Dear all, Nearly 6/7 years ago now I built a new computer, and it was wonderful. It has been wonderful for all that time, however it is starting to show its age a little and I would like to perk it up. The Bitfenix Prodigy case has fallen apart (when I moved overseas) too - so a getting a new case as well as mobo/memory/cpu/gfx. The hdds, disk drives etc I have are fine. So I have been looking for 'budget' Mini-ITX motherboards and am finding that 'budget' in some places is much less budget than it used to be, the same going for graphics cards. I currently have a AMD A3870K APU and (I think) a Radeon 6500 GPU working in parallel with one another. Its a Gigabyte GA-A75N-USB3 motherboard. So I am mostly looking for advise here on a CPU/APU, Motherboard and GFX card combo. I want a reasonably big improvement on what I have (not hard I know) and am willing to spend about 400-500GBP to get it. Any advise is gratefully taken
I failed, sorry - here is the requested info. Budget: £500 max Main uses of intended build: Playing DOTA, lightweight video editing, general internet shenanigans, video etc. I use my computer for most things you can do on a computer but at an amateur level so I dont need it to be super awesome (particularly not bothered about playing new games or anything). Parts required: Mini-ITX Motherboard, case, cpu/apu, memory and gpu, silent heatsink and fan Previous build information (list details of parts): Gigabyte GA-A75N-USB3 motherboard, AMD A3870K APU in crossfire(?) with Radeon HD 6550D, BitFenix Prodigy case, memory I dont recall... Monitor resolution: 1920 * 1080 Storage requirements: None, ill deal with this myself. Motherboard needs to be able to connect HDDs (at least 2) and at least 2 SSDs though. Will you be overclocking: no Any motherboard requirements (no. of USB, Xfire/SLI, fan headers): Nothing too much, though Extra information about desired system: Case needs to be for an Mini-ITX motherboard, I like small computers BUT it needs to be big enough for a near silent heatsink and fan. I want a quiet computer (though if playing games I dont mind if things ramp up a bit). I would love it if the mini-itx could use my current power supply, which is a Corsair CMPSU-600CXV2UK Builder Series 600W
This should be sufficient for DOTA and the like [with scope to add a GPU later if it isn't...] The stock cooler is ok but it's still a stock cooler at the ened of the day... squeezing in and even half-decent aftermarket affair takes you over the budget. The cheaper 2200G may even be sufficient and would free up moneys for ther things.
I'd probably get most things cheaper - 2200G, a less bonkers mobo. Slightly faster RAM, perhaps. Might as well stick with stock cooling to start with, see how loud it actually is.
The X470 Strix-I is the only ITX board on the market that supports the 2200G / 2400G out of the box. With all 3xx boards you risk getting nothing but a paperweight for those newer CPUs due to needing a bios update.
Less bonkers ITX options might present themselves between now and when Bogomip pulls the purchase trigger... but right now it's the best option by way of being the only option [barring rolling the bios compatability dice on an older board]. If the 2200G is sufficient, then i'd put the extra to faster ram and/or a better cooler [in that order].
https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/xQgsXP Smaller case, faster memory. B350 MB is a 'risk', but maybe the online store can help out? Or wait for B360s
Aren't AMD happily sending out the loaner chips to allow people to make the BIOS updates? It's surely worth saving £70 to wait for a few days of shipping.
Smaller case indeed, and with the big sexy 200mm fan, but is it noisier because of all the holes in the sides?
Possibly I don't own one. And their 200m fan will likely be pretty poor qual. But, it is a small case. The Silverstone ones are often much better quality but you pay for it.
https://overclock3d.net/news/cpu_ma...n_users_with_boot_kits_to_update_their_bios/1 Now official apparently.
Thanks so much for all the advise and help, the Ryzen certainly seems to be what I am looking for in terms of a CPU/AMU, and there are various things inflating various of the suggestions (one has a very expensive mobo, one expensive memory), so ill look and see what combination of what you have suggested works for me I think Another question concerns my current 6550 HD Radeon. Its not a great card, but I dont actually need great graphics. In parallel with my 3870K it runs the games I play nicely for the most part. Would a Ryzen with Vega be able to use my current graphics card in the same fashion? I.E. Both the onboard GFX and my 6550 HD contribute towards the graphics load? Or are they just too different to coexist?
It won’t work together as they stopped supporting that. The VEGA chip that is on the APU is actually multitudes faster than those two together anyway. You absolutely need fast RAM. Don’t skimp on that, or you’ll gimp the chip.
^ This. Mini-ITX boards are often better for memory performance because the DIMM slots are closer. Buy AMD-certified memory. It makes a difference for AMD as it can be fussy beyond 3GHz. I know GSkill does work with AMD engineers on the Trident series for example. I guess other big names do too.
Thanks for all the advise guys! How does this look? https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/PYvfvn I have two cooler options on there.. im worried the big one might be TOO big!
Was going to suggest a different RAM for just a few quid more, then discovered it's gone up over £40 in the space of a few days.
You might be touch and go on the cooler front... the case says up to 160mm and the hyper212 evo is 159mm [well 158.5mm], the Cryorig i have no experience with, but that is 145mm so you're less likely to run into trouble on the 'will it fit?' front
With that budget I would build slowly with parts from the second hand market. I solid CPU / MB combo with last 8-10 years with the current rate of progress. Maybe you can snag a first gen ryzen combo. You can reuse as much as possible and swap in new parts as you find them.
