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[draliko]

So I'm new to the PC gaming scene and I'm looking to have mine built. Just wanted some opinions.

This first build is more affordable, but I've been told by a friend that the cooling system wouldn't be efficient enough. I picked i7 on this one. Thoughts?

Second option I decided to go for AMD cpu. It's about $200 more but idk if I need to spend that extra or not

Go for 7800x3d and arctic freezer 3 360 as aio, no Need for 1000 wat PSU, get a 850 good one, go for the cheapest cl30 6000 ram you can get, usually lexar is cheap enough. Don't fixate on having all the same brand stuff, buy for price/perf ratio. B650 mobo is enough for everyone, pcie5 will be a gimmick for years to come. Buy stuff only when there's real case use for them, there's no future proofing in pc building

 

[MikeM]

So I'm new to the PC gaming scene and I'm looking to have mine built. Just wanted some opinions.

This first build is more affordable, but I've been told by a friend that the cooling system wouldn't be efficient enough. I picked i7 on this one. Thoughts?

Second option I decided to go for AMD cpu. It's about $200 more but idk if I need to spend that extra or not

Go for the 7800x3d with that 4080super.

Also- why not go air cooler and save money? AK620 from Deepcool could handle that no problem. You don’t need AIO.

Why the x670p? What features do you need? Would a B650 suffice? Mine is a MSI Tomahawk wifi b650 and has everything you need including wifi And bluetooth.

 

[MacReady13]

Thats the issue as far as my research shows. Nothing to be worried about.

Honestly you don't know how much relief you have given me! I have been trying for weeks to figure out this issue! Everyone online was saying it's a memory issue yet every single test I did said no faults whatsoever. You, kind sir, are a fucking genius and I thank you very much!

 

[The Infectious Paradox]

Go for the 7800x3d with that 4080super.

Also- why not go air cooler and save money? AK620 from Deepcool could handle that no problem. You don’t need AIO.

Why the x670p? What features do you need? Would a B650 suffice? Mine is a MSI Tomahawk wifi b650 and has everything you need including wifi And bluetooth.

Liquid was the only option on the site that I'm using. However, I have a friend that may build me one with similar specs that I'll pass this info to

 

[The Infectious Paradox]

Go for 7800x3d and arctic freezer 3 360 as aio, no Need for 1000 wat PSU, get a 850 good one, go for the cheapest cl30 6000 ram you can get, usually lexar is cheap enough. Don't fixate on having all the same brand stuff, buy for price/perf ratio. B650 mobo is enough for everyone, pcie5 will be a gimmick for years to come. Buy stuff only when there's real case use for them, there's no future proofing in pc building

Thank you for that info. Good to know

 

[MikeM]

Honestly you don't know how much relief you have given me! I have been trying for weeks to figure out this issue! Everyone online was saying it's a memory issue yet every single test I did said no faults whatsoever. You, kind sir, are a fucking genius and I thank you very much!

 

[Fess]

Phew! It works! And now I have a PC aquarium in the living room

Synced up the Starfield controller and started big screen mode and tried some quick Hollow Knight and Elden Ring just to see how it all works. And I’m currently installing games left and right. Bought a Microsoft all in wonder keyboard with a big touch pad where the numpad usually is, felt very important when setting everything up but I won’t use it for games.

One oddity. The mouse cursor can be seen when starting and closing games, disappears when moving a stick or the dpad.

 

[simpatico]

I searched for a PC build mega thread and didn't see one active. If it exists, feel free to merge there mods.

So I've been putting off upgrading my PC for years too long, but my failing mobo is forcing my hand to end the cruel endurance experiment. My 6700k is being retired today.

I live near a MicroCenter, so it only makes sense to buy one of their PC mobo combos. Here are the choices that I feel are reasonable. Prices include decent mobo and RAM

12600kf $250
5800x3D $330
7700x $370
7800x3D $450
12900k $400

I'm leaning AMD for the first time since the Phenom II series. My gut is telling me NO, but LTT and Gamers Nexus are telling me it's OK. The 7700x seems to occupy the price/performance area I usually like to be in. The 12900k looks like it's going to be noticeable on my electric bill and I'm not sold on the idea of different core types. Maybe it's old man bias. I'm open minded here. The 12600kf looks like an amazing bargain, but like the 5800x3D, it's using DDR4 and a dead socket (not that anyone in the history of gaming has ever upgraded their CPU and not gotten a new mobo as well). I haven't looked into raw DDR4 + DDR5 gaming benchmarks. I guess this is a good time to say the only taxing thing this PC will do is gaming. No encoding, no streaming. My monitor is 1080p 165hz and I do not plan on going any higher than 1440p in the near future. I do love high refresh though. Good chance I stay at 1080 but maybe go to 240hz. It's going to be paired with a 1080GTX, which I know will be my bottleneck with all of these, but I do plan on grabbing a 4070 Super or a 5070 (assuming price to perf is not ass).

