My First PC Build – Intel vs AMD for Work and Gaming

[Bobaganoosh]

Made two slight changes to JustBenching's list for some memory with tighter timings that is low profile to make sure it doesn't interfere with the big air cooler and a subjectively nicer looking case. Case is mostly preference if it has the features you're looking for. This one looks a little closer to the 802 you started with aesthetically, but still set up for lots of airflow.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core Ultra 7 265K 3.9 GHz 20-Core Processor (€403.99 @ Caseking)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 SE 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler (€49.89 @ Caseking)
Motherboard: Gigabyte Z890 AORUS ELITE WIFI7 ATX LGA1851 Motherboard (€289.95 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws S5 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory (€209.22 @ Galaxus)
Storage: Samsung 990 Pro 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive (€142.89 @ Alternate)
Video Card: Gigabyte WINDFORCE OC GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER 16 GB Video Card (€846.99 @ notebooksbilliger.de)
Case: NZXT H7 Flow (2024) ATX Mid Tower Case (€109.90 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Power Supply: MSI MAG A850GL PCIE5 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply (€104.60 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Total: €2157.43
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-11-27 17:05 CET+0100

 

[nomdeplume]

Unsure if you can get Klevv or a few other brands in DE so I left a few spots blank. This was just for fun anyways to offer an alternative path.

https://de.pcpartpicker.com/list/pHcV6Q

 

[phanbuey]

Unsure if you can get Klevv or a few other brands in DE so I left a few spots blank. This was just for fun anyways to offer an alternative path.

https://de.pcpartpicker.com/list/pHcV6Q

This is a really nice build for the money. Might drop the board to a Z690 tho - MSI PRO - A even.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 7900 3.6 GHz 12-Core Processor (€334.89 @ Proshop)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 SE ARGB 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler (€50.89 @ Caseking)
Motherboard: MSI PRO B650-S WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard (€139.99 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance RGB 48 GB (2 x 24 GB) DDR5-6000 CL36 Memory (€154.90 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Storage: Western Digital Black SN770 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive (€99.99 @ SanDisk)
Video Card: Gigabyte WINDFORCE V2 GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER 16 GB Video Card (€1049.00 @ Computeruniverse)
Case: Phanteks XT PRO ULTRA ATX Mid Tower Case (€85.89 @ Caseking)
Power Supply: FSP Group Hydro K Pro ATX3.0 850 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply (€76.90 @ Alza)
Total: €1992.45
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-11-27 18:35 CET+0100

OR:

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i9-12900KF 3.2 GHz 16-Core Processor (€291.90 @ Alza)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 SE ARGB 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler (€50.89 @ Caseking)
Motherboard: MSI B760 GAMING PLUS WIFI ATX LGA1700 Motherboard (€144.38 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Memory: Kingston FURY Beast RGB 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6000 CL36 Memory (€189.90 @ Alza)
Storage: Western Digital WD_Black SN850X 4 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive (€246.99 @ Alternate)
Video Card: Gigabyte WINDFORCE V2 GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER 16 GB Video Card (€1049.00 @ Computeruniverse)
Case: Phanteks XT PRO ULTRA ATX Mid Tower Case (€85.89 @ Caseking)
Power Supply: FSP Group Hydro K Pro ATX3.0 850 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply (€76.90 @ Alza)
Total: €2135.85
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-11-27 18:26 CET+0100

Switched both to 4080 Super.

 

[nomdeplume]

This is a really nice build for the money. Might drop the board to a Z690 tho - MSI PRO - A even.

Not really sure where the slightly above average point with Adobe is that would deliver proficiency. Or if 12th gen would be better paired with Z690. Meaning I'm not sure if one of their programs equates with theoretically running a single benchmark. Or can vary widely enough to require balancing numerous theoretical benchmark to simulate numerous hard shifts across a unique workflow.

I do know that money invested in full system cooling (case and all fans working as a whole) gives a true baseline for any performance regardless of gen or manufacturer. Everything runs hot nowadays under full load. Reactivity and lowered stress across the full range of system components has come to the fore.

 

[Waldorf]

@phanbuey
so upgrade to 4080S , but a bronze psu, on a 2000E rig?

 

[phanbuey]

@phanbuey
so upgrade to 4080S , but a bronze psu, on a 2000E rig?

If you're min-maxing performance on a budget a Bronze PSU is fine -- not the best choice, but i would take it to fit in a 4080S.

You could probably find better options in that price range.

 

[hmn888]

Thanks guys! I’ll consider every tip and recommendation. I didn’t think I could fit a 4080 Super into my 2K budget Is it true that the WINDFORCE V2 and V3 editions from Gigabyte are really loud and have cooling issues?

