Appreciate any advice on this build I put together

[EvilGrins]

I'm looking to spend up to £3500 on a new PC that I plan to use for heavy gaming. What I mean by heavy is lots and lots of long play sessions under load, so I'd like my PC to stand the test of time. I play games such as Elden Ring, Destiny 2, Final Fantasy 14, Borderlands 3, GTA 5... "demanding" games if you would... I currently game on the BenQ Mobiuz EX2510S monitor at 165hz and I'm very happy with it. So I'd like to hear if and or what I should change on this build:

Case
CORSAIR iCUE 5000X RGB MID TOWER GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D Eight Core CPU (4.2GHz-5.0GHz/104MB w/3D V-CACHE/AM5)
Motherboard
ASUS® ROG CROSSHAIR X670E HERO (AM5, DDR5, PCIe 5.0, Wi-Fi 6E)
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 5600MHz (1 x 32GB)
Graphics Card
24GB AMD RADEON™ RX 7900 XTX - HDMI, DP - DX® 12
Graphics Card Support Bracket
NONE (BRACKET INCLUDED AS STANDARD ON 4070 Ti / RX 7700 XT AND ABOVE)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SAMSUNG 990 PRO M.2, PCIe 4.0 NVMe (up to 7450MB/R, 6900MB/W)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SAMSUNG 990 PRO M.2, PCIe 4.0 NVMe (up to 7450MB/R, 6900MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1200W RMx SHIFT SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR iCUE H115i ELITE CAPELLIX XT RGB High Performance CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste
ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND
Extra Case Fans
3 x Corsair ICUE LINK QX120 RGB PWM Fan + Controller Kit
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
2.5G ETHERNET PCI-EXPRESS CARD (10/100/1000M/2.5G) (1 x RJ45)
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
Norton 360 inc. Game Optimizer - Free 90 Day License
Browser
Microsoft® Edge
Warranty
3 Year Platinum Warranty (3 Year Collect & Return, 3 Year Parts, 3 Year labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 4 to 6 working days
Price: £3,229.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/MzHqvZHrtf/

Thank you for reading!

 

[TonyCarter]

Most of what I'm going to say below will save you money without costing you any performance.

• You don't need a Crosshair motherboard unless you're going to be doing extreme overclocking, and that won't offer much from a 7800X3D anyway...so you could save a few hundred £££ by going to the Strix level.
• Unless you have a super-fast m.2. SSD already to go in as your boot drive, then I'd put one in specifically, and then possibly have 1 or 2 further drives for game installs and/or media
• Single stick of RAM is not the best option, nor is that speed
• You don't need Arctic paste with a Corsair AIO, as it comes with pre-applied paste (of equivalent/better quality anyway)
• Do you really need an add-in network card on top of the one on the motherboard?

Case
CORSAIR iCUE 5000X RGB MID TOWER GAMING CASE - no change
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D Eight Core CPU (4.2GHz-5.0GHz/104MB w/3D V-CACHE/AM5) - no change
Motherboard
ASUS® ROG STRIX X670E-A GAMING WIFI (AM5, DDR5, PCIe 5.0, Wi-Fi 6E) - can't see the need for the Crosshair motherboard
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 6000MHz (2 x 16GB) - best VFM for AMD RAM, but could go for faster 6400MHz for a £36 premium
Graphics Card
24GB AMD RADEON™ RX 7900 XTX - HDMI, DP - DX® 12 - no change, but could swap to the RTX4080 Super if you wanted for £45
Graphics Card Support Bracket
NONE (BRACKET INCLUDED AS STANDARD ON 4070 Ti / RX 7700 XT AND ABOVE) - no change
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB CRUCIAL T705 GEN 5 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 14,500MB/sR, 12,700MB/sW) - extremely fast primary drive for Windows/Apps/Game Launchers ONLY (keep games/files/media elsewhere to ensure they're safe)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB CORSAIR CORE XT MP600 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD (up to 5000 MB/R, 4400 MB/W) - very fast, higher endurance SSD for game installs/media
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB CORSAIR CORE XT MP600 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD (up to 5000 MB/R, 4400 MB/W) - very fast, higher endurance SSD for game installs/media
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1200W RMx SHIFT SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS GOLD, ULTRA QUIET - no change
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core) - no change
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR iCUE H115i ELITE CAPELLIX XT RGB High Performance CPU Cooler - no change
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING - removed as the Corsair AIO comes pre-applied with thermal paste/pad
Extra Case Fans
3 x Corsair ICUE LINK QX120 RGB PWM Fan + Controller Kit - no change
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD) - no change
Network Card
ONBOARD 2.5Gbe LAN PORT - removed as I didn't see a need for 2 LAN ports
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS - no change
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence - no change
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language - no change
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account - no change
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required) - no change
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE - removed Norton as it's less than worthless
Browser
Microsoft® Edge - no change
Warranty
3 Year Platinum Warranty (3 Year Collect & Return, 3 Year Parts, 3 Year labour) - no change
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI) - no change
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 4 to 6 working days - no change
Price: £3,174.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/QnKhBvb8ng/

