SOLVED What Ryzen CPU should I get?

[Wolfie]

Hi all,

I just did a budget build which I intend to upgrade to a Ryzen CPU (I want an APU version).

Current specs are:

ASUS A320M-K motherboard (BIOS is fully up-to-date as of yesterday, bless you ASUS) (€55 new)
Athlon X4 950 CPU (€44, 2nd hand from eBay)
8GB Ballistix DDR4 -2400 RAM (€88 new, couldn't really find anything cheaper!)
1TB SATA HDD (I have a 120GB Intenso SSD which I may add to it but currently using that on my laptop for a Linux project)
Generic PC case with 400 watt PSU. (€23 new)
Windblows 10 & Ubuntu Mate 18.04, both are 64 bit versions.(OS, HDD already there).

Total cost = €222,00 (without adding the price of the operating system (Windows) or HDD/SDD.

So now my question is, which of the Ryzen APU's would you recommend?.

The new Ryzen 2 CPU/APU's will be released to the market soon but I want to keep it cheap so I have currently 2 choices, the Ryzen 3 - 2200G and the Ryzen 5 - 2400G

AMD Ryzen™ 3 2200G with Radeon™ Vega 8 Graphics

Graphics Model: Radeon™ Vega 8 Processor Graphics
# of CPU Cores: 4
# of Threads: 4
Max Boost Clock: 3.7GHz
Base Clock: 3.5GHz
Thermal Solution: Wraith Stealth (cooler fan/heatsink)
Default TDP / TDP: 65W

Price is around €100 on eBay/Amazon +/-.

AMD Ryzen™ 5 2400G with Radeon™ RX Vega 11 Graphics

Graphics Model: Radeon™ Vega 11 Processor Graphics
# of CPU Cores: 4
# of Threads: 8
Max Boost Clock: 3.9GHz
Base Clock: 3.6GHz
Thermal Solution: Wraith Stealth (cooler fan/heatsink)
Default TDP / TDP: 65W

Price is around €135 on eBay/Amazon +/-.

For the extra few Euros, I get an increase in the GPU side of things with the same TDP as the 2200G model as well as more threads.

I currently have the mobo in a large case and there is more than enough airflow without the need for extra fans and things like water cooling which is OTT in my case!. I will get a smaller case eventually.

I assume that most of you will say go for the 2400G which is what I am leaning toward, that said, I want to see what the price for the new Ryzen 2 APU's pans out at!.
Answers on a postcard please!.

Ryzen info from AMD:

https://www.amd.com/en/ryzen

Supported CPU's/APU's on the mobo:

https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/PRIME-A320M-K/HelpDesk_CPU/

Max memory on the mobo is 2400 MHZ

 

[Ian]

Yep, I'd go for the 2400G if there's only €35 difference between them. Although the 2200G is still a great value chip, with the price difference being that small I think it's worth it . It's great having real competition in the CPU market once more . Both are good chips though, so if it's stretching the budget too far, I think you'll be happy with either.

Just as an aside, I notice you mentioned that your case + PSU cost €23. I've had awful experiences with cheap PSUs over the years - sometimes they've blown and taken out the mobo or SATA drives. Having been bitten too many times, I always try to get a good PSU now (and make savings elsewhere). Hopefully it'll be just fine, as you've already bought it - but wanted to mention it just in case!

 

[Wolfie]

Hi Ian,

thanks for your input.

I am aware of cheap PSU's but the mobo has safety features (hardware safeguard) which will/should prevent any shorting to the board (said he hopefully!).

https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/PRIME-A320M-K/overview/

I also think I may well go with the 2400G model as like you say, it is only a few Euros more!.

Max memory on the mobo is 2400 MHZ (I meant say that the current CPU memory is only supported to the max of 2400MHZ!).

See system memory here:

https://www.amd.com/en/products/cpu/7th-gen-amd-athlon-x4-950

I also forgot to add the price of the GPU:

AMD Radeon HD 6450 2GB = €27

https://www.amd.com/en-us/products/graphics/desktop/6000/6450#

So the total is: €249 which isn't that bad. If I eventually add the 2400G, the price will be around €313 which is minus the €44 for the Athlon X4 950.
If I take the GPU price out (- €27), it will be an end price of: €286.
I wouldn't need the GPU as the on-board Vega graphics will be better than the HD 6450 but I will lose 2GB in system memory but 6GB RAM will be more than enough for my needs!.

I will also take a look at the newer Ryzen 2nd gen versions once the price settles a bit, I've no doubt that some sellers on eBay or Amazon will hike the prices the first chance they get!.

 

[Tim Locke]

I have had a cheap PSU take out a PC as well. Name brand PSU, cheap case for me. I am in the early stages of planning a new PC myself. I think I'd have a 600 watt PSU even If I never load it up. A cool running PSU every time.

 

[Wolfie]

Hi Tim,

I hear both you and Ian, my PSU is fairly quiet and my test for a faulty PSU is simple, put your hand on it and if it feels like it is going to burn you, shut down PC and buy a new one!. There is plenty of airflow in the current case, when I buy a new case, I will also buy a quality PSU, maybe one from EVGA as they have a good rep!.

