AMD AM4 PC Upgrade Path & Wireless Router Recommendations

LIce009 on 14/07/2025 - 07:10
Last edited 14/07/2025 - 11:33 by 1 other user

Hey guys,

I'm having trouble deciding what to do. I don't need to upgrade right away, but am trying to figure out whether or not to just change the CPU on my AM4 system and get more RAM, or move to a different platform altogether by buying a new MB, CPU, RAM (either AM5 or Intel, I'm OK with either).

The core components I currently have is AM4 3900XT CPU, 32GB RAM, Asus Crosshair 8 Hero MB, AMD 6900XT graphics card.

I have been thinking about getting 64GB RAM and just changing the CPU out to a 5900XT (when there is another deal on one - I just missed out on the deal a few days ago that was $377 for the Prime Day sales, but I wasn't sure whether or not to do a platform upgrade as I would like to keep this as cheap as possible).

I was going to get a 5800X3D or 5700X3D CPU late last year, but decided against it as I didn't want the decrease in productivity performance, so I didn't get one and it seems they're out of production now, so even if I did want one, seems it's too late? I think I want a CPU that balance both productivity and gaming. Not sure how far off the 5900XT is for gaming compared to the 5700X3D? I'm also not sure how the 5900XT compares to the 7800X/X3D, 7900X CPUs?

As for the graphics card, I'm just going to stick with the 6900XT for now as I can't afford to get anything better. Plus I don't game much right now, so that's OK for a while.

So if going to AM5 for example, what would I be looking at cost wise for a CPU, RAM and MB. Keeping in mind for RAM, I'd want a minimum of 64GB as the 32GB I currently have isn't enough. I keep running out of RAM. Also, not sure what the sweet spot is for speed and timings with DDR5?

And as far as MBs go, not sure if the midrange ones would have all the features my Crosshair 8 Hero has (I wouldn't want to take a step back and lose features by getting a cheaper AM5 MB). With Intel, not sure as I haven't used Intel since 2020.

I am also looking at routers as I have a RT-AC68U, but I see that the RT-AX86U Pro is on Prime Day deal for $229 which is a price I'd be more than happy with, but I am unsure whether to get that or wait until later in the year and try and get either the BE88U, BE86U or BE92U (I want something that is AsusWRT Merlin capable). I did want something that had at least one 2.5Gb WAN and LAN port, but for the price, I'd be OK with the single WAN port of 2.5Gb for the AX86U Pro. The main thing holding me back on the AX86U Pro is I don't know if it will be EoL within the next year or so, and if I should just wait a bit longer and get one of the BE models I mentioned later in the year. In some countries it's due to go EoL at the end of this year. Not sure if Merlin will keep supporting it if it does.

Computing Computer Desktop Computer Wireless Router

Comments

  • ReaperX22 on 14/07/2025 - 07:42
    +7

    That's a longgggg post for not telling us exactly what you do with your computer to give context for the advice you're asking for.

    You don't game much anymore but something to do with productivity. Such as…? What's slow about your machine?

    You're already running a 12core. And have 32gb of ram.

    What 'features' are you scared of losing in a board? Buying high end boards are pretty much a thing of the past unless you NEED that one thing a particular board gives.

    Also.. Budget? Lol.

    As someone who's wanted to upgrade themselves for ages, this post seems like you're asking for justification to throw money somewhere without a solid foundation as for why.

    • Cheaplikethebird on 14/07/2025 - 09:46
      +3

      I think the TL;DR is…. "I missed out on a 5800X3D now I can't see any easy upgrade path with my existing mobo. I dont have any reason to upgrade right now but I'm worried if I leave it I will need to build a completely new system and I CBF selling my old parts at that point so will have to shell out for a whole new system. I pretty much only use my system for work now that I'm old but still like the fantasy of getting deep into a game again "

      • ReaperX22 on 14/07/2025 - 09:53
        +3

        …. You know it's funny, because that's my exact mindset too LOL. Like I totally get it. And my brothers. 5600x and 3060 ti here, bro bumped his 1070 to a 7800 xt because newer games he literally couldnt play anymore but now his 3600 holdin him back.. A 430 dollar 5700x3d doesnt make sense over a 500-600 dollar new build (matx board, 7700 from aliexpress, 32gb of ram).

