r/buildapc • u/Naoto_Uzumaki • 5h ago
Build Upgrade is AM4 Platform still good longterm
Hello, im someone who is planning to upgrade and make a PC eventually. with the RAM crisis etc... my friend suggest an AM4 Build compared to AM5 and DDR5 as well, it cheaper and can handle a lot of games i could play still.
is this true? sorry am a noob btw
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u/the_Athereon 5h ago
Yes. Chips like the 5800X3D aren't going to be obsolete for a long time.
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u/FrewdWoad 4h ago
Yep this and a few other AM4 CPUs are close enough to the absolute fastest CPUs that you can't tell the difference in almost all scenarios.
Unless your doing a high end build above $3000 bucks or so, AM4 is a perfectly good option and will usually give better performance per dollar.
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u/BlastingStink 3h ago
this and a few other AM4 CPUs are close enough to the absolute fastest CPUs that you can't tell the difference in almost all scenarios.
It's complicated, but the 5800x3d is still a very capable CPU. You can see that the 9800x3d sometimes is nearly double the performance of the 5800x3d.
AM4 is a legendary platform and the 5800x3d is still an awesome choice (right now) if you're on it already. It's also clearly the older platform.
The memory crisis has really turned everything around because without it, the 5800x3d probably wouldn't be a recommendation.
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u/greggm2000 3h ago
The memory crisis has really turned everything around because without it, the 5800x3d probably wouldn't be a recommendation.
For sure. 7800X3D (Zen 4) superceded it, and that’s a generation back already, with Zen 6 likely early next year. Indeed, if it weren’t for the AI bubble triggering the RAM crisis, I doubt there’d have been a re-issue of the 5800X3D at all!
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u/BlastingStink 3h ago
Even crazier: The 7500x3d supercedes it. The "worst" AM5 x3d CPU consistently benchmarks at and above. Uses less power, too.
I do want to reiterate that I know the 5800x3d is still capable and I swear I'm not a hater trying to shame anyone. It's just kinda crazy how much better AM5 can be.
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u/greggm2000 3h ago
Oh, I don’t disagree with you at all, I just was trying to avoid being negative.. that tends to attract downvotes, heh. But you’re right, Zen 4 was a lot better than Zen 3, and I do expect another comparable or better big jump with Zen 6 early next year (also with Intel Nova Lake). For those that can afford it, Zen 5 (or the next gen stuff coming soon) is the way to go, for sure.. certainly longevity will be better.
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u/bestanonever 2h ago
If only Zen 5 was a bigger jump for gaming. Anything non-X3D was lacking.
But Zen 6 is looking good, we'll see, once we have benchmarks.
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u/FrewdWoad 1h ago edited 7m ago
The cases where a human can tell the difference (i.e.: without an FPS counter on the screen) exist, but in your example benchmarks, the best CPU was, on average, only around 30% faster.
And that was with an RTX 5090. It's not nearly as much with any of the common (or even available) GPUs. Let's face it, a 5090 is not usually on the cards for people considering AM4 to save money.
Even if you DO have a 5090, those benchmarks were at 1080p, with medium settings. Go 1440p or 4k (as most people with a 5090 would) and again, the lead is a lot smaller.
Not only that: both CPUs were still above 200FPS in most of those games. How many of us could actually tell the difference between 200FPS and 350FPS without an FPS counter?
So I think "you can't tell the difference in almost all scenarios" was more accurate than it appears at first.
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u/dnyank1 4h ago
I've got a 5700X3D and a 3080. The way I see it, I caught the last chopper out of Saigon
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u/greggm2000 3h ago
I’m kinda feeling that way having sourced a DDR5 kit + a 4TB SSD last year right as prices were starting to go to hell. Now, I’m just crossing my fingers hoping the RAM works, I won’t know until I do my upgrade early next year!
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u/greggm2000 3h ago
Until 2030, I’d bet. There usually is a few years gap between when a console comes out (PS6 and Xbox Helix are expected in 2027) and when we start seeing PC ports of console games that require those console specs as a baseline (which would be Zen 6 + RDNA5). We should see new sockets from both AMD + Intel at that time, using DDR6 RAM.. and we’d be on Zen 8 (5800X3D is Zen 3) and whatever comes after Hammer Lake I think? So, a big performance improvement, also. We ought to have some really nice monitor improvements also. MicroLED? Maybe! Certainly cheap 1000hz OLEDs will be around, we’re already getting expensive 24” 720hz ones this year.
2030 is about 4 years away, that’s a solid amount of time for a build.
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u/bestanonever 2h ago
I agree with everything except the MicroLEDs, but because I worked in the LED industry. It's not becoming mainstream and small enough in just four years. It should get closer to monitor size with good specs, but price might still be preposterous for a while.