 

[azrael]

Do you have personal experience with this, or do you own one of the 13th or 14th generation CPUs? If so, how are the temperatures and core clocks for you?

I do not have personal experience with Intel's 13th and 14th generation . I do, however, have experience with memory errors which is why I would never again buy/build a system which isn't capable of handling ECC memory. Even if I wouldn't use my system for both work and gaming. Now, ECC support, as it is on consumer platforms, isn't the be-all and end-all but at the very least you will be informed that an error has occurred, if it cannot be fixed. I'd prefer that any day over "silent" memory errors which you will only realize the consequences of later on.

 

[phanbuey]

I do not have personal experience with Intel's 13th and 14th generation . I do, however, have experience with memory errors which is why I would never again buy/build a system which isn't capable of handling ECC memory. Even if I wouldn't use my system for both work and gaming. Now, ECC support, as it is on consumer platforms, isn't the be-all and end-all but at the very least you will be informed that an error has occurred, if it cannot be fixed. I'd prefer that any day over "silent" memory errors which you will only realize the consequences of later on.

What happened, if you don't mind me asking?

 

[Aken Bosch]

Do you have personal experience with this, or do you own one of the 13th or 14th generation CPUs? If so, how are the temperatures and core clocks for you?

Thank you for your recommendation. Do Kingston SSDs have good quality? I keep hearing mixed opinions. I’ve personally been using a Samsung 860 for almost 6 years, and I’m very satisfied with it, which is why I went with Samsung again. Unfortunately, due to CUDA, I have to stick with Nvidia, as it offers better performance for my work, but it’s noticeably more expensive.

Yeah, Kingston had some issues with the NV series (low end SSD's). My system has the KC3000 2TB in it for almost 2 years now and it's the most hammered of all of' em (check my sig for all the components).

Also, I run a 13600K@5.4/4.3 (base is 5.1/3.9) 24/7, but that's an i5, not 13700K or 14700K so your mileage may vary regarding stability and degradation issues (0x12b update of course). Temps are at most 82 degrees full load with 24 ambient, in games around 55-60, desktop 35-38 ( Celsius ).

The Core Ultra platform...well, not quite sure what to say except that at the moment it has some weird bugs and I don't have the feeling you want to be a beta tester with your system .

Either way, remember - don't skimp on the PSU.

My 2c. Best of luck

 

[phanbuey]

Thanks guys! I’ll consider every tip and recommendation. I didn’t think I could fit a 4080 Super into my 2K budget Is it true that the WINDFORCE V2 and V3 editions from Gigabyte are really loud and have cooling issues?

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 7900 3.6 GHz 12-Core Processor ($417.32 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 SE ARGB 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler ($35.90 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI PRO B650-S WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance RGB 48 GB (2 x 24 GB) DDR5-6000 CL36 Memory ($149.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Black SN770 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($112.44 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Zotac GAMING Trinity GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER 16 GB Video Card ($1019.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Phanteks XT PRO ULTRA ATX Mid Tower Case ($74.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair RM850e (2023) 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($104.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $2045.60
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-11-27 17:55 EST-0500

Zotac trinity and corsair Gold modular PSU.

If there have been reports of the windforce having issues best to just bypass them altogether. Last time I used a windforce was the 2080ti and that did, in fact have cooling issues and I ended up replacing the fans - prior to that I had a 1080ti windforce that was fine so might be a coinflip there.

 

[JustBenching]

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 7900 3.6 GHz 12-Core Processor ($417.32 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 SE ARGB 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler ($35.90 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI PRO B650-S WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance RGB 48 GB (2 x 24 GB) DDR5-6000 CL36 Memory ($149.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Black SN770 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($112.44 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Zotac GAMING Trinity GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER 16 GB Video Card ($1019.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Phanteks XT PRO ULTRA ATX Mid Tower Case ($74.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair RM850e (2023) 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($104.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $2045.60
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-11-27 17:55 EST-0500

Zotac trinity and corsair Gold modular PSU.

If there have been reports of the windforce having issues best to just bypass them altogether. Last time I used a windforce was the 2080ti and that did, in fact have cooling issues and I ended up replacing the fans - prior to that I had a 1080ti windforce that was fine so might be a coinflip there.

I completely disagree with the CPU though, 265k is cheaper and faster in everything - including the iGPU that works for adobe as well.

 

[eidairaman1]

Yawn

 

[phanbuey]

I completely disagree with the CPU though, 265k is cheaper and faster in everything - including the iGPU that works for adobe as well.