 

[EvilGrins]

Thank you for your reply Tony! And no, I don't overclock at all. As for SSD, this is what I had on my old machine

1st M.2 SSD Drive
256GB SAMSUNG SM961 M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3100MB/R, 1400MB/W)
1st Storage Drive
1TB SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 32MB CACHE

Do you really need an add-in network card on top of the one on the motherboard?

I'm... Not sure? I just plug in an ethernet cable to go online if that's what that means, sorry

 

[TonyCarter]

There's already a built-in ethernet port, so an extra one would only be useful if you needed a faster one for a NAS or some high-speed sharing over network.

You can keep the HDD if you've got stuff on it, and simply put it into one of the 3.5" HDD bays in the new PC, but I'd definitely recommend a faster, slightly larger primary m.2 SSD.

If you don't have terabytes of games, then a single 2TB secondary SSD would be fine, and you can save more...or you can splash out on a single 4TB secondary drive if you've got lots of games and want them all in one place. (FYI, I spread mine around 4 SSDs...one for each of the main games stores I use).

There are other areas we could tweak to lower your spend, as the Strix is still one of the higher end motherboards, and if there's elements of it that are of no use you could go to the TUF X670 or TUF B650.

Just realised it's a 1080p monitor, so I think both the 7900XTX and 4080 Super are both overkill, and wasted, as they won't be getting worked very hard at all (they're 4k GPUs). You could save a wedge with the 7800XT, 7900GRE or 4070 Super, and save that for a monitor & GPU upgrade in 2-3 years time.

With the above in mind, I'd adjust my suggestion further and free up £600...

Case
CORSAIR iCUE 5000X RGB MID TOWER GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D Eight Core CPU (4.2GHz-5.0GHz/104MB w/3D V-CACHE/AM5)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING X670E-PLUS WIFI (AM5, DDR5, PCIe 5.0, Wi-Fi 6E) - latest spec components and room for upgrades
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 6000MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
12GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 4070 SUPER - HDMI, DP, LHR - probably still overkill for 1080p, but the 4060 offering is not value for money
Graphics Card Support Bracket
NONE (BRACKET INCLUDED AS STANDARD ON 4070 Ti / RX 7700 XT AND ABOVE)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB CRUCIAL T705 GEN 5 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 14,500MB/sR, 12,700MB/sW)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SOLIDIGM P44 PRO GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 7000MB/sR, 6500MB/sW) - secondary drive for games (faster than it needs to be, but well within budget), alternative is to go for 2x2TB or 1x4TB here
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1200W RMx SHIFT SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR ICUE LINK H115i RGB HIGH PERFORMANCE CPU COOLER - iCUE LINK version to match the extra fans, with much less cabling
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Extra Case Fans
3 x Corsair ICUE LINK QX120 RGB PWM Fan + Controller Kit
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
ONBOARD 2.5Gbe LAN PORT
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge
Warranty
3 Year Platinum Warranty (3 Year Collect & Return, 3 Year Parts, 3 Year labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 4 to 6 working days
Price: £2,627.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/0A5!zHagHr/

 

[EvilGrins]

Yeah it is indeed a 1080p monitor. I could upgrade, but I didn't feel a need to do so right now, I do enjoy this monitor as is. Regarding the 4070, I heard it is a very hot card so I'm worried about overheating, did you also account for that aswell with your recommendation?

 

[TonyCarter]

Not sure where that overheating claim comes from, as the 4070 Super has a TDP of 220w max. But I don't think you'll be using the full power of that 4070 Super unless you max everything out and put ray tracing on.

Your original choice of a 6900XTX has a TDP of almost double that, which is similar to a 4080 Super.

But either way, you've got a very good case with 3 fans (plus the extra 3 in the QX kit), a very good cooler, and plenty of space for the GPU to breathe.

