First computer build for my son

[Papa.Ours]

Hello fellows!

I took an arrow to the knee and now my son is old enough to get his first computer!
He especially asked me to build it with him so it's a nice project.
Won't need to buy anything because I got everything in stock so here's the list:

Screen : LG Flatron 22 inches
Cheap RGB keyboard-mouse combo
Case : Chenming Cube with foldable handle
Motherboard : Asus A88XM-A
CPU : AMD A10-6700
Memory : 16 gigs DDR3 (4x4GB 12800U)
Hard disk : WD Black 750 gigs 64m cache 7200rpm
Antec EarthWatts EA-430D Green 430 Watt 80 PLUS BRONZE

Eventually I will try to upgrade and put a GPU so here's my questions :

1- What is the best GPU that could still run on Windows 7 Home Premium that I could put in there without overkilling it and not upgrading anything else than the PSU?
I have a stronger PSU (750 watts) but it will be overkill for this build for now.

2- This motherboard says on box Windows 8.1 ready but I want to stick to Win 7 as I wrote so will there be any issues? Safety of operating system won't be an issue because he won't be connected to internet. I will teach him playing older FPS games on CD/DVD like Call of duty 1, BF2, etc.

3- Any advices are welcome!

Thank you

 

[A Computer Guy]

This AMD page for Windows 7 Drivers suggests some GPU's that will work with Windows 7. I'm not sure if it's the newest (or last) working Windows 7 driver.

https://www.amd.com/en/resources/support-articles/release-notes/RN-RAD-WIN-22-6-1-WIN7.html

On the list it amazingly shows RX 6000 support (I was surprised by that) so you may have some fairly modern options to choose from like the RX 6400 (uses bus power) to the RX 6600XT (uses PCIe power). For the cards that require PCIe power you will need to check their power cable requirements and if your PSU provides those cables. Also perhaps look at power usage figures for cards. There are reviews here on TPU with those figures so you can get an idea which cards will fit in the power limits of your PSU.

I have no idea how compatible these will be with your games so going too new might not be the best idea. Maybe two generations behind like RX 500 series but those are getting rare to find in stores. I saw one at best buy the RX 580 still for sale under $200.

Perhaps someone here will suggest Nvidia options which I would certainly consider too.

I don't have enough knowledge on this older AMD platform you have planned to use for gaming so I would defiantly wait for more opinions.

You might want to list more of the games that will be used to help with feedback.

 

[Hyderz]

all is fine but i would just not put a hdd in that machine a 512gb sata ssd is very cheap these days...

 

[arbiter]

I have no idea how compatible these will be with your games so going too new might not be the best idea. Maybe two generations behind like RX 500 series but those are getting rare to find in stores. I saw one at best buy the RX 580 still for sale under $200.

I would say nvidia gtx1650 as its 75watts so should make sure you stay well under that 400watt psu limit as not sure what kinda headroom you have for 160$ . RX 580 in reviews pulls around 200watts so that could be an issue. (all power numbers are from reviews on TPU). Probably are other AMD option's some could point out.

Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1650 OC GDDR6 Review - Faster Memory Helps?

We put NVIDIA's new GTX 1650 GDDR6 to the test. The upgraded memory offers a +50% bandwidth increase, which definitely helps make up some ground against the GTX 1650 Super and RX 5500 XT. Since Gigabyte installed 14 Gbps chips and clocked them lower, memory OC works really well, too.

www.techpowerup.com

MSI Radeon RX 580 Mech 2 8 GB Review

Today, we have for review the new MSI Radeon RX 580 Mech 2, which is an overclocked custom design variant of the RX 580. It comes with a dual-slot cooler and delivers excellent noise levels that match the quietest RX 580 cards. Overclocking is great, too; we reached 1540 MHz.

www.techpowerup.com

 

[DarkDreams]

This AMD page for Windows 7 Drivers suggests some GPU's that will work with Windows 7. I'm not sure if it's the newest (or last) working Windows 7 driver.

https://www.amd.com/en/resources/support-articles/release-notes/RN-RAD-WIN-22-6-1-WIN7.html

On the list it amazingly shows RX 6000 support (I was surprised by that) so you may have some fairly modern options to choose from like the RX 6400 (uses bus power) to the RX 6600XT (uses PCIe power). For the cards that require PCIe power you will need to check their power cable requirements and if your PSU provides those cables. Also perhaps look at power usage figures for cards. There are reviews here on TPU with those figures so you can get an idea which cards will fit in the power limits of your PSU.

I have no idea how compatible these will be with your games so going too new might not be the best idea. Maybe two generations behind like RX 500 series but those are getting rare to find in stores. I saw one at best buy the RX 580 still for sale under $200.

Perhaps someone here will suggest Nvidia options which I would certainly consider too.

I don't have enough knowledge on this older AMD platform you have planned to use for gaming so I would defiantly wait for more opinions.

You might want to list more of the games that will be used to help with feedback.

One important warning for your suggested RX 6000 options:
The CPU OP has in the system only supports PCIe 2.0 and the lower tier 6000 series cards have cut down on PCIe lanes (6400 especially with only 4 lanes) which would impose severe bandwidth limitations. Not sure how relevant that would be considering the CPU will limit performance anyway, but I wouldn't recommend the 6400 if it was the last card on the shelf xD
As for Nvidia options I think a 1050 TI, 1060 or 1650 might be decent options, though the 10 year old CPU probably has no shot of keeping up with any somewhat modern GPU
For AMD I would consider the RX 470/480/570/580 as equivalent options

 

[P4-630]

Just so you know:...

