Want to upgrade RAM and SSD into my newly bought PC Specialist PC

[amdkh]

Hello gaming enthusiasts.

Few days ago I bought my first gaming PC (PC Specialist Tornado R5) from Currys.
Everything is great about it.
I just want to add 8gb RAM and another 500gb SSD to further enhance my experience.
Please advise me on the suitable type of RAM to add to my PC and which SSD to buy.

My PC specs are:

Processor - AMD Ryzen 5 3600 Processor
- Hexa-core
- 3.6 GHz / 4.2 GHz
- 36 MB cache

RAM - 8 GB DDR4 (2400 MHz) manufacturer unknown

Graphics card - NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1660 6 GB

Storage - 1 TB HDD (7200 rpm)
- 256 GB SSD

Motherboard Asus Prime a320m-k (motherboard manual says maximum installable RAM is 32gb, but Currys says its 64gb )



Thanks in advance.

 

[amdkh]

Thanks for your reply and help.

When I install CPU-Z, the RAM and SPD section tells me nothing but the size which is 8 gb.
However, when I opened the sidepanel and looked inside, I saw the RAM as Corsair Vengeance LPX 2400MHz 2x4gb (googled the CM4X no.)
The motherboard has only two slots for RAM so there is little room for expansion (e.g. 2x8gb or 2x16gb).
When I play DOOM Eternal or Bettlefield V, they run smoothly. I think 8 gb RAM is OK for now.
I dont know how smooth the gaming will be when I will try to play the upcoming CyberPunk 2077, or MS Flight Simulator 2020. What do you think?

I have also found out that you should always buy RAM into pairs(2x4gb, 2x8gb) , to effectively utilize dual channel benefit. Is that true?

The SSD however, is a diff. thing. I have 250gb PCIe M.2 SSD (maker unknown) .
I have barely installed three games (50 gb each), and it is 75% full.
I am trying to find a suitable 1 TB M.2 for around 100 pounds. Any suggestions?
I already have a PCIe M.2 drive installed. WilI be able to add another M.2 drive into my motherboard (Asus prime- A230M-K)? I am a little confused on that issue.

As always, thanks in advance for your help and support.
Have a good day and a good week.

 

[Scott]

I would take the PC back to Currys, get a refund from then and then get a custom build system that's more fitting for the budget. I believe that system is £850 and has so many corners cut that you're going to end up replacing almost everything over the next year just to stay current.

The motherboard is probably the biggest restriction that you have. Curry's and the likes will be desperate to get these systems sold to get them off the shelves.

 

[Scott]

As an indication of a build. The below would be night and day better than your current system in every single scenario. If you couple in the £850 you have paid, plus the money you were looking to spend to get it up to snuff just for a base system, my guess is it will be similar.

Case
CORSAIR 275R AIRFLOW TEMPERED GLASS GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 3600 Six Core CPU (3.6GHz-4.2GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B550-PLUS (DDR4, USB 3.2, 6Gb/s) - ARGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
6GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1660 - HDMI, DP - GeForce GTX VR Ready!
1st Storage Drive
1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB ADATA SX6000 Pro PCIe M.2 2280 (2100 MB/R, 1500 MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 550W TXm SERIES™ SEMI-MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Google Chrome™
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Home Installation
NONE
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 11 to 13 working days
Price: £994.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/SdPyCYcuNF/

 

[amdkh]

As an indication of a build. The below would be night and day better than your current system in every single scenario. If you couple in the £850 you have paid, plus the money you were looking to spend to get it up to snuff just for a base system, my guess is it will be similar.

Case
CORSAIR 275R AIRFLOW TEMPERED GLASS GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 3600 Six Core CPU (3.6GHz-4.2GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B550-PLUS (DDR4, USB 3.2, 6Gb/s) - ARGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
6GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1660 - HDMI, DP - GeForce GTX VR Ready!
1st Storage Drive
1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB ADATA SX6000 Pro PCIe M.2 2280 (2100 MB/R, 1500 MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 550W TXm SERIES™ SEMI-MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Google Chrome™
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Home Installation
NONE
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 11 to 13 working days
Price: £994.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/SdPyCYcuNF/

Thanks.
Your advice about the motherboard makes sense.
I bought this computer at a whim, during a random visit to currys. I did little background research. I trusted currys and thier specs listing of every pc and this computer's customer reviews. Currys doesnt include the motherboard name in their specs. listings, but they advertised this pc as "64 gb maximum installable RAM" so I thought I could upgrade the RAM in the future. This motherboard has only two slots for RAM and it will throttle any future upgrade to this computer. Its better to act now fast, rather then rue the missed moments.

Fortunately I have still fours days left of 14 days return for a full refund. Tommorow I will talk to currys customer service and return this computer.

Thanks again for your help and the suggested new custom build. This build will save me a lot of time and effort. I will add 1tb of ssd as primary storage.

