Post your setup!

[BTGBullseye]

https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=intel+core+i5-4460+%40+3.20ghz&id=2230 (i5-4460 price:performance ratio)

https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=AMD+FX-8320+Eight-Core&id=1782 (FX-8320 price:performance ratio)

 

https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu_lookup.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i5-4460+%40+3.20GHz&id=2230 (i5-4460 on the benchmark list)

https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu_lookup.php?cpu=AMD+FX-8320+Eight-Core&id=1782 (FX-8320 on the benchmark list)

 

The FX-8320 beats the i5-4460 quite significantly in comprehensive tests, (meaning anything that isn't single-core or based on the integrated GPU) but the reason it's recommended to go with an Intel system is the native and inexpensive update to DDR4. So far the only AMD motherboards that support DDR4 are very expensive, and it's a rather juryrigged system to get it working. (and I've been hearing a lot about issues that have arisen because of it) If you're comparing the AMD to an Intel board that only has DDR3 support, then the AMD is superior.

 

Either get an Intel DDR4 system, or get an AMD, that is my recommendation.

[Heliocentrical]

Okay so which system would handle video recording and editing better, an AMD FX-9370 @ 4.7 Ghz with 32 GBs of DDR3 1333 RAM or an Intel Core i5-6400 4.4 Ghz with 16 GBs of DDR4 2133?

[BTGBullseye]

The Intel will be stressed far less, and 16GB is more than enough RAM for recording & editing. Just make sure you put a decent GPU in it. (something in the 900 series of Nvidia GPUs, or an AMD R9)

[Heliocentrical]

Hmm, I always thought Intel DDR4 builds would be much more expensive than DDR3 builds. But then I did some math and the builds came up to roughly the same price point.

 

Can I still use Windows 7 on an Intel DDR4 platform? I can't remember if that was an AMD DDR4 specific problem or not.

[BTGBullseye]

Yeah, Windows 7 works just fine on the DDR4 Intel builds. (just make sure to download all drivers direct from the manufacturers, the ones provided by Windows Update are more likely than not out of date)

[sheridanm962]

or an AMD R9)

 

 

What did you do with the real BTGBullseye

 

Anyway...

 

My Asus R9 270 died (Don't go with a GPU that has Elpida VRAM and no direct cooling on the VRAM).

On top of that my motherboard started playing up so I thought I'd rebuild my system.

 

http://www.steamcommunity.com/id/shredderman962

 

I would like to up the RAM by 4GB (Maximum of 8GB DDR3 @1333MHz).

The point of the rebuild was to make something cheap and make it last before I do a full upgrade.

You maybe thinking this system won't be able to handle much, but you'd be surprised. With games like ARMA 3 I only need to turn down the resolution because of the limitation of the 1GB of VRAM in my current cheap GPU.

 

You can't go wrong with a system rebuild that only costs $107 USD (used parts are even more expensive here).

[Heliocentrical]

My R9 280 is pretty stable. Though with that being said I was upgrading from an R7 260x which was incredibly unstable and would shut off at random intervals. I learned my lesson to never buy a GPU that was overclocked by the manufacturer.

 

I most certainly am not going with an Nvidia GPU. They're overpriced.

[BTGBullseye]

What did you do with the real BTGBullseye

I prefer Nvidia myself, and will not buy an AMD for my own use, but other people have different requirements.

 

I most certainly am not going with an Nvidia GPU. They're overpriced.

