Question Budget/Value AM5 1080p build

[rwhipple08]

I am looking at purchasing the parts in this PC Part Picker list, minus the case and PSU which I already have.

Current PC:

• Core i5-4460
• GTX 1050 Ti
• mITX motherboard
• Thermaltake Core V1 mITX case
• Used for 1080p gaming (WoW mostly)

Upgrading because:

• I want to do media preservation / Plex server, so I am moving to a case with space for HDDs and space for a BluRay drive.
• I want to use this opportunity to upgrade the gaming capabilities, both FPS and loading screen times.

Criteria:

• ~$1000 budget. Already have case and PSU. Prefer Amazon or NewEgg. US-Based.
• AM5 socket for upgradability. I know a true budget build would be on AM4, but I think I'll get better long-term value by bumping up to low-end AM5 parts.
• mATX motherboard. I don't want the drawbacks of mITX (cost, cramped to work with), but I want some flexibility in case size that I won't get with full ATX.
• Low TDP on CPU & GPU for quiet, cool operation.
• OS & games on NVME storage for fast load times, media on HDDs for economical storage.
• At some point in the future I might split the media storage into a dedicated NAS and gaming into an mATX desktop, but for now I'll take the convenience and simplicity of a single machine.

GPU Decision: I'm having a hard time understanding the GPU market. I'm considering dropping the $360 Gigabyte RX 7600 XT 16GB for a $220 ASRock Radeon RX 6600 8 GB.

• Anything will be a significant upgrade over my current GTX 1050 Ti
• I don't think I'll notice a difference in the games I play
• It doesn't seem like the extra $140 buys me a meaningful amount of future-proofing whether I spend it on a 7600 XT 16GB or a newer 8GB card. Reviews seem adamant that the processing power of new cards is wasted without 12-16GB.

Proposed build:
CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 9600X 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U9S chromax.black 46.4 CFM CPU Cooler
Motherboard: Gigabyte B650M GAMING WIFI6E Micro ATX AM5 Motherboard
Memory: Crucial Pro 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-5600 CL46 Memory
Storage: Western Digital Blue SN580 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive
GPU: Gigabyte GAMING OC Radeon RX 7600 XT 16 GB Video Card OR ASRock Challenger D Radeon RX 6600 8 GB Video Card
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 ATX Mid Tower Case (already own)
PSU: Corsair RM550 550 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply (already own)

I'm still researching what HDDs are best for a Plex server. I plan to use drives I already have for storage for initial learning and experimenting with setting up and running Plex. That said, I'm open to any recommendations.

Is this a good build for my goals? Am I overspending on anything, and conversely is there a place where spending just a little more yields significantly better value?

 

[Lutfij]

I am looking at purchasing the parts in this PC Part Picker list, minus the case and PSU which I already have.
The parts list is private.

I want to use this opportunity to upgrade the gaming capabilities, both FPS and loading screen times.
If the system is used primarily for 1080p gaming on World of Warcraft, you're good to go! Just be wary that you'll need to flash the BIOS to the latest version prior to dropping in the Ryzen 5 9600x into the socket. To add, considering you have an ATX chassis, I'd opt for an ATX motherboard.

As it stands B650 chipsets will be phased out, on that note, I'd look into a B850 chipsettted motherboard.

PSU: Corsair RM550 550 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply (already own)
How old is the PSU? I would opt for a new unit if you've owned it since 2013~(which is when the unit was released).

 

[Why_Me]

I am looking at purchasing the parts in this PC Part Picker list, minus the case and PSU which I already have.

Current PC:

• Core i5-4460
• GTX 1050 Ti
• mITX motherboard
• Thermaltake Core V1 mITX case
• Used for 1080p gaming (WoW mostly)

Upgrading because:

• I want to do media preservation / Plex server, so I am moving to a case with space for HDDs and space for a BluRay drive.
• I want to use this opportunity to upgrade the gaming capabilities, both FPS and loading screen times.

Criteria:

• ~$1000 budget. Already have case and PSU. Prefer Amazon or NewEgg. US-Based.
• AM5 socket for upgradability. I know a true budget build would be on AM4, but I think I'll get better long-term value by bumping up to low-end AM5 parts.
• mATX motherboard. I don't want the drawbacks of mITX (cost, cramped to work with), but I want some flexibility in case size that I won't get with full ATX.
• Low TDP on CPU & GPU for quiet, cool operation.
• OS & games on NVME storage for fast load times, media on HDDs for economical storage.
• At some point in the future I might split the media storage into a dedicated NAS and gaming into an mATX desktop, but for now I'll take the convenience and simplicity of a single machine.

GPU Decision: I'm having a hard time understanding the GPU market. I'm considering dropping the $360 Gigabyte RX 7600 XT 16GB for a $220 ASRock Radeon RX 6600 8 GB.

