AM4 or AM5? I'm struggling with this choice.
Posted by Weak_Box_7024@reddit | buildapc | View on Reddit | 36 comments
So, I have a 5600x and a 3060 Ti in my current PC with 16GB of DDR4 2666Mhz ram (tried to overclock but my pc didn't boot so i stayed away from it lol). I have a 9070 XT and I don't know if it is worth it to upgrade to AM5 especially in todays climate. I want to have something powerful but I don't care about upgrading it or whatever, I just want something that is powerful and will run 4k games and I know my 9070xt can do that and if I pair it with an X3D chip I feel like I would be fine. But I also feel that if i switch to AM5 I will be wasting money especially on the RAM but I just want to know if AM4 can handle 4k 120+ fps because I don't know much. Help would be greatly appreciated, thank you.
Procrastinando@reddit
I would stay with AM4 and get an X3D CPU to make up for the slow RAM. DDR5 RAM is way too expensive now.
Protoclown98@reddit
Those chips are way too expensive these days. Earlier this year they were selling for $600 new and $450 used.
Completely not worth it.
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
The X3D chips are so expensive, I will try and OC my ram but last time I did that it did NOT go well, PC wouldn't even turn on.
y_zass@reddit
Do you have matching sticks? What kind of ram? Model?
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
Matching sticks, DDR4 2666Mhz
y_zass@reddit
Are they bare green PCB's or what? No XMP profile?
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
I'm not too sure, last time I bumped the speed to 3000mhz and it bricked my PC so I havent touched it since. They are corsair sticks of ram
y_zass@reddit
Yes ram is touchy, other things affecting it outside of memory settings like voltages (vSoc, vddp, etc). I'd make sure memory voltage is 1.35v and shoot for 3000 again. Probably defaults to 1.2v. If 3000 posts try 3200. If you "brick" it you will just have to reset bios. Part of memory overclocking my friend. It won't hurt it though.
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
I did that last time, reset BIOS but it took a while for me to figure it out. I don't know how to do all of that but next time I'll watch a YT vid and do it safely lol. I might buy a 5800x as in my country it's the same price as the 5700x but I honestly don't think I need a new CPU, the 5600x is a BEAST.
y_zass@reddit
Is the 5500X3D available in your country? It's newer, has the same 96mb of 3D v-cache as the 5800/5700X3D. It is a 4ghz 6 core. They are about $225 in the US. I'm guessing it is all the binned chips that didn't cut it as an 8 core so disabled 2 cores and here we are.
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
Sadly not. I can't find it anywhere. I think I'll be staying with the 5600x and if it dies i'll replace it but it has served me well for so long. I bought a B550 mobo and I will just transfer my old components to my new chassis when my stuff arrives. Also replaced the power supply to 750w.
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
The 5500X3D IS available in my country actually after some digging, but I don't know if it is necessarily an upgrade and for 200 pounds it is quite a lot.
y_zass@reddit
Always best to stay with what you have if it still does what you need it to do. What kind of motherboard did you have? Good call on the PSU too, always a good investment.
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
Old mobo was a B450M, this PC is a prebuilt and it works good, case is just broken and I wanted to swap out everything but I figured I might as well get some new parts as it is basically rebuilding the PC, and I have an ATX case but the prebuilt was mATX. As they say, if it's not broken don't fix it, and I don't need to waste money on a 20% or so FPS gain and spending 3x as much just for a newer platform...
y_zass@reddit
Nice. I totally agree about not wasting money on extra performance you don't even really need. I am all about price to performance ratios and keeping them as even as possible. That is why I have a 5700X3D/7900XT instead of the 5800X3D/7900XTX. At the time of purchase, the 5800X3D was $100 more than the 5700X3D, 50% increase in price for 10% increase in performance (+400mhz). My ASRock PG 7900XT was $700, the XTX was $950. Closer than CPU though. My PSU at the time (Corsair SF600 Plat) only had 2x 8pins too, so XTX wasn't an option really. Ironically it ended up being RMA'd due to 5v rail and they replaced it with a Corsair SF750 Plat (2024) so that was nice. Everything has been running flawlessly. My GPU hotspot temps have been creeping up but it is 2+ years old now so I'm guessing much of the paste has been "pumped out". I have a Kryosheet and new pads ready, just need to get it done.
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
OMG IM SO HAPPY :3 I managed to ACTUALLY OC my RAM safely and now it is running at DDR4-3200 :D
y_zass@reddit
Well done! That will make a nice difference actually too. If you download thaiphoon burner you can get detailed info on your ram and die type. With that you can look up their potential.
