APU vs GPU for a gaming PC
Posted by Lunches00@reddit | buildapc | View on Reddit | 11 comments
My budget is $1000 and I’m to figure out if a APU would be a good idea since the GPU market is fucked.
Would a APU PC with $1000 budget be good for gaming/streaming/recording/editing? (I’d like to stream games like GTA V, and edit with programs like Adobe Premiere Pro)
Or would hunting for the GPU be worth it?
Side note: I’d also like to upgrade my PC in the future once I can afford it.
aminy23@reddit
Basically with APUs you're looking at a 5600G or 5700G here. Many of the others are also affected by the GPU crisis.
This is the best case scenario for GTA5 as the 5700G is the best overall integrated graphics: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RReqgEYUUOo
Streaming will not help it any.
If you're doing any video editing - I would highly recommend a high endurance SSD. The Sabrent Rocket (non-Q), Corsair Force MP510, or Micro-Center's Inland Premium (not Platinum) will be my recommendations.
Below is my suggested build. The motherboard has a Thunderbolt header so you can upgrade it to support USB 4, Thunderbolt 3, or Thunderbolt 4 in the future. It also has a Realtek 2.5 Gbe gaming LAN; while this sounds superficial at first - it's roughly 2 years old and much better than the Realtek 8111H which is a dinosaur at 17 years old.
We're about $250 under budget here. You could upgrade to a 5700G / 5800x and a 1050 Ti (about $150 on eBay and other places).
Otherwise for $250 or less you can get a 1060, 970, and some other cards that are way better than APUs.
AMD cards are great for gaming, Nvidia is much better for video editing - be sure to select the "Studio" and not "Game Ready" drivers from Nvidias website.
If you're doing a lot of video editing at 1080P, 32GB RAM can be helpful, and be weary of discount 2TB+ SMR hard drives. (edited)
PCPartPicker Part List
InsertMolexToSATA@reddit
1080P RAM? 🤨
aminy23@reddit
Thank you for pointing that out, I inadvertently omitted 32GB. With a lot of 1080P editing, 32GB of RAM can be helpful - but isn't strictly necessary. It helps with multi-tasking and video editing a lot though.
I had build a computer around that idea back in 2011, coincidentally on the Intel LGA2011 platform. 8 sticks of 4GB DDR3-1600CL12, 3 different types of RAM, at re-pasting time:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/9J4Y24KKfiX5cgkSA
GreenMallard@reddit
Dredging up a real old thread here, haha.
I'm looking at building a new PC, and I'm trying to decide between the 7900, and the 8500/8600g, and this thread can up and you seem knowledgable. I'm mainly looking to get into editing, but even lower end Gpus have spikedn Canada. So what I wanted to do was build with something decent enough that it'll be a good CPU when I get a dGPU(looking at the b580). I know I'm not doing much with the 7900s onboard graphics but it's the better CPU.
As a complete beginner trying to learn editing, how much am I hamstring myself by buying an 8500G now and then upgrading? I know the PCIE lanes are less, but in terms of real world performance on a lowend GPU, how bad would it be?
aminy23@reddit
Ryzen 8000 are laptop CPUs repurposed for desktop use.
AMD graphics are designed primarily for gaming, and this focus on just gaming makes them a great value choice.
Nvidia's business is under 20% gaming. Many industries use them and they have a strong presence for Hollywood, YouTube, CGI, and more.
Before Arc, Intel was garbage at gaming. As a result their GPUs focused primarily on processing video so people can watch YouTube and do some editing on a basic PC.
For gaming, AMD is better. For video editing, Intel is often better.
If you're on a budget, the first thing I'd forget is DDR5. For example a 12600K can beat even a 7900X in Adobe premiere: https://www.pugetsystems.com/pic_disp.php?id=76518&width=900
With a massive price difference: PCPartPicker Part List
PCPartPicker Part List
GreenMallard@reddit
Thanks for the detailed reply!
The reason I had shifted to DDR5, was because I had built a DDR4 on PC part picker, and because it's older parts, they ran out of the board and so only Amazon is left with about a $50 price increase. The build I have currently has 2 sticks of 8 Gb DDR5 for $268 give or take.
I hadn't even been entertaining Intel CPUs as I had heard they weren't great, though I was somewhat taking it with a grain of salt.
