Ready to improve, Ram now (motherboard and CPU in the future)
Ready to improve, Ram now (motherboard and CPU in the future)
Hello everyone, I’m seeking some thoughts on the recent changes. I’m planning to upgrade my desktop PC, focusing mainly on the motherboard and CPU to ensure it stays relevant longer. Right now, my board has limited upgrade options, so any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Regarding the RAM, I’ve noticed that modded games consume a significant portion of my memory, and I’d like to add more capacity for smoother performance. My friends suggest that trying 64 GB might not be ideal given my current setup, so any advice on that would be helpful too. Budget-wise I’m looking at $700 to $1500, based in the United States. City: Yonkers, New York. Games played include Lethal Company, Thunderstore mods, Golf with Friends, Balatro, Slay the Spire, No Man’s Sky (auto gladiators), Mini Game in Dota 2, Street Fighter Six, and Baldur’s Gate 3. I’m running web development tasks, using Microsoft Office, and playing Da Vinci Resolve at 1080p with 180 FPS on medium settings. I plan to purchase a new motherboard and CPU within the next six months. I already have an existing parts list: a Ryzen 5 5600 6-core processor, B550M motherboard, 16GB DDR4 RAM, GeForce RTX 4060 graphics card with 8GB GDDR6 memory, a 600W power supply certified for high performance, and a certified CPU fan with heatsink.
For 1080p performance your PC works well, though 32GB would help if you're facing issues with 16GB. Depending on your budget you can upgrade significantly—like a 9800X3D and 4070 Super—but it might feel unnecessary if memory is the main concern. A 32x2 setup should suffice, yet doubling to 32GB seems redundant when capacity alone is the problem.
You have more than enough gigabytes. You probably don’t need 64 gigabytes unless you’re running 50 open Chrome tabs at the same time while playing modded games. Because we don’t know your exact motherboard model (there are several that fit the b550M AC category), I’ll assume the worst case: an ASRock board. It still supports up to 64 gig of memory, so you’re safe. Also, tell me what you’re planning to upgrade next? The GPU and CPU are already more than sufficient for 1080p gaming, especially with your current setup. We can definitely build a more future-proof system using an AM5 platform, but your budget is close to a brand new 1440p gaming rig. If you also want to stay ahead of the curve, consider getting a 7600/x board, a B650 motherboard, and DDR5 RAM with 32 gigabytes.
Thank you for your advice. Regarding your inquiry, I already have a disability and decided to go ahead with the pre-belt now. I remember having a persistent thought to choose the latest components to minimize system issues. Yet, I see some people saying it might not be necessary, so I’ll probably stick with upgrading my RAM instead. I’ll save your suggestions for later when I’m ready to buy. Would this combination work adequately?
Link to your motherboard: https://www.asrock.com/mb/AMD/B550M-C/index.us.asp
Edited October 31, 2024 by Supercarlos
Yeah 2x32GB is way overkill unless you're using applications that actually eat RAM (like I do) - 2x16GB should be perfect. I would definitely second what someone else recommended, if you're going for a full system upgrade, get a 7600X or 9600X on sale during Black Friday if possible, get a nice B650 or similar board (make sure it has BIOS Flashback, that should allow you to flash the BIOS without a CPU present, as the board may not support newer CPUs out of the box), and a quality kit of 2x16GB CL30 6000MHz RAM. The RAM shouldn't run you more than $90-$130, the rest of your budget can go towards the CPU/Motherboard, and then you can start saving up for a PSU & GPU upgrade if you so desire. I would definitely hold off on upgrading RAM in your current system unless it's a need, load up Windows Task Manager & watch the Performance > Memory tab. If when you're using AutoDesk or something else, and you get up to full RAM, that's why it's stuttering, once it starts using Paging File (which is ran from your C: drive normally so if you have an M.2 SSD it's not the worst, otherwise it's trash to be running on Paging File). If you need to upgrade, a 2x16GB DDR4 kit should do it. If your CPU can run 1900MHz FCLK, look for a quality 4000MHz DDR4 kit & down-clock it to 3800MHz with slightly tighter timings (and probably slightly lower voltage too). I did that on my 5950X/X570 build I had previously & it ran like butter.
Absolutely, that sounds solid. I don’t see the cost, but microcenter bundles tend to offer great value. Just grab a 32 gigabyte CL 30,6000 MHz DDR5 system—definitely enough. You could push it higher if needed.