I don't think I will need a 600Watt unit though, the Ryzen CPU/APU's don't draw much power!.

The €23 price was a sale price from a reputable computer supplier in Germany so I don't think I have anything to worry about, it also has a guarantee (somewhere).

 

[Tim Locke]

I was thinking of powering a future video card mostly and USB 3 devices using appreciable amounts of power.

 

[Wolfie]

I don't intend to put a GPU on the board which will save power, the TDP is only 65W's for the APU and the mobo has energy saving features too as it is a new board anyway. The only USB 3 devices I use are USB sticks and only for a short time so I have no worries there!.

Looking at various benchmark gamer testing vids on YouTube, there is a lot to be said for sticking with the 2200G at medium to low settings for games, I am not a heavy gamer anyway, I don't currently have any triple A titles so I am not too concerned about that either.

My normal workload is basically around the internet and typing which isn't really going to have an impact on performance I would think!. Sometimes I watch Kodi to stream TV channels but I also have a streaming box for that.

Another factor is the cost of RAM at the mo, I bought the 8GB 2400 MHZ stick because of the current CPU which only supports a max of 2400MHZ, I may well leave that alone for now until prices return to normal!. Both the 2200G and the 2400G have a max of 2667MHZ for memory which isn't all that much faster than the 2400MHZ I have now!.

 

[Wolfie]

Hi all,

I have decided to settle for the Ryzen 3 2200G model as it seems to meet my needs (and it's cheap!).

I looked at various benchmark tests and videos on YouTube and think it will do the job.

Marking as solved!.

 

[Wolfie]

I ordered it via Amazon for €93 and it should be here on Monday the 14th!.

Trying to play Mass Effect Andromeda was a real pain with the AMD GPU, I even swapped it out for an older Nvidia 1GB GPU but that didn't help!. I hope the newer Vega graphics will do the job even at 720p!.

I will need to check for any new AMD drivers for Ryzen in the meantime.

 

[Wolfie]

Arrived yesterday and installed no problem, I would have thought that Windows would deactivate but it seems that changing your CPU is not a problem these days?:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/help/20530/windows-10-reactivating-after-hardware-change

I can now play games at 720P with medium settings without the need for a GPU (an expensive GPU I might add). You just need to allocate the max 2GB memory in UEFI/BIOS for the internal GPU.

If you want to do a budget build, this is a great start!.

 

[Ian]

Nice one . I'm seriously considering a Ryzen upgrade next year, once GPU prices start to come down again.

How much of a performance increase do you notice over your X4 950?

 

[Bighorn]

Arrived yesterday and installed no problem, I would have thought that Windows would deactivate but it seems that changing your CPU is not a problem these days?:

Kinda narrows it down to the motherboard and its identification being the key ingredient.

 

[Wolfie]

Nice one . I'm seriously considering a Ryzen upgrade next year, once GPU prices start to come down again.

How much of a performance increase do you notice over your X4 950?

Hi Ian,

good luck with the GPU price thing!, there are far too many bandits out there taking advantage of people and that is another reason why I chose an APU over a GPU, price per pound it is a very good investment!.

Performance over the X4 950 is hard to measure but I would say around a 20% increase in productivity???.

If you are going to buy a Ryzen, I would go for the Ryzen 7 2nd gen if you have the money:

https://www.amd.com/en/products/cpu/amd-ryzen-7-2700x

You will of course need a new AM4 Mobo and high-end DDR4 RAM (which ain't cheap at the mo!).

Depending on what and where you read the info from, Ryzen has the edge on Intel :

https://www.gamingscan.com/amd-ryzen-vs-intel-for-gaming/

Hi @Bighorn,

I think you are right, I was just surprised that's all!.

I will eventually get around to installing the SSD that I have, but for now, it is running fine so there is no rush as I have a few games I want to complete first before I do that!.

 

[Wolfie]

Hi all,

to finish this thread once and for all, I ended up with the following system.

CPU = AMD Athlon X4 950
GPU = Nvidia GTX 1050
RAM (Memory) = 8GB Ballistix DDR4 -2400
MoBo = ASUS A320M-K
PC case = Win Z38 (or something like that?) with a no-name 430W PSU that came with it!
DVD Burner
HDD = 1TB SATA
Windows 10 Home 64 bit

Total cost is around €340 which isn't that bad , the biggest single cost was the GTX 1050 which I bought at a local electronics shop who like to play catch-up with the other scammers on eBay by pushing the price way above MSRP!.

I used the AMD GPU on another PC which has since been donated. I still have the Ryzen 2200G which I can use on another build in the future (or on this build if the Athlon dies on me!). I still haven't used an SSD yet, I will get around to doing that the next time I do a full install!.

 

[Ian]

That's a really good value system for something with a 1050!

I can't recommend an SSD enough, so if you see one on a good deal I would fully recommend it.

 

[Wolfie]

I only have 1 SSD at the mo but I will get another soon, I am using that to switch between a Linux install on a SATA drive and Windows which is on the SSD.

The GTX 1050 was a good purchase as it isn't that expensive compared to some GPU's these days , AMD are bringing out new models and Nvidia just brought out the RTX 20 series, you just need to sell a kidney to be able to afford one!.