My beef with 7700x is thermals. 95c seems a bit much. 7800x3D remedies that by getting below 90c with extra perf, but worth $100? Not sure.

 

[SlimySnake]

7800x3d is worth the extra $80.

Is the best gaming cpu on the market.

 

[BennyBlanco]

I know that they’re good now but I just avoid AMD hardware whenever I can. Nvidia + Intel has never given me any problems. I currently have a 13700k and it’s been great but I got a liquid cooler.

 

[DGrayson]

I know that they’re good now but I just avoid AMD hardware whenever I can. Nvidia + Intel has never given me any problems. I currently have a 13700k and it’s been great but I got a liquid cooler.

I have been building and upgrading pcs Continuously since 2013. I always went Intel. Went with a 7800 x3d and I have been very happy FWIW.

 

[simpatico]

I know that they’re good now but I just avoid AMD hardware whenever I can. Nvidia + Intel has never given me any problems. I currently have a 13700k and it’s been great but I got a liquid cooler.

The 13700k option is $550. Seems price prohibitive considering benchmarks vs the AMD stuff.

 

[Rossco EZ]

got a question for you guys..

i use fan control to set speeds for my fans etc, for my cpu it gives me different sensors to use for monitoring temps and setting curves. for the cpu i see it has two sensors, core and another CCD1. im guessing CCD1 is the overall chip temp? should i use the core temp for setting up a fan curve right if not which one should i use?

in ryzen master i think the temp is monitored by the overall temp of the cpu as seen in the ss below

is that way ryzen master reports a 4-5c difference compared to fan control?

 

[simpatico]

Is there any scenario where this: https://www.microcenter.com/product...-s5-32gb-kit-ddr5-6000,-computer-build-bundle

Makes more sense than this: https://www.microcenter.com/product...ies-32gb-ddr5-6000-kit,-computer-build-bundle

 

[MikeM]

Is there any scenario where this: https://www.microcenter.com/product...-s5-32gb-kit-ddr5-6000,-computer-build-bundle

Makes more sense than this: https://www.microcenter.com/product...ies-32gb-ddr5-6000-kit,-computer-build-bundle

If you use your PC for heavy multi-core production work- the Intel combo makes more sense. For a gaming focus build, the 7800x3d combo is better.

 

[winjer]

Is there any scenario where this: https://www.microcenter.com/product...-s5-32gb-kit-ddr5-6000,-computer-build-bundle

Makes more sense than this: https://www.microcenter.com/product...ies-32gb-ddr5-6000-kit,-computer-build-bundle

Not really.
The 7800X3d is significantly faster in games than the 12900k.
And is much more power efficient.
And AM5 will still be supported for a few generations. This means you can upgrade to Zen5 or Zen6.
While that Intel socket is dead. Nrxt Intel CPUs will use a different socket.

 

[MikeM]

I searched for a PC build mega thread and didn't see one active. If it exists, feel free to merge there mods.

So I've been putting off upgrading my PC for years too long, but my failing mobo is forcing my hand to end the cruel endurance experiment. My 6700k is being retired today.

I live near a MicroCenter, so it only makes sense to buy one of their PC mobo combos. Here are the choices that I feel are reasonable. Prices include decent mobo and RAM

12600kf $250
5800x3D $330
7700x $370
7800x3D $450
12900k $400

I'm leaning AMD for the first time since the Phenom II series. My gut is telling me NO, but LTT and Gamers Nexus are telling me it's OK. The 7700x seems to occupy the price/performance area I usually like to be in. The 12900k looks like it's going to be noticeable on my electric bill and I'm not sold on the idea of different core types. Maybe it's old man bias. I'm open minded here. The 12600kf looks like an amazing bargain, but like the 5800x3D, it's using DDR4 and a dead socket (not that anyone in the history of gaming has ever upgraded their CPU and not gotten a new mobo as well). I haven't looked into raw DDR4 + DDR5 gaming benchmarks. I guess this is a good time to say the only taxing thing this PC will do is gaming. No encoding, no streaming. My monitor is 1080p 165hz and I do not plan on going any higher than 1440p in the near future. I do love high refresh though. Good chance I stay at 1080 but maybe go to 240hz. It's going to be paired with a 1080GTX, which I know will be my bottleneck with all of these, but I do plan on grabbing a 4070 Super or a 5070 (assuming price to perf is not ass).

