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With $500 what would you do to my rig?

559 views 19 replies 11 participants last post by  hellphyre 
#1 ·
I may soon be in a unique situation where I will have about $500 to spend and I want it to go into my computer. I am mostly happy with my frames and play mostly COD and other shooters at high settings 1440p. My platform is showing its age but at the same time the RX480 (@1480 under AIO) is barely a 1440p card.

Current rig in the sig

In my position would you-
A) upgrade the platform to Ryzen 5 (cpu, mobo, ram)
or
B) buy a GTX 1080 (or vega assuming same or better performance for $500 or less)

Splitting the money is not an option because $250 won't yield enough upgrade for it to matter. Your opinions please?
 
#2 ·
B) It gives you more fps /with nicier graphics.

After that update you need faster CPU/MEMs.

On your current mems, you should sold them and buy only 2 memory sticks (2x8Gb) @higher Mhz (it increases minimum fps dips what are more important than max.peaked fps)
 
#3 ·
Seems like a solid rig. Maybe focus on your input/output devices. Are you happy with you keyboard/mouse? How about headset or speakers/amp?
 
#5 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by hellphyre View Post

Id go CPU, MB, RAM. A 1080 is gonna get bottle necked by your current platform depending on game and settings in my opinion.
This.

I'd look into the 6 core Ryzen.
 
#6 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hiikeri View Post

B) It gives you more fps /with nicier graphics.

After that update you need faster CPU/MEMs.

On your current mems, you should sold them and buy only 2 memory sticks (2x8Gb) @higher Mhz (it increases minimum fps dips what are more important than max.peaked fps)
No way I am buying more DDR3. going from 1600 to 2133 won't do much anyway.
Quote:
Originally Posted by briank View Post

Seems like a solid rig. Maybe focus on your input/output devices. Are you happy with you keyboard/mouse? How about headset or speakers/amp?
The mouse is getting old, but that would be like $60 so I can justify that anytime really. Other stuff is great. I am cheap so it is not often I get such a chunk of cash so I want to make a big move with it. Thanks tho
Quote:
Originally Posted by hellphyre View Post

Id go CPU, MB, RAM. A 1080 is gonna get bottle necked by your current platform depending on game and settings in my opinion.
I agree on the bottleneck point. A 1080 would still get more frames than the platform upgrade tho.
 
#8 ·
#9 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by hellphyre View Post

Not if you borrow 36 bucks.
tongue.gif


https://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.3466714
Quote:
Originally Posted by Chargeit View Post

I'd avoid anything 4c/8t without a clear upgrade path to a higher core count. My 4790k hits 100% usage often enough now in games that I know I'd be better off with a cpu with 6 or 8 real cores. Granted I'm using a 1080 ti so on a 480 it shouldn't be a deal. Though with a better gpu it would be.
Thanks for pricing out the intel platform. I don't know much about Intel stuff, Z270? how long is that expected to last? I like that AM4 in a x370 board will be relevant till 2020. I also prefer AMD for them cores. I don't stream but do record gameplay.
 
#10 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Chargeit View Post

I'd avoid anything 4c/8t without a clear upgrade path to a higher core count. My 4790k hits 100% usage often enough now in games that I know I'd be better off with a cpu with 6 or 8 real cores. Granted I'm using a 1080 ti so on a 480 it shouldn't be a deal. Though with a better gpu it would be.
My 4C core not bottlenecking on any game, My 1080ti is too slow /bottlenecking, even at 2560*1440.

Example Ryzens clocktimes at 4000Mhz are so much higher than 5000Mhz Intels that on many games Intel is 20-40% faster, see FPS dips..
 
#12 ·
You could spring for a second RX 480 which is cheap and getting crossfire to work as a hobby is always rewarding. I got great performance with my old R9-390/R9-390x crossfire setup. Free-sync works! You can save the rest of your $ until you're ready to do a full upgrade.

You could make me a low-ball offer on my MSI 1080 because I'm looking to upgrade my GPU.

Avoid intel z170/z270 unless you can get them used. The 1151 socket is dead. Go AMD instead.
 
#15 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hiikeri View Post

My 4C core not bottlenecking on any game, My 1080ti is too slow /bottlenecking, even at 2560*1440.

Example Ryzens clocktimes at 4000Mhz are so much higher than 5000Mhz Intels that on many games Intel is 20-40% faster, see FPS dips..
Considering the mins are better on ryzen and with slower clock speeds this is just not true.
 
#16 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by andydabeast View Post

Thanks for pricing out the intel platform. I don't know much about Intel stuff, Z270? how long is that expected to last? I like that AM4 in a x370 board will be relevant till 2020. I also prefer AMD for them cores. I don't stream but do record gameplay.
One concern I have for Z270 is Cannonlake is supposed to bring 6 core cpu's to intels consumer line of cpu's. My other concern is games can already saturate an 8 thread cpu meaning having more threads is going to net you better multitasking while gaming and a smoother overall experience.

My money is on Skylake-X or Cannonlake. I mainly suggest Ryzen because this is an AMD thread and they seem like a good upgrade from a FX8350.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hiikeri View Post

My 4C core not bottlenecking on any game, My 1080ti is too slow /bottlenecking, even at 2560*1440.

Example Ryzens clocktimes at 4000Mhz are so much higher than 5000Mhz Intels that on many games Intel is 20-40% faster, see FPS dips..
Just going off what I experience. Games can easily take advantage of 8 threads now. The more of those threads that are real cpu's the better. I wouldn't make the move to a 4c/8t cpu when higher core counts are about to become mainstream.

So, yeah my suggestion is to upgrade the platform to something with a higher core count then 4c/8t. I'd avoid wasting money on a GPU upgrade when a platform upgrade will serve you better in the long run. I'd suggest Ryzen over Skylake because it just seems more future resistant. I'd also suggest holding off on the platform upgrade until intel says something about Skylake-X.

If for some reason, you just have to spend your upgrade money then do whatever just know when Volta releases you're likely going to wish you dropped the money into upgrading your platform.
 
#18 ·
Thanks for all the replies guys. I know the responsible thing is to go ryzen. That 1600x will probably be in my near future
thumbsupsmiley.png
 
#19 ·
Update: I had posted this just before the Etherium mining craze, so I ended up selling the 480, flipping a r9-390x, and getting a 1080. I still have the $500 left for Ryzen. So at the end of the day, the real answer was BOTH lol
 
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