 

[amdkh]

Cyberpunk has a minimum requirement of 16GB so it either likely won't play or will be massively bottlenecked by the RAM to the point of unplayableness. I would definitely be looking at 16GB anyway given games are requiring more and more. Unfortunately, you will need to replace both sticks unless you can find a 16GB stick of RAM that will match with what's already in there and replace one of them with that...but it will likely be the same price as just buying 2x8GB sticks. And, yes, RAM is dual channel so works better in pairs...it will work singularly but will be less efficient.

If CPU-Z isn't working, then maybe try this one:

Crucial System Scanner

Download and run, it scans your system and tells you what RAM will be compatible

These are the screenshots of CPU-Z.

This is the screenshot from Crucial scanner

Crucial scan mixes up my HHD and SSD drives.

 

[amdkh]

As an indication of a build. The below would be night and day better than your current system in every single scenario. If you couple in the £850 you have paid, plus the money you were looking to spend to get it up to snuff just for a base system, my guess is it will be similar.

Case
CORSAIR 275R AIRFLOW TEMPERED GLASS GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 3600 Six Core CPU (3.6GHz-4.2GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B550-PLUS (DDR4, USB 3.2, 6Gb/s) - ARGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
6GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1660 - HDMI, DP - GeForce GTX VR Ready!
1st Storage Drive
1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB ADATA SX6000 Pro PCIe M.2 2280 (2100 MB/R, 1500 MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 550W TXm SERIES™ SEMI-MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Google Chrome™
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Home Installation
NONE
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 11 to 13 working days
Price: £994.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/SdPyCYcuNF/

You saved my a lot of future-worry my friend.
Today, I returned my Tornado R5 PC and got a full refund.

The new system config you suggested will serve well in the future (hopefully).
I added a 1tb m.2 ssd and changed the casing. However I have noticed that the wireless card is not included in your configuration. I ave always used my wifi connection.

Additionally, when I try to proceed to order, the website recommends that I downgrade my power supply from 550W to 350W bcoz my system will only need 350W of power at max. This way I will be able to save some money.
What do you suggest I do?

 

[BlessedSquirrel]

That's great, did you have any problems returning it?

However I have noticed that the wireless card is not included in your configuration. I ave always used my wifi connection.

Yes, apologies, completely missed that, would normally recommend the second in the list which I think is £18 or thereabout, it has much more modern support for newer connectivity and speeds.

the website recommends that I downgrade my power supply from 550W to 350W bcoz my system will only need 350W of power at max. This way I will be able to save some money.

You never spec the PSU to the requirements you have at the moment, the whole point with a gaming PC is that it should last 7 - 10 years with upgraded GPU's in that time, perhaps 2 or 3 gpu upgrades. So you account for increased GPU's in the future. TBH, 650W would probably be more appropriate if budget allows given how power hungry the new GPUs are.

 

[AgentCooper]

Would recommend you go for the WiFi card that has the Bluetooth, it’s pretty nippy and well worth the £18.

We’d generally suggest staying with at least the 550w TXm power supply as it’s a superior model, it’s quieter, runs cooler and semi modular so there’s less wires trailing about. As @SpyderTracks says, it’s going to last you longer throughout the lifespan of the system.

 

[amdkh]

That's great, did you have any problems returning it?


Yes, apologies, completely missed that, would normally recommend the second in the list which I think is £18 or thereabout, it has much more modern support for newer connectivity and speeds.


You never spec the PSU to the requirements you have at the moment, the whole point with a gaming PC is that it should last 7 - 10 years with upgraded GPU's in that time, perhaps 2 or 3 gpu upgrades. So you account for increased GPU's in the future. TBH, 650W would probably be more appropriate if budget allows given how power hungry the new GPUs are.

The service rep. asked if there were any issues I faced from the computer and I went off. I told them all about the motherboard and RAM issues, the false advertisement about RAM capacity and the omission of motherboard name from the ads. After that nobody gave me any problems.

As about the PSU and the wireless card, I will def. add both options to my system.

There is one more thing on my mind. For the casing, I would love to illuminate the insides of my cpu, I dont really care about the front ARGB fans. For me, an ARGB fan inside the CPU will be perfect, but that kind of casing is not available on the PCS website.
Any suggestions?

 

[AgentCooper]

Do you mean a RGB fan inside the case? A fan inside the CPU might be a bit tricky! You could also add some RGB lighting strips inside the case. If you post your order specification we could have a look and see what flashy goodness will work for you 👍

 

[Scott]

You saved my a lot of future-worry my friend.
Today, I returned my Tornado R5 PC and got a full refund.

The new system config you suggested will serve well in the future (hopefully).
I added a 1tb m.2 ssd and changed the casing. However I have noticed that the wireless card is not included in your configuration. I ave always used my wifi connection.

Additionally, when I try to proceed to order, the website recommends that I downgrade my power supply from 550W to 350W bcoz my system will only need 350W of power at max. This way I will be able to save some money.
What do you suggest I do?

Which case are you looking at? The one suggested is the lowest I would purchase. For RGB you want to be looking at the TD500 as a minimum IMO. The case is extremely important if you don't want this one also sounding like a Tornado

With regards to the Wifi, I only omitted it to keep the price down as low as possible for the op. The standard wifi is dire so always opt for the AX200 where the option is available