Question New build after 10 years :)

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jeza_006

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Dec 29, 2019
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Hi all

My current computer has an Intel E8400...time for a major upgrade! Questions from sticky thread below:

1. PC use - Database work, multitasking, movies, streaming, music to high quality amp and speakers, occasional gaming
2. Budget - Around £800-£900 but can go higher
3. Country - UK
4. Merchants - Mostly buying from amazon and ebuyer
5. No brand preference although I used to think Intel was more stable/reliable. I hear that's not the case anymore.
6. Will re-use a 1tb WD HDD as a backup drive. Will also try to re-use a PCI soundcard with an adapter. If it doesn't fit then I'll sell it and replace it with a PCIe soundcard.
7. Might overclock slightly just because I can..
8. Current monitor resolution is 1080p. Computer also outputs to 55 inch 1080p TV
9. Ordering parts imminently
10. May need to purchase windows...I do have a product key for my current PC that I used about a year ago. Hoping it will work again on my new PC.
11. Other info:

(a) AIming to build a virtually silent PC - this is why I've currently selected the below case, CPU cooler and GPU
(b) PSU is slightly over the top but apparently it stays passively cooled until it's over 40% load - this should mean the fan is off 90% of the time
(c) I don't really want to have to mess with bios updates - one of the reasons for the board choice below
(d) RAM is on the mobo QVL

Here's my list so far...

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor (£169.98 @ Aria PC)
CPU Cooler: be quiet! Dark Rock 4 CPU Cooler (£54.28 @ Amazon UK)
Motherboard: MSI B450 TOMAHAWK MAX ATX AM4 Motherboard (£89.99 @ Box Limited)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory (£65.20 @ CCL Computers)
Windows and storage drive: Samsung 970 Evo 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive (£124.98 @ Ebuyer)
Backup drive: WD 1 TB HDD (already owned)
Video Card: Palit GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4 GB KalmX Video Card (£155.99 @ Amazon UK)
Case: Fractal Design Define C ATX Mid Tower Case (£74.98 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: Corsair RMx (2018) 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply (£100.98 @ AWD-IT)
Wireless Network Adapter: Gigabyte GC-WB1733D-I PCIe x1 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi Adapter (£21.59 @ Amazon UK)
Sound card: RME 9632 PCI card (already owned)
Sound card Adapter: Startech PCI to PCIe adapter (£34.80 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £892.77

Thoughts please? :)

One of the items I'm not sure about is the motherboard. I don't think I need to spend more for an X570, in fact I think it would be wasted on me (since I rarely game). But I do feel like I'm buying a slightly older motherboard than the other components I've selected (although it looks to be a good board?). Hopefully people will tell me that that board will be more than enough for my needs and I won't see any noticeable differences between that and an X570.
 
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Flayed

Senior member
Nov 30, 2016
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That is one of the best b450 boards to get for Ryzen 3000. If you have the budget for it I would replace the stock fans with Noctua fans, the are expensive but much quieter and would be a good idea seeing as you want a passive GPU you seem to be valuing low sound levels. The only other thing is you don't really need a 750W PSU, it won't hurt but you can save a few quid and get a 550W or 600W one. Actually 500W would be fine also
 
J

jeza_006

Member
Dec 29, 2019
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Hi Flayed, thanks for your reply.

I'm glad you like the board choice. You don't think I'll be missing out on any features/performance by choosing a B450 over an X570 board? The only thing I can think of is future CPU compatibility, but that doesn't bother me as I'm hoping this build lasts me another 10 years!

Are you referring to the stock case fans? I had thought about that...I was going to see how they were initially and then replace them if necessary, although it would be much easier during the initial build. Which Noctua fan would you recommend?

However I was thinking that I could just turn down the case fan speeds in the bios?

You're right about the PSU, but it's only £9 more than the 650w, and if parts picker calculations are right, then fan will almost never turn on...so I should have a silent PSU :)
 
J

jeza_006

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Dec 29, 2019
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Any other thoughts or good to go?

Out of interest, if I do start gaming a bit more, how much will I suffer with the 1050 Ti GPU? What difference will it make in games? Will I still be able to run the newest games at high settings, just not very high? And I'll get a reasonable FPS?
 
VirtualLarry

VirtualLarry

No Lifer
Aug 25, 2001
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Well, I haven't looked at your particular model of GTX 1050ti specifically, but isn't the "KalmX" model a passively-cooled one? Good if you want a silent PC, not so good for gaming. In fact, I would argue, that "gaming" inherently requires a powerful CPU and GPU, and therefore, powerful cooling, and the only way that you're going to approach silence with that sort of scenario, is with a custom water-cooling system.

