Question Old vet getting back into gaming! need help pc build please

[edp213]

Background Info:
Hello everyone! Nice to meet you guys again! Old member back from 2008-2011 haven't been back on due to life! Long story short I'm a old vet but due to life and lost of spouse and kids, I deal alot with mental illness and was also homeless for years, I'm now a counselor - Just recently I slowly gotten my life in order, got my first apartment! So I'm looking to make things looking nice for the first time around. So please any insights and advice would be greatly appreciated! Thank you.
First time building a computer in over a decade I use to tinkered with my computer in the past often but nowadays I'm out of touch with reality when it comes to computers, I'm very outdated I haven't kept up to date until the last few years but couldn't afford to because of life decisions, I had a decent 2011 intel back then.

Build Info: Budget $3000 but willing to pay more if i had to.
Planning on purchasing part by April/August of this year.
*System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming - Streaming
I play video games sporadically but... i would love to more often nowadays- Love the oldies but would love to play new titles. Like cyberpunk 2077
I'm a light - mid range gamer but love to play high end. so High Mid Range to Low High Range.
Resolution I'm unsure of however i was able to snag a decent 2019 monitor. I have a zotac 1060 which i would love to stick around for a little longer if i can?

Some ideas/goals and questions i have - would love some advice please if neccessary
**Parts Preferences
I would love to have a white tower/pc case - can be elegant or plain looking but i don't mind different colors such as blue or black

I would love to stick around with my 1060 zotac for awhile longer but if i need to upgrade now that cool. however i would love to wait a year later if possible.

Monitor maybe i can stick with my 2019 one? but if people have some recommendation in mind? I don't know much about mhz, MS
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Any website
Country: U.S CALI
Overclocking: No
SLI or Crossfire: No
Monitor Resolution: I don't know but i play on 1024x 768 yes i know i'm old lol
Parts Not Required: Peripherals, Mouse/keyboard, OS, but would love to hear some recommendation.

*** Some advice/suggestions please on MOBO, RAM/Memory, Storage - CPU

Questions :
1. Did amd overshadow intel or something? i don't know which direction i want to go for but i would love to see tons of different pc builds please?
2. SSD now everyone uses a build in one on mobo? Rams should i max it? how much is needed?
3. *Gpu/video card - what the heck happened?! I don't know where to start lol, But dang the price.

Random weird question I'm trying to get my old account back from 2008 but unsure how to go about it? my login account still exist and enable it seems but none of my email work? Which is odd i only have like 2-3 emails.

 

[Lafong]

Diminishing returns set in significantly once you go beyond say 2000, but suit yourself. Maybe you are willing to pay extravagantly for minor improvements?

Yes...SSD all the way if budget permits. One or two of them internally, but that's mostly personal preference. Standard 2.5 inch is OK, but most are going with an M.2 NVME, at least for the boot drive. You'll have to estimate your total storage requirements. Could be 250 or 500 GB; could be 4 or more TB.

RAM: 32 in a kit of 2 sticks of 16 each is the standard recommendation. If you want DDR 5 (you probably would at your budget), you have to make sure your motherboard accepts DDR 5.

Intel or AMD will work fine. You'll have to sort out the fanboy chaff from the wheat as much as you can.

 

[edp213]

pay extravagantly for minor improvements? how so? honestly I don't know i'm just throwing a number out there - i was assuming i had to pay 1,000+ for a video card

As for ssd which brand would you recommend?

I see i'll make sure to go for those then for ram, interesting about amd and intel i just assume people would love to pow wow over them always fun!

 

[Lafong]

You could easily spend 5000 if money is of little concern. Nobody here will know where you would draw the line in the final minutes before a purchase.

Are you obsessed with benchmarks or frames per second or temperatures? If yes to any of that, your spending might rise.

If you want a new monitor, you might easily spend 1500 or more on the monitor and graphics card alone in a 2500 to 3000 dollar system.

I'd guess most commonly recommended SSD brands here would be WD, Samsung, and Crucial. In no particular order. Not a major difference among them.

Most likely a PCIe 4.0 compatible NVMe for the boot drive. But if you are obsessed with "latest and greatest", PCIe 5.0 is out there. Diminishing returns galore.

Decide if you want one or 2 SSDs. One for "everything" or one for OS and programs and a second for data.

Case/cooler are important. Case has to be compatible with your cooler choice. Air cooling adequate except possibly at the very highest CPU level or highest temperature anxiety level. High quality air coolers range from 50 to 100 or a bit more.

Think about airflow in the case. Some are willing to sacrifice airflow in the name of flashy RGB. Some will want 8 fans for reasons unrelated to cooling.

AMD/Intel "pow wow" is mostly in the realm of how many angels can dance on the head of a pin or Ford versus Chevrolet from your high school days. Enjoy as much of it as you can stand. Can your dad whip my dad? Survey says: few minds have been changed over the decades.

 

[artk2219]

Welcome back!

1. AMD is currently on top, their Ryzen 7000 series has the fastest gaming chips, they're more efficient, and the top end chips run cooler. But honestly the biggest thing in their favor is the fact that their current platform, AM5, is supported until 2026 or so, meaning youll have a cpu upgrade path for a couple of years. Intels latest is LGA 1700 and its already EOL and looking to be replaced in the next 6 months to a year. If youre mainly looking to game, the Ryzen 7800X3D is the fastest gaming chip out there.

2. Yep, SSD all the way, at least for a boot disk, you still cant beat a hard drive for mass storage, just make sure your boot disk is an SSD.

3. Ah yep, GPU's have been weird these past few years, personally i wouldn't go past 1000 on one, but to each their own. You now get to look into the wonderful world of ray tracing, its currently overrated, it'll be another couple of generations before basically every GPU will really need some form of ray tracing ability, so 4 to 5 years. As such ill break it into two categories, the first is for general non ray tracing usage, the current top dog is the RTX 4090, followed by a tie of the 4080 Super and RX 7900 XTX. On the ray tracing side your top three are the RTX 4090, RTX 4080 (Super), and RTX 4070 TI Super and RX 7900 XTX are basically tied. The RX 7900 XTX is the one to beat honestly, sub 1000, tied with the 4080 super in standard rasterization, and tied with the 4070 ti super when ray tracing is enabled, but much faster if a game doesnt use ray tracing, which most do not. Its your call on how much ray tracing matters to you.

You also dont have to spend 2k to get a really decent experience, you can throw something together around 1500 or so that'll game really well, its just your preference is all.

Article with a bunch of GPU's benchmarked against each other.

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER Founder edition review (Page 30)

In this review we'll take a look at the GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER FE aka Founder edition from NVIDIA. With a handful more shader processors available, the card series should be a notch faster. The good news is that for the 4080 SUPER the price went down compared towards the regular 4080, as it is...

www.guru3d.com

I9 14900KS Review, it has many chips benchmarked against each other.
https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-components/cpus/intel-core-i9-14900ks-cpu-review

A mostly white build i threw together without going too ridiculous for $2200 ish. If youre not hung up on as much of the build being as white as possible, you could probably save some money.