My beef with 7700x is thermals. 95c seems a bit much. 7800x3D remedies that by getting below 90c with extra perf, but worth $100? Not sure.

You seem to hold your PCs for a long time. With that in mind, i’d go 7800x3d.

 

[simpatico]

You seem to hold your PCs for a long time. With that in mind, i’d go 7800x3d.

Yeah I think that's the deciding factor. I use to upgrade every gen, and the formerly high end PC part graveyard in my workshop serves as a reminder to not do that shit anymore. I've got OG Titans and 680 GTX collecting dust.

 

[Fess]

I’m so satisfied with this right now! I’ve had to work a lot with fan curves though, it’s NOT as silent as the Series X when I play games (probably would be with the same settings and resolution and framerate), when the fans max out it’s a vacuum cleaner. But it’s starting to become okay when tweaking the curves. And it feels so great to boot it up in Big Picture Mode! Might start faster than XSX, cold boot, I need to clock it. And it plays some Playstation games besides Xbox games so it’s a nice upgrade.

Been playing No Man’s Sky today, 4K and everything at Ultra and I don’t think I’ve seen it drop a frame. Starfield have an uneven framerate when maxing it out in 4K, I don’t have VRR on my TV and it really shows there, can hopefully be tweaked to lock it at 60fps. Played some Elden Ring too, just awesome, can’t wait for the expansion now!

4080 Super GPU
7800x3D CPU
Samsung 990Pro M.2
MSI B650i motherboard
32GB DDR5
1000W PSU Asus ROG
Arctic Liquid 3 420mm AIO
Thermaltake Tower 300 case
Swapped out case fans to Noctua

The downsides are the RAM, went with 5200MHz and saw that 6000 would’ve been better for this CPU.
And this case is huge.
And I had to remove the metal plate covering the PSU at the bottom to fit this bulky AIO.

Other than that. I just got my midgen Xbox Series Pro upgrade!

 

[simpatico]

Got the 7800x3D and a full PC worth of parts for my son yesterday.

PRO FUCKING TIP: Never build 2 PCs in one day. That is all. The CPU seems nice. Mofo went to sleep 30 mins after I did because I forgot to change default power settings, so I'm still downloading games.

 

[Quixz]

Got the 7800x3D and a full PC worth of parts for my son yesterday.

PRO FUCKING TIP: Never build 2 PCs in one day. That is all. The CPU seems nice. Mofo went to sleep 30 mins after I did because I forgot to change default power settings, so I'm still downloading games.

Everyday dad duties LOL

 

[simpatico]

Everyday dad duties LOL

Kid is stoked. The cheap case we got him won't allow us to screw in his 4060. It's a bit of a stretch and unseats the GPU just enough to make it unhappy. Still have to figure out a way around this. He got a 12600k and a 4060. I'm still running my 1080, but at least I have a great CPU now. Will look at the 5xxx series for my GPU upgrade. 4070 Super looks nice, but that 192 bit memory bus pissed me off too much to buy it.

The 7800x3D is TOASTY though. Getting temps that my i7 6700k use to max out at just while downloading Steam games... I guess it's ok.... AMD: "It's like a mobile chip. Those always run hot". This upgrade was done so begrudgingly

 

[Fess]

The 7800x3D is TOASTY though. Getting temps that my i7 6700k use to max out at just while downloading Steam games... I guess it's ok

I see temps in the 40s, with a big radiator that is. What cooler do you have?

Haven’t tried any benchmarking yet but it got noisy when playing Starfield maxed out. Since then everything is tweaked to be silent, no performance settings here, and fans are turned doooown, I limit the framerate to 60 as well since the TV sets the limit there. It would be interesting to see how it handle some serious load now…

 

[simpatico]

I see temps in the 40s, with a big radiator that is. What cooler do you have?

Haven’t tried any benchmarking yet but it got noisy when playing Starfield maxed out. Since then everything is tweaked to be silent, no performance settings here, and fans are turned doooown, I limit the framerate to 60 as well since the TV sets the limit there. It would be interesting to see how it handle some serious load now…

Deep Cool 620. Had great reviews and really seems like a great unit. Maybe I should have sprung for better paste? Idle around 42. Installing Steam games (decompressing I'm assuming) got me up to 60. My old i7 maxed out around 65. One issue I saw while researching is that the actual CPU isn't dead center in these dies. It's kinda towards a corner. Only done a little gaming so far and haven't broken 80c. So my qualms are still theoretical. My GPU is going to be my bottleneck so I doubt I'll even see 90c until I upgrade that.