        But yeah changing platforms is definitely a pain, and so is selling old parts. So I get what the OP is asking, but didn't actually say why heh.

        • Cheaplikethebird on 14/07/2025 - 09:56
          +2

          Haha how do you think I knew the POV, I'm in the same boat too! I've got a 3600 on a high end mobo because I'd planned to upgrade shortly after when prices came down but never did. It's everyone wanting to upgrade their COVID-era CPU.

      • Ice009 on 14/07/2025 - 10:56
        +1

        You pretty much nailed it.

        I'm curious to know how the 5900XT stacks up to the 5700X3D/5800X3D for gaming, and also how far behind it is the newer 7xxx and 9xxx series CPUs. If it's not that far off for productivity, I'll just keep the AM4 platform. Not sure where people go to read reviews these days for comparison.

    • Ice009 on 14/07/2025 - 11:30

      Yeah, fair enough. Maybe I don't NEED to upgrade, but am feeling that the CPUs for AM4 might start drying up soon. I see the 5900XT as maybe the last chance to keep this platform and I'm not sure when it will go EoL.Since I missed out on the 5800X3D and the cheaper 5700X3D that were selling at AliExpress towards the end of last year (I was a bit iffy on buying computer hardware from AliExpress as I've never done so before and seems there is a lot of dodgy sellers - I've bought a few other items from there, but never computer hardware).

      Would like to keep it under $800 if I had to put a number.

      32GB of ram is usually running out as I have multiple programs open and running at the same time. Anyway, RAM's a definite whether I upgrade to a different platform or not. 64GB min. is what I'd want this time around. This is the thing I've been looking at for the longest amount of time. I thought the prices might go down more, but it seems they've gone up from the start of the year, so that is another reason I thought I'd better start looking again before availability of DDR4 dries up in those capacities.

      I do some video encoding, but I guess I could wait longer for that to finish on the 3900XT.

      As for MBs, I haven't really looked at the newer boards, so I'm not sure if the midrange/cheaper ones are missing stuff compared to what the C8H has. I guess I was looking for someone to recommend a good price to performance MB brand and model that I could take a look at and see what features is has. I definitely don't need a high end MB thing time around. As long as it's got at least 2 x NVMe SSD slots. The PCIe lanes aren't handicapped by other onboard things, lots of USB 3.1 Gen 2. ports (not sure if it's called 3.1 Gen 2 or 3.2), at least 6 SATA ports as I use multiple HDDs (maybe I can get away with 4), BIOS flashback, 2.5Gb ethernet (not sure if a lot of these features are standard now)?

      I just had a quick look now and nearly fell out of my seat when seeing the price of the Crosshair X870E Hero WiFi ($1249 at PCCG). Wow, I thought $650 was expensive when I bought this Crosshair 8 Hero. I definitely won't be getting the equivalent this time around. I see the ASUS ROG Strix B850-F Gaming WiFi for $489, but that is also still too costly IMO. I've also never used a B series AMD motherboard, so not sure what the difference is between those and the X670E/X870E models.

      • ReaperX22 on 14/07/2025 - 11:39

        5800x3d wasn't going to be an upgrade for you for productivity, though. So your options for pure productivity would be like a 5950x or something sticking with AM4

        Prices will be unlikely to go down.

        Many boards will meet your requirements for storage without spending over a grand… B series is fine for 99% of people. Just yeah check the storage slots etc.

        IMO, if you're 'running multiple HDDs' you should really just get a dedicated NAS instead for mass storage, and keep your main machine to SSDs/NVME SSDs.

        $800 won't get you a new platform without compromises. You could yeah bump to a 5950x (like 410 from Amazon German, ~500 locally). And throw in more RAM on existing. And that'd do you for a while I guess but ultimately I think that's a lot of money to put into AM4.

        Removing the requirement for HDDs directly in your machine gives you options to downsize your machine, get a B650 M atx board for sub 300 with enough slots/storage/USB ports, a Ryzen 7900 (or 9 series as prices drop) and 64gb of RAM. Just remember AM5 really doesn't like all 4 RAM slots being populated, best to get a dual kit of 32GB each.

        If i were you, I'd stay as you are for a while still, and save more and research on what exact tasks you're doing and pick the right CPU based on that.

