New gaming PC build: AMD 5600X/AM4 or Intel 12600K/LG1700? You advice is appreciated!

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harddud

Limp Gawd
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Jul 29, 2005
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I build a new PC to game every 5-10 years. Knowing that my PC (3770K w/1660Ti) was getting a little long-in-the-tooth, my very gracious son sent me a new EVGA 3060Ti for Christmas. We talked, and decided that either an AMD 5600x or the new Intel 12600K would be the best for me. Both have positives and negatives. While the AM4 platform is getting on in years, it is still very competitive. The Alder Lake 12600K is about the same price, but requires one to purchase a heatsink/fan and a (relatively) expensive LGA1700 MB.


I can afford either option but I am leaning toward the Ryzen alternative, mainly because it is proven and is much more efficient (65W versus 150W). I would appreciate ANY advice/experience from other users as to which way you would recommend.


Thank you!
 
Also some downside for Alder Lake on windows 10. At this point I'd recommend AMD.
GL
 
The Alder Lake option would be slightly faster in gaming, but requires a better cooler (typically 360 AIO or one of the largest air coolers) while the 5600x would be fine with any decent air cooler.

Alder Lake would probably age better than the 5600x, but the difference isn't massive. Personally I would choose the 12600k if I had to choose between those CPUs for gaming, but either choice will work well for your needs. If money/price matters then I would go with the cheaper option.
 
I'd price out the systems and see what the actual difference is. Within $100-200 Alder Lake seems to be a better choice if keeping for 5 years.
 
Having a 12700K system myself, I would recommend the 12600K option you mentioned. I have a DDR4 motherboard and it has been a stable system for over a month now, and zero compatibility issues with Windows 11 so far.
 
I've had both platforms. I don't think you could go wrong either way, but all things being equal, the Intel system will be slightly faster. For the same money, I'd probably go Intel, although, I think you could definitely price out a cheaper AM4 system since the motherboards are cheaper.

Realistically, it's not like the Intel system is going to have magically longer longevity. By the time the 5600x is irrelevant, the 12600k will be also.
 
Thank you all for your responses. I've pretty much decided to go with the 5600X. The CPU is almost 4X faster than my current CPU, which does everything I want it to well. What is tipping the balance for me is the efficiency of the chips (max TDP of 65W versus 150W). A cooler case is a happy case, especially here in Florida!

Thanks once again!
 
Good luck with your upgrade. You won't be disappointed!
 
The 5600X is a great little CPU. It might not be the strongest anymore, but it still has some grunt. I moved from Z77 and 3770K last year to AM4 and it was a smooth transition. Its a nice platform to work with. Tuning is fun.. the 5600X is small enough that you can run its boost clocks as an all core clock. I managed to squeeze 155w PPT from my 5600X lol.. what a lil beast. It wont do that @ stock or with PBO so no worries..
 
Could anyone recommend a (very) good B550 or X570 AM4 motherboard ... perhaps one they used in a personal build? Experience is the greatest teacher!

Thank you!
 
B550 Tomahawk is a very solid board and affordable. I run it with a 5600x as a office box and it’s been reliable since built. No hiccups and great features for the price.
 
I have always been a fan of the Asus Strix X570-E. I have built quite a few systems with it without issue. I am not sure if they are still available though.
 
I just last week upgraded my 3-3100 to a 5 -5600x and have been very pleased. Havent had intel in a while but I reused my b450 elite board, just needed to upgrade bios to current version.
 
Also... keep an eye on the FS/FT here at the[H]... I've seen some very good deals on exactly what you are looking for.

I just picked up a used 5900 & 570 MOBO. A slight upgrade from my 9900KS but I'll get PCIE-4 for my gpu and M2's plus 4 more cores and I don't need to migrate to Win11 to take full advantage.

GL!
 
Evil Scooter said:
Also... keep an eye on the FS/FT here at the[H]... I've seen some very good deals on exactly what you are looking for.

I just picked up a used 5900 & 570 MOBO. A slight upgrade from my 9900KS but I'll get PCIE-4 for my gpu and M2's plus 4 more cores and I don't need to migrate to Win11 to take full advantage.

GL!
Click to expand...

Did you find it here?: Custom90s FS thread


I appreciate the advice ... I've already been in contact with him.
 
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