General AMD bios bullshit was a pain last night but I got it all sorted. I wish Intel or AMD would get their act together. I want another CPU as elegant and perfect as the 2500k was.

 

[Fess]

Deep Cool 620. Had great reviews and really seems like a great unit. Maybe I should have sprung for better paste? Idle around 42. Installing Steam games (decompressing I'm assuming) got me up to 60. My old i7 maxed out around 65. One issue I saw while researching is that the actual CPU isn't dead center in these dies. It's kinda towards a corner. Only done a little gaming so far and haven't broken 80c. So my qualms are still theoretical. My GPU is going to be my bottleneck so I doubt I'll even see 90c until I upgrade that.

General AMD bios bullshit was a pain last night but I got it all sorted. I wish Intel or AMD would get their act together. I want another CPU as elegant and perfect as the 2500k was.

Ah, the way you worded it with ”TOASTY” made it seem like you were hitting 100°C just downloading to Steam 60 is nothing for these AMD CPUs.

For what it’s worth, I saw temps fluctuate around 42-47°C just downloading, and when playing Final Fantasy 7RI at 4K locked 60:

So, might not go up much when gaming unless it’s really cpu demanding games.
As you say the graphics card is going to be the limiter.
Personally I’m a notorious gpu upgrader, can’t help myself. My journey so far: 780ti-980ti-1080ti-3070ti-4090. And now a new one: 4080S.

 

[simpatico]

Finally got some gaming in. Able to get 60+ fps in all the games I play that I was struggling to before. Helldivers and Armored Core are the ones I'm most excited about. Really gave the ol 1080 new life. I only play at 1080p, so outside of the cool looking puddles, my wait for a new GPU just got a whole lot easier. Still haven't cracked 80c, but again, my GPU is my bottleneck now so I doubt that I'll see that 90c for a while.

Ah, the way you worded it with ”TOASTY” made it seem like you were hitting 100°C just downloading to Steam 60 is nothing for these AMD CPUs.

For what it’s worth, I saw temps fluctuate around 42-47°C just downloading, and when playing Final Fantasy 7RI at 4K locked 60:
So, might not go up much when gaming unless it’s really cpu demanding games.
As you say the graphics card is going to be the limiter.
Personally I’m a notorious gpu upgrader, can’t help myself. My journey so far: 780ti-980ti-1080ti-3070ti-4090. And now a new one: 4080S.

Yeah, just relative toasty compared to what I was use to. It was just one of things that perked my ears up during my research. 90c seems crazy to me. My case is well ventilated, so maybe it will never be an issue. I did buy an extra case fan yesterday too since I figured cooling would be necessary. GPU doesn't seem to be soaking up any of that extra heat. Getting the same temps out of it that I did before.

 

[winjer]

Kid is stoked. The cheap case we got him won't allow us to screw in his 4060. It's a bit of a stretch and unseats the GPU just enough to make it unhappy. Still have to figure out a way around this. He got a 12600k and a 4060. I'm still running my 1080, but at least I have a great CPU now. Will look at the 5xxx series for my GPU upgrade. 4070 Super looks nice, but that 192 bit memory bus pissed me off too much to buy it.

The 7800x3D is TOASTY though. Getting temps that my i7 6700k use to max out at just while downloading Steam games... I guess it's ok.... AMD: "It's like a mobile chip. Those always run hot". This upgrade was done so begrudgingly

Did you enable things like ERP and C-States in the bios?
Also, have you tried using Curve optimizer? Lot's of people use it at around -30, tough it varies with each CPU.
Some people have to use -20, etc. Try what your CPU can do.

 

[delirium trigger]

7000 series cpu's will go to 70+ under certain loads. Temps in the 60s are very common. 42 is around idle temp.

 

[Fess]

Big Picture Mode issue.

When I put the computer to sleep and wake it up again (has to press the case power button) I end up on a Windows login screen. Then I need to press login but I can’t do that through the controller and need to use a keyboard or mouse. And I have no password setup so no idea why it even request that.

When I power it off completely and start it up again it goes into Big Screen mode as it should.

 

[simpatico]

Did you enable things like ERP and C-States in the bios?
Also, have you tried using Curve optimizer? Lot's of people use it at around -30, tough it varies with each CPU.
Some people have to use -20, etc. Try what your CPU can do.

