Building emulation/gaming PC for $500-$700. Please help.

[rich4721]

What will my PC be used for?
-I will be using it to run the Citra, Dolphin and PCSX2 emulators and to do some light modern gaming. I game casually for about 1-2 hours per week. I would prefer that the processor is capable of running CEMU well but it isn't a necessity. I want to be able to play everything in at least 1080p at a good framerate.

Budget: $500-$700

Country I will be buying parts from: U.S.

Brand preference: I am leaning more towards AMD because the newest Ryzen motherboards will be compatible with AMD processors released through 2020. I also like that Ryzen processors have better multi-core performance and I know they can at least run PCSX2 and Dolphin well. Depending on the price, I might consider a lower cost Intel i3 processor if overall performance is better than a similarly priced Ryzen.

Current parts I will be using: Mouse, Keyboard, Monitor

Do I plan on overclocking?
Only if emulators and games don't run well

What resolution will I be using?
1080p, but I would like to be able to do 4K gaming in my price range if possible

When do I plan to build my PC?
1-3 weeks

Do I need any software?
I plan on getting a $40 OEM version of Windows 10

Other notes:
-I want to be able to do either SSI or Crossfire in the future
-I want to get an SSD for around $100
-I really want to try and not go over $700 if possible, unless spending a little extra money (e.g. $100 more) will lead to a very significant increase in performance

 

[whm1974]

While ~$700 can get you a decent system, I wouldn't worry about SSI or Corssfire since they are pretty much dead now. Here is a build for ~$700 that includes 16GB of memory and an SSD:
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/jjBGnH

 

[dave_the_nerd]

IIRC, those emulators are still heavily bottlenecked by single-core performance. You might want to stick with an Intel -K series Quad and OC the hell out of it, instead of going Ryzen. (Even though I agree with your points about multicore performance and upgradability.)

https://forums.dolphin-emu.org/Thread-are-there-any-fair-dolphin-benchmarks-for-ryzen-processors

Reading up about Dolphin, specifically, lines like this concern me:

Ryzen performs about as well as any given haswell processor at the same clock speed for emulators.

'Cuz Haswell is like 5 years old.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Yeah, you might actually be able to save some money, if you built a Haswell G3258 Pentium Anniv. Edition rig, with an overclockable H81 board, and can clock it to 4.2Ghz or maybe 4.5Ghz if you're lucky. (I've had G3258 top out at 4.0Ghz stable, before, and sometimes I can push them to 4.2Ghz, but I've never been able to hit 4.5Ghz actually "DC stable".)

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Yeah, you might actually be able to save some money, if you built a Haswell G3258 Pentium Anniv. Edition rig, with an overclockable H81 board, and can clock it to 4.2Ghz or maybe 4.5Ghz if you're lucky. (I've had G3258 top out at 4.0Ghz stable, before, and sometimes I can push them to 4.2Ghz, but I've never been able to hit 4.5Ghz actually "DC stable".)

That's a but much. Just get an i5 or i3 K-series and enjoy the benefits of modern architecture. 4+ GHz should still be very easy.

 

[whm1974]

That's a but much. Just get an i5 or i3 K-series and enjoy the benefits of modern architecture. 4+ GHz should still be very easy.

And why in Hell is Larry mentioning the Haswell G3258 Pentium and a H81 motherboard in 2018?

 

[VirtualLarry]

And why in Hell is Larry mentioning the Haswell G3258 Pentium and a H81 motherboard in 2018?

Well... I just built one for a friend of mine... decided I should get rid of some of the "spare (build) parts" in my collection.

He's coming from an Athlon II X4, hoping that this one will "stick". I've hooked him up with other PCs too, but it seems like he just doesn't want to switch away from "Old Faithful".

This time, I didn't sell it to him, I told him it was on the house, but that when he got some money, I would appreciate a $100 "donation", if he enjoyed and appreciated the PC.

Probably cost me $250-300 worth of parts. But they're older parts. Which strangely enough, makes them MORE valuable on ebay, if prices are to be examined. I don't quite understand that phenomenon.

 

[whm1974]

Well... I just built one for a friend of mine... decided I should get rid of some of the "spare (build) parts" in my collection.

