Building my first computer

[hailfyre]

Hello

So my 9-years old computer packed up and it seems like it was a dead motherboard issue. I've been meaning to upgrade the rig but just never got round to doing so. Now seems like a good idea! My aspirations aren't high, I don't game a huge amount, just mainly Blizzard games but I would like to play them on the highest settings (currently all WoW, SC2, Diablo 3 are all on the lowest settings). Ideally, I'd like something that can at least last me for 5 years or so before requiring an upgrade.

I have been trying to read up on component parts, mainly CPU and GPU and what are being recommended. I've taken a look at MMO Champ's build of the month (Dolphin) and it would have been ideal to simply follow that to buy the parts, though I was wondering if I could use a Ryzen 5 2400x CPU instead of the i5 recommended by the Dolphin build.

There was another thread in the forums and some helpful soul recommended this instead (oops not allowed to post links yet). They recommended:
Ryzen 5 2600 3.4ghz 6-core
MSI-B450 Tomahawk ATX AM4 mobo
Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16GB DDR4-3000 memory
Samsung - 860 Evo 500GB SSD
MSI - Radeon RX 580 8GB Armor OC Video Card
NZXT - H500 ATX Mid Tower Case
EVGA - Supernova G3 550 W 80+ Gold certified fully modular ATX PSU

Could anyone tell me whether this would be comparable to the June 2019 Dolphin build? Alternatively, would anyone be so kind as to point me in the right direction of what to buy?! Maximum budget £1,000 though £700-800 would be very nice - don't think things could be cheaper, right? FYI only need to focus on the tower and the insides, peripherals I already have.

thank you

[Temp name]

CPU is a tiny bit weaker out of the box than the Dolphin build, but can be OC'd
GPU is more powerful

You say you only play Blizzard games? At what resolution? If it's just 1080p then you could drop to a cheaper GPU no problems.
As another aside, Blizzard games in general, and WoW in particular, seems to favour Intel's chips. Do you do any content that would mean you can't accept frame drops? If you do then you'd probably be better off with an Intel CPU.

Finally: AMD are releasing new chips in 2 weeks. You said your current PC is dead, do you need a replacement now, or can you wait?
If you need a new one right now then either of these would work -
AMD based: https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/gwMhV6
Intel based: https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/6xhQXP

They'll perform within margin of error of each other in everything but WoW until you OC the AMD system. Depending on how stupid WoW's engine is, the Intel based system might still pull out ahead.

Again, AMD are releasing new chips in literally 2 weeks, waiting would be a good idea if you have the chance to, but with a dead PC you might not.

[Daywalk3r]

Wait for the Ryzen 3000 series, the current Ryzen are too weak in terms of IPC (important for heavily singlethreaded games like WoW).
The new ones are coming out very soon, and they will be as fast as the current Intel CPUs or even a bit faster if early benchmarks are real.

[Dacien]

Wait for the Ryzen 3000 series, the current Ryzen are too weak in terms of IPC (important for heavily singlethreaded games like WoW).
The new ones are coming out very soon, and they will be as fast as the current Intel CPUs or even a bit faster if early benchmarks are real.

This is what I'm doing. Probably going all out team red this time around.

[Temp name]

Wait for the Ryzen 3000 series, the current Ryzen are too weak in terms of IPC (important for heavily singlethreaded games like WoW).
The new ones are coming out very soon, and they will be as fast as the current Intel CPUs or even a bit faster if early benchmarks are real.

Ryzen's current problem isn't IPC (They're actually quite close), it's the lack of speed. Top Ryzen chips have a clock speed at only about 80% of intels offerings, with Ryzen topping at around 4GHz and Intel topping at around 5.

[hailfyre]

Many thanks Temp Name et al. for the assistance and advice. I'll sit tight for the release.

Would the new chips work with the motherboards that have been recommended?

thanks

[Temp name]

Many thanks Temp Name et al. for the assistance and advice. I'll sit tight for the release.

Would the new chips work with the motherboards that have been recommended?

thanks

With a BIOS update you should be able to use the new chips in the B450 TOMAHAWK no problems.

[Nevardcire]

I was going to recommend waiting for the ryzen 3000’s as well. If it’s not absolutely critical to build right now, then hold off. They do look pretty exciting and may put amd back into a competitive position vs intel

[moremana]

Would the new chips work with the motherboards that have been recommended?

thanks

Yes, however it would need a bios flash which requires a current Ryzen chip to do......Unless you buy a board with a bios flash button, like Temp name suggested, the B450 Tomahawk. Not all boards have that feature so make sure whatever board you decide on does so you can flash it.

[hailfyre]

Yes, however it would need a bios flash which requires a current Ryzen chip to do......Unless you buy a board with a bios flash button, like Temp name suggested, the B450 Tomahawk. Not all boards have that feature so make sure whatever board you decide on does so you can flash it.

