Question Mid-Range Gaming Build

richdmccarty

Honorable
Aug 31, 2018
14
2
10,515
Hope I'm posting in the correct place but I'd like some advice on a mid-range gaming build.
I had another build but was advised most of my parts were overpriced so I switched out the CPU cooler, motherboard, memory, and storage.
Just looking for general suggestions on price to performance and if I can cut costs without sacrificing too much value.
I'm also considering another motherboard Gigabyte B650 EAGLE AX ATX AM5 Motherboard. Last I checked it was slightly cheaper and had more PCI slots but had slower wifi so I'm not sure if it is actually much better. Both seem to have good reviews.
Lastly, I originally picked a 5070 but it was suggested I go with either a 5070 Ti or 9070 XT if I can afford it else choose the 9070 over the 5070. The Ti was noticeably more expensive. Do the Ti and XT versions justify $150+ difference? A lot of them were near $1K.

PCPartPicker Part List: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/JpGR6Q

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 9600X 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor ($208.00 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Assassin X 120 Refined SE 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler ($17.89 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI B650 GAMING PLUS WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Silicon Power Value Gaming 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($85.97 @ Amazon)
Storage: SK Hynix Platinum P41 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Sapphire PULSE Radeon RX 9070 XT 16 GB Video Card ($945.00 @ Amazon)
Case: NZXT H9 Flow ATX Mid Tower Case ($164.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair RM750x (2024) 750 W Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($134.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1846.82
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-05-20 22:36 EDT-0400
 
This latest generation of AMD and Nvidia gpu's support PCIe 5.0 so I would look for a board that supports PCIe 5.0 for the gpu. Here's a few cost cutters. The 120mm fan goes inside the back of this case for an exhaust fan.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: *AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor ($385.36 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: *ID-COOLING FROZN A620 PRO SE 58 CFM CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: *MSI PRO B850-P WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: *TEAMGROUP T-Create Expert 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($92.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: *Silicon Power UD90 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($95.97 @ B&H)
Video Card: *Gigabyte GAMING OC Radeon RX 9070 XT 16 GB Video Card ($739.98 @ Newegg)
Case: *Antec P20C ATX Mid Tower Case ($86.49 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: *be quiet! Pure Power 12 M 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($119.90 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: *ARCTIC P12 PWM PST 56.3 CFM 120 mm Fan ($9.98 @ Amazon)
Total: $1740.65
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-05-21 00:42 EDT-0400


https://www.tomshardware.com/software/windows/windows-11-free-or-cheap

A better look at those components.

https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/PRO-B850-P-WIFI

https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-components/air-cooling/id-cooling-frozn-a620-pro-se-review

https://www.techpowerup.com/review/id-cooling-frozn-a620-pro-se-cpu-air-cooler/6.html

https://www.techpowerup.com/review/silicon-power-ud90-1-tb/

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/silicon-power-ud90-ssd-review

https://www.gigabyte.com/us/Graphics-Card/GV-R9070XTGAMING-OC-16GD#kf

https://www.bequiet.com/en/powersupply/4162

https://www.antec.com/product/case/p20c

https://www.arctic.de/us/P12-PWM-PST/ACFAN00120A
 
Last edited:
PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 9600X 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor ($208.99 @ B&H)
CPU Cooler: ID-COOLING FROZN A620 PRO SE 58 CFM CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI MAG B650 TOMAHAWK WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard ($199.62 @ Amazon)
Memory: TEAMGROUP T-Create Expert 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($92.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Crucial T500 W/Heatsink 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($132.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte GAMING OC Radeon RX 9070 XT 16 GB Video Card ($739.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Lian Li LANCOOL 216 RGB ATX Mid Tower Case ($102.99 @ B&H)
Power Supply: Corsair RM850x (2024) 850 W Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($134.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1642.54
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-05-21 08:06 EDT-0400


...........................................................WARNING:
The MSI MAG B650 TOMAHAWK WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard supports the AMD Ryzen 5 9600X 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor with BIOS version 7D75v1H. If the motherboard is using an older BIOS version, updating the BIOS will be necessary to support the CPU.
 
These parts would be my picks at the same budget:

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor ($385.38 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: ID-COOLING FROZN A620 PRO SE 58 CFM CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI PRO B850-P WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Patriot Viper Venom 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6400 CL32 Memory ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: SK Hynix Platinum P41 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($124.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus PRIME GeForce RTX 5070 Ti 16 GB Video Card ($829.99 @ ASUS)
Case: NZXT H7 Flow (2024) ATX Mid Tower Case ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Super Flower Leadex III Gold UP 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1875.31
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-05-21 11:26 EDT-0400


If you are near a microcenter, I would try and get a 7600X3D for 300 dollars if they have stock. Its one of the better value chips right now, and it gets you comparable performance to the 7800X3D, unless the game you are plying can use more than 6 cores.