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dn002

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Feb 17, 2015
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Hi, I'm looking to build a new gaming PC. I am in the US and near a Micro Center if that helps. My budget is around $1500 - $2500. I want my system to last me for at least a few years if possible. Looking for parts that are "value parts" and not something where I spend extra $500 for minimal performance increase if that makes sense. I had someone suggest a build like this. Can anyone suggest builds for me? I already have a PC case, gaming monitors, and all peripherals.
 
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PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 7700 3.6 GHz 8-Core Processor ($257.00 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI MAG X670E TOMAHAWK WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard ($252.22 @ Amazon)
Memory: Patriot Viper Venom 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial T500 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($79.79 @ Amazon)
Storage: Crucial P3 Plus 4 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($219.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte WINDFORCE SFF GeForce RTX 5070 Ti 16 GB Video Card ($837.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: NZXT C850 (2024) 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($124.99 @ Best Buy)
Total: $1851.96
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-06-03 22:18 EDT-0400

The idea behind this build is maximum connectivity and graphics performance at minimal cost. It gives good baseline CPU performance and of course leaves the door open for upgrading Zen 6 should you need maximum platform performance.

Here are the best video card value options that may be available at your local Micro Center (at the listed prices):
  1. $750: https://www.microcenter.com/product...f-triple-fan-16gb-gddr7-pcie-50-graphics-card
  2. $700: https://www.microcenter.com/product...d-triple-fan-16gb-gddr6-pcie-50-graphics-card
  3. $720: https://www.microcenter.com/product...d-triple-fan-16gb-gddr6-pcie-50-graphics-card
  4. $730: https://www.microcenter.com/product...d-triple-fan-16gb-gddr6-pcie-50-graphics-card
Anything above those prices it doesn't particularly matter where you buy from as the prices look about the same.

Alternatives for saving maximum on motherboard:
ASRock B850M Pro RS Micro ATX AM5 Motherboard ($139.99 @ Newegg)
ASRock B850M Pro-A WiFi Micro ATX AM5 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Newegg)
edit:
ASRock B850M Pro RS WiFi Micro ATX AM5 Motherboard ($149.99 @ Newegg)
ASRock B850 Pro-A ATX AM5 Motherboard ($159.99 @ Newegg)
edit:
ASRock B850 LiveMixer WiFi ATX AM5 Motherboard ($189.99 @ Amazon)

There are some in between motherboards, but generally speaking they're not offering a good enough value to really consider. The exception to this would be if you wanted to save idle power consumption and didn't need the additional connectivity provided by X670/X870. At that point some of the B850/B650 boards in the $180-225 range may make sense so long as they have a PCIe 5.0 slot (while this isn't necessarily important today who knows where we're going with lane counts).

I didn't bother listing CPU, CPU cooler or DRAM alternatives because those have already been listed. Thermalright dual tower (120mm/140mm) coolers offer the best price/performance in the US currently and they're all good enough for any AMD 8 core CPU. The Patriot 64GB CL30 kit listed is a great option for increased capacity. The 7800X3D/9800X3D are of course the other two CPU options on the table. If you're going with an X3D part now I'm guessing the intention would be best performance for long term so the 9800X3D would be my choice.
 
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dn002 said:
I've narrowed things down a little bit and this is what the build looks like at this time:

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/rN7Kgn


Any thoughts, opinions, or suggestions? I keep going back and forth between the 7800X3D and 9800X3D. Maybe I should just go with the 7800X3D and save some money.
Click to expand...
If your primary use is gaming then I would save $100+ and roll with the 7800x3D. The heatsinks on that Patriot RAM are nearly 44mm ... they are the same heatsinks Patriot uses for their RGB RAM as in they are tall.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: *AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor ($384.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Royal Pretor 130 BLACK 81.88 CFM CPU Cooler ($49.69 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte B850 GAMING X WIFI6E ATX AM5 Motherboard ($179.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: *G.Skill Flare X5 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($184.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: *Crucial P3 Plus 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($61.95 @ iBUYPOWER)
Storage: Crucial P3 Plus 4 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($219.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte WINDFORCE SFF GeForce RTX 5070 Ti 16 GB Video Card ($837.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Meshify C ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.99 @ B&H)
Power Supply: Super Flower Leadex III Gold UP 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($119.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $2139.56
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-06-04 00:35 EDT-0400
 
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dn002 said:
The 5070Tis primarily as I'm leaning towards that
Click to expand...
What microcenter location are you closest to? Microcenter does a per store inventory.

