[SOLVED] Building a low-cost future proof gaming PC

Jason_43

Honorable
Nov 6, 2015
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10,510
sigh why am I doing this? :)

I've never been a particularly enthusiastic gamer - I mostly buy consoles and I fully plan on taking advantage of cloud streaming, especially if and when XCloud launches later this year.

But I've taken a certain affinity to VR and particularly Beat Saber over the last 12 months and there are certain things I just can't do with my current setup - a modest step up to a RX570 - based system would seem to be all I really need. But nothing I currently own can handle a video card that draws that much power.

So I've started thinking about starting over from scratch - I built my own PC's 30 years ago but I don't have the time now that I did then. I'm not totally unwilling to build, just somewhat resistant.

OK so to cut to the chase - I'm looking for a Motherboard / Case / Power Supply that won't break the bank but will also be fully upgradeable if and when I need to step up again. Oh and cost is a huge factor. I'm really looking to go all in at less than $600 - the RX570 is supposedly an excellent value so I'm hopeful this is something that can be done.
 
Solution
  1. Under $600
  2. Upgradeable
  3. VR Capable
Pick two, cause all three isn't going to happen. Here's what I came up with.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 2600 3.4 GHz 6-Core Processor ($143.97 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte B450M DS3H Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($72.99 @ Best Buy)
Memory: G.Skill Aegis 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory ($61.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial P1 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($62.99 @ Adorama)
Video Card: XFX Radeon RX 570 8 GB Video Card ($149.99 @ Best Buy)
Case: Antec VSK 3000 Elite MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($44.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA 600 W 80+ Certified...

Phaaze88

Titan
Ambassador
I doubt a RX 570 is enough for a stable VR focused PC...
"The Vive and the Rift both feature two 1080 x 1200 resolution screens, but after calculating for things like eye buffer and lens refraction they come to a combined resolution of 3024 x 1680.
Add in the fact that each screen features a 90Hz refresh rate, and at optimal frame rates the Vive and Rift require your rig to process and render a combined 457 million pixels per second. In contrast, a standard 4K screen running at 60fps comes out to a ballpark of 498 million pixels per second."

A decent VR/1440 Ultrawide/4K capable gpu alone is over half your budget gone already... I'm recommending a RTX 2060 at the minimum.
 

Jason_43

Honorable
Nov 6, 2015
22
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10,510
Reiterating the question...

I'm looking for a Motherboard / Case / Power Supply that won't break the bank but will also be fully upgradeable if and when I need to step up again. Oh and cost is a huge factor. I'm really looking to go all in at less than $600 - the RX570 is supposedly an excellent value so I'm hopeful this is something that can be done.

Not really interested in other graphics cards at this time.
 
D

Deleted member 14196

Guest
Exactly he will need a very strong video card and CPU and lots of memory for all this to work and with your budget constraints it doesn’t look possible to do VR at least effectively
 

Phaaze88

Titan
Ambassador
This is more than twice the price of a RX570 - forgive me for being indignant but this is not at all helpful.
It is helpful. It just means that in your case, this will not work.
For a VR-capable system, you can NOT skimp on the graphics card. The pixel count rivals 4K, and the framerate needs to be smooth in order to avoid things like motion sickness.
An RX 570 won't cut it. I'm not sure if a 1070 can do it either - I'd feel more comfortable suggesting a 1080 - but I'm sure a 2060 can.
Check the 2nd hand market for pricing on the 10 series cards, if you're willing to go that route.
 

Phaaze88

Titan
Ambassador
If you were just looking to play the usual 2D and 3D games, I don't believe anyone would've complained at all.
Unfortunately, the demands for a VR capable system are up there with that of 4K resolution, which also requires a beefy gpu for smooth performance.
 

DSzymborski

Titan
Moderator
Pretty disappointed in all this - not going to lie.

Unfortunately, things cost what they cost. You can put together an upgradeable PC for $600, but in terms of your needs, that's not enough to get the performance you want right now, let alone the future. A PC for VR is very different from one you just want to play around in WoW on.

And at $600, if you want upgradeability, this will have to be an entry-level PC you build rather than one you buy. Prebuilt PCs are notorious for being upgrade-resistant, not upgrade-friendly. Dell/HP/Lenovo/etc. don't make money on your future upgrades, so they're not going to sacrifice now-performance for the ability to upgrade.

Now, if you are willing to put $600 into this PC for upgrades every year, an initial $600 PC will eventually get you to a good VR machine. But this is not a cheap hobby.
 

Wolfshadw

Titan
Moderator
  1. Under $600
  2. Upgradeable
  3. VR Capable
Pick two, cause all three isn't going to happen. Here's what I came up with.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 2600 3.4 GHz 6-Core Processor ($143.97 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte B450M DS3H Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($72.99 @ Best Buy)
Memory: G.Skill Aegis 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory ($61.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial P1 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($62.99 @ Adorama)
Video Card: XFX Radeon RX 570 8 GB Video Card ($149.99 @ Best Buy)
Case: Antec VSK 3000 Elite MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($44.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA 600 W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ Best Buy)
Total: $596.91
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-06-28 22:37 EDT-0400


Based on a review I listened to while putting this together, the RX-570 should do ok for Beat Saber
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHNogIOKZRA


-Wolf sends

Edit: Note that I went with the 8GB version of the RX 570
 
Solution

DSzymborski

Titan
Moderator
Yup, something along Wolf's lines is the best you can do for $600. If you want to play more aggressive VR games, you'll still have to invest more down the road.

And given the budget, I'd certainly bump it a little bit and get a CX or a TX 550 power supply so that you're not having to replace that when you upgrade, too.
 

johnofo

Honorable
Jul 10, 2014
29
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10,535
From experience VR is definitely demanding on the GPU. I had a GTX 1070 when I first played VR games and it was enough for a good gaming experience though not ideal. Beat Sabre ran well which is what you said you wanted to play. Some other games were good enough but with settings adjusted a bit to get them running as smooth as possible.

Started with HTC Vive on an old 4 core i5 3570k and GTX 1070, good enough.

The 6 core Ryzen 2600 Wolfshadow recommended is a far more capable and modern CPU than my old one but GPU wise you'll need at least something along the lines of a 1070 or 2060 or AMD equivalent