Suggestions Please

[paul1224]

My old PCS system has developed a fault that might not be cost effective to fix. I normally go for Intel systems but due to budget am considering AMD. Budget is about £625 all in including delivery (I would need Saturday delivery).

I only use the PC for basic internet/emails and Football Manager so it doesn't have to be all singing and dancing but I want to get the best CPU I can get for my money with integrated graphics that will cope with a basic game like Football Manager.

I also need a monitor (included in budget price) and have chose what I think looks the best but I'm no expert. The monitor must have speakers.

I've gone for better cooling as always been of the opinion cooler the better within reason of budget but any comments welcomed. Thanks in advance.


Case
PCS 3312B BLACK CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 2400G Quad Core CPU with Vega Graphics (3.6GHz-3.9GHz/6MB CACHE/AM4)

World War Z & Division 2: Gold Edition FREE w/ select AMD Ryzen CPUs!
Motherboard
ASUS® PRIME A320M-K: Micro-ATX, AM4, USB 3.0, 6GB/s
Memory (RAM)
8GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2400MHz (1 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
INTEGRATED GRAPHICS ACCELERATOR (GPU)
1st Storage Drive
240GB ADATA SU650 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb (520MB/R, 450MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply
FSP 250W 80+ BRONZE POWER SUPPLY (For PCS 3312B BLACK Case Only)
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
PCS FrostFlow 100 V2 Series High Performance CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste
COOLER MASTER MASTERGEL MAKER THERMAL COMPOUND
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
WIRELESS 802.11N 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Monitor
AOC I2490VXQ/BT 23.8" IPS Monitor - 1920 x 1080
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
SATURDAY DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (BEFORE 2PM)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 9 to 12 working days
Price: £599.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-home-office/cqJ5SHEufw/

 

[Oussebon]

I've gone for better cooling as always been of the opinion cooler the better within reason of budget but any comments welcomed. Thanks in advance.

The stock AMD coolers are fine. I'd stick to the stock one and the standard paste.

Is there any chance you'll want to play other games in the future? e.g. the ones included with the CPU.

 

[paul1224]

Thanks for your reply, no I really only play Football Manager and don't see that changing.

I'm trying to get the best out of the system I can in the areas I need it to perform in. Strangely I had an email from PCS stating a quote had been saved to my account and it was the above configuration with a few changes (the changes you have mentioned plus a better wifi card).

I did email PCS as I had been speaking to them about my failed rig asking their opinion on the build so assume they did the amending!

 

[paul1224]

Update: Just got a reply from PCS stating they had made some suggestions to the build, new one below:

Has anyone got thoughts on the below, appears different SSD/Wifi/PSU and saving the money on the standard cooler/paste. New price is £586

Case	PCS 6003B BLACK CASE
Processor (CPU)	AMD Ryzen 5 2400G Quad Core CPU with Vega Graphics (3.6GHz-3.9GHz/6MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard	ASUS® PRIME A320M-K: Micro-ATX, AM4, USB 3.0, 6GB/s
Memory (RAM)	8GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2400MHz (1 x 8GB)
Graphics Card	INTEGRATED GRAPHICS ACCELERATOR (GPU)
1st Storage Drive	250GB WD Blue™ 3D NAND 2.5" SSD, (upto 550MB/sR | 525MB/sW)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive	NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply	CORSAIR 350W VS SERIES™ VS-350 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable	1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling	STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste	STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card	ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking	WIRELESS 802.11 AC1200 867Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD
USB/Thunderbolt Options	MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System	Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language	United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media	Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software	FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus	BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser	Google Chrome™
Monitor	AOC I2490VXQ/BT 23.8" IPS Monitor - 1920 x 1080
Warranty	3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery	STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time	Standard Build - Approximately 9 to 12 working days
Promotional Item	World War Z & Division 2: Gold Edition FREE w/ select AMD Ryzen CPUs!
Welcome Book	PCSpecialist Welcome Book - United Kingdom & Republic of Ireland

 

[paul1224]

I've made slight changes due to delivery/warranty. As my budget is £625 including a monitor do you think the below is the best I can get for that outlay:

Case	PCS 6003B BLACK CASE
Processor (CPU)	AMD Ryzen 5 2400G Quad Core CPU with Vega Graphics (3.6GHz-3.9GHz/6MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard	ASUS® PRIME A320M-K: Micro-ATX, AM4, USB 3.0, 6GB/s
Memory (RAM)	8GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2400MHz (1 x 8GB)
Graphics Card	INTEGRATED GRAPHICS ACCELERATOR (GPU)
1st Storage Drive	250GB WD Blue™ 3D NAND 2.5" SSD, (upto 550MB/sR | 525MB/sW)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive	NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply	CORSAIR 350W VS SERIES™ VS-350 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable	1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling	STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste	STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card	ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking	WIRELESS 802.11 AC1200 867Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD
USB/Thunderbolt Options	MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System	Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language	United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media	Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software	FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus	NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser	Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Monitor	AOC I2490VXQ/BT 23.8" IPS Monitor - 1920 x 1080
Warranty	3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery	SATURDAY DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (BEFORE 2PM)
Build Time	Standard Build - Approximately 9 to 12 working days
Promotional Item	World War Z & Division 2: Gold Edition FREE w/ select AMD Ryzen CPUs!

Pricing Information
Price (Ex VAT)	£509.17
Price	£611.00

 

[Oussebon]

Get the RAM as 2x4gb so that it's dual channel. FM likes RAM frequency (and tbh it's very annoying PCS refuse to sell it with the Ryzen APUs...) so I assume it may well be sensitive to bandwidth as well.

Although 1x8gb leaves a slot open for upgrading, since RAM prices are falling anyway and since Ryzen generally and FM specifically like faster RAM, if you do ever want 16gb RAM, you'll probably also want to take the opportunity to get faster RAM anyway. So leaving a slot free doesn't seem very relevant.

I'm not entirely sure why they swapped the case and PSU.

Spec overall seems solid.

 

[paul1224]

Thanks for the reply.

I didn't even consider about how the 8GB should be ordered as I went for 1x8GB as cheaper but will likely change it to the 2x4GB based on what you have mentioned.

Looking at the configurator it appears the standard case has a PSU 'built in' so if you change the PSU you have to change the case. Weirdly the PCS 6003B BLACK CASE states PSU at bottom for easy access but the pictures of the case show a space for it at the top! I think I would probably keep these changes as unless I have misread my concern is that if PSU fails you can't change it as it is built in? Can't think what else 'built in' would mean.

Making the changes above puts the price to £616 so still on budget.

 

[Oussebon]

Going by the photos of the PCS 3312B, it looks like a regular ATX PSU that could be replaced by any other tbh. You can see the 4 screws that hold it in place (in the same places as the Engima and any other case that takes ATX PSUs).

A built in PSU doesn't always mean you can't replace it or that it's proprietary, it can mean that it just comes with one. In the same way most cases have fans built in, but these are standard sizes and can be replaced with anything you like.

In fairness there's not much difference price-wise.

Good spot on the Engima PSU placement text/pics mismatch. Might be worth mentioning to PCS.

 

[paul1224]

Thanks for that, yeah looked at the pictures and it appeared it could be removed but after noticing the other glitch with pictures not matching the words was a bit concerned.

Personally the PCS 3312B is my preference as I already have a ATX PSU so will just keep that as back up. I think I'll contact PCS making sure about the PSU and mentioning about the photo contradiction.

 

[paul1224]

Just in case it helps PCS have stated the PCS 3312B PSU is in built and can't be removed. Pictures seem to contradict this but they have confirmed the 6003B could take a ATX PSU so think I will go for that case as it also has a bigger cooling fan at the back plus it enables me to get the Corsair PSU. I've mentioned the 6003B anomaly with the pictures and text and they will look at getting that amended as the PSU is definitely mounted at the top.

Only other change I intend is 2 x 8GB RAM as I can get W10 via my employer so save money so thought investing in more RAM best as can't really seem to get a better CPU with integrated graphics than what I have chosen for the extra £50 I can now spend. Microsoft have indicated as I have a genuine W7 Ultimate product key I should be able to install W10 ISO free anyway and digitally transfer the key but we'll see as they have been a bit hit and miss with this advice.

Does anyone know with the Mobo I will get how I go into the BIOS to change the boot sequence as I will need to boot from USB, i.e. which key do I repeatedly press? Also once I have done that I assume I have to go back and change the boot sequence back to the SSD as first?

I assume on first getting the PC I need to change the boot sequence to USB straightaway as it won't come with an OS?

Thanks

 

[Oussebon]

Microsoft explicitly say the free upgrade programme (i.e. going from in 7 to Win 10) is discontinued now.
But consensus on the internet is that you can generally still just do it anyway.

For the RAM, get 2933MHz. Ryzen CPUs can benefit a lot, and FM benefits a lot from faster RAM (I've personally benched it).

Probably the Del key will do it but otherwise I'm sure the manual on the Asus site will say.