[PCPartPicker Part List](https://pcpartpicker.com/list/3V73Xk)

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
**CPU** | [AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/3hyH99/amd-ryzen-7-7800x3d-42-ghz-8-core-processor-100-100000910wof) | $368.99 @ Newegg
**CPU Cooler** | [Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE WHITE ARGB 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/xMLFf7/thermalright-peerless-assassin-120-se-white-argb-6617-cfm-cpu-cooler-pa120-se-white-argb) | $36.99 @ Amazon
**Motherboard** | [Asus PRIME X670E-PRO WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/7nYmP6/asus-prime-x670e-pro-wifi-atx-am5-motherboard-prime-x670e-pro-wifi) | $289.99 @ Newegg
**Memory** | [Corsair Vengeance RGB 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6000 CL40 Memory](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/n4pQzy/corsair-vengeance-rgb-64-gb-2-x-32-gb-ddr5-6000-cl40-memory-cmh64gx5m2b6000c40w) | $217.99 @ Amazon
**Storage** | [Crucial T500 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/M8yH99/crucial-t500-2-tb-m2-2280-pcie-40-x4-nvme-solid-state-drive-ct2000t500ssd8) | $150.00 @ Amazon
**Video Card** | [ASRock Phantom Gaming OC Radeon RX 7900 XTX 24 GB Video Card](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/gCBG3C/asrock-phantom-gaming-oc-radeon-rx-7900-xtx-24-gb-video-card-rx7900xtx-pg-24go) | $929.99 @ Newegg
**Case** | [Montech AIR 903 BASE ATX Mid Tower Case](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/rBTZxr/montech-air-903-base-atx-mid-tower-case-air-903-base-w) | $64.98 @ Amazon
**Power Supply** | [Corsair RM850 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/9KGbt6/corsair-rm850-850-w-80-gold-certified-fully-modular-atx-power-supply-cp-9020232-na) | $139.99 @ Amazon
| *Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts* |
| **Total** | **$2198.92**
| Generated by [PCPartPicker](https://pcpartpicker.com) 2024-03-24 03:17 EDT-0400 |





A still excellent gaming experience for $1570

[PCPartPicker Part List](https://pcpartpicker.com/list/nWtf4M)

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
**CPU** | [AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/3hyH99/amd-ryzen-7-7800x3d-42-ghz-8-core-processor-100-100000910wof) | $368.99 @ Newegg
**CPU Cooler** | [Thermalright Assassin King 120 Mini WHITE ARGB V3 64.87 CFM CPU Cooler](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/8LBzK8/thermalright-assassin-king-120-mini-white-argb-v3-6487-cfm-cpu-cooler-ak120-mini-white-argb-v3) | $19.29 @ Amazon
**Motherboard** | [Gigabyte B650 AORUS ELITE AX ICE ATX AM5 Motherboard](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/CwjRsY/gigabyte-b650-aorus-elite-ax-ice-atx-am5-motherboard-b650-aorus-elite-ax-ice) | $219.99 @ Amazon
**Memory** | [Corsair Vengeance RGB 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL36 Memory](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/QTLFf7/corsair-vengeance-rgb-32-gb-2-x-16-gb-ddr5-6000-cl36-memory-cmh32gx5m2d6000c36w) | $127.99 @ Newegg
**Storage** | [Crucial P3 Plus 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/yGZ9TW/crucial-p3-plus-2-tb-m2-2280-nvme-solid-state-drive-ct2000p3pssd8) | $118.99 @ Amazon
**Video Card** | [PowerColor Hellhound OC Radeon RX 7800 XT 16 GB Video Card](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/BtkH99/powercolor-hellhound-oc-radeon-rx-7800-xt-16-gb-video-card-rx-7800-xt-16g-loc) | $499.99 @ Newegg
**Case** | [Montech AIR 903 BASE ATX Mid Tower Case](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/rBTZxr/montech-air-903-base-atx-mid-tower-case-air-903-base-w) | $64.98 @ Amazon
**Power Supply** | [Thermaltake Toughpower GF A3 Snow 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/vwHqqs/thermaltake-toughpower-gf-a3-snow-850-w-80-gold-certified-fully-modular-atx-power-supply-ps-tpd-0850fnfagu-n) | $119.99 @ Amazon
| *Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts* |
| **Total** | **$1540.21**
| Generated by [PCPartPicker](https://pcpartpicker.com) 2024-03-24 03:46 EDT-0400 |




Minimum Recommended AMD PC, $1120ish
[PCPartPicker Part List](https://pcpartpicker.com/list/N4Nhrv)

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
**CPU** | [AMD Ryzen 5 7600X 4.7 GHz 6-Core Processor](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/66C48d/amd-ryzen-5-7600x-47-ghz-6-core-processor-100-100000593wof) | $212.47 @ Amazon
**CPU Cooler** | [Thermalright Assassin King SE ARGB 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/9Gstt6/thermalright-assassin-king-se-argb-6617-cfm-cpu-cooler-ak120-se-argb-d6) | $19.29 @ Amazon
**Motherboard** | [Gigabyte B650 EAGLE AX ATX AM5 Motherboard](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/CvcgXL/gigabyte-b650-eagle-ax-atx-am5-motherboard-b650-eagle-ax) | $159.99 @ Newegg
**Memory** | [Corsair Vengeance 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/JkfxFT/corsair-vengeance-32-gb-2-x-16-gb-ddr5-6000-cl30-memory-cmk32gx5m2b6000c30) | $114.99 @ Amazon
**Storage** | [Crucial P3 Plus 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/yGZ9TW/crucial-p3-plus-2-tb-m2-2280-nvme-solid-state-drive-ct2000p3pssd8) | $118.99 @ Amazon
**Video Card** | [XFX Speedster SWFT 309 Radeon RX 6700 XT 12 GB Video Card](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/RFGbt6/xfx-radeon-rx-6700-xt-12-gb-speedster-swft-309-video-card-rx-67xtyjfdv) | $329.99 @ Amazon
**Case** | [Montech AIR 903 MAX ATX Mid Tower Case](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/2MwmP6/montech-air-903-max-atx-mid-tower-case-air-903-max-b) | $69.98 @ Amazon
**Power Supply** | [Corsair RM750e (2023) 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/YRJp99/corsair-rm750e-2023-750-w-80-gold-certified-fully-modular-atx-power-supply-cp-9020262-na) | $89.99 @ Best Buy
| *Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts* |
| **Total** | **$1115.69**
| Generated by [PCPartPicker](https://pcpartpicker.com) 2024-03-24 04:15 EDT-0400 |




Cheapest build I would actually put together, $920ish

[PCPartPicker Part List](https://pcpartpicker.com/list/T22crv)