Only BIOS stuff I've done is fast boot and EXPO. I'll look into those. Big benefits? Again, temps are just a theoretical problem and 62c downloading/decompressing Steam games gave me a bit of a chuckle. No foul yet. It was just the one 'downside' I found in my research. Tough to call it a downside even since the competition is no better in that regard. Haven't cracked 80c yet while gaming, and I've tried all my hard to run games. So far so good! Pretty dang happy with it overall. This is my first new CPU since my i7 6700k, so I'm still use to the old temp days of 65 being the throttle point.

 

[winjer]

Only BIOS stuff I've done is fast boot and EXPO. I'll look into those. Big benefits? Again, temps are just a theoretical problem and 62c downloading Steam games gave me a bit of a chuckle. No foul yet. It was just the one 'downside' I found in my research. Tough to call it a downside even since the competition is no better in that regard. Haven't cracked 80c yet while gaming, and I've tried all my hard to run games. So far so good! Pretty dang happy with it overall.

ErP and C-States are features that control power usage and clocks in idle, or low CPU usage. Should be enabled by default, but it's worth checking it out.

Curve Optimizer is AMD's easy undervolt feature. Basically, it will lower the voltage at every step of the clock curve.
First set the sign - or +. The first will reduce voltage, making the CPU cooler and more efficient. It will probably also enable higher clocks for longer, because the CPU is cooler.
Don't set +, as this will increase voltage. Unless you are trying some wild overclock with super cooling on top of the CPU.
I have seen a lot of CPUs that can use all core -30. But some people have to tune it down to lower values.
This value goes from 0 to -30. The higher the value, the more voltage is cut out.

 

[Quixz]

7800X3D - Current fan curve settings with a Deepcool LT720 360, I hate noise and don't mind a little heat

 

[simpatico]

Now I'm getting D3D Fatal Errors "OUT OF MEMORY" on RE4 remake. Weird thing is, I just get the window telling me I have a fatal D3D error, but I can still poke around the menu and even load the game. Eventually the Capcom crash reporter comes on and kills the game. Fun stuff. Tried nuking my config to go to default settings (mine were low anyways) and still getting the error. Tried verifying game cache too

 

[winjer]

Now I'm getting D3D Fatal Errors "OUT OF MEMORY" on RE4 remake. Weird thing is, I just get the window telling me I have a fatal D3D error, but I can still poke around the menu and even load the game. Eventually the Capcom crash reporter comes on and kills the game. Fun stuff. Tried nuking my config to go to default settings (mine were low anyways) and still getting the error. Tried verifying game cache too

Are you overclocking the memory?

 

[simpatico]

Are you overclocking the memory?

Just EXPO. I updated my GPU drivers and it went away. On my old system I had great success with some seriously old drivers, 2020. The way I understood it, anything after that didn't even have new code for 1080s. I guess there are some exceptions to that. Game plays smooth as hell with this CPU.

 

[Kataploom]

Hello guys, I'm thinking on getting a 7900 XT or XTX, but as it's gonna work on a Mini ITX build later, I'd like to have the one with best air cooling, which one do you recommend?

BTW just reading this thread, it's great, I'm going through all pages it's entertaining and personally useful.

 

[rofif]

I am getting annoyed by razer a bit and I was starting to miss f and arrow keys a little bit. Razer for 3 years I had it, always had sticky keys issue and razer never fixed it. I made typos all the time.
So I got this thing!!!

8bitdo retro famicon keyboard. I am polish, so I had bootleg NES... so it was a random choice to get nes of fami edition of this keyboard. I liked how weeb the fami edition looks so I got this one!
The keyboard couldn't be more different from razer! razer is linear and silent and this is tactile and clicky... and extremely satysfing. Like very much so. Also, it has both BT and 2.4. One switch and I am typing on my phone.
Not sure my wife will like this one lol.
And I for sure need to change my mousepad. I dont have room for this! Very strange using TKL after 3 years of 60%.
I really like it so far

 

[MikeM]

Hello guys, I'm thinking on getting a 7900 XT or XTX, but as it's gonna work on a Mini ITX build later, I'd like to have the one with best air cooling, which one do you recommend?

BTW just reading this thread, it's great, I'm going through all pages it's entertaining and personally useful.

I believe the smallest versions are the reference cards from AMD directly. Check the measurements to see if it’ll fit the case you want.
I have the 7900xt and its great. XTX had issues with the cooler at launch but I believe this has been resolved now.