• Anything will be a significant upgrade over my current GTX 1050 Ti
• I don't think I'll notice a difference in the games I play
• It doesn't seem like the extra $140 buys me a meaningful amount of future-proofing whether I spend it on a 7600 XT 16GB or a newer 8GB card. Reviews seem adamant that the processing power of new cards is wasted without 12-16GB.

Proposed build:
CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 9600X 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U9S chromax.black 46.4 CFM CPU Cooler
Motherboard: Gigabyte B650M GAMING WIFI6E Micro ATX AM5 Motherboard
Memory: Crucial Pro 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-5600 CL46 Memory
Storage: Western Digital Blue SN580 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive
GPU: Gigabyte GAMING OC Radeon RX 7600 XT 16 GB Video Card OR ASRock Challenger D Radeon RX 6600 8 GB Video Card
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 ATX Mid Tower Case (already own)
PSU: Corsair RM550 550 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply (already own)

I'm still researching what HDDs are best for a Plex server. I plan to use drives I already have for storage for initial learning and experimenting with setting up and running Plex. That said, I'm open to any recommendations.

Is this a good build for my goals? Am I overspending on anything, and conversely is there a place where spending just a little more yields significantly better value?

You want DDR5-6000 CL30 for these AM5 cpu's if you intend on doing any gaming.

Keep your eyes peeled for the reviews on this card (RX 9060 XT). It comes in 8GB and 16GB variants.
https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-com...5-percent-slower-despite-big-price-difference

You can cut a few dollars off this by going with a B850 mATX board.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU Cooler: *ID-COOLING FROZN A620 PRO SE 58 CFM CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: *Gigabyte B850 GAMING X WIFI6E ATX AM5 Motherboard ($179.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: *TEAMGROUP T-Create Expert 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($92.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $302.97
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-06-02 16:01 EDT-0400
PCPartPicker Part List

Motherboard: *Gigabyte B850M GAMING X WIFI6E Micro ATX AM5 Motherboard ($169.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $169.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-06-02 16:59 EDT-0400

 

[rwhipple08]

Thanks for the advice. Motherboards are the component I know least about and seem hardest to quantify in terms of quality and value. Long story short, I'm trying to plan for this machine to split into an mATX gaming machine and an ATX-cased NAS at some point. Originally I was thinking the MB I'd buy now would be the one destined to move into the mATX build, but I might as well buy an ATX board for this ATX case and buy the mATX board if/when I'm ready to build that machine.

@Lutfij

• Oops, thanks, I saved a new copy, made it public, and updated the link
• Thanks for the advice on chipsets. I see that there are many options for the newer B850 for the same price or cheaper than the B650.
• The PSU is from 2014. I didn't think much about it. Is there a rule of thumb for how long a PSU lasts?

@Why_Me

• I wouldn't have known to look at CL30 vs CL46, thanks for that.
• Thanks for the tip on the 9060XT. Since it says it's an updated 7600XT for the same $350 price point, I guess I'll wait and see what happens. If the 9060XT at $350 is real, I'll probably go that way. If street price is way above MSRP and the 7600XT drops in price then that looks like the best option. And if 9060XT is above MSRP and 7600XT doesn't come down, I'll probably go with the 6600 and plan to upgrade at some point in the future. I know it's not apples-to-apples, but I have a hard time accepting that a mid-range GPU costs more than an entire XBox/PS5.

 

[Why_Me]

Thanks for the advice. Motherboards are the component I know least about and seem hardest to quantify in terms of quality and value. Long story short, I'm trying to plan for this machine to split into an mATX gaming machine and an ATX-cased NAS at some point. Originally I was thinking the MB I'd buy now would be the one destined to move into the mATX build, but I might as well buy an ATX board for this ATX case and buy the mATX board if/when I'm ready to build that machine.

@Lutfij

• Oops, thanks, I saved a new copy, made it public, and updated the link
• Thanks for the advice on chipsets. I see that there are many options for the newer B850 for the same price or cheaper than the B650.
• The PSU is from 2014. I didn't think much about it. Is there a rule of thumb for how long a PSU lasts?

@Why_Me

• I wouldn't have known to look at CL30 vs CL46, thanks for that.
• Thanks for the tip on the 9060XT. Since it says it's an updated 7600XT for the same $350 price point, I guess I'll wait and see what happens. If the 9060XT at $350 is real, I'll probably go that way. If street price is way above MSRP and the 7600XT drops in price then that looks like the best option. And if 9060XT is above MSRP and 7600XT doesn't come down, I'll probably go with the 6600 and plan to upgrade at some point in the future. I know it's not apples-to-apples, but I have a hard time accepting that a mid-range GPU costs more than an entire XBox/PS5.

PCPartPicker Part List

Power Supply: *ADATA XPG Core Reactor II VE 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $89.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-06-02 17:34 EDT-0400