Below is what my final reccomendation would be if you can get to a microcenter and get a 750 dollar 5070 ti and a 360 dollar 7800X3D CPU:

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor ($359.99)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Royal Pretor 130 BLACK 81.88 CFM CPU Cooler ($49.69 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B850 Pro-A WiFi ATX AM5 Motherboard ($179.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Patriot Venom 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Inland Performance Plus 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($74.98 @ Amazon)
Storage: Crucial P3 Plus 4 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($219.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Zotac GAMING SOLID GeForce RTX 5070 Ti 16 GB Video Card ($749.99)
Case: Lian Li Lancool 207 ATX Mid Tower Case ($81.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: NZXT C850 (2024) 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($124.99 @ Best Buy)
Case Fan: ARCTIC P12 PWM PST 56.3 CFM 120 mm Fan ($9.99 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: ARCTIC P12 PWM PST 56.3 CFM 120 mm Fan ($9.99 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: ARCTIC P12 PWM PST 56.3 CFM 120 mm Fan ($9.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $2031.57
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-06-04 13:26 EDT-0400

The Lian Li case is very nice as it comes with two very good front mounted 140mm fans and two bottom intake 120mm fans for the graphics card. I added 3 arctic 120mm fans for exhaust. Swap the two 120mm fans that come with the case on the bottom intake with 2 of the arctic 120mm fans and place the case fans at the top left as top exhaust. Place the remaining 120mm arctic fan at the rear as exhaust. With this setup you would have a very optimal high airflow setup for both the CPU and graphics card. The NZXT C850 PSU is one of the best PSUs on the market without breaking the bank. The Asrock B850 A-Pro wifi comes with plentiful USB ports on the back, good VRMs, an 8 layer PCB, and plenty of M.2 slots for further storage expansion if needed.
 
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The one thing I’d say about the post above, I might hesitate on the AsRock board. I’ve had AsRock boards in the past that were great and in fact have an AsRock gpu. But given the fact that there’s some reports of the 9800x3d dying in AsRock boards I think I’d consider what other brands are available on that one part.
 
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helper800 said:
What microcenter location are you closest to? Microcenter does a per store inventory.

Below is what my final reccomendation would be if you can get to a microcenter and get a 750 dollar 5070 ti and a 360 dollar 7800X3D CPU:

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor ($359.99)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Royal Pretor 130 BLACK 81.88 CFM CPU Cooler ($49.69 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B850 Pro-A WiFi ATX AM5 Motherboard ($179.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Patriot Venom 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Inland Performance Plus 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($74.98 @ Amazon)
Storage: Crucial P3 Plus 4 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($219.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Zotac GAMING SOLID GeForce RTX 5070 Ti 16 GB Video Card ($749.99)
Case: Lian Li Lancool 207 ATX Mid Tower Case ($81.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: NZXT C850 (2024) 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($124.99 @ Best Buy)
Case Fan: ARCTIC P12 PWM PST 56.3 CFM 120 mm Fan ($9.99 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: ARCTIC P12 PWM PST 56.3 CFM 120 mm Fan ($9.99 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: ARCTIC P12 PWM PST 56.3 CFM 120 mm Fan ($9.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $2031.57
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-06-04 13:26 EDT-0400

The Lian Li case is very nice as it comes with two very good front mounted 140mm fans and two bottom intake 120mm fans for the graphics card. I added 3 arctic 120mm fans for exhaust. Swap the two 120mm fans that come with the case on the bottom intake with 2 of the arctic 120mm fans and place the case fans at the top left as top exhaust. Place the remaining 120mm arctic fan at the rear as exhaust. With this setup you would have a very optimal high airflow setup for both the CPU and graphics card. The NZXT C850 PSU is one of the best PSUs on the market without breaking the bank. The Asrock B850 A-Pro wifi comes with plentiful USB ports on the back, good VRMs, an 8 layer PCB, and plenty of M.2 slots for further storage expansion if needed.
Click to expand...
Thank you. Is there a big difference between the various 5070TIs?
 
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ohio_buckeye said:
The one thing I’d say about the post above, I might hesitate on the AsRock board. I’ve had AsRock boards in the past that were great and in fact have an AsRock gpu. But given the fact that there’s some reports of the 9800x3d dying in AsRock boards I think I’d consider what other brands are available on that one part.
Click to expand...
AsRock have released a BIOS update that supposedly nullifies the issue. I am inclined to believe that this is true because of how they explain this fixes the issue. It is good to mention though because the OP should update to the latest BIOS for the board as soon as they get it, but before installing the CPU. Most of the issues are also with the 9800X3D and not the 7800X3D as far as I am aware.

dn002 said:
Thank you. Is there a big difference between the various 5070TIs?
Click to expand...
Some of the higher end models that cost much more will clock 5-10% higher with an overclock and that may gain you 3-5% or so performance. Most of them are 900-1050 dollars though. The more basic cards still run relatively cool and dont lose much performance. IMO the cheapest 5070ti is the best 5070ti. If you want more performance, you mind as well get a 5080.
 
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ohio_buckeye said:
The one thing I’d say about the post above, I might hesitate on the AsRock board. I’ve had AsRock boards in the past that were great and in fact have an AsRock gpu. But given the fact that there’s some reports of the 9800x3d dying in AsRock boards I think I’d consider what other brands are available on that one part.
Click to expand...

