pc build APU Or GPU in a tight budget

[Praxis_Kumar]

So I have a 300$ budget for a pc build I am in the USA.

I have a asus prime A320M-k motherboard I am trying to decide if i should go with a gpu or a apu any advice would be appreciated.

 

[Tech87]

What kind of processor do you currently have?

[Tech87]

The best apu that mobo supports is a 4750g, and you can expect the graphics to perform 40-60% worse than a regular 1050.

 

Unless you're going to be playing strictly e-sports titles, I think you would be better off getting a dedicated GPU.

 

However, that's a very tight budget for an entire build, and you're going to be very hard pressed to find anything half decent imo.

 

You can search around on your local second hand market, but that's going to be quite the challenge.

[Praxis_Kumar]

8 hours ago, Tech87 said:

What kind of processor do you currently have?

I dont have one at the moment my plan was to get an Athlon 950 X4 and a GPU equivalent it a 750 ti so i could get on the am4 platform and maybe have a ok GPU.

But i was thinking maybe going with a Apu instead since I already have am4. 

 

Btw i am used to 30 fps on Minecraft Bedrock on low settings so anything would be an upgrade.

 

[Praxis_Kumar]

8 hours ago, Tech87 said:

The best apu that mobo supports is a 4750g, and you can expect the graphics to perform 40-60% worse than a regular 1050.

 

Unless you're going to be playing strictly e-sports titles, I think you would be better off getting a dedicated GPU.

 

However, that's a very tight budget for an entire build, and you're going to be very hard pressed to find anything half decent imo.

 

You can search around on your local second hand market, but that's going to be quite the challenge.

What about a Athlon 200GE 2-Core  

 

[Tech87]

6 hours ago, Praxis_Kumar said:

What about a Athlon 200GE 2-Core  

 

I think you would be better off saving up a bit more money, and then you could get yourself a used system with a ryzen 3600 and a 1050 or similar.

 

That's what I would do.

[AdvocateOfNyx]

I'm gonna second Tech87's suggestion to save up a just a little more.  Additionally, looking at used hardware can definitely save you a buck if you don't mind the hassle.  Supposedly, eBay will refund you for the part if it doesn't work.  I haven't had to do this yet as most sellers are down to accept the return if you'll pay shipping.  There is also r/hardwareswap.  You can pick up an R5 3600 for $100-$125 over there if you're fast on the PM or a 2600 if you don't want to wait for a good deal to pop up.  Similar prices on motherboards and they often come bundled with RAM.  That's probably $250-$300 total.  If you could save up another $100 or $150 to spend on your GPU, you'd be looking at a pretty respectable budget rig.  You could pick up a rx 560 or rx 470 in that price range for sure.  All of this is assuming that the $300 does not include a power supply or case, although if you need both saving up more might really be your only option.

 

Unfortunately, the problem with this is that you can't just buy the CPU/Mobo/RAM now because the 3600 does not have integrated graphics.  Theoretically you could go for a 3400g or Intel equivalent CPU, but I would say saving up is more worth it.  The 3400g is pretty difficult to find and more expensive than the 3600 for less performance.  Intel chips in this price range typically also perform worse than the 3600 but theoretically you could find a great deal.

 

I suggest saving up a little more and spending that time poking around looking for deals.  If you see a CPU + Mobo + maybe RAM combo, you could jump on it, but only do so if you're almost ready to buy the rest of your pc parts.  Worst feeling is getting what you think is a good deal on something, then having it sit for 3 or 4 months and finding a better deal in that time period.

[Praxis_Kumar]

18 hours ago, AdvocateOfNyx said:

I'm gonna second Tech87's suggestion to save up a just a little more.  Additionally, looking at used hardware can definitely save you a buck if you don't mind the hassle.  Supposedly, eBay will refund you for the part if it doesn't work.  I haven't had to do this yet as most sellers are down to accept the return if you'll pay shipping.  There is also r/hardwareswap.  You can pick up an R5 3600 for $100-$125 over there if you're fast on the PM or a 2600 if you don't want to wait for a good deal to pop up.  Similar prices on motherboards and they often come bundled with RAM.  That's probably $250-$300 total.  If you could save up another $100 or $150 to spend on your GPU, you'd be looking at a pretty respectable budget rig.  You could pick up a rx 560 or rx 470 in that price range for sure.  All of this is assuming that the $300 does not include a power supply or case, although if you need both saving up more might really be your only option.

