Ryzen or Intel?

[BLKBRDSR71]

Ok guys, I've been watching Ryzen reviews like their going out of style. I currently have a Phenom II x4 980, 750 watt PSU, XFX 7970. I was wondering if the Ryzen 1500x is a better improvement. I'm aware I'll have to get a new Motherboard and RAM as well. I only intend to spend $500 max. Or should I switch sides and jump on the Intel bandwagon. My PC is used for gaming. I need some advice.

 

[hat]

I would get at least a 1600x. Those additional cores will help, even in gaming. The latest games are starting to take advantage of >4 cores. You'll trade blows with the almighty 7700k (which is almost $100 more than the 1600x) in gaming, but you'll outclass it in productivity. You would appreciate it if you ever did any encoding, for example.

Secondly, make sure you get 16GB RAM this time. 8GB is a little on the low side these days.

Lastly, consider just upgrading the GPU for now, as that's still the most important component for gaming. I don't know what cooling you have, besides "AIR", so... depending on what that is, you may want to upgrade that. If you really want to do it up, a good AIO water cooler is out of the question with that case, so unless you want to change your case too, you might want a good air cooler. The Noctua NHD15 is currently one of the ones on top as far as air cooling goes... but that may be too big for your case. You might be able to fit an h70 or h80. I still use an h70 and have done so for years, it's a great cooler. It handled an overclocked i7 920 without any trouble. With good cooling, you can probably push your Phenom to 4.2GHz, and the cooler will serve you well in your next system.

 

[r9]

Ok guys, I've been watching Ryzen reviews like their going out of style. I currently have a Phenom II x4 980, 750 watt PSU, XFX 7970. I was wondering if the Ryzen 1500x is a better improvement. I'm aware I'll have to get a new Motherboard and RAM as well. I only intend to spend $500 max. Or should I switch sides and jump on the Intel bandwagon. My PC is used for gaming. I need some advice.

Ryzen 5 1600, B350 motherboard and some 16GB 3200MHz DDR4 supported RAM.
I don't know if Microcenter is an option for you, but they have $50 off when you buy Ryzen + Motherboard.
Ryzen 5 1600 $219 + B350 Motherboard $100 + 16GB DDR4 $140 - $50 discount = $409
And that investment would last you a while.

 

[mroofie]

Ok guys, I've been watching Ryzen reviews like their going out of style. I currently have a Phenom II x4 980, 750 watt PSU, XFX 7970. I was wondering if the Ryzen 1500x is a better improvement. I'm aware I'll have to get a new Motherboard and RAM as well. I only intend to spend $500 max. Or should I switch sides and jump on the Intel bandwagon. My PC is used for gaming. I need some advice.

Buying the 1500x is pointless really
R 1600x would better with 3200 ram

Unfortunately that's without a motherboard.

If you could add another $100 to your budget you would be all set to go

Ryzen 5 1600, B350 motherboard and some 16GB 3200MHz DDR4 supported RAM.
I don't know if Microcenter is an option for you, but they have $50 off when you buy Ryzen + Motherboard.
Ryzen 5 1600 $219 + B350 Motherboard $100 + 16GB DDR4 $140 - $50 discount = $409
And that investment would last you a while.

At what ram speed though?

Ryzen 5 1600, B350 motherboard and some 16GB 3200MHz DDR4 supported RAM.
I don't know if Microcenter is an option for you, but they have $50 off when you buy Ryzen + Motherboard.
Ryzen 5 1600 $219 + B350 Motherboard $100 + 16GB DDR4 $140 - $50 discount = $409
And that investment would last you a while.

Link?

 

[r9]

Link?

I was just looking at it yesterday.
Today 1600 is sold out and they don't offer that $50 when you buy CPU+Motherboard.
I don't know if you can wait because they have that promotion on and off.

At what ram speed though?

3200MHz it seems to be the sweet spot Price/Performance.

 

[mroofie]

I was just looking at it yesterday.
Today 1600 is sold out and they don't offer that $50 when you buy CPU+Motherboard.
I don't know if you can wait because they have that promotion on and off.

Not the op 

3200MHz it seems to be the sweet spot Price/Performance.

I thought only the x370 could handle such speeds? I don't think the b350 would work for the op :/

 

[NdMk2o1o]

I thought only the x370 could handle such speeds? I don't think the b350 would work for the op :/

There's little difference between oc on ram or processor with x370 and b350

 

[mroofie]

There's little difference between oc on ram or processor with x370 and b350

What's the difference?