Considering I know next to nothing about building, will stick with the mobo recommendation. BIOS flash button, sounds very complicated...

In the AMD rig that TempName had proposed, if budget allows, should I get the MSI - Radeon RX 580 8GB Armor OC Video Card instead of the 4GB? Or not really worth the upgrade?

Although the wait is for the CPU, I could start getting the other components in now to save on time, right?

Last silly question, as I was thinking the Ryzen 5 2400x chip, I read up a little about what's expected of the 3000 series (TechRadar), do you think it's too early to tell or it's likely that the low-end of the range, the 3600 would be sufficient for my rather simple gaming needs?

[Sigo]

I have the same build to the one you have posted. And all Ive got to say its a really strong system can play all them games at really high frame rate on ultra at 1080p/1440p. But If you can wait like 2 weeks because of the new ryzen 3000 cpu's will be out. For two reasons, The Ryzen 5 2600 will drop in price, and we dont really know How good/bad the new 3000 cpus will be compared to last gen of cpu's.
SO if I was you I will wait for the reviews of the new cpu's (07/07/2019) Before deciding a new rig. But bare in mind the new Ryzen 3000 cpu's will work on the Older B450/x470 mobo's with a BIOS update. But if you go with the R5 2600 dont worry about what you are "not getting" because it will be a massive upgrade over your last system that will easily last you over the 5 year mark.

[Temp name]

Considering I know next to nothing about building, will stick with the mobo recommendation. BIOS flash button, sounds very complicated...

It's quite simple with the BIOS flash button. Download the correct BIOS onto a USB stick, put it into one of the USB ports on the MOBO (make sure there's power to the MOBO too), and press the button. Without it you'd need a donor chip and a lot more hassle

In the AMD rig that TempName had proposed, if budget allows, should I get the MSI - Radeon RX 580 8GB Armor OC Video Card instead of the 4GB? Or not really worth the upgrade?

Not really. From what I know it's the same card, just with more memory. 4GB is plenty for 1080p gaming

Although the wait is for the CPU, I could start getting the other components in now to save on time, right?

You could yeah. The only thing you'll miss out on is the possibility of discounts, and you'll also be running out the return period without knowing if it works. I'm not sure how the UK's postal service is, but in my country it normally only takes 1-2 work days for things to arrive anyway, so it's not that much extra wait, if any, to wait for the other parts

Last silly question, as I was thinking the Ryzen 5 2400x chip, I read up a little about what's expected of the 3000 series (TechRadar), do you think it's too early to tell or it's likely that the low-end of the range, the 3600 would be sufficient for my rather simple gaming needs?

The 3600 is more than fine for your gaming needs. In all honesty you could probably get away with a 1600, or maybe even a 1400, but buying that old hardware just.. Feels wrong (to me). Depending on how they review, you might want to grab a 2600 instead of the 3600 though. They should drop in price when the new generation is out since retailers want to get rid of old stock

[Milamber91]

Only 1 thing I recommend = SSDs.
That is the future of PC.

[Temp name]

Only 1 thing I recommend = SSDs.
That is the future of PC.

He already has one though..

[hailfyre]

So interesting two days of the AMD 3000 series testings. I've read the "discussion" on this sub-forum re AMD vs. intel, interesting stuff! I saw one post saying that the 3700x chip is alleging 20-30% better performance than the 2700x in some games. Would I be right in thinking that this is significant increase and worth the investment? Or just stick with the 2600x as recommended in the build above by TempName? Would really, really be ideal to start getting the parts this week and build it this coming weekend.

[moremana]

It has been asked but I don’t see your answer.

What games do you play and what do you do besides play games?

[hailfyre]

Apologies. Only play Blizzard games like WoW, SC2 and D3. A bit of old school Homeworld. Light internet surfing. No streaming, video modding, photoshop or anything like that.

[Kagthul]

Apologies. Only play Blizzard games like WoW, SC2 and D3. A bit of old school Homeworld. Light internet surfing. No streaming, video modding, photoshop or anything like that.

Id just stick with the 3600/X at that point.

[Temp name]

So interesting two days of the AMD 3000 series testings. I've read the "discussion" on this sub-forum re AMD vs. intel, interesting stuff! I saw one post saying that the 3700x chip is alleging 20-30% better performance than the 2700x in some games. Would I be right in thinking that this is significant increase and worth the investment? Or just stick with the 2600x as recommended in the build above by TempName? Would really, really be ideal to start getting the parts this week and build it this coming weekend.

For 1080p 60fps gaming you might as well pick the cheaper option. But the 3600/x is better, by a fair margin, so if you decide to go for higher fps gaming later on, it'll be a safer bet. Also it'll probably hold its value slightly better if you decide to sell in a couple years

[hailfyre]

Brilliant, thank you all so much for your input. Off I go!