Question New Budget Gaming Build for 10yo Son

[imported_adstal]

For Christmas I started a budget gaming build for my son (probably fortnight, minecraft, and some other games). It has been 7-10 years since I built a PC so a lot has changed (my old pc is running an AMD Phenom II X4 955). I've always been an AMD guy so I used pcpartpicker and started grabbing a few components. I didn't realize at the time that AMD processors are ridiculously over priced and out of stock right now (I'm in the US). We are being patient about buying components and trying to pick up stuff when the price is right so I don't need to make a purchase immediately. Here is a list of the components I currently have:

CPU - None (main reason for this post)
MB - B450M-HDV R4.0 ~$60
GPU - XLR8 Geforce GTX 1650 Super 4gb ~$179
Power Supply - EVGA W1 Series 600w ~$50
Case - Montech Air X ARGB ~$50
Memory - None
HD - None

My main question is about the processor. Pcpartpicker suggests a Ryzen 2600 which is currently the same price as the 3600 ~$200. I've seen some other recommendations for the 3200 or 3300 but these seem impossible to find or are way over priced. Is there an entry level processor available right now that is reasonable? If not can I drop down into one of the cheap AMD processors (~50) temporarily until the prices stabilize and still be able to run these games?

Also, I was still building pre SSD HD's and I'm not current with memory either so any recommendations are appreciated.

***Update on this project and another question.***

I went ahead and purchased the Ryzen 3600 and all was well until I tried to hook up the LEDs from the case fans to the mobo. The asrock b450m-hdv does not support argb so obviously this is a problem since it is for my 10 year old. Led lights are the most important component in his mind.

I ended up returning the mobo to Amazon so I am now in the market for an Argb compatible mobo for the Ryzen 3600 that is ready to go with no bios flash. I would like to spend $100 or less if possible. Here is an updated component list.

CPU - Ryzen 3600
MB - none
GPU - XLR8 Geforce GTX 1650 Super 4gb ~$179
Power Supply - EVGA W1 Series 600w ~$50
Case - Montech Air X ARGB ~$50
Memory - None
HD - None (looking at the 500gb nvme drives crucial, wd, etc around $60)

Thanks

 

[Shmee]

From what you have mentioned, the 3600 sounds like the best option asuming it is available at the price of $200. The only problem is, you may need a BIOS update first to use it with the listed motherboard. Since this is a cheaper board, it most likely does not have a flashback option, and would require an earlier CPU to update the BIOS. Perhaps it is best to purchase a motherboard known to support Ryzen 3000 series out of the box. Some B450 boards will have this listed on them, or you could go with a B550 board, but those are a bit more.

For memory, it gets easier though. Probably best to get 2x8GB of DDR4 3200, this is a good sweet spot for a lot of Ryzens. For the SSD, there have been some great deals recently on 500GB and 1TB SATA drives from Crucial, WD, and Samsung. Anyone of the following would do well, so get the one for the best price: Crucial MX500, Western Digital Blue 3D, Samsung 860 Evo.

 

[imported_adstal]

Thanks for the reply. The motherboard box says "AMD Ryzen 3000 Desktop Ready". Am I correct in assuming it will work with the 3600 without needing to update?

 

[Shmee]

Oh, nice. In that case you should be good to go with that board then, no update needed for posting.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Thanks for the reply. The motherboard box says "AMD Ryzen 3000 Desktop Ready". Am I correct in assuming it will work with the 3600 without needing to update?

Yep, should be good to go, hopefully. (There may be some more recent BIOS updates that you wish to make after getting the board installed and booting, but it should be enough for basic booting and functionality.)

The Ryzen R5 3600 is a GREAT CPU, IMHO. Been running one since release.

The only thing that I might recommend, is picking up some DDR4-3600 RAM, rather than DDR4-3200, if it's only $10-20 more. Zen2 (Ryzen 3000 CPU) LOVES fast memory, and 3600-speed DDR4 RAM is a sweet spot. Try to (after getting everything stable), set your "FCLK" ("Fabric Clock") to 1800, that puts it in a 1:1 ratio with DRAM clock (remember, 3600 is DDR), which gives optimum performance for some things. Not all CPUs can handle FCLK above 1600, but most will. This can increase your FPS.

 

[VirtualLarry]

GPU - XLR8 Geforce GTX 1650 Super 4gb ~$179

BTW, I don't know how many months ago that you purchased that, but you did alright there, given current market prices on GPUs. (And the rampant scalping, almost nothing is at MSRP, and even retail online outlets like Newegg are charging nearly $80 over MSRP on GPUs, straight from the mfg/retailer.)

 

[imported_adstal]

I nabbed it a couple of weeks ago from Bestbuy. I've been watching pcpartpicker daily and the prices for 1650s have been anywhere from $230 to $350. When I saw that it was $179 I immediately went to the site and tried to order. Of course it showed out of stock but checked back a little later and it showed in stock again. Seems like I got really lucky.

Thanks for the help.

 

[MalVeauX]

Heya,

Most Ryzen CPUs are way over-priced, or simply out of stock. The Ryzen 3600x has been lately available on BestBuy & Amazon at MSRP ($199) +/- if you're willing to wait a few days for the stock and shipping. At this point, just getting anything at MSRP is an appropriate deal. There are more budget oriented CPUs that would work (like the 3100x and 3300x but they're way over-priced for what they are). So the 3600x is likely your best bet.

And the points about the memory speeds and clocks are worth looking into; Ryzen is definitely happier with faster RAM, but it's less so much the RAW speed and more to do with timing and latency for better efficiency. Just look up some YouTube stuff on Ryzen and DDR4 3200mhz to 3600mhz at CL14 to CL16 and see the performance differences; it's nothing in some applications, but in some games it makes enough difference to possibly consider researching and fooling with it.

Very best,

 

[OlyAR15]

Check the price of intel’s 10400f. It is comparable in gaming performance to the 3600, and at least in Canada, considerably cheaper. Motherboard prices are comparable.

 

[imported_adstal]

Update on this project and another question.

I went ahead and purchased the Ryzen 3600 and all was well until I tried to hook up the LEDs from the case fans to the mobo. The asrock b450m-hdv does not support argb so obviously this is a problem since it is for my 10 year old. Led lights are the most important component in his mind.

I ended up returning the mobo to Amazon so I am now in the market for an Argb compatible mobo for the Ryzen 3600 that is ready to go with no bios flash. I would like to spend $100 or less if possible. Here is an updated component list.

CPU - Ryzen 3600
MB - none
GPU - XLR8 Geforce GTX 1650 Super 4gb ~$179
Power Supply - EVGA W1 Series 600w ~$50
Case - Montech Air X ARGB ~$50
Memory - None
HD - None (looking at the 500gb nvme drives crucial, wd, etc around $60)

 

[MalVeauX]

Heya,

Take a look at the ASRock B450 Steel Legend maybe?

Very best,

 

[DeathReborn]

ASRock B550M Phantom Gaming 4 - $90

Are you a human?

www.newegg.com

Gigabyte B550M DS3H - $95

Are you a human?

www.newegg.com

Both boards have ARGB and support the 3600 out of the box, no BIOS update required.