GPU (and when you can actually buy one) and subsequently a new Ultrawide monitor. I'd be aiming for a theoretical RTX4070 I hope, or maybe a 4060Ti, heck, even an RX7700 XT!

 

Other info;

Why is there an SSD and a PSU here?

Simple answer is, because, I can? Also I want a better storage solution to this old SSD. Maybe it ends up in my GFs system. The PSU is because this one is nearing 7 years old and it's an older OCZ ZT Series unit, which scares me a lot. I've added a 750w unit because I have PSU anxiety so more is better(?) and I feel more comfortable with a higher wattage and having to spend an extra £20 on that.

 

This AsRock B450 motherboard is stated on their site to support Ryzen 5000 series. Once the prices drop in a few years time I'm likely to simply buy a 2nd hand (or old-stock) R7 5800X or R9 5900X and run that setup with a 360mm RAD or NH-D14/15.

 

Also, my current setup is 3 monitors. My Acer is over DVI, the Samsung is over HDMI and the Logik TV uses VGA which uses ASUS's very clever dual iGPU and main GPU system. How would I run all these monitors at once from a new PC without any onboard video from the MoBo/CPU - the TV does have HDMI in but I use that for my Roku streaming box and it would be more a first-world-problem than an actual issue to just unplug and plug in the cables every new and again. Would buying some cheap but very low power Nvidia GPU like a GT210 make sense to just have a VGA port for the TV, or am I being over-complicated for no reason?

 

Thanks for reading this poorly written ramble-fest. It's 3am.

 

- Dylan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[OfficialTechSpace]

1600AF 

 

Despite being a Zen+ CPU, it still outperforms the 3100 for the money.

 

**Btw

1. That price difference only really exists because you have chosen different memory on both lists (+£44.97 more on the 1600AF build)

18 minutes ago, Sonmambulist said:

The 6-Core system is more expensive overall

2. The 1600AF is on a 12nm process, and the better performing CPU (the 1600AF) should last longer.

18 minutes ago, Sonmambulist said:

What's going to last longer? A Ryzen 3 CPU with a 7nm process or a Ryzen 5 with a 14nm process?

3. I don't think you'll need a 750W Power Supply (550-650W should be fine) unless you're planning on running an RTX 3080 (which I would not recommend with either CPU)

18 minutes ago, Sonmambulist said:

I've added a 750w unit because I have PSU anxiety so more is better(?) and I feel more comfortable with a higher wattage and having to spend an extra £20 on that.

 

[Sonmambulist]

41 minutes ago, OfficialTechSpace said:

1600AF 

 

Despite being a Zen+ CPU, it still outperforms the 3100 for the money.

 

**Btw

1. That price difference only really exists because you have chosen different memory on both lists (+£44.97 more on the 1600AF build)

2. The 1600AF is on a 12nm process, and the better performing CPU (the 1600AF) should last longer.

3. I don't think you'll need a 750W Power Supply (550-650W should be fine) unless you're planning on running an RTX 3080 (which I would not recommend with either CPU)

 

Thanks for the reply, didn't notice the RAM issue there, 3200Mhz fast enough though?

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 1600 (12nm) 3.2 GHz 6-Core Processor  (£114.40 @ Alza) 
Motherboard: ASRock B450 Steel Legend ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£87.38 @ CCL Computers) 
Memory: *Patriot Viper Steel 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory  (£59.16 @ More Computers) 
Storage: Crucial P2 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive  (£47.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Power Supply: Gigabyte P GM 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  (£84.10 @ SmartTeck.co.uk) 
Total: £393.03
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-12-16 03:45 GMT+0000

 

Under £400 for a 6-core system! I'm pleased. Any 650w PSU you recommend within the price of the Gigabyte unit there? (under ~£80)

 

I'm planning a GPU upgrade next release or a few weeks after, RTX4000 series. Aiming for RTX4070/4060Ti whichever has 10GB+ vRam

 

Edited December 16, 2020 by Sonmambulist

[OfficialTechSpace]

26 minutes ago, Sonmambulist said:

3200Mhz fast enough though?

Yep, that should be more than fine 

26 minutes ago, Sonmambulist said:

Any 650w PSU you recommend within the price of the Gigabyte unit there? (under ~£80)

Corsair TXM Gold 650 W 80+ Gold for ~£79.98

26 minutes ago, Sonmambulist said:

I'm planning a GPU upgrade next release or a few weeks after, RTX4000 series. Aiming for RTX4070/4060Ti whichever has 10GB+ vRam

Alright cool, by then Zen 2 and Zen 3 prices will have come down a bit also. That B450 motherboard should keep you covered till then as well for an upgrade.

[Sonmambulist]

16 hours ago, OfficialTechSpace said:

Yep, that should be more than fine 

Corsair TXM Gold 650 W 80+ Gold for ~£79.98

Alright cool, by then Zen 2 and Zen 3 prices will have come down a bit also. That B450 motherboard should keep you covered till then as well for an upgrade.

Thanks for the reply again. This is what the build looks like so far.

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 1600 (12nm) 3.2 GHz 6-Core Processor  (£114.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Motherboard: ASRock B450 Steel Legend ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£87.38 @ CCL Computers) 
Memory: *Patriot Viper 4 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory  (£59.74 @ CCL Computers) 
Storage: Crucial P2 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive  (£54.73 @ CCL Computers) 
Power Supply: Corsair TXM Gold 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply  (£79.98 @ Currys PC World Business) 
Total: £396.82
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-12-16 21:10 GMT+0000

[OfficialTechSpace]

1 hour ago, Sonmambulist said:

Thanks for the reply again. This is what the build looks like so far.

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 1600 (12nm) 3.2 GHz 6-Core Processor  (£114.99 @ Amazon UK) 
Motherboard: ASRock B450 Steel Legend ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£87.38 @ CCL Computers) 
Memory: *Patriot Viper 4 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory  (£59.74 @ CCL Computers) 
Storage: Crucial P2 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive  (£54.73 @ CCL Computers) 
Power Supply: Corsair TXM Gold 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply  (£79.98 @ Currys PC World Business) 
Total: £396.82
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-12-16 21:10 GMT+0000

Looks good 

I'd say that's ready to go.

[Sonmambulist]

21 hours ago, OfficialTechSpace said:

Looks good 

I'd say that's ready to go.

Thanks for the help mate.

 

Have a good Christmas! Hope the BC winter isn't too much this year

[OfficialTechSpace]

2 hours ago, Sonmambulist said:

Thanks for the help mate.

No problem 

2 hours ago, Sonmambulist said:

Have a good Christmas! Hope the BC winter isn't too much this year

You too man, I hope it isn't also