Solved PC upgrade advice please..

badrobot · Jul 26, 2021

BunnyJ said:
I like the idea,, I just have to work that out budget wise.

It may not be too far from your i5+mobo option.

BunnyJ · Jul 26, 2021

badrobot said:
It may not be too far from your i5+mobo option.

It would be in the same price range.. but given my overall budget I might just get the Ryzen 3 3200G upgrade and be done. I can get better parts if I'm up to it later on... Dec and Feb.

badrobot · Jul 26, 2021

BunnyJ said:
It would be in the same price range.. but given my overall budget I might just get the Ryzen 3 3200G upgrade and be done. I can get better parts if I'm up to it later on... Dec and Feb.

Or get the Ryzen 5 3400G with radeon graphics.

Wynona · Jul 26, 2021

Jeff, another way is to add more RAM. My AMD Ryzen 5 2600 has 2400 GB RAM and an NVIDIA GTX 1050 Ti card, which makes it lots faster than it would be otherwise, even when I do light graphics work. Of course, I don't do games; if you do, just a RAM and GPU upgrade might not be enough.

When I decided to upgrade the Ryzen 5 2300 to a 2600, I managed to make a mistake and buy one without integrated graphics. A learning lesson for sure! :scream:

But, in the long run, putting the NVIDIA in made it a lot faster than it would have been.

Maybe upgrade those two things, then when finances get better, go for the new processor?

BunnyJ · Jul 26, 2021

badrobot said:
Or get the Ryzen 5 3400G with radeon graphics.

That would be another option. I could pull the trigger on that in Sept.. birthday gift to myself. It both meets MS's requirements and it's a decent processor. Plus it's a fast/easy upgrade, heck.. I can get on of my cats to do it.

BunnyJ · Jul 26, 2021

Wynona said:
Jeff, another way is to add more RAM. My AMD Ryzen 5 2600 has 2400 GB RAM and an NVIDIA GTX 1050 Ti card, which makes it lots faster than it would be otherwise, even when I do light graphics work. Of course, I don't do games; if you do, just a RAM and GPU upgrade might not be enough.

When I decided to upgrade the Ryzen 5 2300 to a 2600, I managed to make a mistake and buy one without integrated graphics. A learning lesson for sure! But, in the long run, putting the NVIDIA in made it a lot faster than it would have been.

Maybe upgrade those two things, then when finances get better, go for the new processor?

Not sure what my future plans are. I think getting the3400G would be the best path for now. Then I might get faster RAM later on.. right now I have 16GB so my rig doesn't lack in memory.. the speed might be an issue.

I could do this.. get the 3400G and then later on get a better GPU... the 4 core 8 thread would be enough as a CPU and then a better GPU would make it just about perfect for me.

Wynona · Jul 26, 2021

BunnyJ said:
Not sure what my future plans are. I think getting the3400G would be the best path for now. Then I might get faster RAM later on.. right now I have 16GB so my rig doesn't lack in memory.. the speed might be an issue.

I could do this.. get the 3400G and then later on get a better GPU... the 4 core 8 thread would be enough as a CPU and then a better GPU would make it just about perfect for me.

Just be sure you don't make the same mistake I did! Double check that it has integrated graphics!

Edit:

OK, I'm pretty sure you've already checked, but I have to ask anyway. Have you read the "upgrade information" for your motherboard/CPU? I read it for my HP Ryzen and my 2300 was only upgradeable to the 2600. I really wanted the 3200 or 3400, but it wasn't to be.

I just like to cross all the eyes and dot all the tees . . .

BunnyJ · Jul 26, 2021

Wynona said:
Just be sure you don't make the same mistake I did! Double check that it has integrated graphics!

I need to read back . . . I'll edit in a few.

I'll keep that in mind. The 3200G and 3400G both have integrated GPU's. When it has the letter G in the name.. it indicates it has a GPU built in.

Wynona · Jul 26, 2021

BunnyJ said:
I'll keep that in mind. The 3200G and 3400G both have integrated GPU's. When it has the letter G in the name.. it indicates it has a GPU built in.

Well, now I know! Thank you.

BunnyJ · Jul 26, 2021

Wynona said:
Well, now I know! Thank you.

I think Intel uses a K to indicate they have a GPU built in for their gen 10 processors. Don't hold me to it but that's my understand.

Bree · Jul 26, 2021

BunnyJ said:
I think Intel uses a K to indicate they have a GPU built in for their gen 10 processors. Don't hold me to it but that's my understand.

The K suffix usually means 'Unlocked' - ie: you can overclock it. H is for 'High performance graphics'

What are the Meanings of Intel Processor Suffixes?

The suffix lettering for Intel processors can seem like some kind of secret code at times, but what do they actually mean or stand for? Today's SuperUser Q&A post helps clear things up for a confused reader.

www.howtogeek.com

PerpetualCycle · Jul 26, 2021

Hi Bunny,
Haven't read all through this but if you are going for Intel, I would wait until the 12th gen is out (November or thereabouts). They will be using 10nm lithography as opposed to 10th and 11th gen 14nm, so they will run cooler. If you can't wait I would get a 11700k rather that a 10600k, or you could go AMD on a Ryzen 7 as suggested above, which is 7nm and will run cooler than the current Intel of the same core/transistor count.

BunnyJ · Jul 26, 2021

geneo said:
Hi Bunny,
Haven't read all through this but if you are going for Intel, I would wait until the 12th gen is out (November or thereabouts). They will be using 10nm lithography as opposed to 10th and 11th gen 14nm, so they will run cooler. If you can't wait I would get a 11700k rather that a 10600k, or you could go AMD on a Ryzen 7 as suggested above, which is 7nm and will run cooler than the current Intel of the same core/transistor count.

That I'll do. Thanks for the advice

PerpetualCycle · Jul 26, 2021

Bree said:
The K suffix usually means 'Unlocked' - ie: you can oveclock it.

What are the Meanings of Intel Processor Suffixes?

The suffix lettering for Intel processors can seem like some kind of secret code at times, but what do they actually mean or stand for? Today's SuperUser Q&A post helps clear things up for a confused reader.

www.howtogeek.com

They also typically have a higher base and boost clock as well, so are a bit faster run stock (but also run a bit hotter). But not overclocking you should be able to use a lower to moderate cost cooling solution for any of these.