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
**CPU** | [Intel Core i5-12600KF 3.7 GHz 10-Core Processor](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/Tk8bt6/intel-core-i5-12600kf-37-ghz-6-core-processor-bx8071512600kf) | $149.99 @ Newegg
**CPU Cooler** | [Thermalright Assassin King SE ARGB 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/9Gstt6/thermalright-assassin-king-se-argb-6617-cfm-cpu-cooler-ak120-se-argb-d6) | $19.29 @ Amazon
**Motherboard** | [Asus PRIME B760-PLUS ATX LGA1700 Motherboard](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/fRGhP6/asus-prime-b760-plus-atx-lga1700-motherboard-prime-b760-plus) | $99.99 @ Newegg
**Memory** | [Corsair Vengeance 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/JkfxFT/corsair-vengeance-32-gb-2-x-16-gb-ddr5-6000-cl30-memory-cmk32gx5m2b6000c30) | $114.99 @ Amazon
**Storage** | [Crucial P3 Plus 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/yGZ9TW/crucial-p3-plus-2-tb-m2-2280-nvme-solid-state-drive-ct2000p3pssd8) | $118.99 @ Amazon
**Video Card** | [XFX Speedster SWFT 210 Core Radeon RX 6650 XT 8 GB Video Card](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/NDvdnQ/xfx-radeon-rx-6650-xt-8-gb-speedster-swft-210-core-video-card-rx-665x8dfdy) | $229.99 @ Amazon
**Case** | [Montech AIR 903 BASE ATX Mid Tower Case](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/kKcgXL/montech-air-903-base-atx-mid-tower-case-air-903-base-b) | $65.00 @ B&H
**Power Supply** | [Corsair RM750e (2023) 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/YRJp99/corsair-rm750e-2023-750-w-80-gold-certified-fully-modular-atx-power-supply-cp-9020262-na) | $89.99 @ Best Buy
**Wireless Network Adapter** | [TP-Link Archer T3U 802.11a/b/g/n/ac USB Type-A Wi-Fi Adapter](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/WzBTwP/tp-link-archer-t3u-usb-30-wi-fi-adapter-archer-t3u) | $17.98 @ Amazon
| *Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts* |
| **Total** | **$906.21**
| Generated by [PCPartPicker](https://pcpartpicker.com) 2024-03-24 04:28 EDT-0400 |

 

[edp213]

You could easily spend 5000 if money is of little concern. Nobody here will know where you would draw the line in the final minutes before a purchase.

Are you obsessed with benchmarks or frames per second or temperatures? If yes to any of that, your spending might rise.

If you want a new monitor, you might easily spend 1500 or more on the monitor and graphics card alone in a 2500 to 3000 dollar system.

I'd guess most commonly recommended SSD brands here would be WD, Samsung, and Crucial. In no particular order. Not a major difference among them.

Most likely a PCIe 4.0 compatible NVMe for the boot drive. But if you are obsessed with "latest and greatest", PCIe 5.0 is out there. Diminishing returns galore.

Decide if you want one or 2 SSDs. One for "everything" or one for OS and programs and a second for data.

Case/cooler are important. Case has to be compatible with your cooler choice. Air cooling adequate except possibly at the very highest CPU level or highest temperature anxiety level. High quality air coolers range from 50 to 100 or a bit more.

Think about airflow in the case. Some are willing to sacrifice airflow in the name of flashy RGB. Some will want 8 fans for reasons unrelated to cooling.

AMD/Intel "pow wow" is mostly in the realm of how many angels can dance on the head of a pin or Ford versus Chevrolet from your high school days. Enjoy as much of it as you can stand. Can your dad whip my dad? Survey says: few minds have been changed over the decades.

Amd/intel powwow always make me laugh, i think its just dudes trying to have a conversation which is nice and no obsession over here for benchmarks or frames per second or temperatures.

Do you happen to have a few pcpartpicker list by any chance? Love to see your choices on monitors also, maybe you know a few around $200-500? thanks for suggestion on other stuff! I'll keep those in mind!

Welcome back!

1. AMD is currently on top, their Ryzen 7000 series has the fastest gaming chips, they're more efficient, and the top end chips run cooler. But honestly the biggest thing in their favor is the fact that their current platform, AM5, is supported until 2026 or so, meaning youll have a cpu upgrade path for a couple of years. Intels latest is LGA 1700 and its already EOL and looking to be replaced in the next 6 months to a year. If youre mainly looking to game, the Ryzen 7800X3D is the fastest gaming chip out there.

2. Yep, SSD all the way, at least for a boot disk, you still cant beat a hard drive for mass storage, just make sure your boot disk is an SSD.

3. Ah yep, GPU's have been weird these past few years, personally i wouldn't go past 1000 on one, but to each their own. You now get to look into the wonderful world of ray tracing, its currently overrated, it'll be another couple of generations before basically every GPU will really need some form of ray tracing ability, so 4 to 5 years. As such ill break it into two categories, the first is for general non ray tracing usage, the current top dog is the RTX 4090, followed by a tie of the 4080 Super and RX 7900 XTX. On the ray tracing side your top three are the RTX 4090, RTX 4080 (Super), and RTX 4070 TI Super and RX 7900 XTX are basically tied. The RX 7900 XTX is the one to beat honestly, sub 1000, tied with the 4080 super in standard rasterization, and tied with the 4070 ti super when ray tracing is enabled, but much faster if a game doesnt use ray tracing, which most do not. Its your call on how much ray tracing matters to you.

You also dont have to spend 2k to get a really decent experience, you can throw something together around 1500 or so that'll game really well, its just your preference is all.

Article with a bunch of GPU's benchmarked against each other.

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER Founder edition review (Page 30)

In this review we'll take a look at the GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER FE aka Founder edition from NVIDIA. With a handful more shader processors available, the card series should be a notch faster. The good news is that for the 4080 SUPER the price went down compared towards the regular 4080, as it is...

www.guru3d.com

I9 14900KS Review, it has many chips benchmarked against each other.
https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-components/cpus/intel-core-i9-14900ks-cpu-review

A mostly white build i threw together without going too ridiculous for $2200 ish. If youre not hung up on as much of the build being as white as possible, you could probably save some money.

[PCPartPicker Part List](https://pcpartpicker.com/list/3V73Xk)

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
**CPU** | [AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/3hyH99/amd-ryzen-7-7800x3d-42-ghz-8-core-processor-100-100000910wof) | $368.99 @ Newegg
**CPU Cooler** | [Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE WHITE ARGB 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/xMLFf7/thermalright-peerless-assassin-120-se-white-argb-6617-cfm-cpu-cooler-pa120-se-white-argb) | $36.99 @ Amazon
**Motherboard** | [Asus PRIME X670E-PRO WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/7nYmP6/asus-prime-x670e-pro-wifi-atx-am5-motherboard-prime-x670e-pro-wifi) | $289.99 @ Newegg
**Memory** | [Corsair Vengeance RGB 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6000 CL40 Memory](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/n4pQzy/corsair-vengeance-rgb-64-gb-2-x-32-gb-ddr5-6000-cl40-memory-cmh64gx5m2b6000c40w) | $217.99 @ Amazon
**Storage** | [Crucial T500 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/M8yH99/crucial-t500-2-tb-m2-2280-pcie-40-x4-nvme-solid-state-drive-ct2000t500ssd8) | $150.00 @ Amazon
**Video Card** | [ASRock Phantom Gaming OC Radeon RX 7900 XTX 24 GB Video Card](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/gCBG3C/asrock-phantom-gaming-oc-radeon-rx-7900-xtx-24-gb-video-card-rx7900xtx-pg-24go) | $929.99 @ Newegg
**Case** | [Montech AIR 903 BASE ATX Mid Tower Case](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/rBTZxr/montech-air-903-base-atx-mid-tower-case-air-903-base-w) | $64.98 @ Amazon
**Power Supply** | [Corsair RM850 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/9KGbt6/corsair-rm850-850-w-80-gold-certified-fully-modular-atx-power-supply-cp-9020232-na) | $139.99 @ Amazon
| *Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts* |
| **Total** | **$2198.92**
| Generated by [PCPartPicker](https://pcpartpicker.com) 2024-03-24 03:17 EDT-0400 |





A still excellent gaming experience for $1570

[PCPartPicker Part List](https://pcpartpicker.com/list/nWtf4M)

