Gaming PC build for the next 2 years?

I hope you ended up grabbing the 990XA-UD3 or maybe the Asus M5A97 evo R2. 😛

I hope you went with the first Gigabyte board—it’s much better for overclocking, whereas the other one is just way too overpriced.

Is the Evo way too pricey, or is it actually better for overclocking? You're probably right 😉

The only real edge Giga has is that pure CF/SLI support, but honestly, that only matters if you're planning on running a multi-GPU setup right out of the gate—otherwise, in my opinion, the Evo is a much more well-built board overall.

edit: if you were talking about the As R. instead of the other mobo, then my bad.

crimsonstag84, you basically just wrote down everything I didn't feel like typing out—it's basically your signature at this point.

I think there might be a bit of a misunderstanding here 😬

@The New Guy was probably thinking of the 990 FX Extreme3.

Generally speaking, the 970A-UD3 and 990XA-UD3 deal with some throttling issues, though maybe not as much; those Asus boards have slightly weaker regulation, but on paper, they seem better built, or at least that's what @graniteharbor85/">@@graniteharbor85 thinks. The 990FXA-UD3 doesn't really have those hiccups, but it does cost a bit more than something like the M5A99X EVO.

I was thinking about the 990 FX Extreme3—it just isn't worth the money when you can get much better options for a similar price tag.

Hey everyone! It’s been 4 years already—thanks again for helping me put this build together back then. I went with your recommendations and honestly, it was a beast. It’s still holding up great. Now, I’m looking to upgrade so this thing stays relevant for another 2-3 years before I jump to a totally new rig. Here’s what I’m running right now. I play Hunt Showdown, Project Cars 2, and stuff like that—so I need an explosive setup. I can't stand playing on low settings, lol.

AMD CPU X8 8320 AM3+
Zalman Z3+ Case
Zalman 120mm FAN CPU cooler
Asus M5A97 evo R2
Adata DDR3 8GB 1600MHz
Kingston 120GB V300 SSD
Toshiba 500GB 32MB SataIII
Raider sa 550 XFX AMD Radeon R9 280 x
XFX AMD Radeon R9 280 x 3GB
Samsung SH-224DB sat

What should I look at for a new GPU and RAM? And the CPU? Where am I hitting a bottleneck right now?

My budget is around $1167

Cheers,

I guess you don't really have a bottleneck issue here; the setup is actually pretty well-balanced. Because of that, if you want a massive jump in performance, you’ll likely need to upgrade both the CPU (which means a new motherboard and RAM too) and the GPU at the same time.

If I were looking for a baseline upgrade, I'd aim for this:

Gigabyte B450M DS3H AMD B450, AM4, 4xDDR4, DVI-D/HDMI, 2xPCIE x16, 1xPCIe x1, 1xM.2, 4xSATA, mATX
AMD Ryzen 5 1600 x patriot Viper4
Patriot Viper4, 3000Mhz, 8GB (2x4GB), CL1

Total: $0.78 - Centro

GPU:

Maybe just grab the graphics card first to see how it handles things. You'll definitely see better visual details at the same frame rate, though you might run into a little bit of a CPU bottleneck.

Honestly, that just doesn't fit within the budget. $1167 is the absolute limit, so if we're looking at 2330 for the tower plus another 2000 for the GPU, we're hitting 4330 :/

I'd say they should just grab this setup for the core components and then pick up a used RX 580 4GB or 8GB with a warranty from a place like Micro Center.

Alright guys, thanks, but we aren't there yet...$1433 I'm not playing games here, let's be real. A used GPU... I don't have any experience with that. Someone could sell me a literal piece of scrap metal with two fans on it and I wouldn't even know, since I'm clueless when it comes to hardware.

I’d rather take this step by step.

A brand new graphics card

Or

Motherboard, CPU, and RAM.

Then we go from there.

crimsonstag84 said:Maybe just grab the GPU first to see how things run. You'll definitely get better visuals without losing much FPS, though I guess you might hit a little bit of a CPU bottleneck.

...

