Build Advice Building gaming PC with Intel i5-11400F - Please comment on spec

Page 2 - Seeking answers? Join the Tom's Hardware community: where nearly two million members share solutions and discuss the latest tech.
Sep 28, 2021
38
5
35
Good evening,

Im hoping to self build gaming pc with the following spec as below, been waiting for prices to drop but obviously went other way. Please can I ask you to comment on selected hardware as its been long time since I build my last pc. If anything is choosen incorrectly please state why it shouldnt be like that and propose equivalent - this will help me tidy up my knowledge.

Many thanks

Spec on the list so far:

1. CPU: Intel i5-11400F

2. CPU Cooler: Not sure which one to choose - please suggest. Not sure if the coolers comes with pre-applied thermal paste already or not.

3. Motherboard: Z590 UD AC Gigabyte

4. Case: I have selected 3 cases so far but cannot decide which one to choose (Corsair 275R Airflow / Corsair 4000D Airflow / Be Quiet 500DX )

5. PSU: I have selected 2 units, cannot decide which one to take: (Corsair TX650M or RM650)

6. Memory: Crucial Ballistix Patriot Viper DDR4 2x 8GB 3600 (CL16 or CL17 - not sure which one to pick)

7. Graphic Card: Due to shortage and extremely high prices, Im not sure which one to pick. GTX 1660 Super is quite old and expensive now. Please advise what to do with graphic card.

8. Monitor: Can you please propose high Hz monitor for gaming please. Probably size from 24 inches up.

I will be using this PC for gaming, mainly Fortnite and Rocket League. If I missed anything else please let me know.

Many thanks
 
This build allows you to run that cpu with the power limits turned off in the bios. It's a round a bout way of o/c these locked cpu's as it keeps them in turbo boost mode longer. btw the difference between 3600mhz and 3200mhz memory for Intel 10/11 gen in regards to performance is zero.

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/compu...p400a-atx-mid-tower-pc-case-10205481-pdt.html
PHANTEKS Eclipse P400A ATX Mid-Tower PC Case £64.99

Exhaust fan for that case.

https://www.scan.co.uk/products/120...50rpm-53cfm-fluid-dynamic-bearing-black-4-pin
Arctic F12 PWM 120mm Case Fan £3.98

https://www.ebuyer.com/782056-corsair-tx550m-550w-80-plus-gold-power-supply-cp-9020133-uk
Corsair TX550M 550W 80+ Gold Semi Modular Power Supply £59.99

https://www.scan.co.uk/products/msi...ta3-2x-m2-crossfire-25gbe-usb-32-gen2x2-m-atx
MSI MAG B560M BAZOOKA £99.98

Intel Core I5-11400 £184

https://www.scan.co.uk/products/arc...um-fins-4x-direct-touch-copper-heatpipes-inte
Arctic Freezer 34 eSports Duo Grey CPU Cooler £34.99

https://www.ebuyer.com/962503-cruci...ng-memory-black-bl2k8g32c16u4b-bl2k8g32c16u4b
Crucial Ballistix DDR4 3200Mhz 16GB (2x8GB) CL16 £63.60

https://www.ebuyer.com/947319-wd-blue-sn550-1tb-nvme-m-2-2280-pcie-gen3-ssd-wds100t2b0c
WD Blue SN550 1TB NVME M.2 2280 PCIe Gen3 SSD £69.99

https://www.kustompcs.co.uk/compone...tx-3060-eagle-oc-rev-v2.0-12gb-graphics-card/
Gigabyte GeForce RTX 3060 Eagle OC Rev v2.0 12GB Graphics Card £492.00

Total: £1074 inc. VAT

https://www.scan.co.uk/products/238...1080-1ms-144hz-freesync-100m1-250cd-m-hdmi-dp
MSI Optix G242 24" Full HD 144Hz G-Sync Compatible IPS Gaming Monitor £188.99

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

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

Review of that cpu w/benchmarks.

