Question / Help Building pc -help please

J

Jamiedransfield

New Member
Hi all,
I’m building a new pc soon.
currently on a intel compute stick with atom z8300.
I have done a couple of streams with obs so far with “meh” results using igpu for encoding (not gaming, just a livestream from home with an ip camera)
I know - it’s like bringing a plastic fork to a gun fight!

anywho, I’m going to build a new compact pc with some upgradability in mind. Although Im on a budget, I want to do this right.
I’m looking at processor options and would love some thoughts or opinions please.
My options at present are:
ryzen 3400g
I5 9400 (or 10400?)
ryzen 3600 + gpu

Will the top two processors with igpus be sufficient to run obs, an ip camera and either webcam or capture card with external camera, or should I just go the 3600?

If I go 3600, would I need a decent gpu eg gtx1660 super orwill anything do (should I use software or nvenc for encoding?)

Thanks for all input in advance, looking forward to building this new pc, I know it’ll be leagues above my current pc.
 
As much as I love the concept of being able to do everything without needing a GPU, and how powerful the AMD APUs are, I honestly can't recommend the 3400g as a viable option currently for this purpose. The main reason is that the APU can't really be relied on for encoding -- it does not have a dedicated encoding pipeline, and the quality from the AMF encoder is very poor compared to other options. On top of that, with the 3400g being only a 4-core chip on 2nd gen Ryzen, it doesn't have the necessary power to reliably do x264 encoding for the current (gaming) target of 1080p60 or even 720p60 reliably. However, for your purpose, if you're only targeting something like 720p30, then this should do the job nicely.

The intel chip(s) have the upper hand here, based purely on the fact that they have QuickSync. While it's not going to match the quality that could be achieved using x264, you are at least nearly guaranteed to be able to encode even 1080p60 with ease as long as you're not gaming at the same time on it (which as you've said, you won't be).

The wrench in this whole situation is AMD's 4000 line of APUs which are rumored to drop around October this year (to be taken with a MASSIVE grain of salt). This is promising a Zen 2 8-core chip, with the Vega 8 integrated graphics, which would absolutely allow for 1080p60 x264 encoding and handling all scene rendering necessary. The catch is, anyone planning to upgrade to this later on needs to be on an x570 or b550 (as yet unreleased, still) motherboard.

Obvoiusly, the CPU+GPU option would get you everything you need to do and more, but if all you're intending to do is the webcam-only purpose, then as of right now, honestly the intel route is the better option, just because quicksync is something you can rely on for this purpose.
 
Ok thanks, I’ll dig into it some more. Mabey I’ll go a gtx1660 paired with an intel 9400f or ryzen 5 3600. If I go ryzen I will wait for b550 so that it is upgradable (hopefully) for a few years.
TLDR is 6 cores better than four I’m guessing?
 
If you're going to be doing x264 encoding, yes... the more cores, the better (up to a point, which you definitely aren't reaching).

Btw, if you're getting a GPU dedicated just for encoding, then the cheapest GPU with the best encoder right now is the gtx 1650 super (not the plain 1650, or the 1650ti). The quality from the nvenc encoder is on par with x264 medium or better, and it allows you to take the majority of the load off your CPU, meaning you could get away with just whatever is necessary to handle the devices you're connecting.
 
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