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Question Which CPU for a budget gaming system?

ibex333

ibex333

Diamond Member
I already have ALL components except for mobo and CPU.

Cant decide between a Ryzen 5 3600, i3-10100 or i5-9400f

All three seem to offer similar performance in games, but I could be wrong.

Please note, I only care about gaming performance. How good this CPU will be as a workstations, video editing, etc, is irrelevant to me.

Sure, I'd go for Ryzen 3300X, but those are not available, and I don't want to wait.

If you have another CPU in mind which would be a better choice for the same money, do let me know please!

Overclocking is not too important for me. If I can overclock, I will. If I cant, no biggie.
 
ibex333 said:
I already have ALL components except for mobo and CPU.

Cant decide between a Ryzen 5 3600, i3-10100 or i5-9400f

All three seem to offer similar performance in games, but I could be wrong.

Please note, I only care about gaming performance. How good this CPU will be as a workstations, video editing, etc, is irrelevant to me.

Sure, I'd go for Ryzen 3300X, but those are not available, and I don't want to wait.

If you have another CPU in mind which would be a better choice for the same money, do let me know please!

Overclocking is not too important for me. If I can overclock, I will. If I cant, no biggie.
Click to expand...
if you can wait just 2-3 months ryzen 4000 will come
if you can't ryzen 5 3600

but don't forget, to get that gaming performance as the web reviews show from the ryzens you need low latency memory, ideal 3400 MHz CL14, min 3200 CL14
higher its much more pricey
if you have such memory ok, if you don't buy i5 10400, it is of the same price category as r3600
but you need z490 board to extract the best from the system, which is ~140EUR +
with ryzen you can get b450 tomahawk board and that is 30 EUR less
can you post the RAM spec you own?
thanks
 
Since I assume you will be going with a separate GPU, I would get the 10400f or the 3600.
 
TheGiant said:
if you can wait just 2-3 months ryzen 4000 will come
if you can't ryzen 5 3600

but don't forget, to get that gaming performance as the web reviews show from the ryzens you need low latency memory, ideal 3400 MHz CL14, min 3200 CL14
higher its much more pricey
if you have such memory ok, if you don't buy i5 10400, it is of the same price category as r3600
but you need z490 board to extract the best from the system, which is ~140EUR +
with ryzen you can get b450 tomahawk board and that is 30 EUR less
can you post the RAM spec you own?
thanks
Click to expand...


My RAM is GAMMIX D30 16GB 3000MHz PC4-24000

So I am assuming no go for Ryzen?
 
Shmee said:
So, whether you go AMD or intel, I would go with a 6 core if you can afford it. I would want faster than the i3 4 core for just a bit more.
Click to expand...
So much this.

Btw, I have a B450 Tomahawk MAX in my FS thread currently. PM me if you want one, for pricing info.
 
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I built a Mini ITX machine with a 3600XT and it has been fantastic. It actually edges out my 3900X (at stock anyway) in single and low thread count workloads. It has frequently hit 4.65 Ghz on every single core in the chip, and does around 4.5 Ghz during gaming sessions.
 
Userbenchmark is junk. The 10400f or the 3600 will do just fine. I'd lean toward the 3600 with a B550 mobo on account of being able to pop in a 4600 down the line or a higher end processor. Personally, I'd wait another month or two. You may be able to score a 3600 for even cheaper.
 
ibex333 said:
My RAM is GAMMIX D30 16GB 3000MHz PC4-24000

So I am assuming no go for Ryzen?
Click to expand...
and your monitor has 60Hz or higher (100,144,+) refresh rate ?
if more than 60, then it will hurt the min fps
you will see when you try to set to 3200 MHz CL15

what is your graphics card ?
 
Last edited:
TheGiant said:
and your monitor has 60Hz or higher (100,144,+) refresh rate ?
if more than 60, then it will hurt the min fps
you will see when you try to set to 3200 MHz CL15

what is your graphics card ?
Click to expand...


Right now, a GTX 1650 but will upgrade to at least 5600xt when money allows. My monitor is 144hz.
 
A/// said:
Userbenchmark is junk. The 10400f or the 3600 will do just fine. I'd lean toward the 3600 with a B550 mobo on account of being able to pop in a 4600 down the line or a higher end processor. Personally, I'd wait another month or two. You may be able to score a 3600 for even cheaper.
Click to expand...


What are some good online sources to be able to see which CPU is truly "better" for a specific need?
 
ibex333 said:
What are some good online sources to be able to see which CPU is truly "better" for a specific need?
Click to expand...
Online resources that I have seen are totally wrong. Just look at a couple of videos. The 3600 is the better choice.
 
I second/third/fourth the support for the 3600 in this spot. I've been very pleased with it and I think it will age better than any 4/8T part at this juncture.

Also shares the architecture of the coming PS5 & Series X - long term this should be able to take advantage of any optimizations built into Unreal/Unity for those platforms too.
 
ibex333 said:
Please note, I only care about gaming performance. How good this CPU will be as a workstations, video editing, etc, is irrelevant to me.
Overclocking is not too important for me. If I can overclock, I will. If I cant, no biggie.
Click to expand...
The i5 9400f has been replaced by the i5 10400f, which is faster than all AMD processors in gaming. See charts below:

720p
1598636810959.png

1080p
1598636739192.png

1440p
1598636881405.png

4k
1598636921214.png

www.techpowerup.com

Intel Core i9-10850K Review - Just as Good as the i9-10900K

The Intel Core i9-10850K is the company's latest Comet Lake processor. It's just 100 MHz slower than the Core i9-10900K flagship, but much more affordable, and with better availability. In our i9-10850K review, we're taking a close look at both gaming and application performance to determine...
www.techpowerup.com www.techpowerup.com
 
Zucker2k said:
The i5 9400f has been replaced by the i5 10400f, which is faster than all AMD processors in gaming. See charts below:

720p
View attachment 28761

1080p
View attachment 28760

1440p
View attachment 28762

4k
View attachment 28763

www.techpowerup.com

Intel Core i9-10850K Review - Just as Good as the i9-10900K

The Intel Core i9-10850K is the company's latest Comet Lake processor. It's just 100 MHz slower than the Core i9-10900K flagship, but much more affordable, and with better availability. In our i9-10850K review, we're taking a close look at both gaming and application performance to determine...
www.techpowerup.com www.techpowerup.com
Click to expand...
Interesting results, though very few games tested.
 
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