He's coming from an Athlon II X4, hoping that this one will "stick". I've hooked him up with other PCs too, but it seems like he just doesn't want to switch away from "Old Faithful".

This time, I didn't sell it to him, I told him it was on the house, but that when he got some money, I would appreciate a $100 "donation", if he enjoyed and appreciated the PC.

Probably cost me $250-300 worth of parts. But they're older parts. Which strangely enough, makes them MORE valuable on ebay, if prices are to be examined. I don't quite understand that phenomenon.

The build in the link that I posted earlier should fit the bill for him for the stuff he says he wants to do at the price he is will to spend. That Haswell G3258 Pentium rig isn't going last that long.

 

[VirtualLarry]

The build in the link that I posted earlier should fit the bill for him for the stuff he says he wants to do at the price he is will to spend. That Haswell G3258 Pentium rig isn't going last that long.

His "budget" is basically zero. While that's a nice decent build, for around $700 (great for OP), my friend wouldn't be able to afford that, not in four years.

 

[whm1974]

His "budget" is basically zero. While that's a nice decent build, for around $700 (great for OP), my friend wouldn't be able to afford that, not in four years.

That really sucks for your friend.

 

[VirtualLarry]

That really sucks for your friend.

It is what it is. He spends his money on recreation, and delivery food. I buy computer parts with mine.

 

[Shmee]

Also, if buying Ryzen, I would go with a B450 board, or at least make sure any B350 board has the latest bios.

 

[Flayed]

Here's a $700 build https://pcpartpicker.com/list/X3wCFt

 

[Shmee]

^ He will still need a case, but that should be doable for around $50.

 

[rich4721]

So far, I thinking of getting the Ryzen 2600x CPU and a GTX 1050Ti. I don't know if a 1060Ti would be worth it for an extra $100. I know I could get something like an i5 7600k for the same price or an 8600k for $30 more and it would have much better single core performance for emulation but I am concerned about the meltdown and spectre exploits with intel CPUs. I know Intel has been releasing patches to try and fix this but this still worries me. Another thing is that current Ryzen motherboards will support the next generation AMD CPUs so I am future proofing my build vs Intel where the current LGA 1151 motherboards will not be compatible with the next gen Intel processors. There is also a benefit with the 2600x having more cores and this will also help future proof my setup because more games will come out that use more cores. I have been talking to people on other forums who are using the 2600x with the Cemu emulator and they say it runs well.

Let me know what you guys think. Also, I think it makes more sense to increase my budget to the $800-900 range.

 

[Shmee]

I think the 2600X and a B450 board is a good option. If you increase the budget as mentioned, I would get a better GPU if possible, if you are also using it for modern games. An RX 570 would be a good place to start, if not an RX 580 or GTX 1060.

 

[Shmee]

Here Flayed's list modified for 16GB RAM, a good case, and an RX 580. If it is too much, you could save on the video card down to a 570.
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/ZzHn8Y

 

[rich4721]

I think the 2600X and a B450 board is a good option. If you increase the budget as mentioned, I would get a better GPU if possible, if you are also using it for modern games. An RX 570 would be a good place to start, if not an RX 580 or GTX 1060.

I would get an AMD card but I want to run PCSX2 well and because PCSX2 heavily relies on OpenGL, I need an Nvidia card and the price of the 1060Ti is the most I'd be willing to spend.

What do you think if for now, I got a 1050Ti and then in 2-3 years when I upgrade the next gen Ryzen processor, I upgrade to a new GPU in the $250-300 range. Do you think the 1060Ti would still serve me well in 2-3 years and lead me to not having to upgrade?

 

[Flayed]

So far, I thinking of getting the Ryzen 2600x CPU and a GTX 1050Ti. *snip*

Let me know what you guys think. Also, I think it makes more sense to increase my budget to the $800-900 range.

I have a 1050ti and it isn't great for gaming. It's good for me as I don't really game and when I do I play turn based RPG's and strategy so fps isn't an issue.

 

[rich4721]

I also want to make sure the motherboard will work well with next gen Ryzen CPUs and has good VRMs. I'm willing to spend more on a good motherboard and spend less on RAM by only going with 8GB for now. Do you think I'd be better off doing with a midATX case?

