[SOLVED] Gaming PC build suggestions ($1500'ish)

JLD

Honorable
Jan 3, 2014
19
0
10,510
Hey folks, the time has come to consider building another computer. Looking for some gaming and lots of YouTube watching and the budget is starting around $1500 but is flexible. Built my last PC a few years ago but haven't kept up on hardware changes so I'm kind of in the dark. Appreciate any and all advice. Thanks in advance!

Approximate Purchase Date: Within a month, but if people say to wait and see what the economy does to pricing I'll listen to their advice, no rush

Budget Range: $1500 US but flexbile.

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming and watching YouTube. Gaming doesn't need to be 4k but that's preferable. Gaming is mostly Path of Exile, some older strategy games, Divinity OS2, whatever the next Elder Scrolls and Fallout messes are because I'm a sucker...no data mining, no graphics rendering

Are you buying a monitor: No (I have an LG 4k)

Parts to Upgrade: Not reusing anything but an extra HDD that I'll use for data storage only, want a primary SSD (500GB min)

Do you need to buy OS: Yes, Win 10, don't think I need anything but the basic version, no crazy networking or anything like that, standalone PC connected to fiber modem via ethernet.

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg has been good to me in the past but I'm open to whatever people recommend

Location: Utah, USA

Parts Preferences: I've had better longevity and performance with Intel chipsets and Nvidia graphics, so I'd prefer to go that route again, unless others make a compelling case why I should switch to AMD. I've been using an i5-4670k but don't know what a good next processor would be. For video I'm looking at the eVGA 2070 FTW3 because my 1070 FTW has been a great card so far.

Overclocking: Maybe...but probably not. Unlocked chips aren't much more $ so I'll buy a K chip again just in case I change my mind later but I want the best build stability I can get

SLI or Crossfire: No, don't even know how it works

Your Monitor Resolution: Keeping my single 4k monitor

Additional Comments: Computer sits up near a wall in the corner and it is hot where I live so it needs good airflow/larger case fans. Use it in a dark room so I don't need any case lighting effects they would be too annoying. Want a larger air cooler for the CPU but I don't want to mess with water cooling, the current chip stays nice and cool without it. Case is in a tight location so more than just 2 front USB would be preferred. Still need a DVDRW drive because I'm old. Using a Asrock Fatal!ty motherboard right now and find the Qualcomm software annoying. Need to have bluetooth for headphones, right now I'm using a USB dongle w/Win7 and it disconnects easily, is there a better way to get bluetooth? Is 16GB enough RAM or should I go 32?

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: Use the computer every day and it is still on Win7, don't want to mess with doing a clean install of everything and upgrading to 10 and risking any complications and being without the computer for a while - want a stronger GPU for games like Flight Sim 2020 when it comes out. My son wants my current computer.
 
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Solution
Wait for Intel next gen. to drop in later this year. The current gen. is bad value for money...
https://www.techpowerup.com/review/future-hardware-releases/

However if you are buying now, these are your choices...


INTEL...

PCPartPicker Part List

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Core i7-9700K 3.6 GHz 8-Core Processor | $379.99 @ Newegg
CPU Cooler | be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4 50.5 CFM CPU Cooler | $86.46 @ B&H
Motherboard | Asus ROG STRIX Z390-E GAMING ATX LGA1151 Motherboard | $234.99 @ Newegg
Memory | G.Skill Ripjaws V 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3600 Memory | $83.99 @ Newegg
Storage | Western Digital Blue SN550 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid...
Wait for Intel next gen. to drop in later this year. The current gen. is bad value for money...
https://www.techpowerup.com/review/future-hardware-releases/

However if you are buying now, these are your choices...


INTEL...

PCPartPicker Part List

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Core i7-9700K 3.6 GHz 8-Core Processor | $379.99 @ Newegg
CPU Cooler | be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4 50.5 CFM CPU Cooler | $86.46 @ B&H
Motherboard | Asus ROG STRIX Z390-E GAMING ATX LGA1151 Motherboard | $234.99 @ Newegg
Memory | G.Skill Ripjaws V 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3600 Memory | $83.99 @ Newegg
Storage | Western Digital Blue SN550 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive | $124.99 @ Newegg
Video Card | EVGA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER 8 GB XC GAMING Video Card | $683.98 @ Newegg
Case | Corsair Air 540 ATX Mid Tower Case | $139.98 @ B&H
Power Supply | Corsair RM (2019) 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply | $124.99 @ Best Buy
Optical Drive | Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer | $25.98 @ B&H
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts |
| Total (before mail-in rebates) | $1915.35
| Mail-in rebates | -$30.00
| Total | $1885.35
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-03-30 02:22 EDT-0400 |



AMD...

