Question New Build

vic243

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Mar 3, 2011
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I was originally planning on building my next PC as that is what I usually do, but life is making it more complicated for me, so I am considering buying a prebuilt one. I am looking for recommendations on reputable pc builders as well as something that gets close to what I was planning on building


Approximate Purchase Date: within a month

Budget Range: pref no more than 2K

System Usage from Most to Least Important: gaming, content creation

Are you buying a monitor: No, I have 3X LG 1040P 144hz I am planning to keep using. May upgrade to a 4K so I want to make sure the video card supports 4K

Parts to Upgrade: This is the original list of parts I was considering

Part Picker

Do you need to buy OS: Yes

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg/Amazon

Location: US WI

Overclocking: Maybe

SLI or Crossfire: No

Your Monitor Resolution:
2560X1440 may upgrade to 4k

Additional Comments: I'd prefer to have 2 M2, one for apps and OS and the other for games

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: Current PC 4 years old and starting to show the age
 
There are so-called "boutique" builders, but I'm not sure you can do much with them for 2000. You would have quite a bit of control on the individual parts. Puget Systems for example.

Next best thing might be Microcenter. You pick the parts, they assemble them for a fee. Microcenter is rare in western half of the US. You may have one in Wisconsin? Or at least Chicago? I think this is done in person only, not shipped to you.

Other choices include Cyberpower, but you'd have to compromise on stuff like power supplies and coolers. Your parts choices would be limited.

Have you rejected long established OEMs like Dell and Lenovo?
 
Last edited:
I am looking for recommendations on reputable pc builders
Only one i could suggest, is StarForge.
Link: https://starforgesystems.com/

GamersNexus has reviewed several prebuilts and most of them have issues, from low to severe. But StarFroge PC they reviewed (twice now), has stood up as good buy.
GN playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsuVSmND84QuM2HKzG7ipbIbE_R5EnCLM

Besides StarFroge getting it right, it is also one of the few prebuilt brands that actually list the PSU's full make and model, while almost all brands list just the wattage (whereby PSU is often cheaped out on and low quality unit).

2nd option would be MainGear, who's prebuilt also reviewed well by GamersNexus,
link: https://maingear.com/

Do note that with any prebuilt, you will be paying markup price, compared to DIY. That, and PC warranty applies as a whole PC, rather than an individual component (as it would be with DIY).

Parts to Upgrade: This is the original list of parts I was considering

Part Picker
Corsair RMe is mediocre quality PSU and for your high-end build, bare minimum i'd look at would be good quality PSU, while great quality PSU is preferred.
E.g any of these: Seasonic Focus/Vertex/PRIME, Corsair RMx/RMi/HXi/AXi, Super Flower Leadex Gold/Platinum/Titanium.
Or if you want latest ATX 3.0/3.1 PSU, then: https://hwbusters.com/best_picks/best-atxv3-pcie5-ready-psus-picks-hardware-busters/4/

(My 3x PCs are also powered by Seasonic. I have 2x PRIME TX-650 units and one Focus PX-550 unit. Full specs with pics in my sig.)
 
I was originally planning on building my next PC as that is what I usually do, but life is making it more complicated for me, so I am considering buying a prebuilt one. I am looking for recommendations on reputable pc builders as well as something that gets close to what I was planning on building


Approximate Purchase Date: within a month

Budget Range: pref no more than 2K

System Usage from Most to Least Important: gaming, content creation

Are you buying a monitor: No, I have 3X LG 1040P 144hz I am planning to keep using. May upgrade to a 4K so I want to make sure the video card supports 4K

Parts to Upgrade: This is the original list of parts I was considering

Part Picker

Do you need to buy OS: Yes

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg/Amazon

Location: US WI

Overclocking: Maybe

SLI or Crossfire: No

Your Monitor Resolution:
2560X1440 may upgrade to 4k

Additional Comments: I'd prefer to have 2 M2, one for apps and OS and the other for games

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: Current PC 4 years old and starting to show the age
Hey there,

I'd be looking at a custom build, as opposed to a prebuilt, which as highlighted above have a trade off with some of the parts.

Is this website something you can order from? https://www.ibuypower.com/gaming-pcs/pc-builder

At least here you can customize the parts you buy, and pay a 100-200 $ premium for them to put it together.
 
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https://www.dsogaming.com/news/nvidia-has-revealed-the-prices-for-the-rtx-5090-5080-and-5070/
RTX 5070 Ti 16GB MSRP: $749

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: *AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor ($359.00 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: *ID-COOLING FROZN A620 PRO SE 58 CFM CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: *MSI X670E GAMING PLUS WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard ($209.95 @ Amazon)
Memory: *TEAMGROUP T-Create Expert 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($86.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: *Acer Predator GM7000 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($132.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: *Silicon Power UD90 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($92.97 @ B&H)
Case: *Montech AIR 903 BASE ATX Mid Tower Case ($65.00 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: *Thermaltake Toughpower GF3 TT Premium 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: *Microsoft Windows 11 Home OEM - DVD 64-bit ($119.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1186.87
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-01-10 11:17 EST-0500
 
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/nvidia-has-revealed-the-prices-for-the-rtx-5090-5080-and-5070/
RTX 5070 Ti 16GB MSRP: $749

PCPartPicker Part List

Motherboard: *Asus PRIME B650-PLUS WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $129.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-01-10 11:20 EST-0500


PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: *AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor ($359.00 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: *ID-COOLING FROZN A620 PRO SE 58 CFM CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: *TEAMGROUP T-Create Expert 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($86.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: *Acer Predator GM7000 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($132.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: *TEAMGROUP T-Force Vulcan Z 2 TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($87.99 @ Newegg)
Case: *Montech AIR 903 BASE ATX Mid Tower Case ($65.00 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: *Thermaltake Toughpower GF3 TT Premium 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: *Microsoft Windows 11 Home OEM - DVD 64-bit ($119.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $971.94
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-01-10 11:19 EST-0500
 
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Only one i could suggest, is StarForge.
Link: https://starforgesystems.com/

GamersNexus has reviewed several prebuilts and most of them have issues, from low to severe. But StarFroge PC they reviewed (twice now), has stood up as good buy.
GN playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsuVSmND84QuM2HKzG7ipbIbE_R5EnCLM

Besides StarFroge getting it right, it is also one of the few prebuilt brands that actually list the PSU's full make and model, while almost all brands list just the wattage (whereby PSU is often cheaped out on and low quality unit).

2nd option would be MainGear, who's prebuilt also reviewed well by GamersNexus,
link: https://maingear.com/

Do note that with any prebuilt, you will be paying markup price, compared to DIY. That, and PC warranty applies as a whole PC, rather than an individual component (as it would be with DIY).


Corsair RMe is mediocre quality PSU and for your high-end build, bare minimum i'd look at would be good quality PSU, while great quality PSU is preferred.
E.g any of these: Seasonic Focus/Vertex/PRIME, Corsair RMx/RMi/HXi/AXi, Super Flower Leadex Gold/Platinum/Titanium.
Or if you want latest ATX 3.0/3.1 PSU, then: https://hwbusters.com/best_picks/best-atxv3-pcie5-ready-psus-picks-hardware-busters/4/

(My 3x PCs are also powered by Seasonic. I have 2x PRIME TX-650 units and one Focus PX-550 unit. Full specs with pics in my sig.)
This really helps quite a bit, thank you Aeacus
 
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