I was deciding right now between the 8400F, 7600X or the 8500G but I'm gonna go see if stock is any better for the Intel stuff on older sets. Ideally I'd prefer to not order from Amazon, since I know they want government ID when you return stuff now.
When you say better, again if I'm starting to learn editing, are we talking a major difference here? Or more for people that are doing 4k editing with heavy vfx?
Thanks again for replying to me, sorry if I'm rambling a bit I've just got a lot of questions still so trying to figure all this out.
aminy23@reddit
It's a bit of a hasty generalization to say one brand is universally better or worse than another.
AMD currently has the best gaming CPUs, and most builds here are for gaming.
That said, even for gaming the GPU is the most important component.
AMD being a premium choice doesn't make it cheap. As a result if this was: * $1,700+ USD gaming build - AMD X3D * $1,700+ USD video editing build - Intel 270K * $1,300-$1,600 USD gaming build - 7600, 9600X, 14600KF * $1,300-$1,600 USD video editing build - Intel 250K, 14600K, 14700(K), 12700K * $800-$1,200 USD build - 12600K(F), 14400(F): * Gaming - AMD 9060XT or 9070 * Video editing - 5050, 5060, 5060 Ti
On a budget gaming build, saving $100-$250 anywhere can often result in a GPU upgrade with massive performance improvement.
For example here's benchmarks with different GPUs at 1440P and AMD CPUs: https://www.techspot.com/articles-info/3021/bench/Average-1440u-p.webp
With a 5090, a 9800X3D gives almost a 50% better improvement over a 5600. If this is a $3,000 card, that's a $1,500 value.
With a 9060XT there is zero difference. Spending hundreds extra on DDR5, AM5, etc can yield zero performance gain. Instead spending extra on a 9070 gives about 50% better performance. Now the CPU helps with the last 10% or so.
Many people see YouTube videos, benchmarks, etc with a 4090/5090 and then forget context and that they don't have that GPU.
GreenMallard@reddit
I think the main disadvantage with intel, was the lack of upgrading because you need a new board each time. Obviously in the case of AM4 that's probably a bit similar since it's not going to have any new chips for it right?
Definitely been trying to save where I can. As I said though not looking for a top of the line editing machine at this point, more just trying to get something quickly that can be upgraded.I
You had a microatx, in your parts. I was been not entertaining them at this point as I figured they'd be a hindrance when upgrading the GPU. Is this not accurate?
aminy23@reddit
The CPU upgrade part is also nuanced.
For example with a 9060XT build, the GPU bottlenecks everything. If you go AM5, you already get zero extra performance. If you upgrade the CPU to a next-Gen CPU you still get zero extra performance.
People hope a $200-$350 USD CPU upgrade will fix their PC, but in reality that will be a $500-$750 GPU upgrade.
And to really utilize next-Gen CPUs, they would need a $1,000-$3,000 GPU. And if we're talking say a $1,500 GPU + $500 CPU, what's another $100-$150 for a motherboard?
A big part of upgrade potential is often getting the worst products. If you buy a 9850X3D, there's no upgrade potential. If you buy an 8400 or 7600 there's upgrade potential to better 8-16 core CPUs.
With Intel, you could get say an 18 core 250K + motherboard at a price competitive with a 6 core 7600 + motherboard. With 6 vs 18 cores, it doesn't exactly need upgrades.
On the flip side if you get the worst i3-12100F, you have lots of upgrade potential to an i5, i7, i9, 12th Gen, 13th Gen, 14th Gen, etc.
GreenMallard@reddit
When you say '6 vs 18 cores it doesn't exactly need upgrades.' I assume you mean the Intel 18 Core wouldn't need an upgrade right?
I know you said the 8000 are laptops, does that include the 8400F? Just because it lacks an integrated GPU.
On the microATX: are you limiting anything? Feel like most I've seen on here aren't micro, but that's definitely an area to save some money.
I'm gonna go look at part picjer, see what I can do with an Intel cpu and what it comes in at since it sounds like it might be better since gaming isn't my focus.
ExpensiveMemory1656@reddit
Search my friend ! Ryzen 7-8700g, $200, Asrock b650m pg lightning wifi $119, 32gb Kingston fury beast $66 as for ssd go nvme gen4