 

[Flayed]

A better motherboard maybe ASRock B450M PRO4 for mATX. For cases smaller is generally better unless you need lots of airflow. If I were building a system I'd probably go for an ITX motherboard and case.

The video card question depends on the games you play. You said you like to play PS2 emulator games. I know nothing about that but if it uses mainly the cpu for emulation then perhaps you don't need a powerful gpu. Having said that I know a 1050ti won't get you good framerates in modern games so a 1060 3GB or 6GB would be a much better option.

 

[TheELF]

So far, I thinking of getting the Ryzen 2600x CPU and a GTX 1050Ti. I don't know if a 1060Ti would be worth it for an extra $100. I know I could get something like an i5 7600k for the same price or an 8600k for $30 more and it would have much better single core performance for emulation but I am concerned about the meltdown and spectre exploits with intel CPUs. I know Intel has been releasing patches to try and fix this but this still worries me. Another thing is that current Ryzen motherboards will support the next generation AMD CPUs so I am future proofing my build vs Intel where the current LGA 1151 motherboards will not be compatible with the next gen Intel processors. There is also a benefit with the 2600x having more cores and this will also help future proof my setup because more games will come out that use more cores. I have been talking to people on other forums who are using the 2600x with the Cemu emulator and they say it runs well.

Let me know what you guys think. Also, I think it makes more sense to increase my budget to the $800-900 range.

This doesn't make any sense,go with the i3-8350 with a good-ish overclock mobo and a simple cooler
It's just ~20% behind in multicore at stock and is on the same level in gaming even with the GTX 1080 and even at the lowest res.
If you want to match the 2600x in multi the i3-8350 allows for 25% overclocking (5Ghz) with a better cooler easily and might even go above that ( ~5.2) .
With the i3-8350 you can upgrade in a few years all the way up to the 8700k,with the 2600x you don't know what you will get in 2020 maybe it's just going to be 10% better (between ipc and clocks) and everything else will be the same,you just don't know,with the FX series the compatibility was the e line that was the same CPUs but downclocked to ridiculously just so they would "fit" into the TDP of the very old ,by then, mobos.
Personaly I would use the i3-8350k at stocks but use intel extreme tuning utility for badly emulated games I would boost one core up to ~5Ghz on those games.
https://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/AMD/Ryzen_7_2700/19.html
Why do you care about spectre? It's theoretical and while I do understand why companies care because they could potentially loose millions why would anybody single you out?

Also from what I have seen on youtube ryzen only works well will cemu if they use speedhack they speed up the output and you can tell by the music going faster then it should.

 

[Flayed]

Another thing is that current Ryzen motherboards will support the next generation AMD CPUs so I am future proofing my build vs Intel where the current LGA 1151 motherboards will not be compatible with the next gen Intel processors.

I don't see this motherboard compatibility being a problem. The slow pace of cpu performance increases over the last 7 or 8 years to me makes this a non-issue. I'm not going to replace my cpu unless I can get at least a 50% performance increase and that is unlikely to happen in one to three new generations of processors (assuming I don't buy the cheapest cpu available now of course lol)

 

[Shmee]

If not going AMD for GPUs, a 1060 6 GB is a good option. I would avoid the 3 GB though.

 

[whm1974]

So far, I thinking of getting the Ryzen 2600x CPU and a GTX 1050Ti. I don't know if a 1060Ti would be worth it for an extra $100. I know I could get something like an i5 7600k for the same price or an 8600k for $30 more and it would have much better single core performance for emulation but I am concerned about the meltdown and spectre exploits with intel CPUs. I know Intel has been releasing patches to try and fix this but this still worries me. Another thing is that current Ryzen motherboards will support the next generation AMD CPUs so I am future proofing my build vs Intel where the current LGA 1151 motherboards will not be compatible with the next gen Intel processors. There is also a benefit with the 2600x having more cores and this will also help future proof my setup because more games will come out that use more cores. I have been talking to people on other forums who are using the 2600x with the Cemu emulator and they say it runs well.

Let me know what you guys think. Also, I think it makes more sense to increase my budget to the $800-900 range.

Keep in mind it is far easier to change your dGPU then it is your CPU, plus a decent CPU is fairly stable as far as not needing to upgrade in the vast majority of cases. Video cards are the other hand, well most of the time at least once or twice in the life of your system.