They aren't actually overpriced... They generally use a generation newer in manufacturing tech, (or did until the newest RX 400 series AMD cards came out) are far more thermally stable, (I used to literally light their cards on fire for 15 minutes while gaming to show them off back when I had lots of spares, they still have a much higher thermal tolerance rating) generally have MUCH better drivers, (even in Linux as of about 16 months ago, which used to be an AMD-only area) are supported heavily by the manufacturer for longer than AMD, (can still get recently updated drivers for the GT 420 from 2010, AMD only has recent updates for the 28nm fab tech versions of the HD 7000 cards from 2012 and newer) and have a higher top-end performance capability. (Intel vs AMD is the same as Nvidia vs AMD, higher performance and cost vs lower performance and cost)

 

Right now a $200 GTX 1060 will outperform the top-of-the-line R9 Fury X for $380. (the 1060 is also currently sitting at the top of the price:performance charts)

 

http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu_value.html

http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/high_end_gpus.html

 

[Heliocentrical]

When it comes to PC components which ones would you say are safe to cheap out on? I would say the motherboard and the case because you're just paying for features when it comes to motherboards and cases. With cases do you really need 240 radiator mounts for watercooling, power supply shrouds or have all the usb ports on the front IO be 3.0? With motherboards do you really need 3-4 PCI express ports, Japanese capacitors, overclocking capabilities or usb 3.0 support? I would still say stick with well known brands but outside of that these features seem unnecessary and a bit overkill.

[BTGBullseye]

Yeah, apart from sticking to respected motherboard brands, (ASUS, ASRock, MSI, etc.) and decent build quality cases, (Rosewill, Thermaltake, Raidmax, Lian Li, etc.) it's a fairly flexible selection for those components.

 

Don't skimp on the PSU though... Rosewill Capstone/Quark/Photon Series are excellent quality for lower price, I suggest padding the wattage by 200w over what you need, (will typically change the PSU from a 2-5 year lifespan to 7-15 years) getting something that has at least an 80+ Silver rating, and modular cabling is very nice to have.

 

RAM is one you don't need to worry much about. If it has the specs you're looking for, and isn't DOA, you'll have a 1 in 100m chance of it not outlasting the entire rest of your system. Mushkin, Adata, Geil, G.Skill, Patriot, PNY, Silicon Power, Team Group... All are good brands, and most have very low prices. (I personally recommend Mushkin for total 'made in USA' reliability and top-end quality control, and G.Skill for highest possible performance)

 

For CPU coolers, just simply getting ANY aftermarket cooler will be significantly better than using an included heatsink. ($30-$40 range will give the best bang for the buck for air cooling) Thermal paste you need to be picky about though. Prolimatech PK-3 is the best out there, but any in the PK series will do extremely well, and they're cheaper than almost all the other thermal paste available.

[Heliocentrical]

What about the HyperX's and Corsair's RAM? HyperX's and Corsair's RAM goes down to 13 Cas Latency as opposed to Mushkin's and G.Skill's RAM which only goes down to 15 Cas Latency. The $79 2x16 pack of RAM from Corsair with 13 Cas Latency looks like a really good deal.

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233831

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104599

 

Also is there any performance difference between 2x8 GB RAM sticks and 1x16?

[BTGBullseye]

Actually, the Mushkin RAM does have a 13ms offering... (and it's faster+cheaper to boot) You just need to stop limiting your searches to the lowest speeds. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226709

 

I have found Corsair to be OK, but they have been having issues with quality control recently, be prepared for a DOA stick and a 6 week RMA process. (about 1 in ~150 have this issue with Corsair DDR4 RAM from what I've been able to deduce, they're really doing their best to hide their QC issues) Also, those sticks you linked to aren't a true 13ms set; they're actually 'overclocked' 15ms sticks. If you see a timing of 13-15-15-28, that's 15ms RAM that will burn out faster than something with a 13-13-13-35, and it's the same real-world speed.

 

HyperX is overpriced IMO. They're comparable to ram that is 5-10% less expensive. You're paying the extra money for a name, and nothing else. HyperX is reliable, and decent QC. (about 1 in ~500 will have a DOA stick, this is industry average) I personally don't trust RAM that doesn't give a full list of the timings though, so I wouldn't go for this even if it was a lower price than others. (the only timing it gives is the CAS, not the other numbers)

 

Mushkin has the best QC of any solid state memory manufacturer I've heard of. (1 in ~10000 sticks DOA, and usually a 1-2 week turnaround with the manufacturer warranty)

 

2x sticks will always outperform any single stick. (just make sure you're putting them in the proper slots on the motherboard so they are on separate channels) 4x sticks may or may not outperform 2x, depending on the motherboard RAM channels. (it will never perform worse though)

 

Final thought: Unless you're running synthetic benchmarks, you're not likely to ever be able to tell the difference between the best DDR4 RAM @4200MHz, and a good set of DDR4 @2400MHz.