https://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/intel_core_i5_11400f_processor_review,23.html

https://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/intel_core_i5_11400f_processor_review,26.html
This is another great Intel build. If you can get a graphics solution like a 3060 like this build the only other really important part is the CPU and assuming you can grab one for a reasonable price like @Why_Me found its a no brainer. The only real decision at this point is whether or not you want to go AMD or Intel.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Why_Me
10th gen is also an option.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i5-10400F 2.9 GHz 6-Core Processor (£136.98 @ Aria PC)
CPU Cooler: Deepcool GAMMAXX GTE V2 64.5 CFM CPU Cooler (£25.47 @ Scan.co.uk)
Motherboard: MSI MPG Z490 GAMING PLUS ATX LGA1200 Motherboard (£129.95 @ AWD-IT)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory (£57.99 @ Corsair UK)
Storage: Western Digital Blue SN550 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive (£69.69 @ Box Limited)
Video Card: Palit GeForce RTX 3060 12 GB StormX Video Card (£459.98 @ Scan.co.uk)
Case: Cougar MX410 MESH-G RGB ATX Mid Tower Case (£49.48 @ Ebuyer)
Power Supply: Corsair TXM Gold 550 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply (£59.98 @ Currys PC World Business)
Monitor: ViewSonic VX2458-C-MHD 23.6" 1920x1080 144 Hz Monitor (£114.99 @ CCL Computers)
Total: £1104.51
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2021-10-01 17:41 BST+0100
 
  • Like
Reactions: Why_Me
Thanks.
I think I will stay with current list which is i5 11400 and B560M Aorus pro.

Also looks like I will choose 1660 Super GPU card -this will be new at least. The card is £399 from CCL . Can I get anything better for similar price ?

https://www.cclonline.com/product/2...Avwn3pX2zjncPXlCYPf91g&PublisherName=RedBrain
Please, spend a bit more and get this card. This is a general performance comparison. As you can see it costs 10% more but has 30-40% more speed.
 
Please, spend a bit more and get this card. This is a general performance comparison. As you can see it costs 10% more but has 30-40% more speed.

Agreed. That is the card I put in my 10th gen build.



11th gen is a bit better, but not £ 50 better. 10th gen and a faster GPU is a far better solution, for a gaming rig. A 10400f will have 0 issues keeping up with a 3060.
 
  • Like
Reactions: helper800
Thanks.
I think I will stay with current list which is i5 11400 and B560M Aorus pro.

Also looks like I will choose 1660 Super GPU card -this will be new at least. The card is £399 from CCL . Can I get anything better for similar price ?

https://www.cclonline.com/product/2...Avwn3pX2zjncPXlCYPf91g&PublisherName=RedBrain
The 1660 is not a good buy. You'll be playing all your games on medium to low settings with that card. If you're hell bent on purchasing a Gigabyte board then this is the one you want down below but I honestly don't see that board being worth 15 more quid than the MSI board I posted. Just remember a gaming build is all about Frames Per Second.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B091CW69XS
Gigabyte B560M AORUS ELITE £114.98

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

 
You can get that card with 11th gen...

PCPartPicker Part List

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Core i5-11400 2.6 GHz 6-Core Processor | £184.98 @ CCL Computers
CPU Cooler | Deepcool GAMMAXX 400 Blue 74.34 CFM CPU Cooler | £23.47 @ Scan.co.uk
Motherboard | Gigabyte B560M AORUS PRO Micro ATX LGA1200 Motherboard | £126.04 @ Amazon UK
Memory | Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory | £57.99 @ Corsair UK
Storage | Crucial P2 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive | £48.06 @ Amazon UK
Video Card | Palit GeForce RTX 3060 12 GB StormX Video Card | £459.98 @ Scan.co.uk
Case | Deepcool TESSERACT BF ATX Mid Tower Case | £40.47 @ Scan.co.uk
Power Supply | Corsair TXM Gold 550 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply | £59.98 @ Currys PC World Business
Monitor | ViewSonic VX2458-C-MHD 23.6" 1920x1080 144 Hz Monitor | £114.99 @ CCL Computers
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts |
| Total | £1115.96
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2021-10-01 19:18 BST+0100 |
 
Two ways I'd run this build with your budget. The 11400 is a power hog when it kicks into turbo boost hence the reason for two different cpu coolers in these builds.

https://www.ebuyer.com/1126266-coug...tower-case-with-tempered-cgr-5vm6b-mesh-g-rgb
Cougar MX410-T Mesh-G RGB Mid Tower Case £45.99

https://www.ebuyer.com/782056-corsair-tx550m-550w-80-plus-gold-power-supply-cp-9020133-uk
Corsair TX550M 550W 80+ Gold Semi Modular Power Supply £59.99

https://www.scan.co.uk/products/msi...ta3-2x-m2-crossfire-25gbe-usb-32-gen2x2-m-atx
MSI MAG B560M BAZOOKA £99.98