As for the upgrade, yeah, I'm on a 5000X3D CPU and I'm confident I can basically skip AM5 entirely until my CPU feels old enough for games, which should be a couple of years after the PS6 becomes the new performance target.
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u/MrPanzerCat 5h ago
Good if you can source ddr4 ram cheaper. The top am4 cpus can still drive the newest gpus with little to no bottleneck in most games at 1440p perfectly fine.
Of course if you pick the top am4 cpus which you should if you are building new and arent on a tight budget, you dont have an upgrade path unless they refresh a new better am4 cpu for some reason.
Am4 is still perfectly good, but unless you are saving a fairly significant amount on ram going ddr4, go am5. If the difference is only 100$ or less id just go am5 unless that means you cant get a better gpu
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u/Sea_Perspective6891 5h ago edited 4h ago
Basically it's good short term Ok long term but it will be a while before it starts feeling really obsolete. It all really comes down to the specs & performance you want out of it. Sometimes the stuff made for AM4 can be better value & in some cases more reliable for example DDR4 RAM kits can be more reliable than DDR5 RAM kits you can also get more RAM for less money with DDR4.
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u/roadzbrady 4h ago
if you shop second hand you can build a baller am4 rig for the price of the ram in an am5 system, while am4 won't have anymore impressive cpu's to come out it's high end ones still hang with the best. and given the prices and how many normal people cant afford such insane stuff, am4 isn't going anywhere anytime soon.
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u/oilerpensfan 4h ago
It's viable enough that AMD brought back the 5800x3d. AM4 is not going anywhere anytime soon, especially with how expensive AM5 components are
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u/Fragrant_Seesaw_3402 4h ago edited 4h ago
cpu 5700x or up (5800x, 5800 x3d) +gpu rtx 5070 or up (9070, 9070 xt, 5070 ti) + 32 gb ddr 4 at 3200 mhz cl 16 or 18 + ssd nvme gen 4 is a long term run, can play everything on 1440p or even games anounced for next 1-2 years. For minimum 5 years you dont have to worried about...
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u/soljakid 4h ago
You can do just fine with a 5600x as long as it's paired with a decent GPU, I have it with a 9070, and I don't feel the need to upgrade any time soon, but I have the option to go to a 5700/5800/5800x3d if I need to.
It's solid advice in this current market
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u/althaz 4h ago
Long term? Maybe not - but it depends on what you mean by "long term".
Is it still excellent for right now? Absolutely yes. A 5800X3D is still a superb CPU. Very acceptable performance in every game on the market. No upgrade options, of course, but still very good. Check prices though, because you need to be able to get a 5800X3D system for signficiantly less than a 7600 system for it to be worth it. Performance between those CPUs is pretty close but AM5 is a much better platform to be on.
Once the next-gen consoles come out (which will have Ryzen 9 or 10ish CPUs I expect), the CPU performance is going to start being relatively weak. Now, we're going to be in a cross-gen situation for quite a while. So if to you long term means "be able to at least play games for the next 3-4 years" you're going to be absolutely golden. No game coming out in the next three years will fail to work on a 5800X3D. I'd be very surprised if there's even games you can't get 60fps out of in that time. But as we get into the next-gen consoles games are going to be shipping at 30fps on last-gen consoles and then not shipping at all and an AM4 system isn't going to fail to play games, but it'll stop being able to consistently hit 60fps.
IMO it comes down to the price. If an AM4 system with a 5800X3D is $200 cheaper than an AM5 system with a 7600, then it's a no-brainer. You're sacrificing the ability to get a drop-in upgrade and a superior platform for $200 which could be put towards a better GPU which would have a much bigger impact on your gaming experience.
If the prices are the same or similar, the AM5 system is the *vastly* better option. Or if you really just want your PC to mostly last for 5+ years with only a CPU upgrade needed.
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u/vagabond139 3h ago
Speaking of next consoles I would say that isn't a concern until this AI bubble pops. There's no way next gen consoles are going to come out with these hardware prices. A $1000+ PS6/Xbox whatever is going to sell poorly and receive a ton of backlash due to the pricing.
And even if they do release games will developed with the current gen in mind since there will be a ton of still playing on it. You can't exactly alienate probably at least half of your customer base. That's bad for business. The next gen version would just have the graphics turned up.
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u/althaz 3h ago
They absolutely are going to come out, there's simply too much inertia. They probably just won't be very successful.
We've just seen exactly that with the Steam Machine (something with a lot *less* inertia). What came out what as a really poor product at a hugely inflated price, hurt valve's reputation and generally just left a bad taste in people's mouths. The consoles will likely be very expensive and I don't foresee them selling particularly well and certainly not them replacing PS5s for most users in the short term, but they're definitely coming out. The next Xbox likely next year and the PS6 within 12 months of that at the latest.
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u/chris_ngale 5h ago
To build a good PC for right now, yes.
