I'm in the process of building a workstation and I've chosen to go with a Ryzen 9 9950X alongside an MSI MAG B650 motherboard and the Peerless Assassin 120SE cooler. However, I've heard some people say that this combo is a bad idea, arguing that the 9950X really needs an X870 motherboard and a liquid cooler to perform properly. My budget is already pretty tight, so I can't really afford to upgrade to more expensive parts. How detrimental is this setup in reality?
4 Answers
You should consider getting at least a B850 motherboard. They're usually priced similarly and come with better VRM heatsinks. I would also suggest looking for an AIO like the Thermalright 360mm one for about $50, especially if you're pushing the CPU hard. If your tasks don't specifically need more cores, a 9900X could also be a worthy consideration as it's not a big step down in performance for most productivity tasks.
Honestly, saying you need an X870 motherboard is just not true. The B650 can support the 9950X just fine. The X870 has some extra features like PCIe Gen 5 for SSDs, but for most users, the B650 does the job well. Plus, the Peerless Assassin is a solid cooler! If you're not planning on heavy overclocking, it should manage heat pretty well, especially since both the air and the water coolers have similar capabilities.
I totally get the argument around AIOs being overkill a lot of the time. That said, with heavy workloads, I'd still question if an air cooler like the Peerless can hold up against a well-designed AIO.
Most of the points made are pretty valid, but whether you go with an AIO or air cooler should depend on your workload. While an AIO isn't necessary, it could help if you're enabling Precision Boost Overdrive (PBO). If sticking with air, try at least getting a cooler like the Phantom Spirit 120, since it has extra heat pipe capacity and performs well at a similar price.
For your needs, I wouldn’t stick with just an air cooler for the 9950X, particularly since you're focusing on work tasks which can push the CPU harder than gaming. I would recommend considering a 360mm AIO like the Arctic Liquid Freezer III for better cooling. Just make sure it fits in your case and works with your motherboard.
I just got a B650 Mortar board, and it worked perfectly fine for the 9000 series right out of the box!