You could consider something like a GTX 1660ti MSI Ventus OC model, those are nearly silent GPUs, or at least, I can't hear mine, in my massive ATX cases.

That's the lowest I would go on a video card, these days, either a 1660 Super or 1660ti. 30FPS on RDR2 @ 1080P is as low as I would want to go.
 
F

Flayed

Senior member
Nov 30, 2016
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There are graphics cards that have beefy coolers on them where the fans don't spin during normal desktop not gaming situations. They tend to be the more expensive models of a particular GPU as beefy coolers cost more money. The ones that come to mind are MSI Gaming models and Asus ROG models but there probably are more
 
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Flayed

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Nov 30, 2016
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jeza_006

Member
Dec 29, 2019
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Thanks for the replies

Larry - yes the Kalmx is the passively cooled model. Silence is definitely a target for me, but I would also the ability to play some games on decent settings. Although I don't really want to spend more than around £150 on a GPU as any gaming will just be from time to time. A water cooled system would also be way over the top for me.

Is a 1660 Super the cheapest card to achieve 30FPS on RDR2 @ 1080P?

Flayed - yes...that's an option. I've seen the MSI 580 Armor has the following: "Zero Frozr: Stopping the fan in low-load situations, keeping a noise-free environment"

Thanks for the fan info...that for the case fans? The case only has two as standard - you're suggesting I fit an extra one?

General question - can GPU fans not be adjusted manually? ie. I just turn it right down when I want it quiet...then run it fast if I'm gaming?
 
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Flayed

Senior member
Nov 30, 2016
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Yes 2 front 140mm intake one 120mm rear exhaust is fairly standard case fan configuration
 
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Campy

Senior member
Jun 25, 2010
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If it's available I would consider the B450M Mortar Max motherboard. Also I'm a fan of the Meshify cases from Fractal.
 
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jeza_006

Member
Dec 29, 2019
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Flayed said:
Yes 2 front 140mm intake one 120mm rear exhaust is fairly standard case fan configuration
Click to expand...

Ah ok thanks. Would it be possible to stick with the OEM fans and turn them down in the bios? Or if they're still loud, replace them at that point? Although I'm not sure how much hassle that would be once the computer's all up and running.

Campy said:
If it's available I would consider the B450M Mortar Max motherboard. Also I'm a fan of the Meshify cases from Fractal.
Click to expand...

Ha. That was my first choie, combined with the Fractal Define Mini C. But then I decided to go with the Fractal Define C, as it's all the same dimensions but 4cm taller and takes an ATX board. So then I decided to swap the Mortar Max for the Tomahawk Max as it'll be easier to build and hopefully deal with heat better in a quiet case with low speed fans. The other differences between the boards are very minor, and they cost almost exactly the same. Hopefully those reasons make sense for changing...

I've read good things about the meshify cases as well, but I like the sound deadening in the Define cases. They get great reviews too.
 
J

jeza_006

Member
Dec 29, 2019
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So...what about turning down GPU fan speeds when I'm not gaming - is that possible?

There are also some graphics cards that have a single larger fan instead of two smaller fans - eg. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Palit-GeFo...07PNK24GX/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

You'd think that those are quieter but I guess there's no way of knowing until it's fitted... although I guess I could return it if it's too noisy. Can't do that many times though :tearsofjoy:
 
C

Campy

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Jun 25, 2010
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jeza_006 said:
Ha. That was my first choie, combined with the Fractal Define Mini C. But then I decided to go with the Fractal Define C, as it's all the same dimensions but 4cm taller and takes an ATX board. So then I decided to swap the Mortar Max for the Tomahawk Max as it'll be easier to build and hopefully deal with heat better in a quiet case with low speed fans. The other differences between the boards are very minor, and they cost almost exactly the same. Hopefully those reasons make sense for changing...

I've read good things about the meshify cases as well, but I like the sound deadening in the Define cases. They get great reviews too.
Click to expand...

The main reason I would get the Mortar is that it has two M.2 slots, so it's really easy to slot in more fast storage in the future. The Tomahawk is a great board too though.
As for the case it's just a question of better ventilation and lower needed fan speed, or more restricted and higher fan speed. The first option also lets you easily turn up the fan speed for better cooling or add more fans, but again both cases are good.
 
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jeza_006

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I did see the extra M2 slot...can't imagine I'd ever use it though!