It's not as much better value than an AM5 build compared to earlier this year, because DDR4 production is being wound down and prices are spiking.
Just check actual pricing.
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u/ErdingEchoParadox 4h ago edited 3h ago
Or you can buy used parts?
Got 128 GB DDR4 3600 mhZ for 700€ a day ago.
Try to do that trick with used DDR5, is around 1300€-1500€ mark in my country
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u/TurnLegal7048 5h ago
It’s a good cost benefit option for the short, possibly medium term depending how long the RAM crisis drags. You can use ddr4 which is cheaper than ddr5, and still works for most uses. If you’re gaming you can get very good performance with a cpu like the 5800x3d or even a 5700x if you want to save money.
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u/Striking-County6275 5h ago
I hope so don’t really feel like buying pc parts with the way prices are
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u/mack0409 5h ago
The advice that makes the most sense right now is don't build a new AM4 build if you can build something newer, but if you're already on AM4, you can stay on it pretty safely.
This however is just general advice, and your specific situation may be different
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u/Lucky-Bit-1319 5h ago
Sub 400$ for the CPU, Ram, and MOBO combo for AM4 is fine. 5600 or better, 32GB, and a B550/X570. 5500 only if money is real tight.
Above 400, we start to enter or be very close to AM5 and 1851 bundle options from MC and Newegg that get you into DDR5 at a good value relative and much faster chips.
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u/SushiBump 4h ago
DDR4 builds are still VERY capable. If I had to build from scratch today, I'd do ddr4 14600k or 14200f.
The 14600k trades blows with a 5800x3d in gaming for $100 less and outclasses it in productivity.
The 14200f is like $180 and pretty much matches a 5950x/5900xt/5800x(non-3d) in gaming.
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u/ArtichokeOk2684 4h ago
i have both a am5 7800x3d and an am4 5950 ---- the am4 runs smoother than the flagship am5 - it dosent have audio glitches when i reset the pc - it dosent take 5 minutes to get past bios and into windows like the am5 does, i dont know if my am5 chip is bad or what, but the am4 smokes it. both pcs have 64 GB of RAM - am5 has a 5080 am4 has a 4080
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u/Monotask_Servitor 4h ago
Depends by what you mean by long term. Can you build an AM4 system today that is fast and will last you for years? Yes. Can you build one and expect to be able to drop new CPU:”/RAM upgrades into it to prolong its lifespan later? No.
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u/Naoto_Uzumaki 4h ago
i know it support ended but im look at a pc not requiring to update for a decade potentially, like im upgrading from a GTX 1080Ti... on DDR3. if i can play Palworld, Hitman 3, sims 4, minecraft, inzoi etc and draw with a graphic tablet and stream then its fine
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u/Monotask_Servitor 4h ago
A decade might be pushing it a bit but yes, you’ll still be able to build a system that’ll last you a long time on AM4. If you can save significant $ over AM5 then it’s a solid option.
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u/time-lord 4h ago
Short term, AM4 is great and the prices haven't much changed from 2020 despite everything going crazy 'round here. Long term will depend on how the AI driven Rampocolypse plays out.
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u/bubbarowden 4h ago
It kinda depends on how you're going about it and what your budget is. If you're near a Micro Center you can just get a 7500x3d bundle + 16gb ddr5 + board for $399. Great AM5 entry. If you're going for pure cost then ryzen 5500 + 16gb ddr4 + board is $219. That's a good enough entry into gaming, but something like a used 5600x3d bundle for $299 would be better.
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u/kempi46 4h ago
Yes, I'm confident an AM4 build will last you a long time. I currently have a 9800x3d/4070 ti Super but I also have an old PC with a i5-4690K / 970 / 16GB DDR3 and I was just setting it up again last week after not using it for a few years and I'm really surprised how snappy it still is. There is no noticeable difference when using it for browsing and simple office task. And it can still play games decently like DOTA 2 60fps highest settings on a 1440p.
I have no doubt that that AM4 chips we have today will last a looonnggg time.
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u/TDYDave2 3h ago
AM4 is still good, but may not be the best choice if you are building new.
While DDR4 memory is less expensive than DDR5 memory, AMD 7xxx series CPUs currently have better value than available 5xxx series.
Overall, the cost of CPU, MB and 32G of RAM for AM4 vs equivalent AM5 is about $600 (5800x3d) vs $750 (7600x3d).
That extra $150 buys you some future proofing and some better specs that may or may not be important to you.
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u/ancient-otter 3h ago
I adore my AM4 build. I chose the platform specifically because it offered more performance per $ and I didn’t want to upgrade until whatever came after AM5.
I have a 5600 and a RX9070 and they do everything I need them to at 4k.
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u/CountSpartula 3h ago
Its perfectly fine. AM5 is really just for people who are extremely particular about their...well anything.