 

[EvilGrins]

Understood, and if I may borrow your knowledge for another question, are you certain that this rig could reliably run games likes the ones I listed on max graphics with little to no stutter? That's one of the things I care about the most... Stability and consistency. Thank you again

 

[TonyCarter]

I can't be certain or guarantee anything really, as I'm only going by benchmarks/reviews I've seen - my build is completely different so I can't compare.

But a 4060 is a 1080p GPU, a 4070 is a 1440p GPU, so a 4070 Super should be plenty for 1080 high.

Of course some games are more GPU heavy than others, and you'd have to look at relevant benchmarks on youtube to see what the games you're playing are capable of on the GPU/CPU combo we've chosen.

But the only 'heavy' game I can see on your list is Elden Ring...other heavy ones would be things like Hogwarts, Last of Us, Alan Wake. Ray Tracing is where the big hit is usually taken...but from what I've seen the recommendation is to lock it at 60FPS to avoid the frame time spikes...even though it can be seen to run at over 140fps at times (at 1080p max, RT-off) or 80fps (at 1080p max, RT-on)...but I don't think that's a GPU/CPU issue.

 

[EvilGrins]

That's excellent news. I've never gamed on anything above 1080p, so that's what I'm used to... But, if I can comfortably play 60fps Elden Ring (it's locked to 60fps without mods) and for example 144 to 165fps in other games without any stutter or frame rate drops within reason, then I think I'll be blown away compared to what I'm used to at the moment... So with that being said I think I'll go ahead with your recommendation unless you or anyone else has anything to add to that.

 

[EvilGrins]

I'd like to add something else if you're willing to answer, what made you recommend a NVIDIA card over AMD? I would love to know the reasoning

 

[TonyCarter]

It just depends on the game and budget really.

AMD are better value for money, where more VRAM and better pure rasterisation performance is needed.

Nvidia are usually worse value for money, and give you less VRAM, but offer much better Ray Tracing and VR capabilities, along with more mature upscaling/frame generation technologies.

 

[EvilGrins]

It just depends on the game and budget really.

AMD are better value for money, where more VRAM and better pure rasterisation performance is needed.

Nvidia are usually worse value for money, and give you less VRAM, but offer much better Ray Tracing and VR capabilities, along with more mature upscaling/frame generation technologies.

Well the thing is I don't even plan on using ray tracing or vr, infact I deliberately lower my graphics in some games because I prefer to have less "clutter" if that makes sense. So with that being said, is your recommendation still solid for what I'm looking for when gaming?

I more or less just want to be able to play the games I listed, and similar ones, at high/max settings with little to no FPS stuttering or drops.

 

[TonyCarter]

I think any GPU of the same level (i.e. 4070 Super or 6800XT) will over-deliver on what you want at 1080p, but the AMD will do it for about £70 less.

I mean, I could configure you a perfectly good 1080p build for less than £2k…but your original budget was 60% more than that, so I’ve reduced it a little, whilst still keeping some premium items in there to give longevity, and to enable a 1440p monitor upgrade or continuing with the very high 1080p build.

With the build as it is, the only item you’d need to upgrade if you went to a 32” 4k or ultrawide monitor in 3 years time, would be the GPU…every other component is already where you’d want them (e..g. beefy ATX3 PSU, PCIe 5 motherboard, with spare slots for more SSDs, premium components, newer WiFi, and a super-fast PCIe 5 primary SSD).

 

[EvilGrins]

I think any GPU of the same level (i.e. 4070 Super or 6800XT) will over-deliver on what you want at 1080p, but the AMD will do it for about £70 less.

I mean, I could configure you a perfectly good 1080p build for less than £2k…but your original budget was 60% more than that, so I’ve reduced it a little, whilst still keeping some premium items in there to give longevity, and to enable a 1440p monitor upgrade or continuing with the very high 1080p build.

If you're willing, you could attempt to configure me a build including a monitor up to £3000. That way I could use my old monitor in a dual monitor setup... I believe you understand what I'm looking for when it comes to game performance, I typically only play games in my free time so you can imagine the PC will be used alot for that purpose... I appreciate it and sorry for the barrage of seemingly ignorant questions

 

[TonyCarter]

With your original budget you could have a high-1440p build with a 27“1440p or 34” ultrawide 1440p OLED gaming monitor.

I’ll have another go in the morning…

 

[EvilGrins]

Copy that, thank you again!