        Your GPU is fine for a while still definitely, especially if you're more casually gaming.

  • jk82 on 14/07/2025 - 09:57

    My answer to your CPU, GPU and mobo question: Yes.
    My answer to your router question: Also, Yes.

    • Ice009 on 14/07/2025 - 11:55

      So you think wait for a sale on one of the new routers later in the year? And stick with AM4 for the CPU?

  • Kelvin on 14/07/2025 - 11:16
    +1

    Hmmm..

    You current platform..
    AM4 3900XT CPU, 32GB RAM, Asus Crosshair 8 Hero MB, AMD 6900XT graphics card.

    Upgrade options.. 5700X3D, 5800X3D, 5900XT, 5950XT

    If you are preared to wait 6 weeks. theres this
    https://www.amazon.com.au/AMD-Ryzen-9-5950X/dp/B0815Y8J9N/re…

    Unfortunately you have a high end motherboard (well at the time).. here is the prices of the current AM5 equivalents..
    https://www.scorptec.com.au/search/go?w=asus%20crosshair%20a…

    On a budget you have stated "as I would like to keep this as cheap as possible"

    Upgrading the current platform..
    you are looking at $400-$500 for a CPU.. and $120 for the ram (extra 32gb assuming you have 2x16gb sticks)… you may get around $100- $130 back if you sell the CPU..(3900X)
    so around a cost of $400 to $500 - initial outlay of around $520- $620

    Going to AM5 - Cheapest stuff, i would recommend
    Asus B650M-E TUF Gaming Wifi - $200 (very decent board for the price.. unofficially supports PCI-express 5.0 - non ducements in the specs.. but its working perfectly) a 64gb kits of Cas 30 - DDR5 ram - Expo preferably - $300 - $350.. CPU an aliexpress 7700 special with the coupons.. anywhere between $220 and $280 depending on the timing)
    you are then looking at least $720 to $780, you might be able to sell your old combo for around the $300 to $400..
    so around a cost of $420- $480 -… must requires alot more work.. initial outlay $720- $830..

    If you want a better board.. the next one I would step up to for best value is the Asus X870p prime… ATX sized - USB4 .. decent VRMs.. at around $385 on special at the moment.. or the Asrock X870 RS PRO (better audio).. if you are prepared to ignore the reports of the 9000 series CPUs dying on these..
    Anything in between.. probably isnlt really worth it.. unless there is a feature you want.. Really thats another $200 or so just for USB4 support… and a full sized board with more expansion.

    Will any of this, make a huge difference to your producivity and gaming… ? probably not…
    Most modern CPUs are plenty for productivity.. and gaming, is more reliant on GPU than CPU, unless at low resolutions and massive FPS..

    • Cheaplikethebird on 14/07/2025 - 11:36
      +1

      Asking for myself but also probably for OP. If you're not THAT stressed about it and could wait another year to upgrade, once AM5 boards come down in price, would that be the better option do you think? Less resale value on the existing setup but a cheaper upgrade to AM5? OP is only motivated to upgrade because they're worried about cheap AM4 CPUs drying up which is pretty much where I'm at too.

      • Ice009 on 14/07/2025 - 11:48

        Well, I guess this is a good option. I sort of always planned to get a 5xxx series CPU for the AM4 MB. It kind of seems a waste not to put a 5xxx series CPU in it.

        I haven't been following PC part prices for a few years now. Do you think prices will actually come down?

        I also stupidly have some other AM4 MBs I bought back in 2020/2021 that are sitting around doing nothing. I was going to try and build some complete systems and sell them off a couple of years ago but I never got around to it due to various reasons. Not sure whether I should try selling them individually or not. Not sure what they're worth these days, and/or if it's a waste of time trying to sell them. As mentioned, I was going to build some systems and selling them that way (don't have CPUs or Cases, though), but money's a bit tight right now (have had quite a few unexpected expenses pop up along with the expected ones). I should have bought a few of those 5700X3D CPUs that were going cheap last year at AliExpress (As mentioned, didn't have the guts to order PC gear from AliExpress, though). That probably would have worked out much better.

        Edit : What is your current setup? Are you likely to wait and go with AM5 later on?