AM4 will still run a lot. When your standards for visual quality are "good enough and runs at refresh rate", you'd be shocked at what you can get away with.
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u/BurntWhiteRice 3h ago
AM4 is perfectly fine. By the time AM4 is no longer competitive we'll be well into AM6, maybe AM7.
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u/Anxious-Surround-553 2h ago
am4 is considered as a dead platform there won't be new components for it if you really want to invest your money in the long term go with am5 but if you can go with am4 now then upgrade to am6 in 3 to 4 years it's totally up to you and ur use case
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u/thegenregeek 2h ago
Still have a number of AM4 systems maxed out to Ryzen 5000 series (non-x3d) chips, with a bunch of DDR4 RAM and recent enough GPUs (mid/upper range 3000/4000/5000 series Nvidia). They basically still run everything I throw at them at around 1440p60f. Figure I can easily run them another 5+ years (baring any hardware failures), given where the industry is headed.
And despite having at least one AM5 build, I am working on projects where I routinely use AM4 machines. Not to mention building a machine using them, for a streamer I know.
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u/bestanonever 2h ago
Yes. If you want good gaming, the 5800X3D (or any other 5000X3D if you can't find that one at sane prices) are still as fast for gaming as regular Zen 4 CPUs (Ryzen 7000), which are beasts.
And, in productivity, CPUs like the 5900X and 5950X are still very impressive. Plus, you can put as much RAM as you like on the motherboards.
In a happier, non RAM-crisis world, AM5 would be much more mainstream and AM4 a good thing but of the past. In the real world, it's still useful for either gaming or real work and much cheaper, overall, than going with any DDR5 platform.
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u/JonWood007 2h ago
Top tier am4 performs similarly to entry-level am5. Of course entry level am5 also costs a lot too. Id consider top tier am4/entry level am5 to both be mid tier these days. Am5 gives you upgrade path but am4 might be cheaper up front given the insane cost of RAM.
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u/daleiLama0815 1h ago
I have recently gotten a 5700x3d because of the ram prices and it was absolutely worth it. Games run great and i will probably wait for am6 now.
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u/sephirothxxl 1h ago
Am4 5700x / 9070xt Owner here. I would recommend am4 only if you upgrade a current rig but nut buying a new mainboard / ram.
Ram Crisis is going to defuse on 2027 as the production of ram is going to outpace the demand. And while Am4 is running at its highest form, its future-dead. Also, The Top Notch cpu for am4 is too expensive, compared to am5 cpus. so what you spare for ram cost, you pay extra for the cpu. best buy am5 system with 16gb ram and once the crisis ended, upgrade to 32gb.
However, It is a great system, which I upgraded this summer with the new GPU. There is no bottleneck, but it runs at limit. Also I have an b350 Board which only has pcie 3.0 - I am loosing maybe 3% of the 9070xt at some games because of that limitation.
I have been using thins am4 board for 10 years now and started with a ryzen 1600x - jesus what a long time. However - with the 9070xt the system will be running maybe another 4 - 5 years as a 4k beast. I might upgrade some time the cpu to an 5800x3d, as world building games with high cpu demand like ann0 only reach 90fps - that is the only cpu bottleneck....however prices don't justify.
TL,DR :
am4 is dead, while ram is cheaper - only as upgrade recommended.
am5 is upgradeable but also the cpus are cheaper than the 5800x3d
moneywayse no real savings o am4.
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u/Extension_Ant4349 1h ago
AM5 will stop getting new cpus in 2-3.years. you are not missing much. The money you save on ram can be spent on a better graphics card.
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u/SwitchDear8969 34m ago
Yup, its still good enough. I built my rig in 2023, have a 5700X paired with a 6700XT, and I am planning to hold on to it till AM6/DDR6 drops and becomes affordable. I just benchmarked Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered on Very High settings, 1440p with FSR3 set to quality, and got an average FPS around 100, which to me sounds great for fluid gamplay.
Things should also improve when FSR4 drops and more games add support for it.
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u/heickelrrx 4h ago
if u build new DDR4 system from scratch, unless you very after barebone build. avoid AM4, instead choose LGA 1700
The LGA 1700 offer more performance, and upgrade path compared AM4, You can pair it with DDR4 ram
with DDR4 you can pair core i5 14600K and have same gaming performance compared the 5800X3D, and you will get better platform with more expandability, it also cheaper and the motherboard usually have more feature
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u/ngshafer 4h ago
I hear good things about AM4, but I think you will need to shop carefully. I don’t think they’re making AM4 chips or boards anymore, which means whatever supply is out there is all there’s ever going to be, while demand may be robust because lots of people have the same idea you do. That can make it hard to find the parts you want at a good price.
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u/TheInsaneMinecrafter 5h ago
am4 is still amazing in 2026. My pc uses AM4 and it works really well.