Building a gaming PC

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I hope building a gaming pc will always be a thing because i don’t like the direction in which the industry goes with cloud gaming
 
Nothing specific yet besides the GPU. I need a second computer anyway, so buying more future proof motherboard makes sense.

I just spent a fortune on a 4tb qvo, a 2tb 970 evo plus and an MSI gaming x 2080ti.
Not sure where you are but ebay had 10-20% off deals and Samsung currently has a cashback offer (at least in australia).

Huge hit to the credit card but its tempered with the above deals and selling gear itll be replacing. It looks like i'll make a profit, or at least $ back, from what i paid for the 1080ti in 2017. Used 1tb 970s also sell well. 3tb WD Blacks (what the qvo is replacing) have gone down a bit since purchase but thats ok.
The 4tb ssd is a luxury but im a storage hog, dont want to run an external NAS, and impatient to replace my internal HDDs. Happy to be down to just 1 6tb HDD (and now 7.5tb of ssd space).

Point being check ebay now, normally the chinese resellers are cheapest but their ebay stores, combined with ebay deals, make for some damn good prices.
 
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I avoid using random resellers - you risk losing a warranty that way.

So far I'm waiting for Ryzen 9 to come out. Navi will need to wait, until custom models and upstream support will be ready.
 
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I avoid using resellers - you risk losing a warranty that way.

So far I'm waiting for Ryzen 9 to come out. Navi will need to wait, until custom models and upstream support will be ready.

I guess the term is ambiguous. They are stores, with bricks & mortar store fronts, but we call them resellers here in Australia (not sure why). They are supplied by the distributors (Synnex, Ingram Micro etc). 0 problem with warranty. Basically they the only places available to purchase for Australian consumers apart from a few huge type department stores (where prices are ridiculously expensive)



This is from the Samsung website. or full link here https://www.samsung.com/au/offer/ssdcashback2019/

Normally it would be cheaper buying from their store directly (they would mark up their ebay price) but things have changed, also the aforementioned ebay deals.
 
I usually buy from Newegg, unless something isn't available there or it's really a lot more expensive. Newegg has a good track record of busting patent trolls, so I support their store :)
 
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I usually buy from Newegg, unless something isn't available there or it's really a lot more expensive. Newegg has a good track records of busting patent trolls, so I support their store :)

Yeah newegg would be counted as a reseller here in Aus. Ive purchased as few things from them (like the 1080ti and 970 ill be selling). Usually its great for big ticket items as US prices are cheaper (even including exchange rate and international shipping), but things have turned around with the deals, 10% GST now being added on ALL imported items, and lousy exchange rate.

The 4tb qvo cost me $540 AU ($376 US). At Newegg its selling for $498 US.
The 2080ti gaming x cost $1664 AU ($1161 US). Newegg its $1249 US.
Plus with a free trial of ebay plus all shipping is free.
 
I’m conflicted between the Ryzen 3600 and the 3700X.

I’m not getting that much more performance for a $350, 6-core 3700X, over a $200, 8-core 3600 if I do nothing but game. But then again, the future PS5 is going to have 8 cores. Maybe the 3700X will be a better fit for a build that will last the new generation. Should I bite the bullet and just take the $350 option?

As for the new graphics cards; I’m ambivalent. Them’s 1440p products and I’ll have to buy a $300-400 monitor with my $300-400 GPU.
I’m kind of okay with waiting and hanging on to my old 1080p GPU and monitor until I have absolutely no other choice, before spending $800.
 
I’m conflicted between the Ryzen 3600 and the 3700X.

I’m not getting that much more performance for a $350, 6-core 3700X, over a $200, 8-core 3600 if I do nothing but game. But then again, the future PS5 is going to have 8 cores. Maybe the 3700X will be a better fit for a build that will last the new generation. Should I bite the bullet and just take the $350 option?

At first glance I'd say pick up the 3600 and save yourself $150. The specs on each respective processor indicate the only differences are the core/thread count, minor cache differences, the stock cooler (who cares) and the minor boost frequency differences. I'd doubt most of these are going to make a huge difference for gaming. Granted, I'm not sure whether there is some consideration outside the spec sheets to favor one option over the other (not exactly uncommon....).

It may matter for OCing. I seem to recall seeing a review where it was stated the 3600, compared to the higher end chips, requires higher voltages to remain stable. This could mean you can push the chip less compared to the more expensive alternatives. It also might play into the cooling requirements. Depending on how far those other chips can go it may not matter much. It may have just been the specific chip they were testing as well.

In terms of core count.... You have to be careful with getting caught up in the more = better mindset. How you plan to use a component should be considered when looking at specs on it (not just CPU's either). 12 cores sounds great until you ask it to run a game designed to use 4 of them. Conversely, in an environment where you can use more cores it becomes significantly more impressive. And, different games are.... different. All of this needs to be kept in mind when viewing benchmarks. Not to mention the possibility of stacked results.

Expanding on that, console processors (APU's) vs desktop processors + discrete video cards isn't exactly an apples to apples comparison. So I wouldn't go off what type of hardware a PS5 may or may not have in it.
 
At first glance I'd say pick up the 3600 and save yourself $150. The specs on each respective processor indicate the only differences are the core/thread count, minor cache differences, the stock cooler (who cares) and the minor boost frequency differences. I'd doubt most of these are going to make a huge difference for gaming. Granted, I'm not sure whether there is some consideration outside the spec sheets to favor one option over the other (not exactly uncommon....).

It may matter for OCing. I seem to recall seeing a review where it was stated the 3600, compared to the higher end chips, requires higher voltages to remain stable. This could mean you can push the chip less compared to the more expensive alternatives. It also might play into the cooling requirements. Depending on how far those other chips can go it may not matter much. It may have just been the specific chip they were testing as well.

In terms of core count.... You have to be careful with getting caught up in the more = better mindset. How you plan to use a component should be considered when looking at specs on it (not just CPU's either). 12 cores sounds great until you ask it to run a game designed to use 4 of them. Conversely, in an environment where you can use more cores it becomes significantly more impressive. And, different games are.... different. All of this needs to be kept in mind when viewing benchmarks. Not to mention the possibility of stacked results.

Expanding on that, console processors (APU's) vs desktop processors + discrete video cards isn't exactly an apples to apples comparison. So I wouldn't go off what type of hardware a PS5 may or may not have in it.

Cheers Dingo. I’ll probably go for the 3600 then. Thanks for the peace of mind.
 
In terms of core count.... You have to be careful with getting caught up in the more = better mindset. How you plan to use a component should be considered when looking at specs on it (not just CPU's either). 12 cores sounds great until you ask it to run a game designed to use 4 of them. Conversely, in an environment where you can use more cores it becomes significantly more impressive.

I build a lot of stuff from source, run VMs and etc. So 12 cores (with 24 threads!) are very useful. Games that are designed for 4 cores are really a thing of the past. Modern games today use Vulkan and spread load on all cores, so that's not an issue. For dealing with old games that have poor multithreaded design, you can limit the process to specific CCX (core complex), so it won't spread between them.

See example here: https://www.gamingonlinux.com/artic...hit-due-to-non-optimal-thread-scheduling.9741
 
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