Intel Core I5-11400 £184

https://www.scan.co.uk/products/arc...um-fins-4x-direct-touch-copper-heatpipes-inte
Arctic Freezer 34 eSports Duo Grey CPU Cooler £34.99

https://www.ebuyer.com/962503-cruci...ng-memory-black-bl2k8g32c16u4b-bl2k8g32c16u4b
Crucial Ballistix DDR4 3200Mhz 16GB (2x8GB) CL16 £63.60

https://www.ebuyer.com/947319-wd-blue-sn550-1tb-nvme-m-2-2280-pcie-gen3-ssd-wds100t2b0c
WD Blue SN550 1TB NVME M.2 2280 PCIe Gen3 SSD £69.99

https://www.kustompcs.co.uk/compone...tx-3060-eagle-oc-rev-v2.0-12gb-graphics-card/
Gigabyte GeForce RTX 3060 Eagle OC Rev v2.0 12GB Graphics Card £492.00

Total: £1051 inc. VAT

or ...

https://www.ebuyer.com/1126266-coug...tower-case-with-tempered-cgr-5vm6b-mesh-g-rgb
Cougar MX410-T Mesh-G RGB Mid Tower Case £45.99

https://www.ebuyer.com/782056-corsair-tx550m-550w-80-plus-gold-power-supply-cp-9020133-uk
Corsair TX550M 550W 80+ Gold Semi Modular Power Supply £59.99

https://www.scan.co.uk/products/msi...ta3-2x-m2-crossfire-25gbe-usb-32-gen2x2-m-atx
MSI MAG B560M BAZOOKA £99.98

https://www.aria.co.uk/SuperSpecial...00F+Comet+Lake+CPU/Processor+?productId=72518
Intel Core I5-10400F £134.99

https://www.scan.co.uk/products/dee...-single-tower-aluminium-fins-4x-heatpipes-int
DEEPCOOL GAMMAXX GTE V2 Black CPU Cooler £19.99

https://www.ebuyer.com/962503-cruci...ng-memory-black-bl2k8g32c16u4b-bl2k8g32c16u4b
Crucial Ballistix DDR4 3200Mhz 16GB (2x8GB) CL16 £63.60

https://www.ebuyer.com/947319-wd-blue-sn550-1tb-nvme-m-2-2280-pcie-gen3-ssd-wds100t2b0c
WD Blue SN550 1TB NVME M.2 2280 PCIe Gen3 SSD £69.99

https://www.kustompcs.co.uk/compone...tx-3060-eagle-oc-rev-v2.0-12gb-graphics-card/
Gigabyte GeForce RTX 3060 Eagle OC Rev v2.0 12GB Graphics Card £492.00

Total: £987 inc. VAT
 
Good evening Gents,

You have convinced me to go with 3060 card instead of 1660 Super, yes its not a lot more for much better card.

My question is which of these two cards is better choice:

Video Card 1: Gigabyte GeForce RTX 3060 Eagle OC Rev v2.0 12GB Graphics Card £492.00
https://www.kustompcs.co.uk/compone...tx-3060-eagle-oc-rev-v2.0-12gb-graphics-card/

or

Video Card 2: | Palit GeForce RTX 3060 12 GB StormX Video Card | £459.98 @ Scan.co.uk

Just to summarize my current list looks like this at the moment:

CPU:
Intel Core i5-11400 2.6 GHz 6-Core Processor

CPU Cooler:

Motherboard:

Memory:

Storage:

Power Supply:
Corsair RM750x 750W Modular 80+ Gold PSU Purchase Limitation Apply

Case:
Corsair 4000D Airflow Mid Tower Gaming Case

I think that I will go slightly over my budget, perhaps 27 inch monitor would be better choice ?

You will probably noticed that I have replaced PSU for bigger one, 750W is that a good call. There are close to £90, new GPU could be hungry - what do you think.

I have also replaced memory type for RGB, its £15 more but just want to light up case a bit. Fan is also Blue. My tower will be located on small desk so I will be sitting next to it, probably do not want too much light which would be distracting too much.

Please advise, I will be greatfull for your opinions. I[ will be home over the weekend so could order all parts tonight / tomorrow morning for delivery on Sunday - CCL Computers offers Sunday 3rd Oct delivery for £8.99 so perhaps I could go and get everything from this one supplier instead of hunting for parts everywhere.
 
Last edited:
Good evening Gents,

You have convinced me to go with 3060 card instead of 1660 Super, yes its not a lot more for much better card.

