Need advice on new Star Citizen computatin' contraption, also a PSA

[Carlos Spicyweiner]

First the PSA: In early March, I was forced by the microsoft gestapo to "update" my 5 year old MSI/Cooler Master computer. It wasn't much, but it ran SC 3.8 and DCS at a decent FPS. After the update, I started getting this nagging little message in the corner that said "windows is not activated". Being the computer genius I am, I said "hey, windows is working, how can it not be activated? Duh" Soon after, I began to get blue screens of death, error messages, and diagnostic routines that could not be completed. Soon after that, windows would not start at all. I went to the MS website to see if their eggheads had a fix and wondering if my situation was unique. It was not. By a long shot. Good news was the eggheads had a "simple fix" that actually read like a combination of instructions to set the clock on a VCR and the pre-flight checklist for an SR-71 Blackbird. I tried my best, but my trusty computer is now being used as a coffee cup/beer holder(CD drive still opens and closes). The rest of it is a brick. Be careful allowing those "cumulative updates" from Microsoft!

Now I need some advice: Is there a noticeable difference between the Intel and AMD stuff? Is a 240GB SSD big enough to run Star Citizen, DCS, solitaire and candy crush?(go ahead and laugh, solitaire and candy crush is the only thing I've been playing for 2 months, I've grown fond of them)

One more thing: When I get this new hotness up and running, I need an instructor pilot to give me a check ride. I've been out of the cockpit for so long I don't think I can crash an Aurora anymore

 

[Bambooza]

AMD is the current hotness and will be for the foreseeable future but as always both chips are great in the end for most consumers.

DCS is 40GB's
Windows is 40 GB's
Star Citizen is 60 GB's
Candy Crush is 130 MB's
So
240GB is big enough.

 

[Aramsolari]

Currently have the AMD Ryzen 3900x and I absolutely love this cpu. They really ironed out the initial issues and the cpu is now one of the best in the market. I'm no AMD fanboy though and I do think the Intel 9900ks are amazing too. Honestly we're in a Golden Age of CPUs. AMD and Intel are neck to neck in competition and that's good for the consumer. Intel 9900k might have a slight edge in single core performance but I think the 3900x more than makes up for it in the multicore department. AMD's 3950x and Threadrippers are even better but those get you into the serious money territory. I think @GriffinGamingRPG has the 3950x and he loves it.

I would recommend you get another SSD though. Stuff fills up quick.

I run my OS and Star Citizen on one SSD while the other one provides storage for my other games, movies, etc. I am considering getting another M.2 just for Star Citizen/SQ42. Gonna wait for a good sale though!

One thing to note....

Both AMD and Intel are coming out with new chips next year (Zen 3 and whatever 7/5nm Intel offering). One of the best ways to score awesome deals is to ride the tail end of an upgrade cycle. A lot of people will be looking to upgrade to the newest shiny toy. Due to that, retailers will usually put up decent discounts on previously top of the line stuff. Perfect time to pounce.