Question New $1500 build

[starwarsgamer5001]

I've got a budget of about $1500. And this is what I've got so far. This system will be used primarily for gaming, productivity work, and some photo editing. However, I am trying to decided whether the Asrock Steel Legend would be worth the extra cost. I also plan on waiting until August when the custom cooling options come out (supposedly) for the 5700 xt.

My other hang up is the case. I really wanted the Corsair 450d but it doesn't seem to be available anymore. I'd like to stick with corsair since I like the quality and other features that they tend to have. But I am open to suggestions.

I have a 1080, 60hz monitor that I am currently using and will continue to use until I have saved up for a new 1440, 144hz monitor with free sync. With ultra or very high settings. I am open to any other suggestions.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 7 3700X 3.6 GHz 8-Core Processor ($329.99)
Thermal Compound: Arctic Silver - 5 High-Density Polysynthetic Silver 3.5 g Thermal Paste ($5.59 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: MSI - MPG X570 GAMING PLUS ATX AM4 Motherboard ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial - P1 500 GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($59.89 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate - Barracuda 3 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($79.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire - Radeon RX 5700 XT 8 GB Video Card ($399.99)
Case: Corsair - 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($55.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair - RMx (2018) 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($89.89 @ OutletPC)
Optical Drive: Pioneer - BDR-209DBK Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($74.89 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($99.39 @ OutletPC)
Case Fan: Corsair - Air Series White 2 pack 52.19 CFM 120 mm Fan ($19.89 @ OutletPC)
External Storage: Seagate - Expansion 4 TB External Hard Drive ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1535.37
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-07-08 15:59 EDT-0400

 

[g-unit1111]

Well you have a lot of money on that build that is kind of wasted. You don't need to purchase the external HD, the case fans, the BD-R burner, or the thermal compound. You could drop all of those things and save some money. Or upgrade your GPU to a 2070 / 2080.

 

[starwarsgamer5001]

Well you have a lot of money on that build that is kind of wasted. You don't need to purchase the external HD, the case fans, the BD-R burner, or the thermal compound. You could drop all of those things and save some money. Or upgrade your GPU to a 2070 / 2080.

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll remove the thermal paste since the cpu will come with it. And although I've seen recommendations to use aftermarket paste my current phenom 4 has been fine with the factory paste for over 7 years.

Regarding the fans, I think the case comes with 2 or 3 but has room for more. I guess with my build more won't be needed?

The blue ray player I may switch with a cheap optical drive, I have decided yet, but an optical drive is necessary for me. On second thought, is their any reason a portable optical drive would not work with a desktop? I have one that I sometimes use for my ultra book. A regular optical drive is cheap but it would open up my case options if I didn't use one.

The external hard drive is necessary for backup. I don't use an online back up service but even if I do in the future I'll still want a physical backup in my possession.

Regardless of money saved I will be going with the 5700 XT primarily because of the cheapness and availability of free sync monitors and right now the price per performance difference based on reviews don't justify the extra expense of the 2070 to me. Although, would a 2080 better allow me to game and watch movies on two separate monitors at the same time? Or would it be similar? I'd just have to save longer for a g sync monitor.

 

[g-unit1111]

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll remove the thermal paste since the cpu will come with it. And although I've seen recommendations to use aftermarket paste my current phenom 4 has been fine with the factory paste for over 7 years.

Regarding the fans, I think the case comes with 2 or 3 but has room for more. I guess with my build more won't be needed?

Depends on your airflow, and how many mounts your case has. You don't want to get more than your case has the mounts for, as that would be wasted.

The blue ray player I may switch with a cheap optical drive, I have decided yet, but an optical drive is necessary for me. On second thought, is their any reason a portable optical drive would not work with a desktop? I have one that I sometimes use for my ultra book. A regular optical drive is cheap but it would open up my case options if I didn't use one.

I haven't had an internal drive for several years now. You can easily get by with an external, after a few months you won't miss it. And this is coming from someone with a fairly large media collection.

The external hard drive is necessary for backup. I don't use an online back up service but even if I do in the future I'll still want a physical backup in my possession.

Yeah but that's one of those things that most people don't include in their budget. Sure you could but you can always buy that later on if you really need it.