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
**CPU** | [AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/3hyH99/amd-ryzen-7-7800x3d-42-ghz-8-core-processor-100-100000910wof) | $368.99 @ Newegg
**CPU Cooler** | [Thermalright Assassin King 120 Mini WHITE ARGB V3 64.87 CFM CPU Cooler](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/8LBzK8/thermalright-assassin-king-120-mini-white-argb-v3-6487-cfm-cpu-cooler-ak120-mini-white-argb-v3) | $19.29 @ Amazon
**Motherboard** | [Gigabyte B650 AORUS ELITE AX ICE ATX AM5 Motherboard](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/CwjRsY/gigabyte-b650-aorus-elite-ax-ice-atx-am5-motherboard-b650-aorus-elite-ax-ice) | $219.99 @ Amazon
**Memory** | [Corsair Vengeance RGB 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL36 Memory](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/QTLFf7/corsair-vengeance-rgb-32-gb-2-x-16-gb-ddr5-6000-cl36-memory-cmh32gx5m2d6000c36w) | $127.99 @ Newegg
**Storage** | [Crucial P3 Plus 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/yGZ9TW/crucial-p3-plus-2-tb-m2-2280-nvme-solid-state-drive-ct2000p3pssd8) | $118.99 @ Amazon
**Video Card** | [PowerColor Hellhound OC Radeon RX 7800 XT 16 GB Video Card](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/BtkH99/powercolor-hellhound-oc-radeon-rx-7800-xt-16-gb-video-card-rx-7800-xt-16g-loc) | $499.99 @ Newegg
**Case** | [Montech AIR 903 BASE ATX Mid Tower Case](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/rBTZxr/montech-air-903-base-atx-mid-tower-case-air-903-base-w) | $64.98 @ Amazon
**Power Supply** | [Thermaltake Toughpower GF A3 Snow 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/vwHqqs/thermaltake-toughpower-gf-a3-snow-850-w-80-gold-certified-fully-modular-atx-power-supply-ps-tpd-0850fnfagu-n) | $119.99 @ Amazon
| *Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts* |
| **Total** | **$1540.21**
| Generated by [PCPartPicker](https://pcpartpicker.com) 2024-03-24 03:46 EDT-0400 |




Minimum Recommended AMD PC, $1120ish
[PCPartPicker Part List](https://pcpartpicker.com/list/N4Nhrv)

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
**CPU** | [AMD Ryzen 5 7600X 4.7 GHz 6-Core Processor](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/66C48d/amd-ryzen-5-7600x-47-ghz-6-core-processor-100-100000593wof) | $212.47 @ Amazon
**CPU Cooler** | [Thermalright Assassin King SE ARGB 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/9Gstt6/thermalright-assassin-king-se-argb-6617-cfm-cpu-cooler-ak120-se-argb-d6) | $19.29 @ Amazon
**Motherboard** | [Gigabyte B650 EAGLE AX ATX AM5 Motherboard](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/CvcgXL/gigabyte-b650-eagle-ax-atx-am5-motherboard-b650-eagle-ax) | $159.99 @ Newegg
**Memory** | [Corsair Vengeance 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/JkfxFT/corsair-vengeance-32-gb-2-x-16-gb-ddr5-6000-cl30-memory-cmk32gx5m2b6000c30) | $114.99 @ Amazon
**Storage** | [Crucial P3 Plus 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/yGZ9TW/crucial-p3-plus-2-tb-m2-2280-nvme-solid-state-drive-ct2000p3pssd8) | $118.99 @ Amazon
**Video Card** | [XFX Speedster SWFT 309 Radeon RX 6700 XT 12 GB Video Card](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/RFGbt6/xfx-radeon-rx-6700-xt-12-gb-speedster-swft-309-video-card-rx-67xtyjfdv) | $329.99 @ Amazon
**Case** | [Montech AIR 903 MAX ATX Mid Tower Case](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/2MwmP6/montech-air-903-max-atx-mid-tower-case-air-903-max-b) | $69.98 @ Amazon
**Power Supply** | [Corsair RM750e (2023) 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/YRJp99/corsair-rm750e-2023-750-w-80-gold-certified-fully-modular-atx-power-supply-cp-9020262-na) | $89.99 @ Best Buy
| *Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts* |
| **Total** | **$1115.69**
| Generated by [PCPartPicker](https://pcpartpicker.com) 2024-03-24 04:15 EDT-0400 |




Cheapest build I would actually put together, $920ish

[PCPartPicker Part List](https://pcpartpicker.com/list/T22crv)

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
**CPU** | [Intel Core i5-12600KF 3.7 GHz 10-Core Processor](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/Tk8bt6/intel-core-i5-12600kf-37-ghz-6-core-processor-bx8071512600kf) | $149.99 @ Newegg
**CPU Cooler** | [Thermalright Assassin King SE ARGB 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/9Gstt6/thermalright-assassin-king-se-argb-6617-cfm-cpu-cooler-ak120-se-argb-d6) | $19.29 @ Amazon
**Motherboard** | [Asus PRIME B760-PLUS ATX LGA1700 Motherboard](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/fRGhP6/asus-prime-b760-plus-atx-lga1700-motherboard-prime-b760-plus) | $99.99 @ Newegg
**Memory** | [Corsair Vengeance 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/JkfxFT/corsair-vengeance-32-gb-2-x-16-gb-ddr5-6000-cl30-memory-cmk32gx5m2b6000c30) | $114.99 @ Amazon
**Storage** | [Crucial P3 Plus 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/yGZ9TW/crucial-p3-plus-2-tb-m2-2280-nvme-solid-state-drive-ct2000p3pssd8) | $118.99 @ Amazon
**Video Card** | [XFX Speedster SWFT 210 Core Radeon RX 6650 XT 8 GB Video Card](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/NDvdnQ/xfx-radeon-rx-6650-xt-8-gb-speedster-swft-210-core-video-card-rx-665x8dfdy) | $229.99 @ Amazon
**Case** | [Montech AIR 903 BASE ATX Mid Tower Case](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/kKcgXL/montech-air-903-base-atx-mid-tower-case-air-903-base-b) | $65.00 @ B&H
**Power Supply** | [Corsair RM750e (2023) 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/YRJp99/corsair-rm750e-2023-750-w-80-gold-certified-fully-modular-atx-power-supply-cp-9020262-na) | $89.99 @ Best Buy
**Wireless Network Adapter** | [TP-Link Archer T3U 802.11a/b/g/n/ac USB Type-A Wi-Fi Adapter](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/WzBTwP/tp-link-archer-t3u-usb-30-wi-fi-adapter-archer-t3u) | $17.98 @ Amazon
| *Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts* |
| **Total** | **$906.21**
| Generated by [PCPartPicker](https://pcpartpicker.com) 2024-03-24 04:28 EDT-0400 |

That what i love man! thanks for taking the time putting up a list like that. Now i need to compare some stuff! I hope its cool if I were to DM you man. I have some extra questions to, regarding the stuff you picked out!

 

[LinuxDevice]

This is just one detail about the video card/GPU.

Many many video cards have 8 GB of VRAM. Some have less. You should never get one of the GPUs with less than 8 GB of VRAM.

There are now some games which actually suffer if you don't have about 11 or 12 GB of VRAM. Need for VRAM is increasing. The sweet spot that should last a long time is a 16 GB VRAM, although I suspect 12 GB will last a long time. Games that don't use more VRAM probably won't benefit, but as soon as you don't have enough, everything will suffer.