[CARRiON]

I built this system a few years ago, but it currently has:

 

OS: Windows 10 Pro 64Bit

Mobo: ASUS M5A99X EVO R2.0

CPU: AMD FX-8320 + Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO

RAM: Kingston HyperX FURY 16GB

GPU: Sapphire Radeon NITRO R9 380X 4GB

PSU: EVGA SuperNOVA 750 G2

HDD: Seagate 2TB

Case: NZXT Phantom 410

 

The keyboard is a Logitech G710+ and the mouse is a Logitech G303 Daedalus Apex. I got a basic Logitech speaker set with a subwoofer and two controllers, a Logitech F710 and F310. The monitors I have are two Dell 23in, it was $200 for both so I snatched them up years ago and despite the lack of HDMI they are still going strong so I can't yet justify getting anything newer.

 

I'm thinking about getting a Steam Controller soon. I'll also be building a second PC soon for my S/O because I have some parts laying around already like a 2GB GPU, 8GB of RAM and a 1TB Hard Drive.

[Heliocentrical]

So I presume 13-13-13-35 timing is faster than 15-15-15-35 timing? I'm confused by these two different sets of RAM.

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226709

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226742

 

Also since I won't be overclocking my RAM it will default to 2133 instead of 2400 right?

[BTGBullseye]

13-13-13-35 is 2 cycles (at 2400MHz, about 0.416ms) per operation faster than the 15-15-15-35. http://www.masterslair.com/memory-ram-timings-latency-cas-ras-tcl-trcd-trp-tras

 

Depending on your motherboard, the RAM may default to the fastest it's rated for, or the fastest the motherboard is rated for. If the motherboard has overclocking capability, manually setting it to the default RAM timings and voltage is ideal regardless of everything else.

[Heliocentrical]

Any suggestions for matx intel lga 1511 ddr4 motherboards? The ASRock B150M Pro4V looks pretty appealing right now. Two PCI express slots, 4x288 pin memory slots and M.2 SSD slot. I wish there was more USB slots but I plan on getting a USB hub anyway so no big deal.

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157706

[BTGBullseye]

https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Z170-H170-H110-B170-Q150-Q170---What-is-the-Difference-635/

 

If you look at this, those two PCI-e slots on that board have to share 8 lanes. That means you can have a single GPU running at 8x, (depending on the GPU, that may or may not drop its performance) 2 at 4x, (4x will DEFINITELY drop the performance of all but the low-end GPUs) or 1 at 4x and something else using the other PCI-e 4x slot. If you want something that is going to have the ability to go to full PCI-e 16x, or run a GPU and something else, then you need to go for one of the *170 or C23* series chipsets.

 

I personally would recommend grabbing from this list: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&IsNodeId=1&N=100007627%20600567584%204814%20600567581%20601106742%20601107015%20601184500%20601189929%20600009017%20600456442%20600530942%20600533615%20601184735

 

Matter of fact, the first result on the list is almost the same board, just with the better chipset, and it's only $8 more expensive. I'd recommend going just a bit further and grab the Z170 chipset version though; futureproofing. (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157637)

[Heliocentrical]

How about the ASRock H170M Pro4? I don't want to pay extra for overclocking and I need a decent sized rebate.

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157641

[BTGBullseye]

Looks like a very decent board... I'd say get it.

[Heliocentrical]

Any suggestions for a non OC GPU? According to this price to performance chart http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu_value.html Nvidia GTX 1050 is the best for the value. But I want to be able to use Vulkan drivers which Nvidia doesn't support. So I guess either the RX 460 or RX 470 then.