Hey everyone

Quick question about current gaming trends, plus a brief status update so you don't have to dig through all the old posts.

- Back in 2014, I built a rig based on your suggestions—you can check it out a few posts up.
- From 2015 to 2017, everything ran smoothly at 60+ FPS on ultra settings.
- By 2018, newer titles were dropping to medium settings to stay at 60+ FPS; you guys suggested an upgrade then which made total sense, but for various reasons, I couldn't pull the trigger back then.
- Now in 2020, new games are hitting low settings just to scrape 30-50 FPS, while major AAA titles are basically unplayable.

Here’s the current state of my setup:
- The usual suspects: components are dying, replaced the PSU and RAM over the last few years, and one of the two fans on my GPU has a worn-out bearing that buzzes like crazy. Since it's a blower-style fan, I had to tear it down to the chip to clean it; if you aren't super careful, the wires snap easily. I ended up soldering them back together and ordered replacement fans from China because I gave up on XFX's sluggish customer service (it's like they don't even care about a card they built six years ago, haha). Also, the PC randomly fails to output video on startup sometimes; I've tried reseating components to fix it, but it works, dies again, works two days later, and so on. Honestly, I'm done dragging this thing to repair shops or playing DIY mechanic at home.🙂

The Question:
- Can I put together a build for $8,000 $3.25 that will push latest AAA titles at 60+ FPS on high to ultra settings for the next 2-4 years?

I'm talking about a 1080p gaming build here, since I assume a 4K rig would blow past that budget. When I say ultra settings, I'm excluding poorly optimized or experimental stuff like Ray Tracing that absolutely tanks your FPS. Look, I'm a layman, but I know how to research things online and draw my own conclusions—correct me if I'm wrong.

It’s impossible to guarantee ultra settings for the next four years, but like you mentioned, sticking to high presets without messing with experimental stuff like Ray Tracing or Hairworks—that’s a much more realistic approach.

Seasonic Core GC 500 w 80 + Gold Zalman S4 Midi Tower window Black Crucial SSD 1 TB MX500 M. 2
Zalman S4 Midi Tower window Black
Crucial SSD 1TB MX500 M.2, CT1000MX500SSD4
Sapphire RX5700XT Pulse 8GB GDDR6, 11293-01-20G
DDR4 16GB (2x8) G.Skill 3200MHz AEGIS C16, F4-3200C16D-16GIS
Asrock B450M Steel Legend, AM4
AMD Ryzen 7 3700 x (4.4GHz,36MB,65W,AM4, 8C/16T) box with Wraith Prism cooler, 100-100000071BOX

Total: $3156 craigslist.com

Price for cash or bank transfer.
I think you're pretty much brutally futureproof with this setup. Even if you run into a CPU bottleneck (which I really don't see happening given the Ryzen architecture and the 8C/16T on the 3700 x), you've got a clear upgrade path to Ryzen 4000. AMD recently confirmed that B450 boards will also support zen 3.
Either way, I honestly believe this rig will pull you through that period without breaking a sweat. Like you said, maybe not "ultra," but decent details without overdoing it by cranking up Hairworks, Ray Tracing, and the like.
Right now, you can basically max out everything on ultra at 1080p without the GPU even breaking a sweat.

Since you aren't a total hardcore enthusiast, upgrading your CPU down the line shouldn't be much of a headache. Honestly, I think the Ryzen 5 3600 is the smarter play here. I'm not sure if that extra cash would actually justify a better GPU, and frankly, saving some money right now isn't a bad idea. You're barely going to notice the performance gap between the 3600 and the 3700 x anyway. I’d rather pocket the savings now and just jump straight to the zen 4000 series later if it becomes necessary—the future mid-tier gaming chips will probably blow the 3700 x out of the water.

I get it, makes sense. Thanks for clearing that up. Honestly, I don't think throwing money at hardware guarantees the same kind of longevity it did five years ago. But hey, whatever, I guess that's just how the market is right now.

What about an Intel + Geforce combo?

