Question Help a newborn baby with building her first PC

[KitsuThien]

(Hello, I'm an Asian and not good with English much so sorry)

I just want to get advice on building my first PC but on a budget of course. I don't know what parts to buy for everything (except for keyboard and mouse) for the softwares I will be using. Can you please kindly advise me on what hardware parts should I get?

Here are the softwares I will be using:
Maya
Photoshop
Clip Studio
After effects
Premiere
Open toonz
Sketchup
Zbrush
(I make illustrations, 2d animations and learning to 3D model although I won't render much all the time so i think i will prefer a larger memory or storage to use?)

Also, because I like games a lot to relieve my stress, I will buy and install game that are maybe a bit high-end games. So it will be helpful if it's a build that i can also play games.

I forgot to mention that $1000 is my budget or less would be better. Thank you in advance for taking the time to help me!

 

[altVortex]

Here's a more-than-capable PC parts list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/h9Wj7T
However, I didn't include a a Windows 10 copy, which you may need to purchase.

I can change a few things to make it less expensive, which will make it still powerful for processing, but a bit weaker for gaming.

 

[KitsuThien]

Here's a more-than-capable PC parts list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/h9Wj7T
However, I didn't include a a Windows 10 copy, which you may need to purchase.

I can change a few things to make it less expensive, which will make it still powerful for processing, but a bit weaker for gaming.

Thank you so much for your help!

 

[Hellfire13]

Here's a more-than-capable PC parts list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/h9Wj7T
However, I didn't include a a Windows 10 copy, which you may need to purchase.

I can change a few things to make it less expensive, which will make it still powerful for processing, but a bit weaker for gaming.

Some poor parts in there that I would mostly avoid. This should be better...

PCPartPicker Part List

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
CPU | AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor | $172.39 @ 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 | Crucial P1 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive | $119.99 @ Newegg
Video Card | Asus GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER 6 GB TUF GAMING OC Video Card | $229.99 @ Best Buy
Case | Fractal Design Focus G ATX Mid Tower Case | $62.98 @ Newegg
Power Supply | Corsair CX (2017) 450 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply | $64.99 @ Corsair
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts |
| Total | $849.32
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-05-10 23:53 EDT-0400 |

 

[altVortex]

Some poor parts in there that I would mostly avoid. This should be better...

PCPartPicker Part List

While I agree with the G.Skill RAM, I don't see what makes those choices "poor".
Care to explain?

 

[Hellfire13]

While I agree with the G.Skill RAM, I don't see what makes those choices "poor".
Care to explain?

For starters there is no point in paying more for a high frequency high latency RAM as its virtually same as lower frequency lower latency units...

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnRVEgCZJ7c


Next, there is no point in getting a SATA SSD when for a few more bucks you can get a way way faster NVME drive.

Next, thats a Tier D "Potentially Dangerous" low quality PSU...
https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/1116640-psucultists-psu-tier-list/

As for the case, cheap cases from secondary brands are not known to be good on air flow, cable management and/or dust filtration.

 

[altVortex]

• Agreed on RAM.
  
  
• While NVMe/m.2 can be faster in certain situations, the difference is not very significant, and a 2.5 SSD is easier to plug somewhere else when needed, possibly into a laptop for example.
  
  
• That PSU works fine with lots of reviews on it. The main idea is to have higher wattage so there's no need to worry about the PSU being unable to handle a future upgrade.
  
  
• Agreed on case it's also more accessible.

Overall, I think the choices weren't "poor" as they were more into a budget build.

 

[Hellfire13]

• Agreed on RAM.
  
  
• While NVMe/m.2 can be faster in certain situations, the difference is not very significant, and a 2.5 SSD is easier to plug somewhere else when needed, possibly into a laptop for example.
  
  
• That PSU works fine with lots of reviews on it. The main idea is to have higher wattage so there's no need to worry about the PSU being unable to handle a future upgrade.
  
  
• Agreed on case it's also more accessible.

Overall, I think the choices weren't "poor" as they were more into a budget build.

