New build!

Alright folks, I could use some input here. I'm planning to overhaul my setup by picking up a new motherboard, some RAM, and a processor, then just sticking my old graphics card back in since it still seems to be holding its own. I'm mostly wondering if this whole combo is actually compatible and if it'll survive on a 500W power supply:

Gigabyte GA-A320M-S2H
AMD Ryzen 3 1200
Kingston 8GB 2400MHz DDR4 Non-ECC CL17 DIMM 1Rx8, KVR24N17S8/8, memory
Nvidia GT 610 1GB DDR3

I'm a bit hazy on whether the GPU will even play nice considering it's running on DDR3, so I figured I'd run it by you all first 🙂.

The GPU will work, and it won't perform any worse than before—it’s just inherently weak, so expect nothing more than basic tasks.

What kind of power supply are you running?
That setup shouldn't pull more than 150W, as long as you aren't using some cheap junk.

What's the end goal here, and are you planning on upgrading later?
It's smart to grab a B350 board if you want the option to overclock the CPU.

Also, if you aren't in a rush, maybe hold off for a month or two. A new Ryzen series is dropping soon, and you'll likely see the Ryzen 2200G priced right around what the Ryzen 3 1200 costs now. It's basically the same chip, but for the same money, you get integrated graphics that absolutely crush that old card of yours. That would be a much better move for you.

Just hang tight for those Ryzen APUs; they launch in five days, and I guess we might see them hit the shelves here in the States in maybe two weeks. If you can save up just a little longer, you could grab a better motherboard and some fast RAM to really help out that integrated graphics 😉

wiredotter14 said:The GPU will work just fine, nothing worse than before, it’s just that the card itself is pretty weak, so you're really only looking at basic functions here.

What kind of power supply are you actually running?
That setup shouldn't pull more than 150W, so the main thing is just making sure it isn't some absolute piece of junk.

What's the end goal here—what are you using it for, and do you plan on upgrading later?
It might be worth grabbing a B350 board so you have the headroom to overclock the CPU if you ever feel like it.

Otherwise, if you aren't in a massive rush, maybe hold off for a month or two; there's a new series of Ryzen coming out soon, where the Ryzen 2200G will probably cost about the same as the Ryzen 3 1200. It's essentially the same chip, but for the same price, you get integrated graphics that are miles ahead of that old card you've got, which would fit your situation perfectly.

I honestly have no clue what the power supply is; I'm staring at a label that says "Logic switching power supply," but there isn't an actual model number anywhere to be found.
I'm planning to use it for programming and gaming, and I'll likely just slap in another 8GB of RAM down the road, then eventually grab a decent graphics card. As for being in a hurry, the sooner the better, really, because I'm working on a project with a few friends in Unity and I need to be able to handle my own workload instead of constantly leaning on a buddy's laptop. Could you give me the exact name of that motherboard?

Hmm, okay... that's a bummer 😛

AMD Ryzen 3 1200 processor
AMD Ryzen 3 1200 MSI B350 Motherboard
Kingston DDR4 2400MHz, CL17, 8GB

Total: $2,031.26 - Best Buy

The power supply should handle it, but honestly, it’s pretty cheap junk. I guess it might be smarter to just invest a bit more now, since you'll probably need to upgrade it anyway once you pick up a graphics card 😉

Here is a bare minimum option:

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/power-supply-unit

The thing is, I was originally planning to just put everything on credit because right now I’m living off a monthly stipend of $250, and I’m hoping to snag some kind of summer job to pad things out, but if it turns out to be way more practical to just hold off and wait, then I’ve got plenty of time to sit around and chew on that during these next two and a half weeks of break from college.

brightnomad7 said:The thing is, I was planning on putting everything on credit since I'm pulling in $250 a month from my student grant. I'm hoping to land a summer job, but if waiting is actually the smarter move, I've got nothing to do but think about it during my two-and-a-half weeks off from college.

Officially, the Intel Core i3-8100 and the 2400G should be out by February 12th. They'll probably hit the US stores shortly after.
If you can swing it, just wait. Your current GPU is barely doing anything besides pushing a signal to the monitor. With an Intel Core i3-8100, you'll actually be able to play decent games on low/medium settings—older titles will run fine on higher ones.

8GB of RAM is plenty, unless you're doing heavy programming.

wiredotter14 said:Officially, the Intel Core i3-8100 and the 2400G should be hitting shelves around February 12th, so we might see them arrive here pretty soon after that.
If you can swing it, I’d definitely suggest holding off if there's any way you can manage, mainly because your current GPU is basically just a glorified paperweight that barely puts an image on the monitor; with the Intel Core i3-8100, you'll actually be able to play decent titles on low to medium settings, and older games will run even smoother.

As for the memory, 8GB of RAM is plenty for most people, unless you're planning on diving into heavy coding or something similar.

Alright, sounds like I'll probably just wait until the summer; if I can land a job by then, I'll grab the parts and build a whole new rig. Thanks for the advice, everyone. 🙂

brightnomad7 said:Alright, I'll probably just hold off until summer. If I can land a job by then, I'll grab parts and build a new rig. Thanks for the help, everyone. 🙂

The Intel Core i3-8100 is out now

The 8100 is already overkill for $280, much like the Intel Core i3-6100. It would fit your setup perfectly.

https://www.newegg.com/product&prod...m_medium=click

Here’s how that might look:

Intel Core i3-8100, 4C/4T, Integrated Graphics, Boxed, LGA1151
ASRock B360 Pro4, LGA1151 ASRock B360 Pro4, LGA1151
Patriot V Elite DDR4, 2800MHz, (2x 4GB), 8GB, CL16

Total: $757 - Best Buy

@crimsonstag84/">@@crimsonstag84
If I take this processor, motherboard, and RAM combo and just add a power supply and an SSD, I suppose you’d end up with a decent enough machine for a relatively small amount of money.
I wonder which power supply and monitor would be appropriate to pair with it?
Thanks

So, what kind of budget are we working with here?

If you want to hit the bare minimum while actually getting decent quality and value for your money, I'd suggest these:

https://www.nabava.net/search.php?q=GW2270
https://www.nabava.net/search.php?q=hexa+400w

I suppose with roughly $5,000, one could probably transition using the setup crimsonstag84 mentioned, while covering the monitor, SSD, power supply, and some basic peripherals like a keyboard and mouse.
Particularly, I'd likely opt for a power supply capable of supporting a more powerful graphics card later on, once prices eventually drop.

Also, I wonder if the Intel Core i3-8100 is significantly better, since from what I've read, it features Vega 11 graphics?

Check out this deep dive review here



I'd argue the 2200G offers better value for your money, though the 2400G gives you a noticeable boost in integrated graphics performance along with SMT (8 threads).