    • Ice009 on 14/07/2025 - 12:32

      Upgrading the current platform..
      you are looking at $400-$500 for a CPU.. and $120 for the ram (extra 32gb assuming you have 2x16gb sticks)… you may get around $100- $130 back if you sell the >CPU..>(3900X)
      so around a cost of $400 to $500 - initial outlay of around $520- $620

      Didn't answer these. Current RAM is 8GB x 4, so I'd have to buy a whole new kit. Thanks for those numbers.

      Going to AM5 - Cheapest stuff, i would recommend
      Asus B650M-E TUF Gaming Wifi - $200 (very decent board for the price.. unofficially supports PCI-express 5.0 - non ducements in the specs.. but its working perfectly) a >64gb kits of Cas 30 - DDR5 ram - Expo preferably - $300 - $350.. CPU an aliexpress 7700 special with the coupons.. anywhere between $220 and $280 depending on >the timing)
      you are then looking at least $720 to $780, you might be able to sell your old combo for around the $300 to $400..
      so around a cost of $420- $480 -… must requires alot more work.. initial outlay $720- $830..

      I've got a pretty big case (Dark Base Pro 900 Rev. 2 - never should have bought this thing as I hate working in it due to the power supply - it's an absolute b#tch to get the cover out if you want to plug any cables into the PSU - you have to take both the left and right panel off and unscrew a bunch of brackets. The PSU also doesn't sit flush on the back of the case. If it wasn't for this, it'd be an OK case, but I don't like working on it due to the PSU cover being so hard to get off to get to the PSU to plug in cables. It's also hard to get the PSU itself out), so I don't think an mATX MB would go well in it. Would prefer to stick with full sized ATX. I also have a Creative sound card (Creative AE-5 original version [not the Plus version] - not sure if onboard sound would have surpassed this at all by now?), so I'd need a PCI-e slot for that.

      So for the RAM, CAS 30 is good. What did you mean by "Expo"?

      I'll have a look at the 7700 and see how far off that is productivity wise to something like a 5900XT and my current CPU.

      If you want a better board.. the next one I would step up to for best value is the Asus X870p prime… ATX sized - USB4 .. decent VRMs.. at around $385 on special at the >moment.. or the Asrock X870 RS PRO (better audio).. if you are prepared to ignore the reports of the 9000 series CPUs dying on these..
      Anything in between.. probably isnlt really worth it.. unless there is a feature you want.. Really thats another $200 or so just for USB4 support… and a full sized board with more >expansion.

      This board sounds pretty good. Price isn't cheap, but not terrible after seeing the prices of other MBs.

      Will any of this, make a huge difference to your producivity and gaming… ? probably not…
      Most modern CPUs are plenty for productivity.. and gaming, is more reliant on GPU than CPU, unless at low resolutions and massive FPS.

      Yeah, probably not. Just probably getting a 64GB kit of RAM and CPU for the current system would be the easiest option. Patriot did have 64GB kits of Patriot Viper (non-RGB version) for about $169 at the start of the year, but they seem to have now gone up to $229 or something. Not really worth it at that price. https://www.amazon.com.au/Patriot-2x32GB-3600MHz-PC4-28800-M… the RGB version has worse timings. I wonder why the prices of DDR4 has gone up after it had steadily been dropping for quite a while. Does that mean supply/stock is drying up?

      Monitor resolution is 1440p 165 Hz Dell S2721DGF looking at model name in Device Manager.

  • Kelvin on 14/07/2025 - 11:37
    +2

    If you want to educate / confuse yourself about the mess that is the AM5 motherboard landscape.. have a read here..

    https://forums.overclockers.com.au/threads/the-mess-that-is-…

    • Ice009 on 14/07/2025 - 11:40

      Thanks Kelvin. I haven't been to OCAU for a long time, so I guess I should login and have a look. I've been out of the loop for the past 3 or so years.

      What is Intel like these days? Are more people going with AMD/AM5 or Intel (don't know what socket they're on now ;) ) these days?

      • Kelvin on 14/07/2025 - 11:48
        +1

        Intel is gargabe at the moment..

        their current platform 1851 performs far worse in gaming, than the previous platform socket 1700..
        though is better is productivity.. than previous Intel platform..