PCPartPicker Part List

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
CPU | AMD Ryzen 7 3800X 3.9 GHz 8-Core Processor | $339.99 @ Newegg
CPU Cooler | be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4 50.5 CFM CPU Cooler | $86.46 @ B&H
Motherboard | Asus TUF GAMING X570-PLUS (WI-FI) ATX AM4 Motherboard | $199.99 @ B&H
Memory | G.Skill Ripjaws V 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3600 Memory | $83.99 @ Newegg
Storage | Western Digital Blue SN550 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive | $124.99 @ Newegg
Video Card | EVGA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER 8 GB XC GAMING Video Card | $683.98 @ Newegg
Case | Corsair Air 540 ATX Mid Tower Case | $139.98 @ B&H
Power Supply | Corsair RM (2019) 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply | $124.99 @ Best Buy
Optical Drive | Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer | $25.98 @ B&H
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts |
| Total (before mail-in rebates) | $1840.35
| Mail-in rebates | -$30.00
| Total | $1810.35
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-03-30 02:24 EDT-0400 |


AMD is better value for money ATM. Here is a scaled down version of the AMD build which will still give you similar performance...

PCPartPicker Part List

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
CPU | AMD Ryzen 7 3700X 3.6 GHz 8-Core Processor | $298.99 @ Newegg
CPU Cooler | ARCTIC Freezer 34 eSports CPU Cooler | $37.99 @ Newegg
Motherboard | MSI B450 TOMAHAWK MAX ATX AM4 Motherboard | $114.99 @ Best Buy
Memory | G.Skill Ripjaws V 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3600 Memory | $83.99 @ Newegg
Storage | Western Digital Blue SN550 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive | $124.99 @ Newegg
Video Card | EVGA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER 8 GB XC GAMING Video Card | $683.98 @ Newegg
Case | Fractal Design Focus G ATX Mid Tower Case | $60.98 @ Newegg
Power Supply | Corsair RM (2019) 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply | $124.99 @ Best Buy
Optical Drive | Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer | $25.98 @ B&H
Wireless Network Adapter | TP-Link Archer T4E PCIe x1 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi Adapter | $29.99 @ B&H
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts |
| Total (before mail-in rebates) | $1616.87
| Mail-in rebates | -$30.00
| Total | $1586.87
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-03-30 02:28 EDT-0400 |
 
Solution

JLD

Honorable
Jan 3, 2014
19
0
10,510
Sorry, what makes the 2nd one (the AMD) the better value, is that Ryzen that much faster/more powerful than the i7 9700? I'm not opposed to AMD just been a long time since I've had an AMD system, and I don't know much about processors.

That type of SSD is completely new to me, is that a PCIE card?

The 2080 XC is worth the extra $100 over the 2070 FTW? I don't mind spending the extra $ but was told that the 270 is the best value for money right now and to save the extra money if I wasn't going for the Ti.

Prices on both of those systems look good, but I'm not opposed to waiting for the next Intel CPU if that's recommended.

Thank you so much for the help!
 

Phaaze88

Titan
Ambassador
I agree with what was said regarding Intel currently; you're really not going to get your money's worth with them currently.
Perhaps they'll turn things around...
[IMO, I'm not going to hold my breath, as the upcoming cpus from them are on the same old 14nm Plus Infinity process; each new refinement runs faster, but also hotter - without making sacrifices in core frequency, anyways. Time will tell though.]
A value/bang for buck build:
PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor ($174.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: ARCTIC Freezer 34 eSports DUO CPU Cooler ($46.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI B450 TOMAHAWK MAX ATX AM4 Motherboard ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($73.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Blue 500 GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda Compute 2 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.98 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER 8 GB FTW3 GAMING Video Card ($543.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Pro M TG ATX Mid Tower Case ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic FOCUS Plus Gold 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($123.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSC0B DVD/CD Writer ($20.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $1329.86
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-03-30 03:13 EDT-0400


If you don't mind spending a little extra - merely replaced the 2070 Super with a 2080 Super:
PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor ($174.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: ARCTIC Freezer 34 eSports DUO CPU Cooler ($46.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI B450 TOMAHAWK MAX ATX AM4 Motherboard ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($73.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Blue 500 GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda Compute 2 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.98 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER 8 GB FTW3 GAMING Video Card ($743.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Pro M TG ATX Mid Tower Case ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic FOCUS Plus Gold 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($123.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSC0B DVD/CD Writer ($20.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $1529.86
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-03-30 03:16 EDT-0400

@JLD
1)In games, Ryzen 3000 is on par with Intel. You can squeeze a little more out of the Intel system via overclocking, but the amount of money one will end up spending with the Blue Team just for ~10fps advantage over someone with a Ryzen 3000 build is absurd.
In most productivity apps, Ryzen 3000 wipes the floor with them.
One can EASILY spend over 70% more on an Intel system - the yields will be very underwhelming.

2)https://www.youtube(dot)com/watch?v=opwON-7J_wI

3)Not really. Maybe 10-15% faster overall. 2070 Super pretty much is the best all-round gpu on Nvidia's end currently.
 
