Gaming Discussions

[Hawki]

I am thinking of replacing my old CyberPower PC (AMD FX-6300 CPU and FX-560 GPU) as it is slow now after 6 years. What I am thinking of is building a new computer using a Ryzen 5 5600X CPU and a Radeon RX6600 GPU with either a B550 motherboard or a X570 board. What I'd like to know is, which motherboard would be better for what I want. I am a causal gamer ( and use my computer for the usual stuff like emails and surfing the web.

[Key-J]

It is hard to say, but the X570 will probably end up being a little better for you in the long run. 

[red5]

At this point you may want to wait just a bit longer until AMD releases the new processors. That way you're starting fresh with a brand new socket that will last much longer.

[Key-J]

That's true. The AM5 platform could be right around the corner (I have no idea).

So you might just want to wait for that if you are thinking that those might be in your future.

[Hawki]

More than likely it will be the end of this year before I "pull the trigger" and get/build a new computer. But all this info is very helpful. And what about the GPU I'm thinking of getting? A good choice or no??

[GreatnessRD]

100% agree that you should wait until Zen4 since we're literally almost in the home stretch for its release. BUT, if you're dead set on getting something right now, I feel for your use case a B550 motherboard would be more than sufficient. X570 will have more I/O and two or three Gen4 NVME slots, but for casual gaming and web-surfing, the cost doesn't make sense unless you get it for the price of a B550 motherboard. (And it's the newer X570 boards without the chipset fans, lol)

[Justifier · Accepted solution]

While many are advising waiting for next gen stuff, and if you're really interested in the newest and best then sure wait, I'd advise to wait not for next gen but for right before next gen when companies start clearing inventory to make room on the shelves for next gen stuff.

As far as Motherboards go, literally get whatever you can that is on sale. b550 x570, doesn't really matter.

If you tend to use Discord/watch Youtube/Twitch while you're gaming online I'd suggest getting something with either dual ethernets, or ethernet + wifi so you can use software to route the media and the game on separate lines, letting your router deal with the traffic instead of your computer

The big issue with going for next gen is you're hopping into bleeding edge -- DDR 5 is still stupidly expensive, PCIe 5 only  currently matters for people with grotesque storage needs (think storing a few hundred hours of UHD media/thousands of hours of FHD media) Heck as far as gaming goes even Gen 3 isn't really bottlenecking anything but maybe 3090s. Also with AMD swapping back over to a LGA chip style from PGA we may see some growing pains in the swap. 

This gen hardware is going to do just fine for the next ~2-3 years while software catches up to hardware, or until hardware laps the current gen (3x-4x current performance). All of the wrinkles have been mostly ironed out, it's all relatively stable now, and you're 100% going to notice one hell of a performance uplift going from your current rig to a build like you're saying you want.

The one caveat I advice you consider is the PSU. If you do plan on upgrading GPUs down the road to one of the next or next next gen (4000/7000 --> 5000/8000 series) you're likely going to want to look into either extremely high wattage options even with your current build, ~1400-1500w, or you're going to want to see what options PSU makers put out to be paired with next gen GPUs when they launch and get one of those at ~900w. They will be expensive though so if you're going to follow a 6 year cycle again don't bother with that.

[digitalforge]

I would wait till Zen4. Prices are absurd now and Zen4 will be (most likely) much better then the current hardware we have.

I believe they will reveal Zen4 any time soon so... worth the wait if you ask me 🙂

I have the B550 myself and I love it in any and all ways. Nice price, nice specs, just an extremely nice piece of hardware.

-----------------------------------------

Digital Forge - Full-service Digital Agency

[Vynski]

Either board is fine.

Just be aware of the PCIE lanes available in each.

I did not find any B550 boards with more than 1 PCIE 4.0 x16   slot.  They may have 2-3 PCIE slots, but only one 4.0, the others are 3.0.  The RX 6600 your looking at is a PCIE 4.0 card and if you install it in a PCIE 3.0 slot you will take a serious hit in performance.  The bandwidth in PCIE 4.0 is near double that of PCIE 3.0.

Other than that you are fine either choice.  I prefer the MSI X570 boards with two PCIE 4.0 X16 slots.

Jump on NewEgg.com and check out what they have available.  You will be hard pressed to find a better price and better service.

[TR2]

I kind of follow the new car theory. Any new model may have some bugs to work out and some of the bugs may end up being pretty big. So I let people with more money and patience ride the new and shiny wave. The prices on tried and true stuff should start to drop a bit and you may even get a killer deal. Kinda makes me sound like a fogy.  For the mobo I would go for the X570 for the bells and whistles. You may not need them right away but it gives you the options like 2 PCIE 4.0. I have to agree with the member who said to stoke up on the PSU. There is an app or program that will tell you the power needs for your selected hardware. I always try to buy up on the PSU to be able to upgrade later without the cost of a new PSU and new case. I have a 550 but I don't game so I went with the board that fit my needs. The RX6600 is a solid GPU and the prices are starting to get back to an affordable point.

[Hawki]

I'm like you with new models. I tend to step back and see what happens, wait for it to prove that the new stuff works. Right now a X570 would be overkill for how I use my puter.