 

Unfortunately, the problem with this is that you can't just buy the CPU/Mobo/RAM now because the 3600 does not have integrated graphics.  Theoretically you could go for a 3400g or Intel equivalent CPU, but I would say saving up is more worth it.  The 3400g is pretty difficult to find and more expensive than the 3600 for less performance.  Intel chips in this price range typically also perform worse than the 3600 but theoretically you could find a great deal.

 

I suggest saving up a little more and spending that time poking around looking for deals.  If you see a CPU + Mobo + maybe RAM combo, you could jump on it, but only do so if you're almost ready to buy the rest of your pc parts.  Worst feeling is getting what you think is a good deal on something, then having it sit for 3 or 4 months and finding a better deal in that time period.

Ok I'll look into that but i was thinking ongoing with something like this

this link is not promotional

[da na]

If you're on a super tight budget find a PC in a dumpster, put a Core 2 Quad and SSD in it, and stick a Quadro k620 gpu from ebay (performs like GT 1030/Vega 8 but is $40) and you've got a sub 100 PC

[AdvocateOfNyx]

5 hours ago, Praxis_Kumar said:

Ok I'll look into that but i was thinking ongoing with something like this

this link is not promotional

The CPU in that build is worse than any Ryzen chip that has ever been created.  He spends around $125 on CPU, Mobo, and RAM.  I'd suggest raising that limit to at least $175 if not $200 to get a PC that will stand up to some newer games.  Taking a look at his benchmarks it looks like the CPU hits 100% usage before the GPU, meaning that with a better CPU you should hopefully see better performance in a lot of the games he tested.  I did like his video card finding suggestion, worth taking a look at although if you're getting a faster CPU, you could also stretch the GPU budget by $25 and pick up something faster to match it.  Just $100 more here would probably allow for a significantly better PC experience.

 

Edit: here is basically why you shouldn't buy that CPU

 

[Praxis_Kumar]

2 hours ago, AdvocateOfNyx said:

The CPU in that build is worse than any Ryzen chip that has ever been created.  He spends around $125 on CPU, Mobo, and RAM.  I'd suggest raising that limit to at least $175 if not $200 to get a PC that will stand up to some newer games.  Taking a look at his benchmarks it looks like the CPU hits 100% usage before the GPU, meaning that with a better CPU you should hopefully see better performance in a lot of the games he tested.  I did like his video card finding suggestion, worth taking a look at although if you're getting a faster CPU, you could also stretch the GPU budget by $25 and pick up something faster to match it.  Just $100 more here would probably allow for a significantly better PC experience.

 

Edit: here is basically why you shouldn't buy that CPU

 

So what CPU should I get should I go with the one in the video or do you recommend a different one?

It is possible to up my budget to 400$.

 

[ahmad13610]

1030 gt ddr5, around 90 bucks (must have)

leave it apu for end of 2021

 

 

[AdvocateOfNyx]

20 hours ago, Praxis_Kumar said:

So what CPU should I get should I go with the one in the video or do you recommend a different one?

It is possible to up my budget to 400$.

 

You have some different options. 

 

1. You could go the used route and look for a good deal on ebay and r/hardwareswap

 

Pros:

You'll get the "DIY" PC experience

You'll have the choice of every part you want, like getting a case you think looks nice

 

Cons:

You will have to figure out what CPU/Mobo/RAM goes well both together and with your GPU yourself.  You are welcome to ask on the forums, but often you don't have the luxury of waiting because if you don't buy it first, someone else will.

You may end up missing just one important part and have to wait which will suck

 

2. You could do what the guy in the video said (any many others do) and buy a used office PC + a gpu

 

Pros:

Incredibly easy

Often cheaper than building yourself (not always)

 

Cons:

Future upgrades will be very difficult

You have to make sure the PSU that comes in the PC is powerful enough for your GPU, it has the proper PCI-E connections, etc. OR buy a new one (kinda defeats the cheaper part)

Your PC will look like it belongs in an office

 

 

Here is an idea for option 1:

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/Px8xht - this details everything you would be buying new.  RAM can go if you find a deal on used RAM, but I just grabbed the RAM the guy in your video suggested since you seemed to like it.  Total is $175, leaving you with $225 for CPU, Mobo, and GPU.

 

This post on r/hardwareswap from 2 days ago has a CPU + mobo for $75 + shipping.  They're both spoken for, but it shouldn't be too hard to find a similar deal where someone wants to dump some old parts.  I am currently using a 4670k and that 4690k is even better than what I game on.  I can play pretty much anything, although it is limited to 60fps a lot of the time.  Assuming shipping is roughly $15, that leaves us with about $135 for a GPU. 