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
I was also thinking of actually changing the CPU to a 5500X3D as an upgrade since it is X3D.
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
I can afford a maxed out 5090 build if I wanted to but I feel much happier about my PC knowing I haven't wasted money, and I really enjoy seeing the most amount of performance I can get with the least amount of money spent. When prices go back down I will consider going to AM5 with my 9070 XT but I am completely happy with where I am now.
Tricky_Orange_4526@reddit
upgrade path, IMO, would be keep the 5600x, upgrade the ram from 16gb of 2666 to 32gb of 3200, and enjoy the 9070xt. i'd also say, just meet in the middle and play 1440p. bottleneck will be negligible and i've yet to be able to notice the difference of 4k vs 1440p. someone will tell me how i'm blind or whatever, idc, just 1080p to 1440p, huge difference to me. 1440p vs 4k, eh.
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
The only reason I want to go with 4k instead of 1440p is because my current monitor is 27" 1080p and pixels are very noticeable, and on a 32" 1440p monitor its the same density. I wanted a larger monitor and I think a 4k 32" as a primary monitor will be nice. I'm not sure whether to get a 1440p 27" or 32" 4k right now.
Tricky_Orange_4526@reddit
i mean its your call but if you want 4k, you're gonna want a fully new rig. 1440p, that 5600x has plenty of life left in it.
me personally, i could afford a new 5090 build but it just doesn't make financial sense to me given its a hobby, and my 27" 1440p monitors (2) work great for gaming and work.
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
Why would I need a new rig for 4k? 9070xt can run 4k perfectly fine, no? Also I don't play many AAA games or high demanding games, I usually play and prefer older titles or indie games so I don't expect for there to be a huge FPS drop
Tricky_Orange_4526@reddit
you can do the research if a 5600x and a 9070xt can handle 4k, but i'd imagine theres still a bottleneck that comes into play. 1440p probably not. im not an expert on that CPu, i do know my i7 10700 with a 5070 has bottlenecks at 1080p and 4k, but is balanced for my 144hz limitation at 1440p.
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
Thank you. I really can't find any AM4 X3D chips other than a 5500X3D and that looks like similar performance, so it would just be an extra 200 or so for basically the same chip... the more expensive X3D chips are not even in stock so the only options are 5800x or 5900x or 5950x
jhaluska@reddit
I would stay with AM4 and just upgrade your ram to PC3200/PC3600.
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
I don't play AAA games much, I play a lot of low-demanding games that I get 200 or so FPS on my 3060 ti on 1080p, so I should have no issues with frame rates, I just don't want a huge bottleneck
jhaluska@reddit
Well it's not impossible, but a pretty good estimate is to divide your FPS by 4 at 4k. So you'd expect 50 fps at 4k with the 3060. So it's not impossible, just be sure you know what you're getting yourself into.
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
Oh okay, thank you. I have a 9070 XT that I'll be putting in the new build so hopefully that FPS won't be as miserable lol
Protoclown98@reddit
What games are you playing exactly? My understanding with 4k gaming is your GPU will pull most of the weight compared to the CPU.
I have a 5600xt paired with a 6950xt and play 1440p UW and it does just fine. I think you should be good to upgrade your card with your current CPU and game on 4k.
According_Spare7788@reddit
4k native sure. 4k with upscaling, especially with aggressive dlss/fsr performance, different case. With that, you can actually be CPU limited again if you're cpu is too slow.
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
Hello, I play VR games and a lot of indie games, some AAA games but rarely. I made a decision to stay on AM4, there is no point wasting money.
F1T_13@reddit
Its not so much the CPU, it's the ram. I recommend AM5 doesn't need to be X3D for 4K but you want some nice ram, sometimes I feel my 9070XT chunder at 4K and I don't think it's the CPU, it's my ram just not appreciating that I am trying to play everything at higher settings whilst having windows running whatever background resources.
You'll be fine with a 7600X or a 5800X even. You just want to prioritize getting some meaty ram at 4K, something like 3200mhz and 32GB on AM4 at the very least, 5200mhz for AM5. If you want to play 4K at 16GB, it might just squeeze by but you'll feel it hit the wall at times.
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
Thank you. I could get a 5700x3d but they're stupidly expensive the same price if not more expensive as the 7700x3d... X3D CPUs take a good chunk of the strain off the RAM from what I've learned so hopefully a X3D chip + DDR4 ram wouldn't be an issue.
Left_Zebra7393@reddit
AM4 can handle 4k. It's literally the easiest resolution to play at. Very gpu bound
Weak_Box_7024@reddit (OP)
Thank you