My question is which of these two cards is better choice:

Video Card 1: Gigabyte GeForce RTX 3060 Eagle OC Rev v2.0 12GB Graphics Card £492.00
https://www.kustompcs.co.uk/compone...tx-3060-eagle-oc-rev-v2.0-12gb-graphics-card/

or

Video Card 2: | Palit GeForce RTX 3060 12 GB StormX Video Card | £459.98 @ Scan.co.uk

Just to summarize my current list looks like this at the moment:

CPU:
Intel Core i5-11400 2.6 GHz 6-Core Processor

CPU Cooler:

Motherboard:

Memory:

Storage:

Power Supply:
Corsair RM750x 750W Modular 80+ Gold PSU Purchase Limitation Apply

Case:
Corsair 4000D Airflow Mid Tower Gaming Case

I think that I will go slightly over my budget, perhaps 27 inch monitor would be better choice ?

You will probably noticed that I have replaced PSU for bigger one, 750W is that a good call. There are close to £90, new GPU could be hungry - what do you think.

I have also replaced memory type for RGB, its £15 more but just want to light up case a bit. Fan is also Blue. My tower will be located on small desk so I will be sitting next to it, probably do not want too much light which would be distracting too much.

Please advise, I will be greatfull for your opinions. I[ will be home over the weekend so could order all parts tonight / tomorrow morning for delivery on Sunday - CCL Computers offers Sunday 3rd Oct delivery for £8.99 so perhaps I could go and get everything from this one supplier instead of hunting for parts everywhere.
The Palit gpu looks like something that would be used in an office computer. Single fan gpu's usually mean shoddy cooling. btw that Deepcool Gammix cpu cooler isn't going to handle the 11400. What's going to happen is it's going to throttle down once it warms up. The 11 gen cpu's are power hogs so you want a cpu cooler that can handle the job.
 
The Palit gpu looks like something that would be used in an office computer. Single fan gpu's usually mean shoddy cooling. btw that Deepcool Gammix cpu cooler isn't going to handle the 11400. What's going to happen is it's going to throttle down once it warms up. The 11 gen cpu's are power hogs so you want a cpu cooler that can handle the job.
A 1 fan 3060 will be better than a 1660s that is 2x msrp 3 years after it came out, right? Plus you can usually add some thermal pads and heatsinks to the backplate side afterwards for pretty cheap and its effective. That GPU is for SFF builds whether that be for an office computer or a very small custom computer is up to who buys it.
 
Ok. Should I get this two fan card Eagle


Video Card 1: Gigabyte GeForce RTX 3060 Eagle OC Rev v2.0 12GB Graphics Card £492.00
https://www.kustompcs.co.uk/compone...tx-3060-eagle-oc-rev-v2.0-12gb-graphics-card/

Is this card better choice ?

Regarding cpu cooler which one should I get to ensure that the fan keep cpu at right temperature.
https://www.scan.co.uk/products/arc...um-fins-4x-direct-touch-copper-heatpipes-inte

https://www.scan.co.uk/products/be-...ipes-120mm-shadow-wings-2-pwm-fan-190w-tdp-in
 
  • Like
Reactions: helper800
Ok. Should I get this two fan card Eagle


Video Card 1: Gigabyte GeForce RTX 3060 Eagle OC Rev v2.0 12GB Graphics Card £492.00
https://www.kustompcs.co.uk/compone...tx-3060-eagle-oc-rev-v2.0-12gb-graphics-card/

Is this card better choice ?

Regarding cpu cooler which one should I get to ensure that the fan keep cpu at right temperature.
That GPU is better as far as the cooling is concerned its just a matter of paying for it or not. Its almost definitely worth another price increase.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Why_Me
We will spend little extra on this Eagle double fan card then. I should place an order tomorrow.

Cooler , probably with go with this Artic type. I don’t suppose there is a type of coller with some LEDs or RGB which would handle 11400 temperature well ?

PSU 750W should be big enough for this setup then.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Why_Me
Depends on your definition of overclocking. 11th-gen non-K CPUs on B560 and up can have their power limits unlocked and that is a ~15% sustained performance increase over stock behavior if your PSU, VRM and heatsink can keep up.
I wont say that overclocking because you are not pushing the multipliers and voltages directly and instead relying on chipset headroom which is directly proportional to the VRM quality of the board.
 
You can tweak voltages on a non-K CPU and B560 motherboard though - I'm running my i5-11400 with a -0.05V offset after successfully testing it down to -0.07V.
Yes, but for a layman tuning with power limits and gears and voltages and what not, thats a lot to digest. Dont think everyone will be able to do that. Kind of defeats the purpose. Intel is making things overly complicated in trying to compete with AMD.