Regardless of money saved I will be going with the 5700 XT primarily because of the cheapness and availability of free sync monitors and right now the price per performance difference based on reviews don't justify the extra expense of the 2070 to me. Although, would a 2080 better allow me to game and watch movies on two separate monitors at the same time? Or would it be similar? I'd just have to save longer for a g sync monitor.

NVIDIA opened their drivers up so that you can use Freesync or Gsync monitors. It's tricky to get it to work on Freesync monitors but it can be done with a few tweaks in the driver software. But honestly if you're going to play on one monitor and watch on another trust me it won't work out the way you think it will.

 

[logainofhades]

Found the case you wanted. https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16811139042

 

[starwarsgamer5001]

Modified based on your suggestions. After having a fairly new laptop ssd crash on me suddenly I am much more paranoid about my backups then I used to be. So the external will stay a part of the budget.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 7 3700X 3.6 GHz 8-Core Processor ($329.99)
Motherboard: MSI - MPG X570 GAMING PLUS ATX AM4 Motherboard ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial - P1 500 GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($59.89 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate - Barracuda 3 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($79.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire - Radeon RX 5700 XT 8 GB Video Card ($429.99)
Case: Corsair - 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($55.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair - RMx (2018) 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($89.89 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($99.39 @ OutletPC)
External Storage: Seagate - Expansion 4 TB External Hard Drive ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1465.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-07-08 17:54 EDT-0400

Found the case you wanted. https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16811139042

Thanks! Although given the price it now is and that I am reconsidering the need for an optical drive I'm looking at other case options. My concern with the current corsair I have is potential size problems with the RX 5700XT. Don't know what size they'll be yet but probably going to be a long card from what I can tell. Any off the top of your head case suggestions? I am looking for good cable management, at least one usb 3 on the front, good cooling, not too pricey, and nothing too flashy. I was actually looking at the Fractal Design Meshify C, like the idea of the pull out filters. Picture doesn't look like it has usb 3.0 but spec say it does.

 

[g-unit1111]

Thanks! Although given the price it now is and that I am reconsidering the need for an optical drive I'm looking at other case options. My concern with the current corsair I have is potential size problems with the RX 5700XT. Don't know what size they'll be yet but probably going to be a long card from what I can tell. Any off the top of your head case suggestions? I am looking for good cable management, at least one usb 3 on the front, good cooling, not too pricey, and nothing too flashy. I was actually looking at the Fractal Design Meshify C, like the idea of the pull out filters. Picture doesn't look like it has usb 3.0 but spec say it does.

Yes that's definitely a wise decision. Optical drives are becoming less of a necessity every day and unless you absolutely have to have one, there's no reason at all to purchase a new one in 2019, especially when everything is streamed and downloaded as opposed to being on a physical disc.

 

[logainofhades]

The Meshify C is a nice case. Reference style cards are 272mm in length. https://www.techpowerup.com/gpu-specs/radeon-rx-5700-xt.c3339

 

[cryoburner]

Or upgrade your GPU to a 2070 / 2080.

A 2070 would not really be an "upgrade" from a 5700 XT. Reviews I'm seen have placed the 5700 XT as performing slightly ahead of it on average in current games. And of course, that card has been discontinued and replaced with the 2070 Super now. The 2070 Super is a little faster, but it's also priced $100 higher. And the 2080 will be getting replaced with the 2080 Super soon as well.

 

[g-unit1111]

A 2070 would not really be an "upgrade" from a 5700 XT. Reviews I'm seen have placed the 5700 XT as performing slightly ahead of it on average in current games. And of course, that card has been discontinued and replaced with the 2070 Super now. The 2070 Super is a little faster, but it's also priced $100 higher. And the 2080 will be getting replaced with the 2080 Super soon as well.

Yes but it's only reference style coolers right now, right? I would wait for some aftermarket ones to become available.

 

[Finstar]

Yes but it's only reference style coolers right now, right? I would wait for some aftermarket ones to become available.

Like OP planned to do?

 

[starwarsgamer5001]

Like OP planned to do?

Exactly what I plan to do. Right now my plan is to go with MSI's Mech OC series but depending on what's released and prices I may get one of Sapphire's cards.

Last question, I promise. It actually got missed from my op but is there an appreciable difference between the MSI mobo I've selected and the Asrock Steel Legend? The Asrock is about $20 more expensive. Maybe too soon to tell until more reviews are out...