 

[geofelt]

Your budget allows you to build a very good pc.
If you were a Intel user before, I suggest you stick with that.
AMD is different.
Ditto on graphics. Since you used nvidia, tick with that; the driver systems will be familiar.
I see no reason why you could not use your 1060 initially.
But, it will be relatively puny by today's standards.
Tom's GPU hierarchy chart will place where it fits:
https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gpu-hierarchy,4388.html

Intel and AMD have comparable price/performance at every price point. The amd X3d processors are attractive for pure gamers.
But, thex3d optimization comes at a cost.
Anything other than gaming, for example streaming will not run as fast as the underlying processor would.

For storage, plan on using ssd devices.
Do not be much swayed by vendor synthetic SSD benchmarks.
They are done with apps that push the SSD to it's maximum using queue lengths of 30 or so.
Most desktop users will do one or two things at a time, so they will see queue lengths of one or two.
What really counts is the response times, particularly for small random I/O. That is what the os does mostly.
For that, the response times of current SSD's are remarkably similar. And quick. They will be 50X faster than a hard drive.

Plan on buying a new monitor. Higher resolution and larger sizes bring a more immersive gaming experience.
If you can, plan on keeping your old monitor as a side monitor for email and performance monitors.

Cases are a personal thing.
It must hold your parts, likely a ATX motherboard.
And, it should have good front intake capability to cool your parts.
Lian Li makes top quality cases. I like the O11 air mini:
https://www.newegg.com/p/2AM-000Z-00081

If you need a dvd drive, cases today mostly do not come with 5.25 front bays.

On the power supply buy large and buy quality.
Probably 850w to allow for future graphics upgrades and a 7 year warranty or more for quality.

 

[NedSmelly]

For 95% gaming at that budget I’d start with the GPU and work backwards. GPUs have become more important than CPU since you last built something over a decade ago. (It’s time to retire that 1060.)

As you mentioned Cyberpunk 2077… that would be a good reference point. Assuming 1440P resolution you could start with either RTX4070Ti Super or RX7900XT. Then add an 8-core CPU. The PSU is then determined by those selections. Case choice is somewhat determined by the GPU card length.

 

[35below0]

Welcome back. I don't feel comfortable talking too much about your hardship but since you opened up, i hope your health stays good and wish you the best. Moving on to PC stuff.

A few things have changed. CPU coolers have grown in size considerably. And hard drives have shrunk to the size of a stick of gum. Other than that, everything else was refined and improved but mostly stayed the same.

This build i'm about to recommend is a little bit of a luxury, but without crossing over into insanity. (Costs ~$2250 without monitor and windows, $2684 total)
I'm offering it as food for thought.

Fast 1Tb boot drive, extra 4Tb SSD storage + another 4Tb on a slow HDD.
Some ditched HDDs but for slow files or backups they are worth it.
WiFi 7
USB C Gen 2x2

With GPUs you basically have to decide whether you want to chase 1000+ fps or more in demanding games and higher resolutions. If you do, you have to go over $1000, but if you don't you have three tiers:

$300 - enough for a decent card. RTX 4060 is good, RX6600 or RX7600 are possible alternatives.
$500 - at this point the choice is RX 7800XT, unless nvidia is a must
$700-800 - while not the most powerful card, the 4070 Ti SUPER offers very good performance without costing crazy money. 4080 and 4090 are really for those who want to indulge or want to chase extreme fps.
I've selected a 4070 Ti SUPER, about a nice GPU as you can have without going over $1000 (AMD might have a word about this).
You can drop to RX 7800XT, maybe get more value that way.

However, i forgot the most important thing. The upcoming RTX 50XX series are rumored to bring a huge performance increase. So investing in an expensive GPU right now could be a mistake.
Strongly recommend you stick with on board graphics until later this year, or pick up a $300 4060 if you must. But that is $300 that doesn't get spent on your new GPU.

CPU cooler is a little bit overpriced, but it is reliable, long lasting and very quiet. Phantom Spirit EVO does the job for half the money though.

The case i chose because you said you wanted something white. This one is frankly odd to consider. But as i happen to own it, i feel i can recommend it. It is nice to work with though not the best. It does have space for all the other stuff i picked so there's that.
It comes with two front intake 140mm fans but no exhaust. I've added one for you to install. Another Noctua, not terribly overpriced or powerfull, but very quiet.
The case is a personal choice because you will have to live with it. If you want another white case, pay attention to CPU cooler height and GPU length.

The PSU has all the power you'll need, plus a little extra. It's also Platinum efficient so it won't waste power.
Reliable too.

CPU is "only" an i5, but the 13700 or 14700 don't justify their prices in my opinion. The i9 is worth it only to those that actualy need the performance. The i5 offers a ton of bang for the buck. Even some i3s are underrated (12100).

RAM is lower latency DDR5. 6000 Mhz 2x16 for 32Gb. It is good, not much to say.
If you later decide to upgrade, the motherboard can support much faster kits, up to 8400 Mhz.

The motherboard is mostly overkill, so if you don't need WiFi 7 and the Gen 2x2 USB-C, you could probably shave some $$$ off the build. That said, this is not an expensive motherboard so the savings may not be worth it.
With motheboards, you need to know that even though many slots are available, some of them cancel each other out if one is used!
For example using some M.2 NVMe SSD slots typically disables a pair of SATA ports. Likewise, using the CPU M.2 slot often degrades the main PCIe 16x slot to 8x, affecting GPU performance. The CPU M.2 slot is the fastest one, but in practise it is a blink of an eye faster than a chipset M.2 which is already very very fast.
On this board you have tons of choices when it comes to ports so you won't be affected as much.

Finally, the monitor. I am not sure which monitor to suggest so i'd leave that up to you and other members. I selected a 32" Dell because i happen to own this model. It's 1440p 60/120/144/165 model, bright and with very good contrast. Doesn't have HDR but i don't care about that.
It is freaking huge at 32" and i think maybe 27" is the sweet spot. Really depends on how close you sit. Maybe someone can recommend a better 27" or 32" monitor. Still, since i'm happy with my purchase, and it's good for work and gaming, and it doesn't cost a fortune, i will toss the recommendation into the hat.
You should check rtings.com. They test many monitors.

If you want to build yourself, start not with the GPU but with the monitor. Then decide how hard you want to push this monitor as this selects your GPU. A knock on effect of this is your power supply demand. CPUs are also power hogs but in general there's a few intels to choose from and a more complicated selection on AMD side.
You want a fast NVMe to boot Windows and maybe for files where speed makes a difference. The second drive is larger, maybe slower but higher capacity drive. 4Tb is good, but you can go as high as you like. You know better than i how to fill out the rest.