Flayed - been doing some research and it seems MSI afterburner or EVGA Precision X can do that...I can potentially set fan profiles/curves, so that could work well.

Any recommendations on quiet but decent performance cards £150 - £200? (up to about $260)
 
F

Flayed

Senior member
Nov 30, 2016
431
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Like Larry said 1650 Super

PCPartPicker Part List

Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER 4 GB Gaming X Video Card (£177.95 @ More Computers)
Total: £177.95
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-12-29 21:37 GMT+0000

www.guru3d.com

MSI GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER GAMING X review

MSI released their GTX 1650 SUPER GAMING X, a product with a more than capable cooler as well being factory tweaked. The SUPER edition card comes with 12 Gbps GDDR6 graphics memory, however, has only ... Graphics card acoustic levels
www.guru3d.com www.guru3d.com
 
VirtualLarry

VirtualLarry

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Aug 25, 2001
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Flayed said:
Like Larry said 1650 Super
Click to expand...
Actually, I said 1660 Super, if they wanted to play RDR2 at any reasonable framerate, but other than that, if the 1650 Super works better for budget, it's still a step up from the GTX 1050 ti 4GB model, if by only a little.
 
F

Flayed

Senior member
Nov 30, 2016
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VirtualLarry said:
Actually, I said 1660 Super, if they wanted to play RDR2 at any reasonable framerate, but other than that, if the 1650 Super works better for budget, it's still a step up from the GTX 1050 ti 4GB model, if by only a little.
Click to expand...
oh right sorry Larry.
 
A

ArisVer

Golden Member
Mar 6, 2011
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I am in a similar situation as you. Upgrading from a Xeon quad core similar to a core 2 quad Q9650 iirc.

Waiting for the parts now, I chose the MSI B450 Gaming Pro Carbon AC because it has onboard WiFi and 2 M.2 slots. Since I am only a casual gamer my CPU choice was the Ryzen 7 2700 since I found it 50 euro cheaper than the 3600. Also my choice for NVMe SSD was a Crucial P1 (they replaced it with an Intel 660p since it was not available), again because it was 30-40 euro cheaper than the 3000 MB/s drives. I am planning to get a faster SSD in the future and will transfer the first drive to the second slot (which btw, runs at half speed).
I also ordered a water cooler for the extra speed and fun, some cheap 16 GB 3200 G.Skill RAM, a case and some fans. Transferring some disks, a GTX 1060, and I had a PSU.

One thing i regret though, is if I should have waited for the B550 chipset, which might arrive very soon.
 
VirtualLarry

VirtualLarry

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Aug 25, 2001
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I honestly don't see what the big deal about the B550 chipset is. In fact, I haven't heard anything at all about features, other than it is coming out at some point in 2020.

I mean, after all, the CPU is an SoC, and has SATA6G, PCI-E, and USB3.1/3.2 Gen1/2 ports right on the CPU package pinout.

The only think that I can see, possibly, is PCI-E 4.0 support enabled for B550, but I've also read rumors that possibly, that will be restricted to X570, and B550 won't really offer anything substantial above the B450.

B450 is here now, it works fairly well (most mobo models, at least, with BIOS/UEFI updates). I'm running a B450 myself, though I am sometimes wishing for PCI-E 4.0 support, for my RX 5700 and a PCI-E 4.0 x4 NVMe SSD or two.
 
J

jeza_006

Member
Dec 29, 2019
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Thanks guys I'll do some research into GPUs and come back

ArisVer - what GPU did you end up choosing?

I can't remember why I passed on the MSI B450 Gaming Pro Carbon AC, in favour of the Tomahawk. I think it's because I read that some of them weren't being shipped with the bios updated and I didn't want to get involved in that. Having another read now it looks like that's changed and it should be ready for the 3600 out the box?

What do people think about the built in wireless and bluetooth on that board compared to the adapter I was going to buy? https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07FBSV1XZ?tag=pcp0f-21&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1

Any other differences between those two boards?

Done for the night now, more research tomorrow!
 
F

Flayed

Senior member
Nov 30, 2016
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I think the B550 will have more lanes maybe than the 450 thats about it. Wireless sucks, run some cable it's worth the effort.
 
J

jeza_006

Member
Dec 29, 2019
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Ha I've just been reading about the WiFi on that board. I need WiFi on my desktop in my flat.

Apparently it's very good, so is the Bluetooth. It also has better onboard audio..

Very tempted by the carbon ac now. My only concern is the bios flashback (if it's necessary). Some people had problems with it on that board. Shame MSI didn't make a max version of it.
 
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