Need some advice when picking up a desktop computer?
Need some advice when picking up a desktop computer?
I am trying to find a gaming desktop PC. Actually, I use a laptop that is great for both games and streaming, but it gets too hot (like it can cook eggs) and makes annoying fan noise. My current setup has a Ryzen 7 5800H, an Nvidia RTX 3080 with 16GB of RAM, a big SSD, and Windows 11 Home. I want something similar in price (around $1000 to $1500). Should I look at buying this PC from another store or build one myself? Since I am new to this, I prefer buying it already assembled. Thanks for the replies, and I hope you get a great day too!
It is an okay system (for 1080p gaming at medium to high graphics settings) and will perform better than your laptop (overall), but not at the highest levels of modern gaming performance. Of course, that level is more expensive. I didn't see any information regarding the make/model of the PSU. That could be an issue if not a quality component. Do you already have a display to attach to a desktop system? We have a template you can use to ask for build advice: https://forums. Most on this site will recommend building your own system.
Well, RTX 3080 Mobile is = to RTX 5060 Ti desktop GPU. So, if you go with RTX 4060, you will get reduced performance compared to your laptop. If you want the best price to performance ratio, then DIY is the only way. Meaning that you buy all components individually and assemble everything yourself + OS installation. With prebuilts, you will always pay extra since someone else has assembled the build for you, installed OS (sometimes optional) and with prebuilts, the store from you bought it, remains as customer support for you. For DIY, you, yourself are the customer support for your build. As far as prebuilts go, i suggest getting one from StarForge, link: https://starforgesystems.com/ They sell complete builds at many price brackets. So, look over your budget and decide which one to go for. You can even contact them for further assistance before selection/purchase. While Starforge is US based, they do ship in EU; E.g Horizon III Pro would be in the middle of your budget, link: https://starforgesystems.com/products/horizon-iii-pro GPU in there RX 7700 XT, is ~30% better than your RTX 3080 Mobile. Comparison: https://technical.city/en/video/GeForce-...RX-7700-XT Horizon III Elite costs a bit more, but also provides better performance (performance is listed on the webpage). Now, as of what makes StarForge in general good, is that they are one of the very few prebuilt system sellers, who actually assemble the build properly, without minor or major issues. GamersNexus is buying prebuilt PCs incognito and then making in-depth reviews of them, so that people know which prebuilt company to look for and which one to avoid like a plague. Here is their YT playlist of prebuilt reviews: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL...bE_R5EnCLM StarForge prebuilt has been on the spotlight 2 times now. 1st time there were some loose screw issues but 2nd time around, all was in order and build was one of the very few properly built. Another thing that i like about StarForge is that they openly state what make/model PSU comes with the prebuilt PC. This is actually very rare to see, since most prebuilt PC brands only list PSU's wattage. Sometimes even efficiency but that's it. This means that PSU is often the cheaped out component inside the prebuilt PC. Because when PSU is crap, no-one is going to openly state the make/model. But if PSU would be actually good, stating the make/model actually helps to sell the PC. Prime example; random Asus prebuilt, specs: https://rog.asus.com/desktops/mid-tower/...ries/spec/ If you look at PSU specs, all it says, is wattage and efficiency. Nothing more. If same info would be said about CPU or GPU, the listing would say; CPU - Intel Core i7 (16 cores) GPU - Nvidia (8GB VRAM) Yet, there's in-depth info about CPU and GPU. Actually, the prebuilt you're looking at, there 0 info about what kind of PSU it comes with. And that is a red flag for me. But with StarForge PC and the Horizon III Pro i linked, you can see on the tin, that the PSU it comes with, is MSI MAG A650GL. That PSU is Tier B unit. PSU Tier list: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...aS...973454078# While i'd like to see Tier A or A+ PSU in the prebuilt, it would jack up the overall price and only very few people are willing to pay money for great quality PSU (including yours truly). While most people love to cheap out on PSU. But with PSUs, there is a catch: Since PSU powers everything, it is the most important component inside the PC. Hence why NEVER cheap out on PSU! Also, never buy used PSU either.
From a performance point of view, the two are comparable. Pre-built pc's are not designed to be upgraded. In particular, they will use generic power supplies of minimum power. The most likely upgrade for you in the future would be a better graphics card, and that would likely entail a psu replacement. The second red flag to me is the use of a aio cooler where air would be perfectly fine. aio coolers have a limited life span before they need replacement. Think 5 years. If you need service, do you have to send the whole thing back? You could do worse. If you have a pc shop near by, consider specifying the parts yourself and have them assemble it for you.
The 3080 on the phone is slower than a 3070 computer, so it can't beat a 5060ti machine. The 5060ti actually runs slightly faster than that 3070. If you buy a 4060 now instead of your current 3080 mobile, you'll get less power from the new chip.
Just to give some background on what people are talking about online. Here is the link where you can see the comparison between the RTX 4060 and the RTX 3080 for laptops: https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nv...vsm1443565 When it comes to real-world use, the small differences from a test stand point won't show up much. A regular desktop CPU is going to beat the mobile one way or another. Both parts in a desktop computer, if they are cooled well enough, will stay much cooler than those inside a gaming laptop. We already talked about how there are other things we should consider here before just picking one part over the other.
Hi. Yes, I got a screen that goes with my laptop. It was bought from Amazon. I'm not a big gamer; I play mostly WoT and CS2. So right now I am just looking to use it for a few years before I decide to build one myself when I have the chance. But yeah, this thing should be good at playing games and streaming too. Should I ask in the shop about the power supply? Thank you! _____________________________________________________________________________________________ @geofelt From a performance point of view, the two are similar. Pre-made PCs aren't built to let you upgrade them. They often come with standard power supplies that aren't very strong. The best thing you might add later is a better graphics card, and adding a good GPU usually means getting a new power supply too. One other red flag for me is using an AIO cooler when air would be enough. Those special coolers have a short life span; they probably need changing around the five-year mark. If I ever need repairs, do you have to send the whole thing back? You could do worse if that's what it comes with. If there is a PC shop nearby, maybe you can tell them exactly which parts you want and ask them to put it all together for you. So far as I understand it, if I buy a prebuilt PC, it will be hard or impossible to change out the inside parts myself? I should look for a computer that uses air cooling instead of those special AIO coolers. I think yes, if something goes wrong, I would bring it back to the shop or send it for service. From them, I bought also the laptop, but there were no problems with it. I will try and search for some shops where they can assemble it together. Thank you