 

[SpyderTracks]

IMHO for the games you’re talking about, a 3440 x 1440 Ultrawide QD-OLED screen with a RX 7900XT should be doable within budget and in a lot of people’s estimations that’s top tier above what 4k can offer.

OLED is the cream of the crop in panel technologies, each individual pixel is its own lighting zone, so the contrast between light and dark pixels is so far greater than any other panel, even QD-LED, as such it’s the top tier HDR experience on offer and HDR is one of those things that you just can’t do without these days, it makes a HUGE impact for games.

Hive me a moment and I’ll draw up my perspective

 

[SpyderTracks]

This is where I'd be looking at the build if you really want to max out the graphics, by leaving out the windows key (assuming you have one to carry over) it allows you to keep the top tier AMD card so you'll be hitting top refresh capabilities of the monitor

Case
CORSAIR iCUE 5000X RGB MID TOWER GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D Eight Core CPU (4.2GHz-5.0GHz/104MB w/3D V-CACHE/AM5)
Motherboard
ASUS® ROG STRIX X670E-A GAMING WIFI (AM5, DDR5, PCIe 5.0, Wi-Fi 6E)
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE RGB DDR5 6000MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
24GB AMD RADEON™ RX 7900 XTX - HDMI, DP - DX® 12
Graphics Card Support Bracket
NONE (BRACKET INCLUDED AS STANDARD ON 4070 Ti / RX 7700 XT AND ABOVE)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SOLIDIGM P44 PRO GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 7000MB/sR, 6500MB/sW)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB CORSAIR CORE XT MP600 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD (up to 5000 MB/R, 4400 MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1200W RMx SHIFT SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR ICUE LINK H115i RGB HIGH PERFORMANCE CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
ONBOARD 2.5Gbe LAN PORT
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
NO OPERATING SYSTEM REQUIRED
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
NO RECOVERY MEDIA REQUIRED
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge
Warranty
3 Year Platinum Warranty (3 Year Collect & Return, 3 Year Parts, 3 Year labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 4 to 6 working days
Price: £2,770.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/xr77NnKCg0/

 

[SpyderTracks]

Pair that with this which is the latest Gen 3 QD OLED panel which greatly improves text clarity compared to the original Gen 1 panels and even the Gen 2s. This is a great all rounder QD OLED that would absolutely give the pinnacle of what's currently possible. You'd be maxing out the 175Hz refresh rate in most games out there for a long time to come. Even though you do get a lot of monitors now at 240Hz, honestly, you're not going to notice a difference between 175Hz and 240Hz to the point where it makes sense spending the extra for the higher tiers. This performs very much the same and the others are more in the £1200

https://www.currys.co.uk/products/msi-mag-341cqp-qd-ultra-wide-quad-hd-34%E2%80%9D-curved-oled-gaming-monitor-black-10259473.html?

Ignore the Feefo reviews on the curry's site, they haven't left any comment to back up anything, it's pointless entirely, look at trusted reviews

You can also find it on Amazon who have an excellent returns policy

https://www.amazon.co.uk/MSI-MAG-341CQP-QD-OLED-Monitor/dp/B0CRZDPZF5

 

[SpyderTracks]

I realise that takes you a little over budget by £20, hoping that's ok

Be perfectly honest, you could easily drop down to the 7900XT and still max that monitor without any issue, that would easily bring you back in budget.

But this is the pinacle of what's on offer at the moment in a lot of peoples viewpoints. The immersion that Ultrawide or Superwide offers is far greater than standard aspect ratio of 4k, the gaming experience is far richer, pairing that with QD-OLED and that PC driving it, you're going to be breathless holding in the excitement.

If you're thinking the monitor stand would take up too much space on your desk, these days with monitors getting larger, you'd no longer use a stand in the main, instead use a monitor mount. I'm using this one on a 49" Superwide which is far heavier and the arm is doing a stellar job. I would highly recommend this as an option for a monitor arm, and it has compatibility either to drill into the desk, or clamp along the side

And if you're thinking it would be a pain if you need to move the monitor, the arm is gas filled, and you can set the pressure so that it becomes literally weightless and you can adjust the viewing angle as you like with the arm providing a counterbalance to the monitor weight, it's very good.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0BCFPN2WC/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

If you want you can see pictures of my setup here: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/forums/threads/samsung-g9-on-order-finally.86746/post-737043

I chose to drill mine through the desk, it's only an Ikea cheap so wasn't an issue.