[SOLVED] Advice on PC build

[Templer86]

I am looking to put together a PC and would like to get some help on the build. If this is the wrong forum for it please let me know so I can make a post in the correct forum.

I am looking to put together a computer that can run some of the newer games on the highest graphics and not lose any FPS. MY budget is going to be around $1500 - $2000. If you have any questions that could help zero in on proper parts then feel free to ask and I will respond as soon as possible.

EDIT :
Yeah maybe I was trying to overshoot, hehe. So let's say then that I am looking for something that will fit within the budget and will not be god awful slow, as is my current computer that I put together some 5ish years ago. I cannot run any but some of the oldest games in my library and even those are straining my computer. So something that will be decent and will run at a nice average to above average speed.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Not going to happen. To play the newer games on the highest graphics, you'd need a graphics card that is already going to cost as much as, or most likely, more than, the budget you outlined. That is the current state of the PC hardware market. Flagship graphics cards, IF you can even get one, are selling for 2000-3500 dollars, or more in many cases. Even cards a few steps down are running in the 1500-2000 dollar range. The mid range RTX 3060, which is NOT going to play "the newer games at the highest graphics", especially if you have some of the newer features enabled, itself runs over 800 dollars in most cases right now.

CPUs, any decent one is going to be another 250-500 dollars and motherboards are simply ridiculous in price for any good mid to upper range board.

In that price range you are going to have to SIGNIFICANTLY reduce your expectations. Highest graphics, for that budget, is simply unrealistic at this time and that's without even factoring in the staggering cost of memory and power supplies on top of everything else.

 

[Templer86]

Yeah maybe I was trying to overshoot, hehe. So let's say then that I am looking for something that will fit within the budget and will not be god awful slow, as is my current computer that I put together some 5ish years ago. I cannot run any but some of the oldest games in my library and even those are straining my computer. So something that will be decent and will run at a nice average to above average speed.

 

[King_V]

What components make up your current PC? That'll at least give us a gauge of what you're defining as god awful slow.

Also, what monitor do you have? What's its resolution and refresh rate? Does it have FreeSync, GSync, or neither?

 

[Darkbreeze]

Do you have ANY components that could legitimately be reused, such as a case, display, drives, etc? If so, please list models as quite often what somebody thinks CAN be reused, turns out to not be hardware we'd recommend reusing. But then again, in some cases it turns out it can and might help with being able to fit the budget.

 

[Templer86]

Display Adapter - AMD Radeon R7 360 series
CD/DVD - ASUS DRW-24BiST
Processor - AMD Athlon X4 860K Quad Core
8 GBs of RAM
No SSD

Not sure if anything could be reused. Maybe the power supply. Everything is from the 5ish years ago when I built it. So most if not all is out of date.

My monitor is a Lenovo 27 inch but it was a pretty basic one so not really the best.

 

[Darkbreeze]

So, much depends on what resolution you intend or hope to play at? Are you looking for a 1080p machine, or wanting something higher end like a 1440p or 4k display? To be honest, I think the addition of ANY worthwhile monitor puts even a good mid tier system out of reach, however, you could always do a system and then upgrade the display separately at a later date. Knowing what resolution is going to pretty well dictate what kind of card is needed though.

 

[Templer86]

Yeah I think I want to at some point upgrade to a 4k but 1440p would be a nice start. But the monitor is not something I would say is a necessity right away.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Ok. Let me check it out.

 

[Templer86]

Ok awesome. Thank you very much for the advice and help.

 

[Darkbreeze]

You have a Windows license you can use with this build, or you need that too?

Do you have a preference on having an aftermarket air or water cooler, or ok to just ride with the stock cooler for now?

 

[Templer86]

Yes I do actually. 😁

 

[Darkbreeze]

And it would be...............?

Or, do you already have an aftermarket cooler?

 

[Templer86]

Oh sorry that was for the windows license. I would probably just rock the stock cooler for now.

 

[Darkbreeze]

So, as a pretty good starting point, this just comes in under budget and is an extremely capable 1080p or pretty darn good 1440p machine, especially if you are willing to move a couple of sliders to the left in the quality settings for any extremely demanding games.

Of course, it can be tweaked a bit to reduce the cost but if you can afford this once tax is added, you'd definitely not be unhappy. Especially from where you're coming from. It's gives you a good place to start anyhow. It's not the best quality motherboard out there, but it's definitely not junk either. And the PSU is a very good quality unit. I'd recommend not skimping there.