Nobody buys a SSD with that kind hypothetical mindset when building a desktop. For all the assumptions you are making, the user might not even have a laptop at all, and if necessary even a M2 drive can be installed in one. Also, for the kind of workload mentioned by the user, NVME speed will immensely benefit him/her.

Never cheap out on a PSU at it is the heart of the machine. High rating does not automatically transform into high efficiency and/or quality. A lower quality PSU has a higher probability of failing and sometimes when they go out, they tend to take out other parts along with them. While I agree that its might be better than a no name brandless garbage, it still leaves a room for doubt.

Overall, when you have the option of choosing better parts without hampering the budget you should always go that way. Didn't mean to be rude, but a little bit of research can go a long way in making some informed choices.


OP.....with a tight budget you can avoid getting a Windows license right away, or try to get it cheap...
https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/get-windows-10-free-or-cheap,5717.html
There is no difference in performance even if you activate it later on...
https://www.howtogeek.com/244678/you-dont-need-a-product-key-to-install-and-use-windows-10/

 

[altVortex]

Nobody buys a SSD with that kind hypothetical mindset when building a desktop. For all the assumptions you are making, the user might not even have a laptop at all, and if necessary even a M2 drive can be installed in one. Also, for the kind of workload mentioned by the user, NVME speed will immensely benefit him/her.

I don't completely agree. The uses for an SSD can go a long way from a PC to laptop to a console to even making it portable. It's a sensible mindset and I have made this kind of usage for different SSDs.

Really it's best to ask OP about their needs, but I took a safer route and included a SATA SSD. After all, we do not know if they plan on building it themselves or having someone else do it.

 

[Hellfire13]

I don't completely agree. The uses for an SSD can go a long way from a PC to laptop to a console to even making it portable. It's a sensible mindset and I have made this kind of usage for different SSDs.

Really it's best to ask OP about their needs, but I took a safer route and included a SATA SSD. After all, we do not know if they plan on building it themselves or having someone else do it.

Well, the market trend is not exactly driven by your mindset and the general consensus is to prefer NVME over SATA. You can disagree as much as you want, but that wont change the fact that SATA is on the verge of getting obsolete and NVME is plain better and the way forward.
Since you seem relatively new to the forum, I can understand your lack of awareness and you get the benefit of doubt for that reason.

 

[altVortex]

Well, the market trend is not exactly driven by your mindset and the general consensus is to prefer NVME over SATA. You can disagree as much as you want, but that wont change the fact that SATA is on the verge of getting obsolete and NVME is plain better and the way forward.
Since you seem relatively new to the forum, I can understand your lack of awareness and you get the benefit of doubt for that reason.

General consensus doesn't mean it's 100% correct.

The uses for SATA still very much exist, and as I mentioned, the best action is to ask about a user's needs beforehand.

 

[Hellfire13]

General consensus doesn't mean it's 100% correct.

The uses for SATA still very much exist, and as I mentioned, the best action is to ask about a user's needs beforehand.

The consensus refers to facts, tech experts, user reviews, etc which are usually accurate. Nobody said that SATA doesn't exist, but in 2020 it is not the preferred or logical choice of people and is on the verge of waning out both in terms of technology as well as popularity. If you already own a SATA, there is not much benefit in upgrading to NVME, but if you are building brand new, NVME is definitely a better choice over SATA by all means.

Anyways, there is no point in this discussion anymore and the OP has enough information to make an informed decision. I will leave it to him.

 

[altVortex]

The consensus refers to facts, tech experts, user reviews, etc which are usually accurate. Nobody said that SATA doesn't exist, but in 2020 it is not the preferred or logical choice of people and is on the verge of waning out both in terms of technology as well as popularity. If you already own a SATA, there is not much benefit in upgrading to NVME, but if you are building brand new, NVME is definitely a better choice over SATA by all means.

Anyways, there is no point in this discussion anymore and the OP has enough information to make an informed decision. I will leave it to him.

Basically depends on your use-case.