I've not heard great things about it and the platform is way too expensive for what you get - the only boards right now are z890 ~290-350 eur and you really want high end ram for these or they game like turds.

My list flipped to america here is the german one, this processor is cheaper than the 265k:
PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 7900 3.6 GHz 12-Core Processor (€334.89 @ Proshop)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 SE ARGB 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler (€50.89 @ Caseking)
Motherboard: MSI PRO B650-S WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard (€149.00 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance RGB 48 GB (2 x 24 GB) DDR5-6000 CL36 Memory (€154.90 @ Galaxus)
Storage: Western Digital Black SN770 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive (€99.99 @ SanDisk)
Video Card: Zotac GAMING Trinity GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER 16 GB Video Card (€1036.99 @ Alternate)
Case: Phanteks XT PRO ULTRA ATX Mid Tower Case (€85.89 @ Caseking)
Power Supply: Corsair RM850e (2023) 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply (€109.90 @ Alternate)
Total: €2022.45
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-11-28 06:00 CET+0100

This rig with a 4080Super will beat a 265K rig with a 4070ti super pretty badly in gaming, and should still be more than serviceable for workstation, also has an upgrade path to zen 5/6 /x3d. Should last a good deal longer before the GPU becomes a major issue.

I don't know what Intel is doing with their e-core scheduler nonesense but it's becoming pretty obvious they're not going to sort it out anytime soon.

 

[JustBenching]

I've not heard great things about it and the platform is way too expensive for what you get - the only boards right now are z890 ~290-350 eur and you really want high end ram for these or they game like turds.

Common misconception that people have - its not really true. TPU tested the 265k with 6000 ram (which is considered slow for the platform) - performed pretty much like zen 4 in games. Not that it matters since it's 720p / 4090.

https://tpucdn.com/review/intel-core-ultra-9-285k/images/average-fps-1280-720.png

But yeah indeed, in germany prices are wildly different to US, what the hell.

I’ve noticed that this specific motherboard is about €100 more expensive than the ones I’ve looked at so far. What makes it better than the others? I’ve read about a board for AMD chips that was otherwise great, but it had very slow loading times. Is this always the case with relatively cheaper boards?

Well if you compare the one I linked to the one you linked, there are major differences. Whether you are going to use the extra features is an entire different story and only you know that, but for example

MSI has 3 m2 slots vs 4 for the gigabyte (not a big deal unless you plan on using them

MSI has no heatsinks on the m2s besides the primary one, gigabyte has heatsinks on all of them. Not a huge deal but eg. my 970 pro that is installed without a heatsink hits 97C under heavy load. Definitely not great

MSI has worse VRMS, not a huge deal I guess

But for connectivity, just compare their backplates and youll immediately notice the difference

Spoiler: MSI

Spoiler: Gigabyte

View attachment 2000.webp

 

[lexluthermiester]

Hello everyone,
I’m planning to build my first PC and have put together two parts lists while waiting for good deals.
The PC will be primarily used for work with Adobe programs (especially After Effects) and some 3D work.
I also enjoy gaming, so I want to build a system that can handle both tasks efficiently.
I’m undecided between an AMD or Intel CPU. I’m leaning towards Intel since I’ve always used Intel processors.
However, I’ve heard a lot about issues with the latest 13th and 14th generation Intel CPUs. Are these issues resolved now?
Can I confidently build a stable system with Intel after applying BIOS updates and undervolting?
I haven’t found much solid information on this, and most discussions are either “Intel is bad” or “AMD is the better choice.”
I would love to hear from experienced people about their thoughts on this. Also, I’d appreciate any feedback on the rest of
the components in my build. Below are the two parts lists I’ve put together. My budget is around 2,000 Euros.

Intel System:​

https://de.pcpartpicker.com/list/rq26sp

• CPU: Intel Core i7-14700K 3.4 GHz 20-Core Processor
• CPU Cooler: be quiet! Pure Loop 2 Liquid CPU Cooler
• Motherboard: MSI PRO Z790-P WIFI ATX LGA1700
• Memory: Corsair Vengeance 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30
• Storage: Samsung 980 Pro 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 NVMe
• Video Card: Gigabyte WINDFORCE OC GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER 16 GB
• Case: be quiet! Silent Base 802 ATX Mid Tower
• Power Supply: MSI MAG A850GL PCIE5 850 W 80+ Gold Fully Modular

AMD System:​

https://de.pcpartpicker.com/list/R4LdXR

• CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 7900X 4.7 GHz 12-Core Processor
• CPU Cooler: be quiet! Pure Loop 2 Liquid CPU Cooler
• Motherboard: MSI B650 GAMING PLUS WIFI ATX AM5
• Memory: Corsair Vengeance 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30
• Storage: Samsung 980 Pro 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 NVMe
• Video Card: Gigabyte WINDFORCE OC GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER 16 GB
• Case: be quiet! Silent Base 802 ATX Mid Tower
• Power Supply: MSI MAG A850GL PCIE5 850 W 80+ Gold Fully Modular

Which system would you recommend based on a balance of gaming and productivity?
Also, if you have any insights on the CPU choice or potential issues with either, I would love to hear them.
Thanks in advance for your help!