Edit: scratch that just checked

Ok guys, I've been watching Ryzen reviews like their going out of style. I currently have a Phenom II x4 980, 750 watt PSU, XFX 7970. I was wondering if the Ryzen 1500x is a better improvement. I'm aware I'll have to get a new Motherboard and RAM as well. I only intend to spend $500 max. Or should I switch sides and jump on the Intel bandwagon. My PC is used for gaming. I need some advice.

Op if can you add another $50 you could get the 1600x and 16GB 3200 ram + b350 Motherboard

I think that mostly motherboard to motherboard than chipset to chipset.
A lot of reviewers were sent B350 motherboards in their review kit.
So, I don't think B350 is inferior compared to x370 in regards to memory and cpu oc.
Somebody correct me if I'm wrong.

Yeah just checked probably got confused with something else

 

[r9]

I thought only the x370 could handle such speeds? I don't think the b350 would work for the op :/

If I'm not mistaken B350 motherboards were the first ones to get BIOS update for memory compatibility.
I think the biggest difference with x370 it gives you SLI support.
Knowing how much NVIDIA DX12 sucks on Ryzen I can't imagine somebody wanting to do SLI on Ryzen.

What's the difference?

I think that mostly motherboard to motherboard than chipset to chipset.
A lot of reviewers were sent B350 motherboards in their review kit.
So, I don't think B350 is inferior compared to x370 in regards to memory and cpu oc.
Somebody correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[Melvis]

The 1500X beats the FX 83XX Series, and the FX 83XX Beat the Phenom II X4 series and I have a PII 965, so it would be a big improvement really for you. That been said the 1600X would be even better. There isnt many Intel CPU's to even consider honestly compared to the line up from AMD now with performance and price. The 7700K maybe for out right FPS in games, but that be the only one, the i5 7600K is now completely pointless. Get a B350 Mobo, 1500X, 16GB DDR4 3200 RAM and you be happy.

 

[jormungand]

If your budget is for ryzen... Then go a head but be sure to not step on the 7700 price range (k or non k) (z or h mobo) if you go close to that intel will be the best choice.

 

[NdMk2o1o]

No need for 1600x the 1600 will clock the same give or take, that's going to be my build in a few weeks time with a b350 motherboard

 

[Konceptz]

General consensus from reviews is that if your primary focus is gaming, go intel. If gaming isnt top priority go with Ryzen. Of course were only talking about a 3-7 fps difference but if you want the absolute best gaming platform, its still intel.

 

[Totally]

General consensus from reviews is that if your primary focus is gaming, go intel. If gaming isnt top priority go with Ryzen. Of course were only talking about a 3-7 fps difference but if you want the absolute best gaming platform (that money can buy,) it's still intel.

ftfy

The Intel chips that perform better are priced out of his budget, $500, Intel does not fit the bill.

 

[Bill_Bright]

I have not seen any review that convinces me the performance of the Ryzen makes the Ryzen worth considering.

Yes, Intel's still cost more but in most cases, not a lot more. And in my opinion, once you factor in the cost of the motherboard, RAM, drives, PSU, case, cooling, OS, keyboard, mouse, monitor(s), and speakers, then spread those costs over the expected lifespan of the computer, the cost amounts to just pennies a day. Factor in the warm fuzzy you get for your bragging rights with your better Intel processor, and it becomes a no brainer. Intel all the way.

Now there are always exceptions. There are some games that perform better with a Ryzen. And if that is your game, then get the Ryzen.

 

[Grings]

the guy is looking for cheap, so with intel thats a hyperthreaded dual core or a sub 3.5 ghz 4c4t i5
or a 6 core 12 thread Ryzen that can oc to 3.9-4.1ghz
not every intel chip performs the same as the 7700k

 

[Vario]

I'd get the R5 1600 if you can afford it. 6 Cores 12 Threads really makes it stand out at that price point, $220.

 

[Hood]

I prefer Intel, but the 12 thread Ryzen 1600 for $220 is very tempting compared to the 4 thread i5-7600K for $240, if you do other tasks besides gaming. I get by just fine with my $350 8 thread Intel, but if I had the choice now, I would choose Ryzen, if I could get the motherboard I want. I think more games will be able to use those threads in the future, now that more people actually have them, not just a few Intel HEDT users.

 

[trog100]

"My PC is used for gaming. I need some advice"

just buy a better graphics card.. which you can still use if you upgrade more..

if gaming is your thing the gpu is your king..

trog

 

[qubit]

As it's a gaming PC, go for an Intel 7700K without question. However, I see that you have a super low resolution 1366x768 monitor, so you'll want to upgrade that to at least 1080p too, or there's little point in doing any sort of upgrade on that PC.