 

BIG IMPORTANT NOTE: If you decide to go with a CPU/Mobo that's older like that combo I linked you, do NOT buy the RAM in the PCPartPicker list.  It is DDR4, a newer standard than the older DDR3 RAM.  DDR3 is dirt cheap, in that same post as the CPU and Mobo you can get 16 GB of it for $10 + shipping.  Find it anywhere, don't pay too much for it.  Look up the motherboard you're getting before you buy the RAM to see which type you need.

 

For that price, you might be able to look at a GTX 960 4GB (sold here for $120 each 5 days ago), but I'd poke around and see if you can't find any other deals in that price range.  Again, nothing here is "the best" for the price.  It will definitely depend what deals are available at the time; such is the life of buying used hardware.

 

 

For option 2, just watch that video a little further and follow his instructions for going on Amazon and finding a PC for sale with the CPU he recommends.  Take whatever money you have left and throw it in to a GPU.  Just make sure the PC has the right connectors if possible.  Feel free to make a post asking if you are unsure and someone will try to help.

 

 

 

[Praxis_Kumar]

9 hours ago, AdvocateOfNyx said:

You have some different options. 

 

1. You could go the used route and look for a good deal on ebay and r/hardwareswap

 

Pros:

You'll get the "DIY" PC experience

You'll have the choice of every part you want, like getting a case you think looks nice

 

Cons:

You will have to figure out what CPU/Mobo/RAM goes well both together and with your GPU yourself.  You are welcome to ask on the forums, but often you don't have the luxury of waiting because if you don't buy it first, someone else will.

You may end up missing just one important part and have to wait which will suck

 

2. You could do what the guy in the video said (any many others do) and buy a used office PC + a gpu

 

Pros:

Incredibly easy

Often cheaper than building yourself (not always)

 

Cons:

Future upgrades will be very difficult

You have to make sure the PSU that comes in the PC is powerful enough for your GPU, it has the proper PCI-E connections, etc. OR buy a new one (kinda defeats the cheaper part)

Your PC will look like it belongs in an office

 

 

Here is an idea for option 1:

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/Px8xht - this details everything you would be buying new.  RAM can go if you find a deal on used RAM, but I just grabbed the RAM the guy in your video suggested since you seemed to like it.  Total is $175, leaving you with $225 for CPU, Mobo, and GPU.

 

This post on r/hardwareswap from 2 days ago has a CPU + mobo for $75 + shipping.  They're both spoken for, but it shouldn't be too hard to find a similar deal where someone wants to dump some old parts.  I am currently using a 4670k and that 4690k is even better than what I game on.  I can play pretty much anything, although it is limited to 60fps a lot of the time.  Assuming shipping is roughly $15, that leaves us with about $135 for a GPU. 

 

BIG IMPORTANT NOTE: If you decide to go with a CPU/Mobo that's older like that combo I linked you, do NOT buy the RAM in the PCPartPicker list.  It is DDR4, a newer standard than the older DDR3 RAM.  DDR3 is dirt cheap, in that same post as the CPU and Mobo you can get 16 GB of it for $10 + shipping.  Find it anywhere, don't pay too much for it.  Look up the motherboard you're getting before you buy the RAM to see which type you need.

 

For that price, you might be able to look at a GTX 960 4GB (sold here for $120 each 5 days ago), but I'd poke around and see if you can't find any other deals in that price range.  Again, nothing here is "the best" for the price.  It will definitely depend what deals are available at the time; such is the life of buying used hardware.

 

 

For option 2, just watch that video a little further and follow his instructions for going on Amazon and finding a PC for sale with the CPU he recommends.  Take whatever money you have left and throw it in to a GPU.  Just make sure the PC has the right connectors if possible.  Feel free to make a post asking if you are unsure and someone will try to help.

 

 

 

 

I think I'll probably go with used parts but a already have a mobo power supply and ssd so ill work of of those. Thanks for all of the advice.

 

[Praxis_Kumar]

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/ With this build what would be the best way to get a case and psu for around 70$???

 

[whm1974]

19 minutes ago, Praxis_Kumar said:

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/ With this build what would be the best way to get a case and psu for around 70$???

 

At that price? If you are lucky you might be able to find a half way decent PSU and Case together suitable for a Low End Cheap Build only.