        Therefores gamers don't bother buying intel current.

        the previous platform socket 1700, which has the 12th, 13th, 14th gen CPUs.. has issues with the higher end 13th and 14th CPUs damaging themselves, to the point that Intel had to admit fault and extend the warranty ont he retail CPUs to 5 years.. They have isolated and apparantly fixed the issues "almost after 18months".. but the CPUs damaged are permantnly wrecked….
        This platform is slower than the Am5 3d cpus.. in gaming.. and therefore.. gamings. .don't bother with this platform either.. (plus god knows if the Intel CPU issues is actually fixed)..

        Pretty much all gamers go with AM5 now..!
        and with productivity, you can get both with the 9950X3d CPUs..

  • Ice009 on 14/07/2025 - 11:53

    Yeah, I should have guessed with the X3D CPUs AMD would be the best sellers right now for gaming. I remember Intel were trading blows in gaming with socket 1700 (now that you mentioned that socket). Hadn't looked at their new socket, though. That is pretty surprising 1851 performs worse. I wonder what happened there.

    I do now remember hearing about Intel CPUs being damaged, but I never looked into it. That is crazy. How did they fix it? Was it a BIOS issue or hardware thing? Yeah, I don't think I'd want to buy Intel even second hand if that is the case. I remember before when I bought Intel, their CPUs were pretty much bulletproof/super reliable. Amazing how that's all changed.

    How is the second hand market on OCAU these days? Is there much activity there, or has that died off a bit with the cost of living and stuff the past few years?

  • apple2016 on 14/07/2025 - 11:54

    The core components I currently have is AM4 3900XT CPU, 32GB RAM, Asus Crosshair 8 Hero MB, AMD 6900XT graphics card.

    If you decide to upgrade to AM5, you will have to upgrade your MB, CPU and RAM. Most motherboards support only 64 GB (2 X 32) at 6400mhz max. If you need more memory you are forced to slower speeds. you will be able to achieve this under $800 , if you are not looking at absolute high-end MB etc.

  • Ice009 on 14/07/2025 - 12:00
    +1

    Well, since you mentioned budget, if I were to upgrade to AM5, my budget would go up as I'd wait until later like @Cheaplikethebird suggested.

    I didn't realize AM5 MBs are handicapped with RAM capacity. I thought most would support 128GB. I'd want a MB that supports at least 128GB of RAM. Thanks for telling me that.

    So if going more than 64GB on AM5 MBs that support it, the RAM speeds are a lot slower? What is the sweet spot for pricing, speed and timings these days for 32GB and 64GB.
    For example, with AM4 it seems to have been 3600Mhz on the 3xxx series CPUs, or 3200Mhz with tighter timings.

    • Kelvin on 14/07/2025 - 12:26
      +1

      Most AM5 4 dimms motherboards will probably support up to 192gb.. (4x48gb sticks) and probably 256gb in the near future..

      the issue is getting to run all that ram at a high / decent speed…

      The AM5 platform is cobbled in that using more than 2 dimms, usually results, in having signficantly lower memory speeds. ensure stability..

      Separately, larger the dimm capacity is the lower timings and speeds are..

      The memory controller is built on the CPU on the AM5 platform, and hasn't been updated in years..
      having said that, there were lots of issues even gettign to 6000mhz on the Am5 platform.. which eventually sorted itself out as AMD released updates and the platform matured..

      There is no problem getting 64gb standard 6000mkz kit (Cas30 2x32gb)) running on an AM5 platform now days..
      gettign 2x (2x16gb) standard kit, ie 4dimm.. will generally be an issue at the moment though..

      you can however get 2x48gb. - 96gb kits.. that would well…
      yep dimms, now come in 8gb / 12gb/ 16gb / 24gb / 32gb / 48gb / 64gb

      • Ice009 on 14/07/2025 - 12:38

        Interesting. I saw they had those 48GB/96GB kits now. Why did they start making those capacities. 96GB would be good. Sounds like 6000Mhz 96GB (Does this come in 2 x 48GB capacity?) would be a decent amount and work better if it's two sticks? I'm guessing it'd be cheaper than a 128GB kit that probably consists of 4 x 32GB?

        • Kelvin on 14/07/2025 - 14:14

          nope you can get 2x64gb kits now.. not very common though…i think only micron has the density and I think the motherboard bioses, may need to be updated…

          on AM5.. the kits you want are the Hynix based ones.. which allow low Cas settings.

