New construction - Assistance needed
New construction - Assistance needed
Hi everyone,
Thank you for your support and guidance. I'm planning to construct an entirely new machine from the ground up and consider donating my current one to a family member.
Approximate purchase date: within the next month. I'm prepared to act quickly if necessary, but I'm flexible on timing.
Budget range: around $1500, though it could be a bit more if justified.
Important system usage: primarily for gaming and browsing.
Monitor purchase: yes, I need to buy an operating system, but please exclude the cost from the price.
Preferred sources for parts: MicroCenter, BestBuy, and any delivery options (Amazon, NewEgg, B&H Photo...).
Location: Maryland, USA.
Overclocking: no intention to overclock.
GPUs: not planned for multiple units.
Monitor resolution: currently 1920x1080, content is satisfactory. I might upgrade to 1440p if desired, but it's not essential.
Additional notes: no RGB accents needed, quiet operation preferred, no water cooling required. Most importantly, I'm upgrading because I'm donating my old setup and building a new one.
Feel free to reach out if you have further questions. As always, I'm aiming for the best value for my money—something capable of running modern AAA titles with room for future upgrades without breaking the bank.
Thanks again!
check out my second version (the AM5 model)
from this discussion - just replace the CPU with 7800x3d or 7600x3d
and upgrade the graphics card.
it would cost around
$1900 or
$2000 after those changes.
(
$100 difference depending on whether you choose 9070xt or 5070Ti -
5070ti is pricier but offers a better feature set in my view)
PCPartPicker Part List
CPU:
AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor
($359.50 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler:
ID-COOLING FROZN A620 PRO SE 58 CFM CPU Cooler
($29.99 @ Amazon)...
PCPartPicker Part List
CPU: Intel Core Ultra 7 265KF 3.9 GHz 20-Core Processor
($229.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: ID-COOLING FROZN A620 PRO SE 58 CFM
($29.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock Z890 Pro-A WiFi ATX LGA1851
($149.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Patriot Viper Xtreme 5 48 GB (2 x 24 GB) DDR5-7600 CL36
($139.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Crucial T500 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME
($124.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte WINDFORCE OC SFF GeForce RTX 5070 12 GB
($549.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Montech AIR 903 BASE ATX Mid Tower Case
($64.98 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: NZXT C850 (2024) 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular
($124.99 @ Best Buy)
Monitor: ASRock PG27QFT2A 27.0" 2560 x 1440 180 Hz
($150.76 @ Newegg)
Total: $1565.67
Includes shipping, taxes, and available discounts
Generated by PCPartPicker
2025-06-24 17:14 EDT-0400
Best value option available, though future CPU upgrades may be limited.
If you need a better upgrade path, consider an alternative setup.
This configuration offers the best balance of performance for a system around 1500 with a monitor. Currently, you’re limited to a single 1TB drive for the operating system and games until you upgrade later, and you have 32GB of RAM instead of the recommended 64GB. While having 64GB is beneficial, it’s not essential at this stage. This setup delivers the highest performance possible right now.
Here’s the link to the MicroCenter bundle for $400.
PCPartPicker Part List
CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 7600X3D 4.1 GHz 6-Core Processor
($400.00)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE V3 70.84 CFM
($34.90 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus TUF GAMING B650-E WIFI ATX AM5
($0.00)
Memory: G.Skill Flare X5 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL36
($0.00)
Storage: Crucial T500 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME
($75.19 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus PRIME OC Radeon RX 9070 XT 16 GB
($719.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Montech AIR 903 BASE ATX Mid Tower
($64.98 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Thermaltake Toughpower GF3 TT Premium 750 W
($89.99 @ Newegg)
Monitor: ASRock PG27QFT1B 27.0" 2560 x 1440 180 Hz
($152.77 @ Amazon)
Total: $1537.82
Includes shipping, taxes, and available discounts.
Generated by PCPartPicker
2025-06-24 20:10 EDT-0400
PCPartPicker List of Components
CPU:
*
AMD Ryzen 5 9600X 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor
($174.99 on Amazon)
CPU Cooler:
*
ID-COOLING FROZN A620 PRO SE 58 CFM CPU Cooler
($29.99 on Amazon)
Motherboard:
*
Asus B650E MAX GAMING WIFI ATX AM5 Board
($169.99 on Newegg)
Memory:
*
TEAMGROUP T-Create Expert 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 RAM
($91.99 on Amazon)
Storage:
*
Klevv CRAS C910 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVMe SSD
($89.99 on Newegg)
Video Card:
*
Asus PRIME OC GeForce RTX 5070 12 GB Graphics Card
($549.99 on Newegg)
Case:
*
Montech AIR 903 BASE ATX Mid Tower Housing
($64.98 on Amazon)
Power Supply:
*
Montech CENTURY II 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Supply
($89.90 on Newegg)
Monitor:
*
MSI G244PF E2 23.8" 1920 x 1080 180 Hz Display
($109.99 at B&H)
Overall Cost: $1371.81
All prices contain shipping, taxes, and applicable discounts
*Selected lowest-cost items based on specified filters*
Created by
PCPartPicker
2025-06-24 22:32 EDT-0400
https://www.msi.com/Monitor/G244PF-E2
Yeah, those micro center bundles are really strong.
If you decide to pick some of them, I’d likely choose the affordable 7600X3D combo for $399.
It would let you get the best video card you can afford, like a 9070xt or 5070Ti.
But I wouldn’t suggest cutting corners on storage or memory capacity.
An 1TB drive will quickly fill up—modern games often need around 250GB each.
And with two 16GB drives, it’s not enough for a fresh gaming setup, especially if you want to run background tasks and keep browsers open while playing.
Plus, upgrading later could cause memory speed or timing issues, so it’s better to get 2x24GB or 2x32GB right away.
Check out my second version (the AM5 model). Just change the CPU to 7800x3d or 7600x3d and upgrade the graphics card.
The estimated cost would be around $1900 or $2000 after those changes.
(About $100 difference depending on whether you choose 9070xt or 5070Ti – the latter is pricier but offers more features in my view)
PCPartPicker Part List
CPU:
AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor
($359.50 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler:
ID-COOLING FROZN A620 PRO SE 58 CFM CPU Cooler
($29.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard:
MSI PRO B850-P WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard
($159.99 @ Newegg)
Memory:
Patriot Venom 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory
($159.99 @ Newegg)
Storage:
Crucial T500 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME SSD
($124.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card:
Gigabyte GAMING OC Radeon RX 9070 XT 16 GB Video Card
($729.99 @ Best Buy)
Case:
Montech AIR 903 BASE ATX Mid Tower Case
($64.98 @ Amazon)
Power Supply:
NZXT C850 (2024) 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply
($124.99 @ Best Buy)
Monitor:
ASRock PG27QFT2A 27.0" 2560 x 1440 180 Hz Monitor
($150.76 @ Newegg)
Overall cost would be approximately $1905.18
Includes shipping, taxes, and any available discounts
Created by
PCPartPicker
2025-06-25 15:17 EDT-0400
Can I swap this GPU for the one listed? It’s $10 less, but I’m overwhelmed by all the base frequencies and boost settings.