You can, but then you lose out on NVME storage, for basically 0 difference, in gaming performance. The 10400 is simply a better price/performance buy, right now.

https://www.techpowerup.com/review/intel-core-i5-11400f/15.html
Still within budget...

PCPartPicker Part List

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Core i5-11400 2.6 GHz 6-Core Processor | £184.98 @ CCL Computers
CPU Cooler | Deepcool GAMMAXX 400 Blue 74.34 CFM CPU Cooler | £23.47 @ Scan.co.uk
Motherboard | Gigabyte B560M AORUS PRO Micro ATX LGA1200 Motherboard | £126.04 @ Amazon UK
Memory | Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory | £57.99 @ Corsair UK
Storage | Crucial P2 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive | £69.98 @ Scan.co.uk
Video Card | Palit GeForce RTX 3060 12 GB StormX Video Card | £459.98 @ Scan.co.uk
Case | Deepcool TESSERACT BF ATX Mid Tower Case | £40.47 @ Scan.co.uk
Power Supply | Corsair TXM Gold 550 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply | £59.98 @ Currys PC World Business
Monitor | ViewSonic VX2458-C-MHD 23.6" 1920x1080 144 Hz Monitor | £114.99 @ CCL Computers
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts |
| Total | £1137.88
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2021-10-02 03:57 BST+0100 |
 
My final element to this build is to purchase CPU cooler for this processor.
I will be ordering all parts from CCL Computers as they offer delivery for Sunday 3rd.
Ideally I would choose cooler from this supplier too so everything comes at the same time. However looking on their website and selecting socket 1200 in filter I cannot find anything - not sure what am I doing wrong here.

Alternatively I could order from Amazon too but there is some much to choose from. Will every cooler 120mm dedicated for Intel be compatible with my Motherboard B560M Aorus Pro ? Be quiet Pure Rock 2 looks solid, single fan £35.

Do we need to use double fan coolers ? There are usually more expensive (probably better too) but for their price we are not far off from liquid coolers , there are some from £65 with some RGBs.

As it is gaming PC it would be worth lighting up the interior slightly.
 
My final element to this build is to purchase CPU cooler for this processor.
I will be ordering all parts from CCL Computers as they offer delivery for Sunday 3rd.
Ideally I would choose cooler from this supplier too so everything comes at the same time. However looking on their website and selecting socket 1200 in filter I cannot find anything - not sure what am I doing wrong here.

Alternatively I could order from Amazon too but there is some much to choose from. Will every cooler 120mm dedicated for Intel be compatible with my Motherboard B560M Aorus Pro ? Be quiet Pure Rock 2 looks solid, single fan £35.

Do we need to use double fan coolers ? There are usually more expensive (probably better too) but for their price we are not far off from liquid coolers , there are some from £65 with some RGBs.

As it is gaming PC it would be worth lighting up the interior slightly.
You can go with the Pure Rock, its good. Even this one is compatible and should work fine...

Anything is better than the Intel stock cooler. Since its a locked CPU, you wont need a huge cooler to cool it.
Heres a rough comparison chart for performance...
 
Thank you , that’s explain all. If I can get this one from CCL for tomorrow delivery than this is it.
If not something from Amazon would be required.
Is this any good brand :

GOLDEN FIELD Wind Walker A-RGB CPU Cooler, 5V M/B SYNC Supported, 2* Pressure Optimized PWM Fans, 4 Heat Pipes CPU Fan for Intel AMD

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08FX87...abc_H9BTST32E7H4FQZ901W6?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

£29.99 at the moment and it has some basic rgb sync.
 
Thank you , that’s explain all. If I can get this one from CCL for tomorrow delivery than this is it.
If not something from Amazon would be required.
Is this any good brand :

GOLDEN FIELD Wind Walker A-RGB CPU Cooler, 5V M/B SYNC Supported, 2* Pressure Optimized PWM Fans, 4 Heat Pipes CPU Fan for Intel AMD

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08FX87...abc_H9BTST32E7H4FQZ901W6?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

£29.99 at the moment and it has some basic rgb sync.
Never heard of that before. Not a fan of RGB but if you want then go for some known brand which works rather than some sketchy one...

PCPartPicker Part List

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
CPU Cooler | Cooler Master Hyper 212 RGB Black Edition 57.3 CFM CPU Cooler | £39.27 @ Clove Technology
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts |
| Total | £39.27
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2021-10-02 09:12 BST+0100 |
 
  • Like
Reactions: Why_Me