Building a new PC, Ryzen 1700, I have many questions

[AK169]

AMD Ryzen 7 1700
MSI X370 SLI PLUS
Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 DRAM 3000MHz C15
$350-$400 video card
1440p 144Hz monitor


Q1:
what do you think about the CPU, is it good for 3&5 years gaming ?
I'm thinking, games surly will start utilizing more than 4 cores (overwatch already utilizes 6 cores)
so I don't want to risk buying a 4 cores CPU (i7,i5)
however Intel's CPUs have better single core performance, they're much better for current games
it's like both choices are bad, so I'm confused

Q2:
would this RAM operate at 3000MHz straight ?
motherboard's specs say:
1866/ 2133/ 2400/ 2667(OC)/ 2933(OC)/ 3200(OC)+ Mhz
so, I'm thinking 2400 would be better choice since it does not require any overclocking


Q3:
what do I need to look for when buying a PSU ? I'm worried about compatibility issues

Q4:
is there any coming GPUs from NVIDIA or AMD at the $350-$400 range ?


also, feel free to suggest anything outside these questions
deferent RAM or Motherboard or a good PSU or anything you would like to add


BTW, current PC:
Intel i5 760
GTX 760
1080p 60Hz monitor

 

[Valantar]

Q1:
what do you think about the CPU, is it good for 3&5 years gaming ?
I'm thinking, games surly will start utilizing more than 4 cores (overwatch already utilizes 6 cores)
so I don't want to risk buying a 4 cores CPU (i7,i5)
however Intel's CPUs have better single core performance, they're much better for current games
it's like both choices are bad, so I'm confused

This is a difficult question. In general, I'd say that either is a good choice. It's pretty much impossible to predict the future proof-ness of PC components. While games are indeed moving towards multi-threading, the slightly higher IPC and higher clocks of Intel's K-SKU chips does push them a few percent ahead. Then again, that might not be true in two years when games truly utilize a >4c8t CPU. Still, the 1700 is a great CPU, and I wouldn't hesitate to buy it. I do hope you plan to overclock it, though, otherwise I'd say the 1600X is a better purchase for games (although, again, both are good).

Q2:
would this RAM operate at 3000MHz straight ?
motherboard's specs say:
1866/ 2133/ 2400/ 2667(OC)/ 2933(OC)/ 3200(OC)+ Mhz
so, I'm thinking 2400 would be better choice since it does not require any overclocking

Probably not, although it depends on whether your motherboard has the latest AGESA update and how well it works. Remember, faster RAM can always run at JEDEC (non-OC) speeds, so buying slower RAM just because when Ryzen is shown to gain quite a bit of performance from fast RAM is a bit silly. If you want as close to guaranteed clocks as you can get, you need a kit that's guaranteed to be based off Samsung B-die RAM chips, such as the ("designed for Ryzen") G.Skill FlareX series.

Q3:
what do I need to look for when buying a PSU ? I'm worried about compatibility issues

Look for quality. Efficiency, voltage regulation, hold-up time, internal temperatures under load, voltage ripple, that kind of stuff. In other words: read reviews. It is pretty much impossible to find a good PSU based on stated specs alone. Regardless of what GPU you choose, you won't need more than a 500-600W unit (~130W OC'd CPU, 300W GPU, 50 or so W for the rest of the system, and you have less than 500W under a completely unrealistic full-load scenario, or ~300-350W under gaming loads). But start reading reviews. I'd recommend you start looking at the JonnyGuru review of the EVGA Supernova G3 750W. It's far more powerful than you'll need, but there's a 550W version that's based on the same design and should be just as good.

Q4:
is there any coming GPUs from NVIDIA or AMD at the $350-$400 range ?

AMD will probably be launching a Vega GPU in that price range some time in the next 3-5 months. When is pretty much impossible to say - they've said they'll be launching RX Vega (as opposed to the compute-focused Frontier Edition) at SIGGRAPH which is from the 30th of July to the 3rd of August. We have no idea if this will be a hard launch, how good availability will be, or how many cards they will be launching. Most likely, they'll be launching one or two high-end cards in the $500-600 range, but that is pure speculation on my part. Currently, the GTX 1070 is the only option in that price bracket. And Nvidia's Volta-based 2070 card will more than likely not launch until a decent while into 2018.

 

[lukart]

True, VEGA is just around the corner, let's see how it performs, you should def. wait.
Even if it doesnt beat, might push nvidia to lower prices as AMD will have to compete with pricing.

For PSU, go with eVGA, you dont need anything more than 600w.
Motherboard I would go for the X370 Taichi if you can afford it.

 

[MadOver]

Not sure if Vega would come at 400$ pricing at launch. If they announce they will probably do the most expensive and only few months later on.
I would get a better motherboard, go with the Taichi, its one of the best AMD mobos at the moment.

 

[l1amrob]

Yes, I would agree on that.
Maybe because Vega might not have the performance expected, they might have a sub 500$ thrown in the mix.
If you can wait few more wks, you have nothing to lose.

 

[dlerious]

Q2:
would this RAM operate at 3000MHz straight ?
motherboard's specs say:
1866/ 2133/ 2400/ 2667(OC)/ 2933(OC)/ 3200(OC)+ Mhz
so, I'm thinking 2400 would be better choice since it does not require any overclocking

Q4:
is there any coming GPUs from NVIDIA or AMD at the $350-$400 range ?


also, feel free to suggest anything outside these questions
deferent RAM or Motherboard or a good PSU or anything you would like to add

Samsung B-die RAM has the best chance of reaching rated speeds. Gskill FlareX 3200C14 is one example. The first thing you should do is check the Memory QVL fpr the motherboard you choose for the chips that they've run at the speeds you want.

For GPU, in that price range, you're looking at GTX1070 which beats the RX580 (currently way overpriced). I've seen 1070s go on sale occasionally for $370-$380, but mining has them creeping up currently too. RX Vega may have a model at that price, but performance is an unknown at this point.

 

[dlerious]

Probably not, although it depends on whether your motherboard has the latest AGESA update and how well it works. Remember, faster RAM can always run at JEDEC (non-OC) speeds, so buying slower RAM just because when Ryzen is shown to gain quite a bit of performance from fast RAM is a bit silly. If you want as close to guaranteed clocks as you can get, you need a kit that's guaranteed to be based off Samsung B-die RAM chips, such as the ("designed for Ryzen") G.Skill FlareX series.

Another plus for the faster RAM is that you can usually tighten the timings when running slower.

 

[dlerious]

BTW, Here's the list for the MSI X370 SLI Plus. There's a bunch of Gskill at 3200 along with a few others. https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/support/X370-SLI-PLUS.html#support-mem-2