Advice on upgrading my pc

[ricardouk]

Hi everyone

Couple of years ago i asked for advice on buying a new pc here in the forum, unfortunally covid affected everyone and those plans were put on standby...untill today

My main objective is to get a new pc that can handle video/audio/image editing without having to resort to resize images/videos and all the other tricks known by everyone, gaming is a no go...no interest nor do i have the patience for it, currently i have an amd fx6300 with 1060 gtx from nvidia, 8 gb of ram and couple ssd hard drives.

After adventuring myself on youtube/google/forums/articles i kind of have an idea, im undecided between the amd 5700x/5700g and the intel 12600k, from what i found the 12600k has a very good integrated graphics which decodes almost every h264/h265 10/12 bit video source amongst others making it a good experience when scrubbing the timeline in full resolution without hiccups, it decodes and converts the videos using just the integrated graphics, on the other hand i have the 5700x that i would have to use with the 1060 6gb gtx or the 5700g on its own or not.

the graphics on the 5700g are tuned for gaming and only decode 8 bit h264/h265 videos, didnt find any info about its capabilities on converting videos/exporting timelines, saw several videos benchmarks where the 12600k is almost twice as fast when editing/converting but lags behind in games while the 5700g is better at games than video editing.

12600k peaks at 120w on full load, 5900g peaks at 80w but performance as far i can gather is lower, to make the 5900g better i would have to add the 1060 gtx that would add more power consumption perhaps a lot more than the 12600k on its own.

After all these "rambling/mumbling" what advice can you give to me? most of my images i use for image edits are 12mpx smartphone cameras images (raw/jpg), mirrorless 18mpx images (raw jpg), 4k videos from action cams/drone and raw cdng videos from a camera.

here's some article on the differences between the processors, and which multimedia formats they can decode/convert.
https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Adobe-Premiere-Pro-12th-Gen-Intel-Core-vs-A...0-Series-2242/

and a video with some tests (@11 min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17PkoGd87KU

What advice can you give me on this search for a better pc?
Thanks

[ricardouk]

anyone?

[butterw]

Intel 12th gen igpu has the hw-dec for av1 and h265 qsvenc hardware encoder.
5700g is too weak to play most games on.
5700x isn't a bad cpu, but you'll need a gpu.

[Subtitles]

Have you decided on which motherboard you are going to use?
I am also going to build a new PC and I have chosen ASUS Prime Z790-A WiFi other hardware to follow.

[ricardouk]

Hi butterw and Subtitles, thanks for your input, ive read that the integrated graphics on the 5700g are similar to an rx550 or gtx 560, both are weaker than my current 1060 gtx card, intel's igpu is the Intel UHD Graphics 770 also weaker than the 1060gtx, im kind of thinking of choosing the 5700x and adding my 1060gtx, a Asrock A520M-HVS AM4 with 16 or 32 ddr4 ram and keep my existing power supply.

do you guys have any other ideas/suggestions?

[Subtitles]

I am not familiar with AMD products and I regret I can't advise you on what is best for you.

[johns0]

If you aren't on a budget i would go for the newer amd that supports ddr5 ram.

[ricardouk]

Hi johns0, the 7000 series are expensive, the 5000 series are more affordable, the difference between the 5700x and 5700 versions seems to be the L3 Size (16 vs 32) the other being the integrated graphics, from everything i read it seems the 5700x + 1060 gtx 6gb (already own) + new motherboard are the best that i can do with my budget, do you have any recomendations about intel processors?

[johns0]

If you like a lot of heat intel is good for that.

[Axel Slingerland]

I am also going to build a new PC and I have chosen ASUS Prime Z790-A WiFi other hardware to follow.

This is just my opinion based on my own experience, depending on your budget / income, I would advise you to save up as much cash as you can stand waiting to spend, and then go looking for new gear. With three youngin's and a wife who suffered from what I always refer to as "Terminal Spenditis" (the inability to pass up a sale on anything, and the inability to buy just one of anything), the most I could manage to save was around $200 a month, and I was quite often having difficulty just managing to save that much. So I saved for a couple of months and them bought a piece of hardware, saved for a couple more months and bought another piece of hardware, etc., until I had a complete PC. But it took me so long to get it all, some of the hardware failed when I finally got to the building phase.

Some it could have been due to how long parts sit in a warehouse before being sold, then more time sitting in my house. Some of it may have been faulty to begin with, but it was too late to return it when I discovered it to be faulty. And some of it may have been "Installer Error" because the last build I had done prior to that was 15 years earlier, back in the dinosaur days of Single Core CPUs.

All in all, that is why I suggest saving your money first then buy parts, as opposed to saving and buying parts a little at a time. Also, when you go to get your mainboard and CPU, get a mainboard with a CPU pre-installed. You won't be sorry...

I hope you missed Covid. I got it and spent 95 days in three different hospitals...

[Subtitles]

I don't see why computer parts would fail if they were put in storage for few months.
They are supposed to last many years after they are assembled.
I bought a motherboard few months ago but I don't have the time to sit down and prepare a list of what else do I need to build a new PC.
Of course I will need a CPU and it is hard to justify buying i9 instead of i7. This is the most costly part after the motherboard.