Remember you'll need a surge protection extension cord. And if you're going to get a mechanical keyboard, take a look here: https://www.keychron.com/products/k...om-mechanical-keyboard?variant=40912031744089
or here: https://viper.patriotmemory.com/pro...aming-keyboard-viper-gaming-by-patriot-memory

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i5-13600K 3.5 GHz 14-Core Processor ($284.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($109.95 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock Z790 Riptide WiFi ATX LGA1700 Motherboard ($229.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws S5 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($109.43 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 980 Pro 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($99.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Crucial MX500 4 TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($218.49 @ Best Buy)
Storage: Western Digital Blue 4 TB 3.5" 5400 RPM Internal Hard Drive ($72.99 @ Western Digital)
***Video Card: Gigabyte EAGLE OC GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER 16 GB Video Card ($799.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design North ATX Mid Tower Case ($139.99 @ B&H)
Power Supply: be quiet! Straight Power 12 1000 W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($169.90 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 11 Home OEM - DVD 64-bit ($124.99 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: Noctua S12B redux-1200 PWM 59.1 CFM 120 mm Fan ($14.95 @ Amazon)
Monitor: Dell S3222DGM 31.5" 2560 x 1440 165 Hz Curved Monitor ($308.00 @ Amazon)
Total: $2683.65
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-03-24 21:29 EDT-0400


I think this is more or less the best way to spend $2500 on a PC but i'm not sure. So if anyone wants to critique my choices, please do.
I know the z790 board is unneccessary but this one has features and comes with an attractive price tag. Similarly, the K series intels are not worth overclocking, but they are priced better than non-Ks.
KFs and Fs are a hard pass for me. The crummy savings in cash is not worth the loss of the iGPU.

 

[Why_Me]

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: *AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor ($368.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: *Deepcool AG620 WH ARGB 67.88 CFM CPU Cooler ($58.27 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: *Gigabyte B650 AORUS ELITE AX ICE ATX AM5 Motherboard ($219.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: *ADATA XPG Lancer Blade 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($94.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: *Acer Predator GM7000 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($124.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: *Gigabyte EAGLE OC GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER 16 GB Video Card ($799.99 @ Newegg)
Case: *Lian Li LANCOOL 216 ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.99 @ B&H)
Power Supply: *MSI MAG A850GL PCIE5 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Monitor: *Gigabyte GS27Q 27.0" 2560 x 1440 170 Hz Monitor ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $2037.19
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-03-24 23:46 EDT-0400

A better look at those components.

https://www.gigabyte.com/Monitor/GS27Q#kf

https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/B650-AORUS-ELITE-AX-ICE#kf

https://www.techpowerup.com/review/amd-ryzen-7-7800x3d/

https://www.deepcool.com/products/C...al-Tower-CPU-Cooler-1700-AM5/2022/16083.shtml

https://www.predatorstorage.com/products/predator-gm7000-pcie-4-ssd.html

https://www.gigabyte.com/Graphics-Card/GV-N407TSEAGLE-OC-16GD#kf

https://www.msi.com/Power-Supply/MAG-A850GL-PCIE5

https://lian-li.com/product/lancool-216/

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9TfR60pM5oU

 

[Why_Me]

Intel build.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: *Intel Core i7-13700F 2.1 GHz 16-Core Processor ($344.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: *Deepcool AG620 WH ARGB 67.88 CFM CPU Cooler ($58.27 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: *MSI B760 GAMING PLUS WIFI ATX LGA1700 Motherboard ($159.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: *ADATA XPG Lancer Blade 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($94.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: *Acer Predator GM7000 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($124.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: *Gigabyte EAGLE OC GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER 16 GB Video Card ($799.99 @ Newegg)
Case: *Lian Li LANCOOL 216 ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.99 @ B&H)
Power Supply: *MSI MAG A850GL PCIE5 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Monitor: *Gigabyte GS27Q 27.0" 2560 x 1440 170 Hz Monitor ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1953.19
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-03-24 23:47 EDT-0400

 

[ohio_buckeye]

A lot of good info here. If you have a microcenter near you, you might jot down a bit of the info here and head over there. A lot of the guys there are pretty knowledgeable at least at the one I go to. Many times they have good combo deals on CPUs/boards/ram. And pricing on most of their stuff is comparable to online typically.

 

[35below0]

I forgot to mention the most important thing and that is the upcoming RTX 50XX series which will blow away current gen 40XX cards.

I've edited my post above to advise *not* spending money on a performance GPU or any GPU right now.

 

[edp213]

Your budget allows you to build a very good pc.
If you were a Intel user before, I suggest you stick with that.
AMD is different.
Ditto on graphics. Since you used nvidia, tick with that; the driver systems will be familiar.
I see no reason why you could not use your 1060 initially.
But, it will be relatively puny by today's standards.
Tom's GPU hierarchy chart will place where it fits:
https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gpu-hierarchy,4388.html

Intel and AMD have comparable price/performance at every price point. The amd X3d processors are attractive for pure gamers.
But, thex3d optimization comes at a cost.
Anything other than gaming, for example streaming will not run as fast as the underlying processor would.

For storage, plan on using ssd devices.
Do not be much swayed by vendor synthetic SSD benchmarks.
They are done with apps that push the SSD to it's maximum using queue lengths of 30 or so.
Most desktop users will do one or two things at a time, so they will see queue lengths of one or two.
What really counts is the response times, particularly for small random I/O. That is what the os does mostly.
For that, the response times of current SSD's are remarkably similar. And quick. They will be 50X faster than a hard drive.

Plan on buying a new monitor. Higher resolution and larger sizes bring a more immersive gaming experience.
If you can, plan on keeping your old monitor as a side monitor for email and performance monitors.

Cases are a personal thing.
It must hold your parts, likely a ATX motherboard.
And, it should have good front intake capability to cool your parts.

Lian Li makes top quality cases. I like the O11 air mini:
https://www.newegg.com/p/2AM-000Z-00081

If you need a dvd drive, cases today mostly do not come with 5.25 front bays.

On the power supply buy large and buy quality.
Probably 850w to allow for future graphics upgrades and a 7 year warranty or more for quality.

For 95% gaming at that budget I’d start with the GPU and work backwards. GPUs have become more important than CPU since you last built something over a decade ago. (It’s time to retire that 1060.)

As you mentioned Cyberpunk 2077… that would be a good reference point. Assuming 1440P resolution you could start with either RTX4070Ti Super or RX7900XT. Then add an 8-core CPU. The PSU is then determined by those selections. Case choice is somewhat determined by the GPU card length.

Welcome back. I don't feel comfortable talking too much about your hardship but since you opened up, i hope your health stays good and wish you the best. Moving on to PC stuff.

A few things have changed. CPU coolers have grown in size considerably. And hard drives have shrunk to the size of a stick of gum. Other than that, everything else was refined and improved but mostly stayed the same.

This build i'm about to recommend is a little bit of a luxury, but without crossing over into insanity. (Costs ~$2250 without monitor and windows, $2684 total)
I'm offering it as food for thought.

Fast 1Tb boot drive, extra 4Tb SSD storage + another 4Tb on a slow HDD.
Some ditched HDDs but for slow files or backups they are worth it.
WiFi 7
USB C Gen 2x2

With GPUs you basically have to decide whether you want to chase 1000+ fps or more in demanding games and higher resolutions. If you do, you have to go over $1000, but if you don't you have three tiers:

$300 - enough for a decent card. RTX 4060 is good, RX6600 or RX7600 are possible alternatives.
$500 - at this point the choice is RX 7800XT, unless nvidia is a must
$700-800 - while not the most powerful card, the 4070 Ti SUPER offers very good performance without costing crazy money. 4080 and 4090 are really for those who want to indulge or want to chase extreme fps.
I've selected a 4070 Ti SUPER, about a nice GPU as you can have without going over $1000 (AMD might have a word about this).
You can drop to RX 7800XT, maybe get more value that way.

However, i forgot the most important thing. The upcoming RTX 50XX series are rumored to bring a huge performance increase. So investing in an expensive GPU right now could be a mistake.
Strongly recommend you stick with on board graphics until later this year, or pick up a $300 4060 if you must. But that is $300 that doesn't get spent on your new GPU.