That rig is strictly for gaming. Upgradability isn't really my thing. It feels like I'm putting a brand-new transmission into a total clunker, so I'm not exactly feeling the hype. Don't come for me, though. Gaming is a hobby, and you don't always run the math on your hobbies.

Plus, that build doesn't even have xls, let alone Photoshop or anything like that. I've got a laptop for that stuff.

Sam Rodriguez55 said:I get it, makes sense. Thanks for the input. Honestly, I don't think spending more money guarantees the same kind of longevity it did five years ago. But whatever, I guess that's just how the market is right now.

What about an Intel + Geforce combo?

This build is strictly for gaming. Upgradability isn't really my thing. Feels like I'm putting a brand new transmission into a total junker, so I'm not exactly feeling the hype. Don't crucify me here. Gaming is a hobby, and with hobbies, you don't always run the numbers on the ROI.

Plus, this rig won't even be running xls, let alone Photoshop or anything like that. I have a laptop for that.

I disagree on the whole longevity guarantee thing.
The last time we saw a massive leap in performance was back with the Intel Sandy Bridge architecture. Those i7 and i5 chips from back then (2011) are still usable today. Everything after that was stuck at quad-core until Ryzen showed up.

Now you can grab 6-core or even 8-core processors in these price brackets, and whether you pick a Ryzen 5 3600 or a 3700 x, you're set for a long time.

Intel doesn't really have anything worth buying right now. The only thing that might make sense is the 10600K, which is just hitting the market, but who knows when there will actually be enough stock to see decent prices. If you're buying a PC right now rather than waiting a few months, stick to what's here (3600 or 3700 x).

As for the GPU, the specific combo (Intel/Nvidia/AMD) doesn't matter that much. The guys recommended this one because it's the best bang for your buck. I'm not sure if a beefier Geforce would even be worth it if you go with the Ryzen 5 3600.

Regarding upgrades... that's more like dropping a bigger engine into a car that already runs great and was built to handle the power. That said, you probably won't need an upgrade for a while with either the 3600 or the 3700 x. Personally, I'd grab the 3600—better value for the money—especially since the next generation is going to be a huge jump in performance.

I’d opt for the 3700X here for two main reasons:
a) It offers much better immediate Futureproofing. Honestly, I doubt there will be any real reason to jump to zen 3 with a CPU of this caliber later on.
b) If you save some cash by going with the Ryzen 3600, the only "better" GPU that actually fits within the budget is the 2070 Super. You'd be spending more through $333 just to get a card that averages about 6% faster—SOURCE.

In my opinion, it just isn't worth it. If you're looking for long-term stability, a Zen2 Ryzen 7 paired with a beefier GPU that stays within budget is the way to go.
That said, the R5 3600 isn't a bad deal either; if anything, it’s the better value. You could stick with that and then swap it out for a zen3 whenever the need arises.
The whole point of this build is to make it durable so you aren't constantly shelling out for upgrades, which is exactly what the OP is hoping for.

👍

From a practical standpoint, you'll probably just end up swapping out the GPU in a few years when the heavy hitters come out anyway. That’s way easier and actually worth the money.
The 3700 x is solid for the Future.

Absolutely, the GPU is going to be the bottleneck long before anything else.
When are we finally getting a beefier Navi? There's just such a massive gap between the 5700XT and the RTX2080.

If next-gen GPUs actually deliver the leap everyone is talking about, 1440p might just take over from 1080p as the standard.

Word on the street is that the new Nvidia flagship is going to be massively bottlenecked by the CPU at both 1080p and 1440p resolutions, meaning it’ll basically have to be a 4K card. There simply isn't an American consumer CPU out there powerful enough to unlock its full potential at 1080p or 1440p—it would honestly be a waste of money if you didn't push it to 4K. According to some "

It’s going to be a bit of a bottleneck until the next big AAA title or Red Dead Redemption hits the PC, at which point you'll practically need a flagship just to keep things running smoothly. 😬 I mean, if you're struggling with a GTX 1080 just to barely max out Red Dead Redemption 2 at 1080p, come on...