 

[Kataploom]

I believe the smallest versions are the reference cards from AMD directly. Check the measurements to see if it’ll fit the case you want.
I have the 7900xt and its great. XTX had issues with the cooler at launch but I believe this has been resolved now.

Thank you. So are even reference models are decent now? Or is it still better to get a third party version?

 

[MikeM]

Thank you. So are even reference models are decent now? Or is it still better to get a third party version?

Decent in what way?

 

[Kataploom]

Decent in what way?

Without the overheat and consumption issues from the release window

 

[MikeM]

Without the overheat and consumption issues from the release window

Overheating was XTX. I’d imagine that has been fixed by now. The XT did not have this issue.

Consumption wise- the issue was mainly dual monitors. I can’t confirm anything with that as im running only my LG C1.

 

[Kataploom]

Overheating was XTX. I’d imagine that has been fixed by now. The XT did not have this issue.

Consumption wise- the issue was mainly dual monitors. I can’t confirm anything with that as im running only my LG C1.

Thanks, it's something that has me thinking between 7900 issues or Nvidia cable fiasco lol

 

[Kataploom]

I've solved this riddle a million ways over the years and there's little doubt: an extra long HDMI cable is the way to go.

This cable has been by far the most reliable long distance HDMI cable I've used and the cable is actually flexible if you're routing outside along the floors.

I would also recommend a powered, extended USB 3.0 cable like this one - connected to it is a USB hub that allows me to use mouse/keyboard/wireless headset, since my PC is so far away.

Finally, highly recommend an air mouse remote like this one here. There's plenty of times I want to use the PC on the couch without getting a mouse and keyboard out.

It's also worth noting that I have my PC running to a TV in my office and then to another TV in my living room. For the last few months this has been kind of a hassle I have to reinitialize the TVs and go through some multi-monitor switching fun every time I want to play. I recently added this 4K hdmi splitter to my config and this essentially mirrors the signal from my PC to two TVs. This makes using my living room TV as a monitor super easy and I don't have to deal with display settings. Super smooth!

That controller seems fire, thanks for suggestion!

 

[Astray]

Yes it's the CAS that you'll need to pay attention to. Typically you'll see the timings as a series of 4 numbers (xx-xx-xx-xx), you only need to pay attention to the first number.

Anything under (or as close to) 30 is good for AM5.

Super late reply, but what if I'm faced between two options, one is a CAS 28 with 5600hz speed and the other is CAS 30 6000hz speed?

 

[GHG]

Super late reply, but what if I'm faced between two options, one is a CAS 28 with 5600hz speed and the other is CAS 30 6000hz speed?

Go with the latter, 30/6000.

That's the sweet spot for AM5 and is most likely going to be hynix.

 

[OverHeat]

This is a rare occasion where I agree with PC gamer but the list is bang on for anyone looking for a video card in all the price range

Best graphics cards in 2024: the GPUs I recommend for every budget

Our picks of the most powerful gaming GPUs and the ones that provide the best bang for your buck.

www.pcgamer.com

 

[JohnnyFootball]

I just got the Alienware 32 inch QD-OLED and my god this thing is awesome. My LG 240 OLED was a disappointment. My Alienware fixes all those issues.

 

[Tg89]

Thinking it's time I upgrade my CPU/Mobo. Currently running a 10600k with my 3080ti. I'm sure it's a huge bottleneck at this point.

7800X3D seems to be the play, probably pair it with the Gigabyte B650 Aorus Elite AX. Anyone have experience with this combo? Will I need to flash the BIOS before installing? Been a while since an AMD build...

 

[SoloCamo]

I know that they’re good now but I just avoid AMD hardware whenever I can. Nvidia + Intel has never given me any problems. I currently have a 13700k and it’s been great but I got a liquid cooler.

Don't limit yourself. I've been switching between AMD & Intel since the 90's. Used ATi before AMD bought them out too without any more hiccups than I experienced with Nvidia. I've got 20+ year old cards that work fine to this day. All vendors are in a pretty great place right now as far as reliability goes, the biggest issues are price and heat output. I've been on Intel since 2014 (was AMD from 2004 till that point, had a pentium 4 prior to going Athlon 64) but AMD's 3D cache line of cpu's has won me over unless Intel pulls another Core 2 Duo moment and leapfrogs AMD again.

Regardless, my 11900k will hold me over for now but for anyone buying new outside of extreme budget reasons or the need for a multithreaded monster I don't see why anyone would skip the 7800X3D.