[SOLVED] $1500-$1650AUD Budget Gaming PC - 1440p Eventually, Currently 1080p

[Lucas Haynes]

Hello all,

My current gaming rig was made early 2013 and the ravages of time have taken its toll and its time to build new.

As some background, I live in Australia (Brisbane) so all $$ is in AUD. The main purpose would be gaming, currently I have a 1080p monitor and only really play WoW (due to my computer slowly becoming more decrepit and falling apart), however my view is to go to 1440p and expand my gaming horizons. I also will be doing some programming and coding throughout my university studies (I am a current university student studying a Masters of Computer Science, one semester into the degree), however no video editing.

Approximate Purchase Date: Within the next month

Budget Range: $1500-$1650AUD

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming and University Activities such as coding and programming as they come up. Then just general web surfing etc

Are you buying a monitor: No

Parts to Purchase: All hardware items EXCEPT monitor, video card and peripherals. Currently I am planning on continuing to save more + tax time money to buy a dual monitor setup and video card in a few months (as I have an RX 580 8GB I was given practically new roughly 3-4 months ago which I will use in the interim). I have a good quality gaming keyboard and mouse so no need to purchase those.

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: I am using PCpartpicker set to Australia with Umart as the only vendor (Umart has always treated me and my family right plus friends who regularly use it and they are good guys. Their prices always seem very competitive and I have one very close to me so I can self pickup without paying postage by buying parts across a multitude of vendors).

[PCPartPicker Part List](https://au.pcpartpicker.com/list/4x3F4n)

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
CPU | [AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor](https://au.pcpartpicker.com/product/9nm323/amd-ryzen-5-3600-36-thz-6-core-processor-100-100000031box) | $315.00 @ Umart
Motherboard | [Asus TUF GAMING X570-PLUS (WI-FI) ATX AM4 Motherboard](https://au.pcpartpicker.com/product...tx-am4-motherboard-tuf-gaming-x570-plus-wi-fi) | $369.00 @ Umart
Memory | [Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory](https://au.pcpartpicker.com/product/p6RFf7/corsair-memory-cmk16gx4m2b3200c16) | $149.00 @ Umart
Storage | [Kingston A2000 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive](https://au.pcpartpicker.com/product...-m2-2280-nvme-solid-state-drive-sa2000m81000g) | $179.00 @ Umart
Storage | [Seagate Barracuda Compute 2 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive](https://au.pcpartpicker.com/product...tb-35-7200rpm-internal-hard-drive-st2000dm008) | $84.00 @ Umart
Case | [Corsair 275R Airflow ATX Mid Tower Case](https://au.pcpartpicker.com/product/sY9tt6/corsair-275r-airflow-atx-mid-tower-case-cc-9011181-ww) | $129.00 @ Umart
Power Supply | [Silverstone Strider Gold S 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply](https://au.pcpartpicker.com/product/Dtckcf/silverstone-power-supply-st75fgs) | $139.00 @ Umart
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts |
| Total | $1364.00
| Generated by [PCPartPicker](https://pcpartpicker.com) 2020-01-15 12:22 AEDT+1100 |

I have not put on a CPU cooler currently as I wasn't planning on overclocking CPU currently however I wouldn't mind looking into it when I get the video card so I would love a recommendation for a CPU cooler also (or multiple incase some aren't in stock or stocked by Umart etc)

From my Google searches, the Ryzen 5 3600 should be great for my needs, however I was also looking at the 3700x but information I've read has suggested that may be unnecessary spending for my needs.

In terms of video cards, I was looking at the 5700XT series though happy to hear information about other items to look at/new things on the horizon also. (Video card most likely around 4-5 months away).

As touched on earlier, budget is $1500AUD though I could stretch it to $1650AUD if you believe I could really get some great bang for my buck with the little extra. Just for clarification, the budget does not need to include video card/monitors as this will be purchased later with further savings. However, as always - if spending more than approximately what I have above wouldnt result in good value for money, I would be happy to hold onto it and put it towards my video card/monitor savings.

If there is anything else, please let me know.

Thank you

 

[WildCard999]

My suggested changes...

PCPartPicker Part List
Motherboard: ASRock B450M/AC Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($138.60 @ Newegg Australia)
Storage: Intel 660p Series 1.02 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($159.00 @ Shopping Express)
Power Supply: SeaSonic FOCUS Gold 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply ($129.00 @ Umart)
Total: $426.60
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-01-16 00:44 AEDT+1100

The motherboard is much cheaper and supports that CPU out of the box. It also has wifi/Bluetooth. The Intel 660P is cheaper then that Kingston, faster and a much more reliable unit. The Seasonic is a good all around unit, saves you some cash and would be sufficient if you do upgrade your GPU later on. Even at 1440P WoW isn't too graphically intense so the RX 580 8gb should be good for awhile and if you haven't picked out the monitor yet I'd suggest going with a Freesync monitor as it could help with some FPS dips during raids or being in larger cities.

 

[Lucas Haynes]

My suggested changes...