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zx128k

Reputable
PCPartPicker Part List: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/qg3zCL

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 3800X 3.9 GHz 8-Core Processor ($339.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI B450 TOMAHAWK MAX ATX AM4 Motherboard ($114.99 @ Best Buy)
Memory: G.Skill Trident Z 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3600 Memory ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Blue SN550 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($124.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI GeForce RTX 2080 8 GB VENTUS OC Video Card ($629.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Focus G ATX Mid Tower Case ($60.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair TXM Gold 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply ($98.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSC0B DVD/CD Writer ($20.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $1530.89
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-03-30 03:15 EDT-0400

RAM is F4-3600C16D-16GTZKW. https://benzhaomin.github.io/bdiefinder/
B-Die guaranteed!
G.Skill Trident Z black-white / 3600C16 8.9ns / 16GB 2 sticks SR

S Tier
Corsair TX-M SeriesGold550, 650, 750, 850 Watts

Really hard to keep it good and still under $1500. Could add a 360 AIO and WiFi card if needed later. You get most performance from RAM overclocking but better cooling really helps boost frequencies. If you get good cooling you can try manually overclocking, PBO or the EDC 1 bug if the bios supports that. If you don't mind the risks.

Case is here, https://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/fractal_design_focus_g_review,9.html Comes with two 120 mm fans with white LEDs https://www.techpowerup.com/review/fractal-design-focus-g/6.html


M2 drive review https://www.tomshardware.com/uk/reviews/wd-blue-sn550-m2-nvme-ssd-review-best-dramless-ssd-yet

Motherboard VRM spreadsheet. Keep decent airflow over the VRM's.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...qVxdCR9daIVNyMatydkpFA/htmlview#gid=639584818

For Intel z390 builds this image is useful.
6j8i71dbrxv11.png

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/YM4FHB
 
Last edited:
Sorry, what makes the 2nd one (the AMD) the better value, is that Ryzen that much faster/more powerful than the i7 9700? I'm not opposed to AMD just been a long time since I've had an AMD system, and I don't know much about processors.

That type of SSD is completely new to me, is that a PCIE card?

The 2080 XC is worth the extra $100 over the 2070 FTW? I don't mind spending the extra $ but was told that the 270 is the best value for money right now and to save the extra money if I wasn't going for the Ti.

Prices on both of those systems look good, but I'm not opposed to waiting for the next Intel CPU if that's recommended.

Thank you so much for the help!
Some of your queries have been answered by Phaaze. I am going to touch those which are not covered above.

NVME SSD is the current standard of boot drive and hot storage as they are way faster and resilient than the conventional HDD. More here... https://blogs.cisco.com/datacenter/nvme-for-absolute-beginners

Since you have a 4k monitor, a 2070S will struggle in some of the games if you are pushing max settings. If you do not care about max settings or eye candy and want to make a more value for money decision, then the 2070S is fine mostly.

Since you currently have a PC and not in a hurry, it cannot hurt to wait out for the next Intel offering as they are touted to be around 30% faster and better than the current gen. even on the same lithography.
Intel's cores are still faster than AMD, which is beneficial for gaming. Its just that their prices are not justified for the extra speed they offer. But that might change given the bashing they are getting from AMD due to recent competition. Lets wait and see.
 
Last edited:

JLD

Honorable
Jan 3, 2014
19
0
10,510
Some of your queries have been answered by Phaaze. I am going to touch those which are not covered above.

NVME SSD is the current standard of boot drive and hot storage as they are way faster and resilient than the conventional HDD. More here... https://blogs.cisco.com/datacenter/nvme-for-absolute-beginners

Since you have a 4k monitor, a 2070S will struggle in some of the games if you are pushing max settings. If you do not care about max settings or eye candy and want to make a more value for money decision, then the 2070S is fine mostly.

Since you currently have a PC and not in a hurry, it cannot hurt to wait out for the next Intel offering as they are touted to be around 30% faster and better than the current gen. even on the same lithography.
Intel's cores are still faster than AMD, which is beneficial for gaming. Its just that their prices are not justified for the extra speed they offer. But that might change given the bashing they are getting from AMD due to recent competition. Lets wait and see.


Thanks for all the help. Maybe something like this then?

https://pcpartpicker.com/user/justind/saved/X7FmkL

I did have to swap the case because there is a cabinet I need to be able to access and I don't think I can do that with the cube style case. This gives me something to think about....I may wait for the next Intels to drop as I'm in no hurry.
 
Thanks for all the help. Maybe something like this then?

https://pcpartpicker.com/user/justind/saved/X7FmkL

I did have to swap the case because there is a cabinet I need to be able to access and I don't think I can do that with the cube style case. This gives me something to think about....I may wait for the next Intels to drop as I'm in no hurry.
Looks good. For the thermal paste get the TG Kryonaut. Its the best out there...
https://www.amazon.com/Thermal-Griz...64305&sprefix=Thermal+Grizzly+,aps,407&sr=8-1