CPU cooler is a little bit overpriced, but it is reliable, long lasting and very quiet. Phantom Spirit EVO does the job for half the money though.

The case i chose because you said you wanted something white. This one is frankly odd to consider. But as i happen to own it, i feel i can recommend it. It is nice to work with though not the best. It does have space for all the other stuff i picked so there's that.
It comes with two front intake 140mm fans but no exhaust. I've added one for you to install. Another Noctua, not terribly overpriced or powerfull, but very quiet.
The case is a personal choice because you will have to live with it. If you want another white case, pay attention to CPU cooler height and GPU length.

The PSU has all the power you'll need, plus a little extra. It's also Platinum efficient so it won't waste power.
Reliable too.

CPU is "only" an i5, but the 13700 or 14700 don't justify their prices in my opinion. The i9 is worth it only to those that actualy need the performance. The i5 offers a ton of bang for the buck. Even some i3s are underrated (12100).

RAM is lower latency DDR5. 6000 Mhz 2x16 for 32Gb. It is good, not much to say.
If you later decide to upgrade, the motherboard can support much faster kits, up to 8400 Mhz.

The motherboard is mostly overkill, so if you don't need WiFi 7 and the Gen 2x2 USB-C, you could probably shave some $$$ off the build. That said, this is not an expensive motherboard so the savings may not be worth it.
With motheboards, you need to know that even though many slots are available, some of them cancel each other out if one is used!
For example using some M.2 NVMe SSD slots typically disables a pair of SATA ports. Likewise, using the CPU M.2 slot often degrades the main PCIe 16x slot to 8x, affecting GPU performance. The CPU M.2 slot is the fastest one, but in practise it is a blink of an eye faster than a chipset M.2 which is already very very fast.
On this board you have tons of choices when it comes to ports so you won't be affected as much.

Finally, the monitor. I am not sure which monitor to suggest so i'd leave that up to you and other members. I selected a 32" Dell because i happen to own this model. It's 1440p 60/120/144/165 model, bright and with very good contrast. Doesn't have HDR but i don't care about that.
It is freaking huge at 32" and i think maybe 27" is the sweet spot. Really depends on how close you sit. Maybe someone can recommend a better 27" or 32" monitor. Still, since i'm happy with my purchase, and it's good for work and gaming, and it doesn't cost a fortune, i will toss the recommendation into the hat.
You should check rtings.com. They test many monitors.

If you want to build yourself, start not with the GPU but with the monitor. Then decide how hard you want to push this monitor as this selects your GPU. A knock on effect of this is your power supply demand. CPUs are also power hogs but in general there's a few intels to choose from and a more complicated selection on AMD side.
You want a fast NVMe to boot Windows and maybe for files where speed makes a difference. The second drive is larger, maybe slower but higher capacity drive. 4Tb is good, but you can go as high as you like. You know better than i how to fill out the rest.

Remember you'll need a surge protection extension cord. And if you're going to get a mechanical keyboard, take a look here: https://www.keychron.com/products/k...om-mechanical-keyboard?variant=40912031744089
or here: https://viper.patriotmemory.com/pro...aming-keyboard-viper-gaming-by-patriot-memory

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i5-13600K 3.5 GHz 14-Core Processor ($284.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($109.95 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock Z790 Riptide WiFi ATX LGA1700 Motherboard ($229.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws S5 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($109.43 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 980 Pro 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($99.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Crucial MX500 4 TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($218.49 @ Best Buy)
Storage: Western Digital Blue 4 TB 3.5" 5400 RPM Internal Hard Drive ($72.99 @ Western Digital)
***Video Card: Gigabyte EAGLE OC GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER 16 GB Video Card ($799.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design North ATX Mid Tower Case ($139.99 @ B&H)
Power Supply: be quiet! Straight Power 12 1000 W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($169.90 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 11 Home OEM - DVD 64-bit ($124.99 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: Noctua S12B redux-1200 PWM 59.1 CFM 120 mm Fan ($14.95 @ Amazon)
Monitor: Dell S3222DGM 31.5" 2560 x 1440 165 Hz Curved Monitor ($308.00 @ Amazon)
Total: $2683.65
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-03-24 21:29 EDT-0400


I think this is more or less the best way to spend $2500 on a PC but i'm not sure. So if anyone wants to critique my choices, please do.
I know the z790 board is unneccessary but this one has features and comes with an attractive price tag. Similarly, the K series intels are not worth overclocking, but they are priced better than non-Ks.
KFs and Fs are a hard pass for me. The crummy savings in cash is not worth the loss of the iGPU.

I was into AMD before and just my luck if i waited a month longer i would of went amd at the time lol, i love the extra tips you guys are giving me, I always cheap out on monitors this time around it would be different, If you guys however have some monitors recommendation? I'm curious

Welcome back. I don't feel comfortable talking too much about your hardship but since you opened up, i hope your health stays good and wish you the best. Moving on to PC stuff.

I rarely open up but I'm older now , As a veteran there many hardships but behind the screen we're all human, We all grow up differently, I would to thank all of you guys for being extra patience with me, That means a lot - I'm still learning because of you guys i actually decided to do tons of research on my own also - Different builds that fit the needs of my family and friends. However there so much to learn from ha

 

[edp213]

A lot of good info here. If you have a microcenter near you, you might jot down a bit of the info here and head over there. A lot of the guys there are pretty knowledgeable at least at the one I go to. Many times they have good combo deals on CPUs/boards/ram. And pricing on most of their stuff is comparable to online typically.

I may need to check them out if i have the time. Are there usually a variety of choices?

I forgot to mention the most important thing and that is the upcoming RTX 50XX series which will blow away current gen 40XX cards.

I've edited my post above to advise *not* spending money on a performance GPU or any GPU right now.

How long should i wait exactly? I thought these were rumors?!!!?

 

[Lafong]

I may need to check them out if i have the time. Are there usually a variety of choices?

Microcenter has very few stores west of the Rockies. Don't know where you are.

Check them out online. They have a lot of parts, but not as much variety as places like Newegg or Amazon.

They nearly always have several "bundles" that are quite price-competitive, both Intel and AMD.

They will assemble your PC for a charge or just sell you parts.

They do some mail order, but I think it is quite limited, so if you don't have one within plausible driving distance, it may not be better than more common options.

 

[helper800]

I may need to check them out if i have the time. Are there usually a variety of choices?



How long should i wait exactly? I thought these were rumors?!!!?