The issues appear to only affect 9000 series, at least, so a 7800x3d will be ok, assuming their 9000 fixes don't work. The fact they are willing to pay for shipping both directions, for RMA's of a failed motherboard, instills far more confidence than what Asus did back when they were blowing up 7800x3d's.
 
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helper800 said:
AsRock have released a BIOS update that supposedly nullifies the issue. I am inclined to believe that this is true because of how they explain this fixes the issue. It is good to mention though because the OP should update to the latest BIOS for the board as soon as they get it, but before installing the CPU. Most of the issues are also with the 9800X3D and not the 7800X3D as far as I am aware.


Some of the higher end models that cost much more will clock 5-10% higher with an overclock and that may gain you 3-5% or so performance. Most of them are 900-1050 dollars though. The more basic cards still run relatively cool and dont lose much performance. IMO the cheapest 5070ti is the best 5070ti. If you want more performance, you mind as well get a 5080.
Click to expand...

You both may be correct about AsRock. Like I said I’ve had good boards from them. I’d just say if the op does buy an AsRock board just do the bios update immediately.

On the 5070ti, I say since almost none are msrp, get the cheapest one you can lay your hands on. That said, if a 9070xt comes up at a good price then grab that instead. Like when I got my 9070xt a couple of weeks ago at Microcenter I got it for $699 whereas the cheapest 5070ti was $824 something. When you’re talking a 5% or less difference it’s worth looking at the 9070xt if the price is a lot less.
 
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With a $1500–$2500 budget and already having a case and peripherals, you can build a high-end gaming PC with great longevity. Focus on a Ryzen 7 7800X3D or Intel i7-14700K, RTX 4070 Super or 4080 Super, 32GB DDR5 RAM, and a fast NVMe SSD. Micro Center often has great CPU + motherboard bundles—definitely worth checking!

Best Wishes
Groviio
 
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dn002 said:
I wanted to circle back and thank every one on here who gave me invaluable suggestion and advice. I bought the parts and just finished the build. I'm very happy with how it turned out.


This is what I ultimately went with: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/pfPgxg


Thanks again all.
Click to expand...
If that cpu cooler doesn't clear that Patriot RAM then look at this set.

PCPartPicker Part List

Memory: *G.Skill Flare X5 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($184.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $184.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-06-08 19:20 EDT-0400

https://www.gskill.com/product/165/396/1691400033/F5-6000J3040G32GX2-FX5
 
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Why_Me said:
If that cpu cooler doesn't clear that Patriot RAM then look at this set.

PCPartPicker Part List

Memory: *G.Skill Flare X5 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($184.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $184.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-06-08 19:20 EDT-0400

https://www.gskill.com/product/165/396/1691400033/F5-6000J3040G32GX2-FX5
Click to expand...
There ended up being enough room
 
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Sorry for reviving this thread, and I'm not quite sure if I should make a new thread or post it here but I have been having a problem with my computer every once in a while. The computer runs perfectly 99% of the time. But on two separate occasions since I've built it, it would not post when I turn the computer on. When this happens, I can see on the motherboard a red LED stating that the RAM is the issue. Both times I turned the computer off then powered it back on and same thing happens. I then leave it there for like 2-3 minutes and it seemingly "fixes" itself and goes back to posting and working like normal. Any ideas why this might be happening.

Just as a side note, and not sure if this is relevant but the very first time I turned on the computer right after putting it together the same thing happened but when I searched I found that sometimes the RAM "needs to train" and just sit there. So I let it sit there while I went to shower and when I came back it posted and worked fine.
 
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dn002 said:
Sorry for reviving this thread, and I'm not quite sure if I should make a new thread or post it here but I have been having a problem with my computer every once in a while. The computer runs perfectly 99% of the time. But on two separate occasions since I've built it, it would not post when I turn the computer on. When this happens, I can see on the motherboard a red LED stating that the RAM is the issue. Both times I turned the computer off then powered it back on and same thing happens. I then leave it there for like 2-3 minutes and it seemingly "fixes" itself and goes back to posting and working like normal. Any ideas why this might be happening.

Just as a side note, and not sure if this is relevant but the very first time I turned on the computer right after putting it together the same thing happened but when I searched I found that sometimes the RAM "needs to train" and just sit there. So I let it sit there while I went to shower and when I came back it posted and worked fine.
Click to expand...
Not sure. I would make a new thread in systems linking back to this thread. Still list out the components in your build and detain the issue like you did here. A copy paste would not be the worst idea. I would maybe try and reinstall the RAM in slots A2 B2 making sure they are fully seated. Check BIOS to make sure they are running at their EXPO speeds. Is BIOS updated to the latest version?
 
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helper800 said:
Not sure. I would make a new thread in systems linking back to this thread. Still list out the components in your build and detain the issue like you did here. A copy paste would not be the worst idea. I would maybe try and reinstall the RAM in slots A2 B2 making sure they are fully seated. Check BIOS to make sure they are running at their EXPO speeds. Is BIOS updated to the latest version?
Click to expand...

Thanks, I believe they are running at their EXPO speeds. I have not updated my BIOS.
 
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