Assuming that you upgrade the monitor, then you'll need a new mobo, RAM and maybe a CPU cooler to go with it, depending on how flexible the mounting system on your current one is.

You'll also want to upgrade that graphics card to at least a GTX 1070, but I recommend a GTX 1080. If you don't upgrade the graphics card then there's no point in the CPU upgrade as that card is really old and slow now and will seriously bottleneck your new CPU. Don't bother with CrossFire or SLI as too many issues and expensive.

It's not going to be cheap and unfortunately there's no way round that regardless of what options you go for.

 

[NdMk2o1o]

As it's a gaming PC, go for an Intel 7700K without question. However, I see that you have a super low resolution 1366x768 monitor, so you'll want to upgrade that to at least 1080p too, or there's little point in doing any sort of upgrade on that PC.

Assuming that you upgrade the monitor, then you'll need a new mobo, RAM and maybe a CPU cooler to go with it, depending on how flexible the mounting system on your current one is.

You'll also want to upgrade that graphics card to at least a GTX 1070, but I recommend a GTX 1080. If you don't upgrade the graphics card then there's no point in the CPU upgrade as that card is really old and slow now and will seriously bottleneck your new CPU. Don't bother with CrossFire or SLI as too many issues and expensive.

It's not going to be cheap and unfortunately there's no way round that regardless of what options you go for.

You missed the $500 budget and just because he mainly uses his pc for gaming doesn't mean he has to spend $1500 on a new rig and monitor, the cpu, motherboard and RAM upgrade is a good start and will be a noticeable upgrade from that ancient phenom ii also a 7970 whilst no longer high end is more than capable of 1080p gaming as long as he is willing to adjust some settings and eye candy. The ryzen 1600 is a good call and the best option for his budget compared to what he could get on the Intel side.

 

[qubit]

I didn't miss it, see my last sentence, "It's not going to be cheap and unfortunately there's no way round that regardless of what options you go for".

In my opinion, it's not worth doing unless it's done properly and that's gonna cost good money. His current system is ok for playing games at 1366x768 and I can't see a Ryzen upgrade as making much difference, so I think spending $500 on just a bit of it will waste his money.

 

[GreiverBlade]

7700K? 500$ and above... for gaming? .... oh gosh i am wrong with my 6600K? drat and double drat ... they lied to me ... (well .... yep a 250$ R5 1600X would be way better than that ... or a 6700K and above if sticking to the same budget.)

R5 1600/1600X is also ... enough as gaming difference are negligible and for the price ... if i would go 6600/7600K again ... i would think twice.
I am even thinking hard about going that way even with my actual configuration, even if it's a semi side-grade ... as Ryzen is giving Intel quite a ride for the money asked ... just to support the red side for a while

It's not going to be cheap and unfortunately there's no way round that regardless of what options you go for.

not technically wrong but not right either ... a similar performing Ryzen configuration that would rival mine would cost a little bit less, ok the CPU would be 10$ more (MSRP wise) but the mobo's are quite cheaper ... now we would just need pricing from the OP to be sure ... (he can probably re use some pieces, the PSU for example, if they are not too old and also with the 7970 he's still fine for some time at 1080p and under until he can get a better gpu, who knows maybe Vega will either be sweetly priced or make the 10XX price drop a little ... )

 

[qubit]

not technically wrong but not right either ... a similar performing Ryzen configuration that would rival mine would cost a little bit less, ok the CPU would be 10$ more (MSRP wise) but the mobo's are quite cheaper ... now we would just need pricing from the OP to be sure ...

Remember he's a got a lo-res 1366x768 monitor. I can't see the point of upgrading until that's upgraded first and the rest cascades off that.

Everyone seems to be missing that lo-res monitor.

 

[GreiverBlade]

Remember he's a got a lo-res 1366x768 monitor. I can't see the point of upgrading until that's upgraded first and the rest cascades off that.

Everyone seems to be missing that lo-res monitor.

annnnnddd nope i am not missing that ... he can upgrade it in the way ... i got a 1080p 60Hz 1ms for less than 180$ it's not a huge stretch either ...
and even if he upgrade to 1080p that 7970 will be fine until he can affor the next upgrade ...

technically nope, Intel is not the best choice anymore, unlike when i got my 4690K previous rig and the 6600K following ... and nope a 7700K would not bring a tremendous performance increase (sometime it's decrease ... thanks HT ) : it's one option

tho i am not a good example... okay i do mainly gaming ... but i could also benefit from more core and threads for my other usages ... (well ... that make the 1600X a better candidate than a 6700/7700K for me )