If you wanted to drop the CPU cooler you could shave 50 bucks off it, but if you can swing it it would definitely be a much better performer than the stock cooler, by FAR.

Also included an M.2 NVME SSD for the OS drive AND a 1TB SSD for games. You could shave a little off by using a HDD for the game drive, but the price difference likely isn't significant enough to warrant the loss of performance. For actual FPS it won't make a difference, but it will significantly reduce loading times for maps, levels, textures, etc.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i7-10700F 2.9 GHz 8-Core Processor ($259.99 @ Adorama)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright MACHO Rev.C 84.97 CFM CPU Cooler ($51.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B560 Pro4 ATX LGA1200 Motherboard ($122.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3600 CL18 Memory ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: SK hynix Gold P31 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($69.98 @ Amazon)
Storage: Crucial MX500 1 TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($90.81 @ Adorama)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce RTX 3060 Ti 8 GB AORUS ELITE Video Card ($1085.49 @ MemoryC)
Case: Corsair 4000D Airflow ATX Mid Tower Case ($94.99 @ Best Buy)
Power Supply: Corsair RMx (2018) 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($84.99 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: Noctua P14s redux-1200 PWM 64.92 CFM 140 mm Fan ($14.95 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: Noctua P14s redux-1200 PWM 64.92 CFM 140 mm Fan ($14.95 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: Noctua P14s redux-1200 PWM 64.92 CFM 140 mm Fan ($14.95 @ Amazon)
Total: $1971.07
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2021-11-01 22:20 EDT-0400

 

[Templer86]

Oh wow thank you. This looks like a great list to start with. I am going to start looking into getting these put together and ordered. Thank you again.

 

[Darkbreeze]

👍

 

[Why_Me]

https://www.newegg.com/black-phanteks-eclipse-p400a-atx-mid-tower/p/N82E16811854085
Phanteks Eclipse P400A Mid Tower Computer Case $74.99

Exhaust fan for that case.

https://www.amazon.com/ARCTIC-F12-PWM-PWM-Signal-regulates/dp/B08PZJNKWD/

ARCTIC F12 PWM - 120mm 4-Pin Case Fan $8.99

https://www.newegg.com/super-flower-leadex-iii-bronze-sf-750r14he-750w/p/1HU-024C-00018
Super Flower Leadex III Bronze PRO 750W 80+ Bronze Modular Power Supply $109.99

https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16813144396
MSI MAG B560M BAZOOKA $139.99

or ...

https://www.newegg.com/gigabyte-b560m-aorus-pro/p/N82E16813145332
GIGABYTE AORUS B560M $139.99

https://www.calhountech.com/products/intel-cm8070804497016-intel-i5-11400f-4-4ghz-w-o-graphics.html
Intel Core i5-11400F $207.90

https://www.amazon.com/Gelid-Solutions-Black-CPU-Cooler/dp/B00BF3LF2I
Gelid Solutions Phantom Black CPU Cooler $39.99

https://www.amazon.com/TEAMGROUP-T-Force-Vulcan-3200MHz-Desktop/dp/B07T637L7T
TEAMGROUP T-Force Vulcan Z DDR4 3200MHz 16GB (2x8GB) CL16 $61.97

https://www.newegg.com/western-digital-blue-sn550-nvme-1tb/p/N82E16820250135
WD Blue SN550 NVMe M.2 2280 1TB PCIe 3D NAND Internal SSD $88.99

https://www.amazon.com/GIGABYTE-Graphics-WINDFORCE-GV-N307TGAMING-OC-8GD/dp/B097G7RBSZ/
GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3070 Ti Gaming OC $1,269.99

Total: $1941

https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/MAG-B560M-BAZOOKA

https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/B560M-AORUS-ELITE-rev-10#kf

http://www.phanteks.com/Eclipse-P400A.html

Reviews of that cpu with benchmarks.

https://www.guru3d.com/articles-pages/intel-core-i5-11400f-processor-review,1.html

Intel Core i5-11400F Review - The Best Rocket Lake

The Core i5-11400F is Intel's most affordable Rocket Lake processor. While its multiplier is locked, you can still adjust the power limit. Once we did that, the CPU ran over 15% faster and almost matched the Core i5-11600K. We also made an interesting discovery regarding Gear 1 vs. Gear 2.

www.techpowerup.com