BillWiTheScienceFi

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Oct 4, 2019
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Been wanting to build my own gaming pc for quite some time now, never built one before, can ya'll help me out?

i am an average gamer, nothing intense play games like far cry 5, wildlands, metal gear solid etc i dont really play multiplayer games, mostly single player

budget is 750$
don't care about overclocking
i'd prefer intel & nvidia but willing to be open to amd/radeon
would like an SSD if i can fit it in
optical drive

i already have a XFX TS 550w power supply i bought a few years back when i added a 750ti card to my prebuilt store bought pc. (its not a gaming pc just a regular one)
 
Last edited:
Solution
If you've had it for some years, you may want to consider upgrading it - all PSUs have a shelf life unfortunately, and the lower wattage TS models aren't great.

You could consider something like:
PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor ($194.79 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: MSI B450 TOMAHAWK ATX AM4 Motherboard ($114.85 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Intel 660p Series 1.02 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($99.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: MSI Radeon RX 580 8 GB ARMOR OC Video Card ($164.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Thermaltake Versa H21 ATX Mid Tower...

PC Tailor

Illustrious
Ambassador
Welcome to the forums my friend!

What exact 750W Power Supply is it? (Make and model) I wouldn't even use many PSUs after quite a few years. And many power supplies are poor quality and i would not use in your new build.

What is your monitor resolution and refresh rate?
 

BillWiTheScienceFi

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Oct 4, 2019
107
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Welcome to the forums my friend!

What exact 750W Power Supply is it? (Make and model) I wouldn't even use many PSUs after quite a few years. And many power supplies are poor quality and i would not use in your new build.

What is your monitor resolution and refresh rate?

Apologies i got it wrong its a 550w. XFX TS550 I just bought a new monitor and it is a 1080 144hz
 

PC Tailor

Illustrious
Ambassador
If you've had it for some years, you may want to consider upgrading it - all PSUs have a shelf life unfortunately, and the lower wattage TS models aren't great.

You could consider something like:
PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor ($194.79 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: MSI B450 TOMAHAWK ATX AM4 Motherboard ($114.85 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Intel 660p Series 1.02 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($99.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: MSI Radeon RX 580 8 GB ARMOR OC Video Card ($164.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Thermaltake Versa H21 ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair CX (2017) 550 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($64.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $759.58
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-10-04 12:33 EDT-0400


Ultimately AMD offer better value for performance at the moment, hands down.
The GPU is more debatable, but you'd have to probably up the budget to get something worth the extra money on the NVIDIA side, for example a 1660 Ti would be excellent, but would add a bit to the final amount.
 
Solution

BillWiTheScienceFi

Reputable
Oct 4, 2019
107
4
4,585
If you've had it for some years, you may want to consider upgrading it - all PSUs have a shelf life unfortunately, and the lower wattage TS models aren't great.

You could consider something like:
PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor ($194.79 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: MSI B450 TOMAHAWK ATX AM4 Motherboard ($114.85 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Intel 660p Series 1.02 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($99.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: MSI Radeon RX 580 8 GB ARMOR OC Video Card ($164.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Thermaltake Versa H21 ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair CX (2017) 550 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($64.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $759.58
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-10-04 12:33 EDT-0400


Ultimately AMD offer better value for performance at the moment, hands down.
The GPU is more debatable, but you'd have to probably up the budget to get something worth the extra money on the NVIDIA side, for example a 1660 Ti would be excellent, but would add a bit to the final amount.

Is it fine to mix nvidia with amd or vise versa?
 

PC Tailor

Illustrious
Ambassador
oh and i forgot about adding windows 10. Is there a way to transfer windows from this pc to the new one? I don't have a disc though, this computer came with win10 pre installed...
You could clone it.
Or just clean install onto the new one and leave it unactivated.

It's best practice to clean reinstall windows over new hardware otherwise you'll risk bringing over all the residual junk and potential conflicting software/drivers.
 

BillWiTheScienceFi

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Oct 4, 2019
107
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You could clone it.
Or just clean install onto the new one and leave it unactivated.

It's best practice to clean reinstall windows over new hardware otherwise you'll risk bringing over all the residual junk and potential conflicting software/drivers.
willing to go 800 not sure that helps really... What kind of budget do i need then



how would i do this clean reinstall ?
edit: nevermind i googled it
 

PC Tailor

Illustrious
Ambassador
Whatever guide you did see, i would use this one as it covers everything, as many online guides I see also miss a couple key considerations: https://forums.tomshardware.com/faq/how-to-do-a-clean-installation-of-windows-10.3170366/

You could potentially start moving towards a 1660, but frankly for the price I would say stick to the RX580. It is an excellent card, just the 1660Ti is better, but also warrants the increased price tag (it would be closer to $850).

You'd also have to remember that the motherboard I linked requires a BIOS update prior to 3rd Gen Ryzen installation, but that board in particular can do this simply without any CPU and with just a USB stick.
 

BillWiTheScienceFi

Reputable
Oct 4, 2019
107
4
4,585
Whatever guide you did see, i would use this one as it covers everything, as many online guides I see also miss a couple key considerations: https://forums.tomshardware.com/faq/how-to-do-a-clean-installation-of-windows-10.3170366/

You could potentially start moving towards a 1660, but frankly for the price I would say stick to the RX580. It is an excellent card, just the 1660Ti is better, but also warrants the increased price tag (it would be closer to $850).

You'd also have to remember that the motherboard I linked requires a BIOS update prior to 3rd Gen Ryzen installation, but that board in particular can do this simply without any CPU and with just a USB stick.

was playing around with part picker, thoughts on this build?
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/GqLHx6

and what do those warning notes mean? "Some physical dimension restrictions cannot (yet) be automatically checked " is that something i need to worry about?
 

WildCard999

Titan
Moderator
Do i need to get an hdd too or will i be fine with just the ssd?
Depends on your storage needs, 512gb may be fine if your only playing a few games at a time and your internet is fast enough to download new games (uninstall the old ones) at a decent pace. I've been using a 500gb SSD for about a year and still have like 150gb worth of usage space but am only playing a few games (Division 2, City of Heroes Homecoming & Borderlands 2).
 

BillWiTheScienceFi

Reputable
Oct 4, 2019
107
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4,585
Depends on your storage needs, 512gb may be fine if your only playing a few games at a time and your internet is fast enough to download new games (uninstall the old ones) at a decent pace. I've been using a 500gb SSD for about a year and still have like 150gb worth of usage space but am only playing a few games (Division 2, City of Heroes Homecoming & Borderlands 2).
well currently ive got 12 games downloaded on my pc so might need to add an hdd