  • Kelvin on 14/07/2025 - 12:28
    +1

    If you want a cheap 128gb ddr4 quad kit.. - $308.74 .. 3600mhz kit delivered.

    this is proralby to one to get currently.. assuming your motherboard support it..

    https://www.amazon.com.au/G-Skill-RipJaws-Black-DDR4-F4-3600…

    Mine arrived in 5 day from the US..

    • Ice009 on 14/07/2025 - 12:35

      Darn, that's by far the best price I've seen for. I'll have a think about it and pull the trigger later today if it hasn't sold out by then. I'm pretty sure the C8H should support it.

      Did you order it at this price previously?

      • Kelvin on 14/07/2025 - 14:09
        +1

        yes.. testing the ram out at the moment…
        the packaging, waw slightly damaged… but all seems well so far..

        on a Gigabyte B550 aorus Pro v2

        obviously a lot of ram for $300 or so..

        • Ice009 on 14/07/2025 - 22:50

          How'd you go with the RAM? Did you run Memtest or something similar to test it?

        • Ice009 on 15/07/2025 - 13:59

          I tried to buy the RAM shortly after posting that reply to you last night, but for whatever reason, the price changed 40 minutes (can't remember exactly, but it was at least 40 minutes earlier) or so before the Prime Day sales were due to end. I was too tried to go contact Amazon support to ask as I'd only had 2 hours sleep in 2 days, so I went straight to bed. You think it's worth contacting them and asking them if they can honour that price. There was still stock left when the price changed, so I'm not sure what happened.

          I bought a few other items and they all kept the Prime Day sales prices right up until 11:59pm AEST.

  • Devastator0 on 14/07/2025 - 17:21
    +1

    Just to weigh in on the router question, I can strongly recommend the RT-AX86U Pro. It's an excellent router and Asus typically have a good history of servicing their networking equipment for a long, long time. The RT-AC68U only went EOL at the tail end of 2024 and that was out for an incredibly long time. The RT-AX86U Pro is an extremely solid choice. Incredible 2.4Ghz wifi range and excellent 5Ghz range too. I have 2 of them at home (1 as the main router and the second as a mesh node on an ethernet backhaul) and they work great together. You also have the option, as you did with the 68U to use the MerlinWRT firmware. 10/10 Recommended.

    • Ice009 on 15/07/2025 - 13:45

      Thanks. I ended up passing on it. I really wanted something with 2.5Gb ports. I didn't need more than 1 port and would have easily bought it if it had 1 x 2.5Gb WAN and 1 x 2.5Gb LAN. I really don't know why Asus put one port on only. Doesn't make sense to me.

      I don't doubt that it's a great router, and the price swayed me, but it was lacking a feature I wanted. Hopefully I don't regret it giving up that price.

  • Ice009 on 15/07/2025 - 13:56

    I also did some reading/tried finding Youtube videos and it seems the 5900X level CPUs aren't really that much better than the 3900X for gaming. The 5800X3D absolutely kills it, though, but for me, upgrading to a 5900XT (unless it's really cheap), doesn't seem worth it if you're looking at gaming only (which I am not)/

    Having said that, I couldn't find any productivity comparisons between the 3900XT, 5900XT/5950X (I'd assume I can just look at 5950X reviews), 5800X3D, and 7700 CPUs to see the differences there. If I can find some comparing them productivity wise, then that would help me make a decision easier.

    Also, apart from the 7700 (what has this been selling for?), what is the next best price to performance AM5 CPU?

    All of you guys that have been thinking about doing this yourself (upgrading your AM4 system or moving to AM5), have any of you guys made any kind of decision?

  • lew380 on 15/07/2025 - 18:54
    +1

    Unless your flush with a tax return, be happy with what you have, keep it until it starts to cause problems. I usually upgrade when I have to start bumping settings down to medium, or even lower in gaming, that's when I just spend it up. You need to decide if your current system is too slow for what you want to do. If you have time to wheel and deal, swapping parts out incrementally to try to keep up with tech, you can save a bit of money with but it sounds like your like me, money isn't so much of the issues, it's the justification, wait until you can wait any longer and just get the lot.

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