With modern motherboards you often don't need to permanently change the boot sequence, you can just bring up the boot menu and tell the PC to boot from whatever device as a one-off. With my older Asus board you can do that from within the BIOS, or I think there's a key that lets you just bring up that menu directly (F8?) on startup.

The point is, it should be very easy and the manual is available on the Asus site if you want to look it up there

 

[paul1224]

Thanks for that, the RAM on my build doesn't give an option for 2933MHz, I assume due to the CPU/Mobo restrictions.

The free upgrade to W10 is discontinued but there are ways (apparently) whereby you can transfer a digital licence if you have a retail copy of a previous Windows product that you used to get the free W10 upgrade.

Microsoft have been a bit vague as is their website but worst case scenario I can buy it from work for £14.

 

[ubuysa]

The free upgrade to W10 is discontinued but there are ways (apparently) whereby you can transfer a digital licence if you have a retail copy of a previous Windows product that you used to get the free W10 upgrade.

That is true AFIK. Certainly if you have Windows 10 digital license (associated with your Microsoft login id) you can transfer the license to another PC. I suspect that's regardless of how you originally came by the Windows 10 license?

 

[Oussebon]

Thanks for that, the RAM on my build doesn't give an option for 2933MHz, I assume due to the CPU/Mobo restrictions.

Ah yes, of course. I forgot PCS don't do the faster RAM in that configurator. Actually your CPU and motherboard support faster RAM (2666MHz without even using 'XMP' or the AMD equivalent), but PCS just don't offer it.

At a guess because some of the other CPUs on the menu there don't support it, and PCS figure anyone buying a Raven Ridge APU just want a budget system so seem to have made an assumption that they don't need faster RAM or to have extra choices on the matter...

 

[paul1224]

Thanks for the replies. Ubuysa - I believe that is correct, I am unsure though if my digital licence is associated with my Microsoft account. I always signed in via my Microsoft account to my PC. Microsoft have effectively stated to try that and if it won't authenticate Windows to contact them and they will look into it.
Oussebon - yeah would have been better to get the faster RAM but no option, for what i use it for likely to not be a major issue anyway especially due to what I have been used to. Would be good to have the option though although I appreciate most people wouldn't buy the same type of PC I have.

 

[Oussebon]

Just to present 2 other options:

Mini ITX system:

Case
SHARKOON SHARK ZONE C10 MINI-ITX GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 2400G Quad Core CPU with Vega Graphics (3.6GHz-3.9GHz/6MB CACHE/AM4)

World War Z & Division 2: Gold Edition FREE w/ select AMD Ryzen CPUs!
Motherboard
Gigabyte B450 I AORUS PRO WIFI (DDR4, USB 3.1, 6Gb/s)
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2933MHz ~ (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
NONE, I ALREADY HAVE A GRAPHICS CARD
1st Storage Drive
250GB WD Blue™ 3D NAND 2.5" SSD, (upto 550MB/sR | 525MB/sW)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply
CORSAIR 350W VS SERIES™ VS-350 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
GIGABIT LAN PORT + Wi-Fi (Wi-Fi excluded on H310I-PLUS)
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 4 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
NO OPERATING SYSTEM REQUIRED
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
NO RECOVERY MEDIA REQUIRED
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Monitor
AOC I2490VXQ/BT 23.8" IPS Monitor - 1920 x 1080
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 9 to 12 working days
Price: £624.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-sff-gaming/PtreMf9v!p/

Smaller PC, and sports a higher end motherboard (better onboard sound, USB 3.1 Gen 2, allows overclocking...). And the system includes the faster RAM. Mobo has built in wifi, and also Bluetooth 5

The B450 might also have better support for future CPUs (I've seen rumours that A320s won't support as many future CPU gens as the 400 series boards...)

If you'd be happy going £21 further there's the Fractal S Nano case., which is a good case and relatively quiet. Though the above is fine if being strict on budget

Other option 2: buy an ATX system with 1 x 4gb RAM, ebay it, and buy a 2 x 8gb 2933MHz kit for ~£75 which is roughly what you save from dropping the RAM down from 16gb 2400MHz to 4gb...

I'm thinking the mini ITX is worth serious consideration though...

Edit: Oops, I missed the £19 saturday delivery. So the above is £643. Still could be worth considering though.

 

[paul1224]

Thanks for taking the time, I think the above would probably push the price a bit too high for what I want out of the PC and I think another £5 for the slightly better warranty.

Appreciate the time taken but think what I will use it for and what with trying to keep costs as low as reasonable for a system that will last a few years the original PC with the most recent changes hopefully will do me.

Thanks