[johns0]

The reason parts fail after being put in storage is that part was faulty to begin with,having it in storage isn't good cause usually too long the warranty expires due to not been registered.

[Subtitles]

That's a good point to take into account.

[Axel Slingerland]

That's one of two key points I left out of my post. The other is that being the cheepskate that I am, I always buy "obsolete" parts. Not ancient mind you, but you know how it is... By the time you pop the bubblewrap on some part that is the latest and greatest, it's already obsolete. And the last model from before that is typically cheaper because it is no longer the latest and greatest.

[pandy]

Being on your place i would go for Intel and NVidia video card - probably best versatile combo if video processing is your goal.

[TreeTops]

Another thought on post #12...Some capacitors do not last forever. Even if never used.

[Cornucopia]

That's one of two key points I left out of my post. The other is that being the cheepskate that I am, I always buy "obsolete" parts. Not ancient mind you, but you know how it is... By the time you pop the bubblewrap on some part that is the latest and greatest, it's already obsolete. And the last model from before that is typically cheaper because it is no longer the latest and greatest.

Not sure if you are aware, but in engineering and support, there is an invaluable statistical rule of thumb that might better help you gauge when you should buy & get rid of equipment, known as the Bathtub curve.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bathtub_curve
If you are getting equipment when they're already "obsolete", you are missing out on a good portion of the time where the equipment is least problematic. Plus, with some types of devices, the initial drop in issues is quite short, so it makes sense to get newer equipment rather than older (in general).


Scott

[Axel Slingerland]

That was part of my point here, and why I don't buy hardware piecemeal for builds anymore. If you buy last generation gear like I have done for nearly 30 years, there is nothing wrong with that. But my point was simple, now I buy it all at once and build it asap. Every tech I have ever spoken to has told me to do that since my first build, and the one time I didn't listen cost me a lot of money for what would otherwise have been a good PC for it's time.

[ricardouk]

Hi everyone

Thanks to everyone who gave me advice, after 9 months its ready, here's what i ended up buying, all of them on flash sales online:

b550m gaming plusmotherboard
amd 5700x
crucial 32gb ddr4
1tb nvme samsung 980pro
case+power supply 500w

added the 1060gtx 6gb i already own

my next step is to add a better graphics card, i dont play games, only interested in getting better performance when editing videos, for example with the current build i can scrub the timeline, color grade add transitions to cdng/4k videos without losing frames or have to wait to see the edits playing.

im looking at the used market for what i think are good choices for what i need:

1080gtx 8gb and rtx 3060 12gb, both have a 170/180 watt tdp, not that much more than the current 1060 gtx 6gb i have.

https://www.techpowerup.com/gpu-specs/geforce-gtx-1080.c2839

https://www.techpowerup.com/gpu-specs/geforce-rtx-3060-12-gb.c3682

which one do you recommend? do you recoomend something else? Thanks

[Subtitles]

What do you use for cooling the CPU and how many fans are in the case?

[ricardouk]

Hi Subtitles

Im using a Thermalright Assassin King 120 SE CPU Air Cooler for cooling, temperature doesnt go above 45º Celsius when using Resolve and heavy effects like denoise etc, what im seeing at the moment is that programs like Resolve are faster starting up, when scrubbing the timeline and previewing effects it plays the timeline without pauses, but on the other hand there are programs that are only a fraction faster, for example using a dedicated program to denoise/sharpen, 1 min 1920x1280 video sample took me 30min to convert and now takes 22min, looking at the stats the cpu/memory are barely being used and graphics card is maxed out, avisynth conversion scripts on my limited testing do take less time.

so im looking for a used graphics card to give a boost on conversion times, no gaming, just editing.

Thanks

[Subtitles]

Thanks for the update ricardouk.
The problem with using a GPU is that it needs a decent power supply and you are probably limited with your 500W PSU. I think a 12GB would be asking too much (even if you say the power is 170/180W). On my old PC I had 500W and used 8GB GPU GEFORCE RTX 3050 and now I have a 1000W PSU but got stuck with the 8GB one. I regretted not buying a 12GB GPU at the time and it is cheaper to change the PSU that a GPU. My advise is to buy the 12GB GPU RTX 3060 and if the PSU can't handle it then change it to a higher wattage one.

[davexnet]

Many GPU's have been used for mining - one of the risks about buying a used one.

[ricardouk]

Thanks Subtitles and davexnet for your advice, lets see if anyone has a different "look" at this and recommends something else

[Alwyn]

8GB GPU GEFORCE RTX 3050 and now I have a 1000W PSU but got stuck with the 8GB one. I regretted not buying a 12GB GPU

Not wishing to derail the thread too much, watch out for the specs of these cards. The 8GB 3060Ti kills the 12GB 3060 in the other specs. Whether the increased RAM is worth it is debatable.

[ricardouk]

thanks for your advice Alwyn, all the 3060 variants are around the same price here (new or used), just noticed the " normal" rtx 4060 is about the same price and has a lower tdp of 115watts against the 180watts of the 3060 variants, hopefully someone with one these cards will share some more info about its performance.

[Alwyn]

Interesting discussion here:

https://forums.unrealengine.com/t/rtx-3060-12-gb-vs-rtx-4060-ti-8-gb/1420260/2