PCPartPicker Part List
Motherboard: ASRock B450M/AC Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($138.60 @ Newegg Australia)
Storage: Intel 660p Series 1.02 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($159.00 @ Shopping Express)
Power Supply: SeaSonic FOCUS Gold 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply ($129.00 @ Umart)
Total: $426.60
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-01-16 00:44 AEDT+1100

The motherboard is much cheaper and supports that CPU out of the box. It also has wifi/Bluetooth. The Intel 660P is cheaper then that Kingston, faster and a much more reliable unit. The Seasonic is a good all around unit, saves you some cash and would be sufficient if you do upgrade your GPU later on. Even at 1440P WoW isn't too graphically intense so the RX 580 8gb should be good for awhile and if you haven't picked out the monitor yet I'd suggest going with a Freesync monitor as it could help with some FPS dips during raids or being in larger cities.

Thank you so much for your reply and your information! I will definitely take your Storage and PSU recommendation.

That motherboard price would make me very happy and would help put much more towards my extra savings for monitors/video card. However, it is only showing as in stock through Newegg and ships from the USA. Although this isn't too bad, I was hoping to get it all at once if possible. Would you have another mobo recommendation that I could check for stocking locally?

Thank you

 

[GarrettL]

Yes the ASRock 450 has wifi and bluetooth. So does the Asus TUF wifi x570. The ASRock doesn't have the PCIe bandwidth that the Asus does. Either board is a solid choice but with the price dropping on the x570's I would suggest this route when possible.

I do agree about the 660P.

The 3600 is a solid choice but the 3700 may be worth it in the long run. Either cpu is a good choice.

 

[WildCard999]

Thank you so much for your reply and your information! I will definitely take your Storage and PSU recommendation.

That motherboard price would make me very happy and would help put much more towards my extra savings for monitors/video card. However, it is only showing as in stock through Newegg and ships from the USA. Although this isn't too bad, I was hoping to get it all at once if possible. Would you have another mobo recommendation that I could check for stocking locally?

Thank you

MSI B450 MAX boards support 3rd gen Ryzen out of the box as well but I'd really push for that Asrock if possible as the BIOS is easy to navigate and for the price the extra features cannot be beat (recently did a build for my friends Xmas gift).

How long would that take to get?

 

[Lucas Haynes]

MSI B450 MAX boards support 3rd gen Ryzen out of the box as well but I'd really push for that Asrock if possible as the BIOS is easy to navigate and for the price the extra features cannot be beat (recently did a build for my friends Xmas gift).

How long would that take to get?

Looking at newegg, its roughly 5-7 business days for $50 AUD postage so thats not too bad honestly.

Having not bought anything internationally before, and especially being a computer part, should there be any issues with the item being faulty/non-functional upon arrival, returning the item could be cumbersome as I imagine it would need to be sent back internationally (though the costs would all be covered I imagine). That is the only issue I can see logistically with this item, the almost $200 saving even with postage is attractive though

 

[Lucas Haynes]

Yes the ASRock 450 has wifi and bluetooth. So does the Asus TUF wifi x570. The ASRock doesn't have the PCIe bandwidth that the Asus does. Either board is a solid choice but with the price dropping on the x570's I would suggest this route when possible.

I do agree about the 660P.

The 3600 is a solid choice but the 3700 may be worth it in the long run. Either cpu is a good choice.

In regards to the 3600 v 3700x - the 3600 is $315AUD and the 3700x is $499AUD for $185 extra. All still under budget - would you recommend for my needs and the extra $185?

 

[WildCard999]

Looking at newegg, its roughly 5-7 business days for $50 AUD postage so thats not too bad honestly.

Having not bought anything internationally before, and especially being a computer part, should there be any issues with the item being faulty/non-functional upon arrival, returning the item could be cumbersome as I imagine it would need to be sent back internationally (though the costs would all be covered I imagine). That is the only issue I can see logistically with this item, the almost $200 saving even with postage is attractive though

That $200 savings could get you the 3700X...

That being said I have no idea what troubles there could be with overseas shipping and returns but if it helps I've been using Asrock boards since the Intel 1150 socket days (2013) and haven't run into any issues.

 

[Lucas Haynes]

That $200 savings could get you the 3700X...

That being said I have no idea what troubles there could be with overseas shipping and returns but if it helps I've been using Asrock boards since the Intel 1150 socket days (2013) and haven't run into any issues.

That's a great point - basically get the 3700x for current price above price.

Thinking about it now, I'm always going to be plugged into ethernet for network. So if we got rid of the WiFi component, what do you think about the following mobos?

Asus TUF B450M-PLUS Gaming AM4 mATX Motherboard - $149 @ Umart
MSI B450M Mortar Titanium AM4 mATX Motherboard -$149 @ Umart
Asrock B450M-PRO4-F mATX AM4 Motherboard - $109 @ Umart (the only Asrock b450m mobo I can find instock at Umart)

Here is the link I am using to look at Umart b450m mobos (if links to outside sites are not allowed please let me know and I will remove)
https://www.umart.com.au//search.ph...&outstock=0&page=1&sort=shop_price&order=DESC

Happy to go with the international Asrock product as recommended though just covering all local bases

 

[WildCard999]

Besides the MSI MAX boards on the other ones you'd need to make sure the BIOS is shipped with a new enough BIOS version to support that CPU. May need to contact Umart.

 

[Lucas Haynes]

Besides the MSI MAX boards on the other ones you'd need to make sure the BIOS is shipped with a new enough BIOS version to support that CPU. May need to contact Umart.

Thank you for all your help You have been more helpful than I can show through typing

 

[WildCard999]

Your welcome.