Intel PC upgrade ideas

Kid's got this rig:
Intel Core i7 Cooler LC-CC-120 RAM 4 X4GB Corsair Vengeance 1866
Cooler LC-CC-120
RAM 4 X4GB Corsair Vengeance 1866
EVGA RTX 4080
ASUS GA-970-DSP SSD Samsung 850 EVO 256
SSD Samsung 850 EVO 256
Seagate 2 TB Case Cooler Master Z3
Seagate 2 TB
Case Cooler Master Z3

He wants to swap out the CPU, motherboard, and RAM.
Budget is roughly $5,000. He's already got a buyer lined up for the old parts.
He’s eyeing an Intel CPU i3-8350K.
RAM Corsair Vengeance 2x8GB 2400 CL14
Motherboard? No clue yet. Needs a Z370 chipset, M.2 support, USB 3.1 Gen 2 TypeA and C. Ideally, something that can handle SLI/Crossfire.
Is it even worth throwing money at this mess? Intel isn't even an option anymore and finding an 8350K in New York City right now is impossible.
Any suggestions? Thoughts? Will his old cooler actually work? He needs this done ASAP—saved up his own cash and wants something that won't be total junk for future upgrades in maybe 3 years. M.2 SSD, maybe an Nvidia card...

The i3-8350K is probably the worst choice you could make for a Z370 platform.

Your best bet would be an Intel Core i5-8600K... though if there are some unavoidable hurdles in your way (😬), there's an 8600K available at Best Buy.

https://www.bestbuy.com/processors/intel-...ox-coffee-lake
2x https://www.bestbuy.com/memory/crucial...-single-ranked

Honestly, any high-end RAM isn't really worth it since it costs a fortune these days... he can just mess around in the BIOS with XMP.

Motherboard:

https://www.newegg.com/product.asp?produ...&code=86255IBM

I’d say grabbing an Intel Core i5-8600K along with 16 GB of RAM, then just picking out a motherboard to round things out, is probably your best bet. I guess the cooler should fit just fine too.
If you can't find what you need locally, maybe try looking at some online retailers like Newegg.

Thanks for the replies! Picked this up at IBM today.
The issue is the cooler. My old rig was custom-built from parts at a shop in the future. They put it together for free, too. Turns out they left out the mounting brackets for the Intel CPU. Basically, everything labeled "extra" stayed with them. Should I go back to that shop and argue about why I can't install the cooler, or just grab a new one? (Any recs??) They’ve got the Cooler Master 212 and the 212x in stock here.
I really don't feel like driving all the way back to New York City and trekking down to the Mississippi River, but a new cooler is $100.

The folks over at Best Buy might be chill about it, so you could probably just shoot them an email. Attach the receipt along with the original quote they sent you and lay out the whole situation... maybe they'll cut you some slack and send out the brackets, assuming they actually have stock for that cooler. They really should, though, since those units are still on the shelves (assuming we're talking about the LC-CC-120).

They're usually pretty helpful at Best Buy, so you might get lucky. Plus, the LC-CC-120 is a solid cooler—kind of feels like a waste to swap it out.

Not only is that specific processor a poor choice, but a bug was uncovered yesterday affecting all Intel processors that will lead to performance degradation for everyone. You likely won't see it in gaming, but it’s definitely something to consider before you buy.

Why isn't Intel being considered as much anymore? I'm just curious about the reasoning, especially since the new generation of Intel's processors is phenomenal.

Austin Rodriguez5 said:Aside from the fact that the chosen CPU is a garbage pick, they found a bug yesterday affecting all Intel processors that’s gonna tank performance for everyone. Probably won't kill gaming, but you gotta keep that in mind before dropping cash.

Why isn't Intel even in the conversation anymore? Seriously, why? Because the new generation of Intel chips is absolutely killing it.

Look, I told the kid to just go with a Ryzen, but teenagers don't listen to retired old men. They think they know everything. His money, his call. I'll help him put the rig together, teach him a few things, and call it a day. If he wants an upgrade later, he can start saving up again. He won't be seeing anything new until he finishes school. At that age, I basically have zero say in what he does.

wiredcyclist82 said:I told the kid he should go with a Ryzen, but teenagers just don't listen to retired old men. They think they know everything. It's his money and his choice. I'll help him put the build together and teach him a few things, and that's all. If he wants an upgrade later, he can start saving up again. He won't be getting anything else before he finishes high school. At that age, I really have zero influence over him.

👍