Both of those lists are top notch. Either is going to serve you well. So it's just a matter of which one you'd rather have or maybe which one cost the least when you go to buy.

 

[Dr. Dro]

PCPartPicker Part List: https://de.pcpartpicker.com/list/p8PHh7

CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 9950X 4.3 GHz 16-Core Processor  (€704.89 @ Proshop)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler  (€40.21 @ Galaxus)
Motherboard: Gigabyte X870E AORUS ELITE WIFI7 ATX AM5 Motherboard  (€313.00 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Memory: Crucial Pro Overclocking 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL36 Memory  (€78.98 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Storage: Western Digital Blue SN580 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive  (€92.99 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Video Card: Zotac GAMING Trinity GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER 16 GB Video Card  (€828.77 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Power Supply: MSI MAG A750GL PCIE5 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  (€102.22 @ Galaxus)
Total: €2161.06
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-11-28 06:48 CET+0100

This is what I would be looking at on that budget. It's slightly above that, but should have good performance in Resolve, solid creative software support and will still perform admirably in games. Left the case out as this is a very personal choice and I wouldn't want to cramp your style

If your emphasis is gaming, replace the 4070 Ti Super with the RX 7900 XTX at that price range. It will perform closer to the 4080 in most games, so you'll have better performance per dollar euro in games, although you won't have the same reliable experience in the work side. The GeForce is much better supported for productivity.

 

[azrael]

I do not have personal experience with Intel's 13th and 14th generation . I do, however, have experience with memory errors which is why I would never again buy/build a system which isn't capable of handling ECC memory. Even if I wouldn't use my system for both work and gaming. Now, ECC support, as it is on consumer platforms, isn't the be-all and end-all but at the very least you will be informed that an error has occurred, if it cannot be fixed. I'd prefer that any day over "silent" memory errors which you will only realize the consequences of later on.

It was as simple as a faulty memory module. Quite a few years back I chanced it with some standard non-ECC RAM, since ECC (or Parity) RAM was prohibitively expensive. Only some time later did I discover corrupted data on my HDD. Talked to my retailer and got the RAM replaced with ECC RAM with a good discount because they were sorry for my troubles. After that, no more memory corruption.

 

[Ferrum Master]

The info lacks information. Basically everyone recommends a gaming rig, but not even have faint idea what after effects are.

That thing can eat up over 256GB of RAM.

What is your workflow, plugins, how large the scenes are? Same with 3D, some large Blender projects cannot be even run with 64GB of RAM, it will crash.

It is a serious demand, if you want a gaming rig, then okay, but work related? Different approach, you need as much cores you can, and preferably Nvidia CUDA and a lot of RAM.

 

[Dr. Dro]

The info lacks information. Basically everyone recommends a gaming rig, but not even have faint idea what after effects are.

That thing can eat up over 256GB of RAM.

What is your workflow, plugins, how large the scenes are? Same with 3D, some large Blender projects cannot be even run with 64GB of RAM, it will crash.

It is a serious demand, if you want a gaming rig, then okay, but work related? Different approach, you need as much cores you can, and preferably Nvidia CUDA and a lot of RAM.

True, the OP hasn't made it clear what skill level and project complexity involved. But a 32/64 GB RAM desktop should be able to handle small to medium sized projects. This is important information so we can guide you the best @hmn888. What formats, resolution, application, will there be complex scene edits, etc.

 

[DaemonForce]

Skill level, project complexity, whatever. I run under the assumption that any system ~16GB is a modern day minimum built to handle that memory reasonably well. Scaling up to 32GB is like high thread mid-dollar workstation that gets loaded with everything needed to get the job done. 64GB+ is just max DIMMs for most of us including myself. If you really want to make proper use of it, load up on high core count and high core clock. It's basically HEDT.

 

[hmn888]

Common misconception that people have - its not really true. TPU tested the 265k with 6000 ram (which is considered slow for the platform) - performed pretty much like zen 4 in games. Not that it matters since it's 720p / 4090.

https://tpucdn.com/review/intel-core-ultra-9-285k/images/average-fps-1280-720.png

But yeah indeed, in germany prices are wildly different to US, what the hell.