Nvidia may be releasing new GPUs by end of year if their word is to be believed. Consumer cards are probably first half 2025 at the latest. If you are anywhere within 40 minutes drive of the Tustin Microcenter in southern California I would say it's worth looking at their CPU/Motherboard/RAM combos at the least. I believe its the only Microcenter in California, though I could be wrong. Personally I would make a build like this with a monitor included:

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i5-13600KF 3.5 GHz 14-Core Processor ($254.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Phantom Spirit EVO 69 CFM CPU Cooler ($49.90 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock Z790 Riptide WiFi ATX LGA1700 Motherboard ($229.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws S5 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($106.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Acer Predator GM7000 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($77.98 @ Amazon)
Storage: Crucial P3 Plus 4 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($237.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte EAGLE OC GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER 16 GB Video Card ($799.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Lian Li LANCOOL 216 ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.99 @ Newegg Sellers)
Power Supply: Thermaltake Toughpower GF A3 - TT Premium Edition 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($104.00 @ Amazon)
Monitor: MSI MEG 342C QD OLED 34.2" 3440 x 1440 175 Hz Curved Monitor ($849.99 @ B&H)
Total: $2811.81
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-03-25 11:31 EDT-0400

The newest and, in my opinion, best looking monitors are typically OLED or QD-OLED. I added a modern large 34 inch QD-OLED monitor that has high enough refresh rate of 175hz to get all the benefits of a fast screen. It is curved with a 21:9 aspect ratio for more screen real estate. The i5 intel CPU I chose is the sweet spot for cost as far as diminishing returns of price to performance. I have the build setup with a quick 1tb boot drive with a DRAM cache, and a 4tb DRAMless drive for games and media storage. At that monitors resolution (3440 x 1440) you need at least a 4070 ti super to keep up with newer games, so that's what I picked. A nice looking high airflow case in the lian li 216 which is not exorbitantly expensive. For the PSU I picked the cheapest higher end unit with the ability to drive all the parts. The CPU cooler is the best performer out there while also being comparatively the best priced, it will get the job done while remaining reasonable quiet. 32gb of relatively fast RAM from a good company also does the trick. I left enough budget in to get whatever version of Windows 11 you want. With newer Intel CPUs you will essentially need windows 11 for their thread scheduler to make use of the unique performance and efficiency cores that Intel have since adopted. I personally like to spend a bit more on my monitors because it's what you are going to be staring at for the next 5-10 years, so it mind as well be pretty! If you have any thoughts about cost cutting my build I have a few Ideas, just let me know

 

[King Dranzer]

Background Info:
Hello everyone! Nice to meet you guys again! Old member back from 2008-2011 haven't been back on due to life! Long story short I'm a old vet but due to life and lost of spouse and kids, I deal alot with mental illness and was also homeless for years, I'm now a counselor - Just recently I slowly gotten my life in order, got my first apartment! So I'm looking to make things looking nice for the first time around. So please any insights and advice would be greatly appreciated! Thank you.
First time building a computer in over a decade I use to tinkered with my computer in the past often but nowadays I'm out of touch with reality when it comes to computers, I'm very outdated I haven't kept up to date until the last few years but couldn't afford to because of life decisions, I had a decent 2011 intel back then.

Build Info: Budget $3000 but willing to pay more if i had to.
Planning on purchasing part by April/August of this year.
*System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming - Streaming
I play video games sporadically but... i would love to more often nowadays- Love the oldies but would love to play new titles. Like cyberpunk 2077
I'm a light - mid range gamer but love to play high end. so High Mid Range to Low High Range.
Resolution I'm unsure of however i was able to snag a decent 2019 monitor. I have a zotac 1060 which i would love to stick around for a little longer if i can?

Some ideas/goals and questions i have - would love some advice please if neccessary
**Parts Preferences
I would love to have a white tower/pc case - can be elegant or plain looking but i don't mind different colors such as blue or black

I would love to stick around with my 1060 zotac for awhile longer but if i need to upgrade now that cool. however i would love to wait a year later if possible.

Monitor maybe i can stick with my 2019 one? but if people have some recommendation in mind? I don't know much about mhz, MS
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Any website
Country: U.S CALI
Overclocking: No
SLI or Crossfire: No
Monitor Resolution: I don't know but i play on 1024x 768 yes i know i'm old lol
Parts Not Required: Peripherals, Mouse/keyboard, OS, but would love to hear some recommendation.

*** Some advice/suggestions please on MOBO, RAM/Memory, Storage - CPU

Questions :
1. Did amd overshadow intel or something? i don't know which direction i want to go for but i would love to see tons of different pc builds please?
2. SSD now everyone uses a build in one on mobo? Rams should i max it? how much is needed?
3. *Gpu/video card - what the heck happened?! I don't know where to start lol, But dang the price.

Random weird question I'm trying to get my old account back from 2008 but unsure how to go about it? my login account still exist and enable it seems but none of my email work? Which is odd i only have like 2-3 emails.

Hold off till end of the year. At that time you can a solid top of the line build for around $3k or a bit extra. Specially with RTX5090 releasing in few months that gonna get you huge performance jump. And if you stick to 1440p gaming on it. You be set for an extremely long time where you won't be needing to update anything at all and still get even most demanding games run at max settings.

 

[helper800]

Hold off till end of the year. At that time you can a solid top of the line build for around $3k or a bit extra. Specially with RTX5090 releasing in few months that gonna get you huge performance jump. And if you stick to 1440p gaming on it. You be set for an extremely long time where you won't be needing to update anything at all and still get even most demanding games run at max settings.

A theoretical 5090 by the end of the year also has a theoretical price. I seriously doubt its going to be only 1500 dollars. If the op does want to go for a 5000 series card he's probably going to want more than a 1060 until then, but that is an option to be sure.

 

[King Dranzer]

A theoretical 5090 by the end of the year also has a theoretical price. I seriously doubt its going to be only 1500 dollars. If the op does want to go for a 5000 series card he's probably going to want more than a 1060 until then, but that is an option to be sure.

I think around $1800 or less. Yes not $1500(I be surprised if that happened) don't think NVIDIA be going down on price if not up.

But even with that price RTX5090 could be easily fit into a PC with Total around $3000.

 

[helper800]

I think around $1800 or less. Yes not $1500(I be surprised if that happened) don't think NVIDIA be going down on price if not up.

But even with that price RTX5090 could be easily fit into a PC with Total around $3000.

Not with a monitor to match the card, in my opinion.

 

[35below0]

I think around $1800 or less. Yes not $1500(I be surprised if that happened) don't think NVIDIA be going down on price if not up.

But even with that price RTX5090 could be easily fit into a PC with Total around $3000.

I was honestly thinking about a RTX 5070. That should have enough juice. More than enough. Maybe even an 5060. 5090 is going to be the fastest GPU ever if hype is to be believed.
I know OP said he's prepared to spend but i didn't think they'd want to go all out for the tippy top i9/RTXxx90 monster.

There's very little reason to spend that money unless you damn well know you want to play Rocket League at 2000fps. Middle and low to mid tier GPUs are underrated.

It's not my money and it's not my build so it's just opinion.

 

[King Dranzer]

I was honestly thinking about a RTX 5070. That should have enough juice. More than enough. Maybe even an 5060. 5090 is going to be the fastest GPU ever if hype is to be believed.
I know OP said he's prepared to spend but i didn't think they'd want to go all out for the tippy top i9/RTXxx90 monster.

There's very little reason to spend that money unless you damn well know you want to play Rocket League at 2000fps. Middle and low to mid tier GPUs are underrated.

It's not my money and it's not my build so it's just opinion.

Actually even with the current RTX4000 series as crazy as it is. The only GPU that was actually worth getting was RTX4090 from the beginning. The performance jump between the 90 card and level below is much greater than what it was with previous gen. And for one who plans to use the hardware for over a very long period of time. Spending for the top of the line components actually gets them no compromise experience for over very long period of time. Specially considering how much we are seeing the performance being dropped off even going just level down.

Even at just 1440p which I would still recommend over 4K if he plans to use it for a period of 8Yrs. That will get him through without much of a compromise on visual quality even towards the end.

 

[King Dranzer]

Not with a monitor to match the card, in my opinion.

Seriously considering how long he been using his previous setup. I would recommend only 1440p in the Combo of RTX5090. 4K be good only if he plans to upgrade every two generations.