Steam Support :: Windows 7 and Windows 8 Support. As of January 1 2024, Steam stopped supporting the Windows 7,
Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 operating systems.
Existing Steam Client installations on these operating systems will no longer receive updates of any kind including security updates.

 

[wNotyarD]

An A10-6700 paired with a dGPU shouldn't perform too far from a Sandy i3. That gives at least some "not bad" performance on old (up to 2015-16?) titles with a reasonable card.

I have no idea how's the pricing for used cards, but under a 430W PSU I guess I could recommend looking for a GTX1060 (ideally a 6GB) or any GTX16-series (1650 up to 1660Ti). That would give a reasonable oomph without suffering from bus suffocation like a RX6400 would.

If the computer will stay offline, then I guess Win 7 may run just fine.

 

[Chrispy_]

Windows 7 was officially killed in January 2020, which means that any GPU already on the market by that point should have functioning Windows 7 drivers you can download.

This means

• any GTX 1600-series will work
• any RTX 20-series will work
• any RX 5000-series will work

If you're willing to change the PSU you're not limited by the power draw of the GPU, so you can use anything from that list (or older). If you want to make do with the Antec 430W PSU, I would stick to a graphics card that uses less than 150W (so one 6-pin PCIe power connector at most). The most powerful Geforce that meets those requirements is going to be a GTX 1660 Super or the older GTX 1070. On the Radeon side, a 5500XT is your best bet, and is about 25% slower but also sells for much less than the Geforce cards, so worth looking for.

 

[dgianstefani]

1050 Ti or 1650 are only real options here.

3050 would be way out of budget as would 4060, and all the cheap AMD cards pull ~ 200 W with spikes higher.

 

[wNotyarD]

3050 would be way out of budget as would 4060, and all the cheap AMD cards pull ~ 200 W with spikes higher.

The 4060 doesn't even have drivers for Win 7, the 3050 does (474.89 Security Update Driver). Also, I didn't see any budget mentioned so a 3050 (8GB please) is technically the most advanced option viable.

 

[Chrispy_]

One thing worth mentioning is that newer games requiring libraries and redistributables not made for Windows 7 won't run, so there's no point buying too powerful a graphics card because without updating to a modern OS, the OS itself restricts gaming to older titles that will likely run at 1080p 75Hz on relatively modest hardware.

Buying a newer, more powerful GPU will just result in wasted frames or low GPU utilisation in those games. It'll be useful if the PC migrates to an online/updated OS in the near future - but will otherwise be money spent on wasted potential.

 

[wNotyarD]

One thing worth mentioning is that newer games requiring libraries and redistributables not made for Windows 7 won't run, so there's no point buying too powerful a graphics card because without updating to a modern OS, the OS itself restricts gaming to older titles that will likely run at 1080p 75Hz on relatively modest hardware.

Buying a newer, more powerful GPU will just result in wasted frames or low GPU utilisation in those games. It'll be useful if the PC migrates to an online/updated OS in the near future - but will otherwise be money spent on wasted potential.

Win 7 was plenty capable of high refresh rate gaming (let's say in Counter-Strike), but that's something an A10-6700 isn't made for anyway. It is by far the limiting factor. So using a mid-range Pascal or low-end Ampere nets approximately the same result and both should be surplus to the capabilities of the CPU.

 

[QuietBob]

The latest GPUs with Win7 support are the RX6000 series from AMD and the RTX3000 series from Nvidia.

Your PSU can provide a maximum of 204 W on the 12V1 rail. This rail is shared between the GPU and all the other components, except for the CPU. The power supply has a single 6-pin PCIe connector good for 75 W.

In theory, any video card up to RDNA2/Ampere with a single 6-pin power connector can be used with your current setup. But realistically, anything newer than the 1050Ti will be bottlenecked by the CPU -- and Win7 doesn't support dx12 anyway.

I would strongly recommend installing the OS on an SSD, though. Even 64 GB will be enough. You could then use the HDD as a data drive.

Anyway, I'm sure that the PC building process will be a fun experience for you both!

 

[Chrispy_]

I would strongly recommend installing the OS on an SSD, though. Even 64 GB will be enough. You could then use the HDD as a data drive.

Yeah, $20 on Amazon will get you a brand new 256GB Patriot SATA drive that really will be night-and-day difference over running the OS on spinning rust.

 

[QuietBob]

Steam Support :: Windows 7 and Windows 8 Support. As of January 1 2024, Steam stopped supporting the Windows 7,
Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 operating systems.
Existing Steam Client installations on these operating systems will no longer receive updates of any kind including security updates.

Actually, as of today Steam is running fine and still receiving updates on Win7. Even purchased a game through it two days ago.
But that might stop any time without further notice.

 

[JrRacinFan]

RX 580 no doubt. Even one of the Maxsun 2048sp cards would do the trick and tthey are relatively inexpensive.

 

[Neo1729]

Even windows 7 is still receiving updates until october 2024 if you install the esu bypasser 2024 and download them manually.These updates install on windows 7 pro aswell.

Microsoft Update Catalog

And ali express is good for a cheap gpu. I have this exact card on my vm server and it works perfectly. all games before 2018 will work without a hitch.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004543351583.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.main.3.2d3a4bf96jbHsh&algo_pvid=a7daade4-c752-41cd-8697-9843023b3269&algo_exp_id=a7daade4-c752-41cd-8697-9843023b3269-1&pdp_npi=4%40dis%21EUR%2199.22%2199.22%21%21%21102.91%21102.91%21%402103253917135461156464588ee47f%2112000036186711148%21sea%21IE%210%21AB&curPageLogUid=JJ6A8HnLeVPY&utparam-url=scene%3Asearch%7Cquery_from%3A