Well if you compare the one I linked to the one you linked, there are major differences. Whether you are going to use the extra features is an entire different story and only you know that, but for example

MSI has 3 m2 slots vs 4 for the gigabyte (not a big deal unless you plan on using them

MSI has no heatsinks on the m2s besides the primary one, gigabyte has heatsinks on all of them. Not a huge deal but eg. my 970 pro that is installed without a heatsink hits 97C under heavy load. Definitely not great

MSI has worse VRMS, not a huge deal I guess

But for connectivity, just compare their backplates and youll immediately notice the difference

Spoiler: MSI

View attachment 373593

Spoiler: Gigabyte

View attachment 373596

Thank you! That already explains a lot. I’m checking out every offer and recommendation. Since I still have many gaps in knowledge, I really appreciate every tip and piece of advice.

 

[hmn888]

The info lacks information. Basically everyone recommends a gaming rig, but not even have faint idea what after effects are.

That thing can eat up over 256GB of RAM.

What is your workflow, plugins, how large the scenes are? Same with 3D, some large Blender projects cannot be even run with 64GB of RAM, it will crash.

It is a serious demand, if you want a gaming rig, then okay, but work related? Different approach, you need as much cores you can, and preferably Nvidia CUDA and a lot of RAM.

Exactly, that’s the point! I’m more focused on productive work. After Effects makes up about 60% of what I use, followed by the rest of the Adobe programs. For 3D, I’m currently working on smaller scenes, so 64GB of RAM is still sufficient for now. I might upgrade later. Gaming is more of a hobby, but I still want a good experience with it. In the future I might also get into streaming as a passion.

These are my requirements and priorities. After a lot of research, I’m still of the opinion that Intel is better for productive work despite everything. However 90% of reviews and people in forums strongly advise against Intel chips due to their lack of quality and the risks of degradation over time, where they could eventually fail completely.

 

[hmn888]

True, the OP hasn't made it clear what skill level and project complexity involved. But a 32/64 GB RAM desktop should be able to handle small to medium sized projects. This is important information so we can guide you the best @hmn888. What formats, resolution, application, will there be complex scene edits, etc.

The thing is, After Effects can and will eat up 80% of your RAM, whether it's a medium-sized or a very large project. I can see this on my work PC with 128GB of RAM. My projects range from medium to large, sometimes purely graphical and sometimes involving a lot of 4K footage.

3D is mostly secondary but still a priority, and I might do more UE5 projects in the future as well. In After Effects I use a lot of expressions (basically lite JavaScript commands) that make my workflow much easier, but they are very CPU-intensive because AE is so poorly optimized.

 

[Ferrum Master]

The thing is, After Effects can and will eat up 80% of your RAM, whether it's a medium-sized or a very large project. I can see this on my work PC with 128GB of RAM. My projects range from medium to large, sometimes purely graphical and sometimes involving a lot of 4K footage.

3D is mostly secondary but still a priority, and I might do more UE5 projects in the future as well. In After Effects I use a lot of expressions (basically lite JavaScript commands) that make my workflow much easier, but they are very CPU-intensive because AE is so poorly optimized.

It seems you are no beginner, 128GB is a must for you then, what's the point buying if it ain't future proof.

Well, keep in mind, the RAM amount is per worker, some have pretty weird comments here, basically you usually split the amount of RAM per CPU thread it has. For example when I compile stuff with -j32, some things fail because 1GB per thread is not enough. Same applies to Blender on other things. If you have less cores, like under 16, you can manage with 64GB, but if you gun for more, then go 128GB, there is no way around for Adobe AF. At least there is no Intel dominance anymore and it responds to brute core count, so, you have to count time here. How the time on processing will speed up your earnings, basically PC gets occupied on doing stuff, with more cores it will be faster and you will earn more money, GPU is not that important for you here take any nvidia card with at least 16GB of vRAM don't look at 8GB variants, also 10 and 12, because you might use GPU assisted rendering it also likes a lot of vRAM, it eats whole 24GB on 7900XTX like nothing, then pick your tier, CPU/RAM is more important, 14700k is roughly the same as 9950X in AF, 285K will be a bit faster there, but it depends more on your cooling in reality. On internet you will mostly see fast dirty benches, nobody cares how it acts after like few hours of rendering. It depends really how much you intend to work home, so you can look into highest core count CPUs. Be prepared that it may be problematic to make 128GB of RAM run. So if anything buy so you can return it fast and switch around those. It does not matter if you pick AMD or Intel for this task. For gaming currently there only is one CPU choice and that's it, but not in your case.