Embarrassing "Upgrade" Required!

[Keep_Calm_Creative]

Hey CG creative community,

Okay, so this is a slightly embarrassing situation to ask advice, but here it goes... I have managed to drag my old system build for 5+ years and have actually found it quite capable for what I enjoying using it for (Cinema 4D, Octane, Blender, Fusion 360 concept rendering still images), until now! The motherboard is pretty much breathing its last breath and is most likely to become completely unusable very soon. It works if I leave it on, but starting it up cold is a time-consuming nightmare. I clearly have to bring myself into the 2020's, but I have a very limited budget (£400) and only want to upgrade the minimum for now until I can afford a shiny new build later on. I'd like to keep the majority of the components if I can to keep the cost down and most of them actually seem to be still serving me fairly well. So I think all I need for now is a new motherboard and probably a new CPU (unless I can continue using my existing 1150?). From what I have seen so far, buying a new 1150 motherboard is significantly more expensive than buying a newer model? If anyone can offer an affordable solution to my situation, I would be extremely grateful. I do appreciate that it's a very limiting challenge and if I were in a better situation, I'd happily put a lot more money into it.

Current Build:
Motherboard: Asus Z97-Pro(wi-fi ac) Almost dead!
CPU: Intel® i7 4790K
Memory: 2x Kingston HyperX FURY 16GB Kit (32GB total)
GPU: 2x Gigabyte NVIDIA GTX 970 G1 Gaming 4GB
Storage: WD SN750 500GB NVMe (OS, Software), 2x Samsung 860 EVO 500 GB (Projects)
Power Supply: Corsair CP-9020055-UK RM750
Cooling: Corsair Hydro Series H110 280mm

Thanks for reading and hopefully I won't be too limited in my options?

Have a great day!

 

[Jerry James]

That's rough! Well, if your dual 970 GPUs are enough for your workload from a graphics standpoint, I'd just replace the CPU, motherboard, and memory. Go with something like this build:

CGDirector.com Parts List: https://www.cgdirector.com/pc-builder/?=6LCiR

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600XT 3.8GHz 6-Core Processor ($239.99)
Motherboard: MSI B550M Pro-VDH ($100)
Memory: 32GB (2 x 16GB) Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4-3200 C16 ($114.99)

Total: $450~

All the other parts can be recycled from your old build.

This build will give you an easy upgrade path to Ryzen 5000 if you ever want some extra processing power.

 

[Keep_Calm_Creative]

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600XT 3.8GHz 6-Core Processor ($239.99)
Motherboard: MSI B550M Pro-VDH ($100)
Memory: 32GB (2 x 16GB) Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4-3200 C16 ($114.99)

Total: $450~

All the other parts can be recycled from your old build.

This build will give you an easy upgrade path to Ryzen 5000 if you ever want some extra processing power.

Hey thanks Jerry for your kind response, I do appreciate you sharing your knowledge! Haha, yeah it took some courage to confess to my build in such a public forum! I'm actually surprised at how much the dual 970's can handle, even by todays standards! I've worked on some pretty heavy scenes in Cinema 4D and they have done pretty well. Your recommendation looks like a great solution, thank you! I'm just wondering... the MSI B550M Pro-VDH looks like it only has a single PCI-E which would mean losing a GPU. Is there another similar MB that could carry both GPU's? The case is pretty big (Corsair Carbide Air 540) and should have room for a bigger board.

 

[Jerry James]

Hey thanks Jerry for your kind response, I do appreciate you sharing your knowledge! Haha, yeah it took some courage to confess to my build in such a public forum! I'm actually surprised at how much the dual 970's can handle, even by todays standards! I've worked on some pretty heavy scenes in Cinema 4D and they have done pretty well. Your recommendation looks like a great solution, thank you! I'm just wondering... the MSI B550M Pro-VDH looks like it only has a single PCI-E which would mean losing a GPU. Is there another similar MB that could carry both GPU's? The case is pretty big (Corsair Carbide Air 540) and should have room for a bigger board.

Ah, I clearly need to sleep Yes, I actually meant the MSI B550-A Pro motherboard.

PS. if you want to keep an upgrade path open from a GPU perspective, you could jump up to an ASUS X570 TUF Gaming to get PCI-E 4.0 on that second slot as well so newer GPUs won't lose any performance at all. But if that isn’t much of a factor, the B550-A will do just fine

 

[Keep_Calm_Creative]

Ah, I clearly need to sleep Yes, I actually meant the MSI B550-A Pro motherboard.

PS. if you want to keep an upgrade path open from a GPU perspective, you could jump up to an ASUS X570 TUF Gaming to get PCI-E 4.0 on that second slot as well so newer GPUs won't lose any performance at all. But if that isn’t much of a factor, the B550-A will do just fine

That's great advice and extremely useful to know! Great recommendation about future-proofing with the ASUS X570. I'll certainly consider your advice. Many thanks again Jerry, very much appreciated.

Have a restful sleep!

 

[Keep_Calm_Creative]

Hey Jerry, just a quick question before I commit to the ASUS X570 TUF Gaming please... I was wondering how this board shapes up in comparison to the Gigabyte X570 AORUS Elite or the MSI MAG X570 Tomahawk? I know they're pretty evenly matched, but was wondering if one board has a slight advantage over the other? Also, just a quick cheeky additional question of recommended thermal compounds? I was thinking Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut?

Thanks again!

 

[Jerry James]

Hey Jerry, just a quick question before I commit to the ASUS X570 TUF Gaming please... I was wondering how this board shapes up in comparison to the Gigabyte X570 AORUS Elite or the MSI MAG X570 Tomahawk? I know they're pretty evenly matched, but was wondering if one board has a slight advantage over the other? Also, just a quick cheeky additional question of recommended thermal compounds? I was thinking Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut?

Thanks again!

Well, I always recommend the X570 Tomahawk over most boards in this price range. It's just so much better (VRM-wise) at handling heavy CPU workloads and will have absolutely no issues with any Ryzen processor. It's a great step up. The existence of the Tomahawk kinda ruins the Aorus Elite as an option at its price point. So, there's no reason to go for it unless you like having way more USB ports than what the TUF and Tomahawk offer.

As for thermal compounds, I use Kryonaut as well! Quite good.

 

[Keep_Calm_Creative]

Awesome! Thanks Jerry, I think the MSI MAG X570 Tomahawk is going to be the winner! I really appreciate your insight.

Yeah, only heard positive reviews about the Kryonaut. I know it's a heated debate (no pun intended! ), so I definitely don't want to start one here... but pea size, X or spread with applicator for the Ryzen?

 

[Jerry James]

Yeah, only heard positive reviews about the Kryonaut. I know it's a heated debate (no pun intended! ), so I definitely don't want to start one here... but pea size, X or spread with applicator for the Ryzen?

Oh man, I'm a pea person. Everyone should be a pea person

 

[Keep_Calm_Creative]

Awesome! Thanks Jerry, I think the MSI MAG X570 Tomahawk is going to be the winner! I really appreciate your insight.

Yeah, only heard positive reviews about the Kryonaut. I know it's a heated debate (no pun intended! ), so I definitely don't want to start one here... but pea size, X or spread with applicator for the Ryzen?

Oh man, I'm a pea person. Everyone should be a pea person

hahaha it definitely seems to be the tried and tested method for most! ... .