Computer builds parts discussions

[tareqalhamrani]

Hi all,

I just joined Steam last year because my daughter just told me it is better to have Steam, i am not a gamer although i was a gamer when i was a kid over 2 decades, but i am now building a computer for gaming but i don't want it to be a super performance so expensive one, at the same time i will try to put some good parts, but i don't go for expensive parts all of them to have like super computer like, so i hope you can guide me in some parts i am thinking about.

I am building three computers, one of them will be a main gaming PC, and one another will just be a backup of everything so it can be like second gaming PC, now i will focus on first main gaming PC, how i should make it?

1. Motherboards:
I have the following motherboards:
AsRock X870 Pro RS non WIFI, Gigabyte X870 Eagle WIFI7, Chinese B650i [Night Devil].

2. CPU:
Only one for now, Ryzen 7 9700X.

3. RAM:
I have two kits of DDR5, one came yesterday which is Corsair Vengeance 32GB 6000Hz CL30, the other one is G.Skill Trident Z5 NEO RGB 64GB 6000/CL30.

For SSD i got Samsung 990 Pro 1TB, but i am thinking about PCIe Gen 5, some will say it is unnecessary, but i want one as a main drive only, as long the mobo can support it, what do you think?

No GPU because this is what all the gamers are crazy about, i am not after 200-10000 fps, but definitely not 10-20 fps, i am happy with 60fps or more, not all games will be that slow, and i don't do gaming a lot to play demanding heavy games, but i can be ready for what it comes.

I have 1440p 165Hz 27" monitor, so i am not after 4k yet, so i won't go with high performance GPU for example so expensive these days only to have Max 4k setting while i don't use 4k monitor and even with 1440p i will just use max and medium most of the time, but i know people are dying for that smooth fps and DLSS and RT, candies that i will not die for if i don't have, not now anyway.

Yesterday i went to a computer shop to put together my first build in 2025, it has the following:
- Gigabyte X870 Eagle
- Ryzen 7 9700X
- CoolerMaster 360 ARGB cooler
- G.Skill Trident Z5 NEO RGB 64GB
- Cooler Master Masterbox 520 case
- Corsair 850W PSU [80+ Gold]

My questions will be as following:

1. Which GPU i should buy in the main gaming PC and in the backup secondary one? Mostly old games and few new games, i don't want expensive x080/x090 prices, even x080 ti/super are pricey, and only one computer need good GPU, while the other i am ok with 6GB-10GB VRAM only.

2. Which case white colour i should get for my Asrock X870 mobo white?

3. Which SSD to buy if i want to have PCIe Gen5 speed because i have two mobos supporting that gen? all have Gen4 too but two have main CPU linked Gen5 which i want to use that full max speed.

4. How much PSU wattage is enough in general?

5. Which CPU i should buy next to 9700X? for gaming all will say 7800X3D or 9800X3D, i heard or read about this 9800X3D burning stories, so not sure if i can trust this CPU with my mobobs, also which mobo between Gigabyte and Asrock i should use it mainly for gaming? I was thinking white build of Asrock for gaming, but i don't mind choosing the black build.

6. From question #5 above, which CPU for the Chinese B650i i should choose? The site or seller i bought from described the mobo to be compatibility with AMD 7000 series, it is AM5, but is it safe for 9000 series too although it is a Chinese cheap mobo? i should try first this mobo with 9700X before putting it on X870, but this Chinese mobo isn't completely bad junk to throw it away, i will use it and see if it is just ok for average use, i might give it to my family.


Sorry for this very long post, but i am trying to explain and clarify most points here so people can have better ideas and can answer or guide me.

You are all welcome to ask me for more details you need from me to assist me.

Thank you

[Electric Cupcake]

You can do some respectable gaming with just Ryzen onboard graphics.

With Trump's buffoonery and crypto ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ messing up the market, it would be better to not bother with a discrete GPU for the time being.

[tareqalhamrani]

Originally posted by Electric Cupcake:

You can do some respectable gaming with just Ryzen onboard graphics.

With Trump's buffoonery and crypto ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ messing up the market, it would be better to not bother with a discrete GPU for the time being.

In fact i bought XFX Radeon 580 one for my old computer, but i gave it to my daughter for another old model but newly built last year computer, i can buy it again because old model computers don't need any latest or even few years ago GPUs, so those i can use, i still holding on my GTX Titan as well, i saw 3050 i think for good price but still pricey to my book for such model, i am not rushing and i can use iGPU, but sooner or later i might need one, i think i must need it because the new build can't work with onboard graphics for no reason [and one old build too].

[76561199803088524]

Buy top of the line parts that way you don't have to worry about anything. Buying cheap parts will fail in a year or 2 where top of the line parts will last for many years. Spend at least 8 to 10 grand on your pc and it will last for many years with no need to upgrade till 10 years. Go cheap and you will have major major problems with it.

[tareqalhamrani]

Originally posted by Alfonso Benedirk:

Buy top of the line parts that way you don't have to worry about anything. Buying cheap parts will fail in a year or 2 where top of the line parts will last for many years. Spend at least 8 to 10 grand on your pc and it will last for many years with no need to upgrade till 10 years. Go cheap and you will have major major problems with it.

Almost this is what i did in the past, built 3 computers with two having almost best parts but one is more, and the third is lesser which failed faster than the two and i am not sorry about it, but with current things, i don't know if it will last longer but we hope, running many computers will help each other to last longer.

[Electric Cupcake]

Framework is a company that deserves support.
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/02/framework-known-for-upgradable-laptops-intros-not-particularly-upgradable-desktop/

[Rumpelcrutchskin]

Would kinda forget the PCIe 5 SSD, it`s expensive and rather pointless for gaming PC, also tends to heat up lot more then PCIe 4.
Good quality PCIe 4 in the faster range like Western Digital WD_Black SN850X is perfectly fine for high-end gaming PC:

https://pcpartpicker.com/product/crKKHx/western-digital-wd_black-sn850x-2-tb-m2-2280-pcie-40-x4-nvme-solid-state-drive-wds200t2x0e

https://pcpartpicker.com/product/yBC48d/western-digital-black-sn850x-4-tb-m2-2280-pcie-40-x4-nvme-solid-state-drive-wds400t2x0e

[Monk]

If you don't NEED to be using 3 pc's at once you are far better off not building a spare and specing better parts or setting the cash aside incase something dies.

As it is, if it's just gir gaming you've wasted a bunch of money.

B series boards are fine for ryzen.
32GB memory is all you really need.
Pcie gen 5 isn't really much faster than a sata ssd fir random load times which is all gaming tends to care about, so no need to go cutting edge there (standard nvne ssd will do fine).
Your cooler is overkill a £30 thermalright peerless assassin will handle your cpu just fine.

These changes alone will free up enough cash to go up an extra level on the gpu.

As to which to get, that's entirely based on budget.

A second hand 4080 /4090, or a new 5070ti, 7900xtx are all good strong options, though the 4090's are kind of spiking to be fair.

[󠀡󠀡󠀡󠀡⁧⁧Kei]

the 9800X3D is the only valid option out of the other ryzen normal 8 core chips, it beats the 7700X and the 9700X in both gaming and productivity but it is more pricy, if money is no issue then get that one
and I would not cheap put on motherboard at all

[tareqalhamrani]

Let me answer or comment about SSD PCIe first.

I knew you will say that, actually it is not only for gaming, but for the whole system, i said it will be for the main drive OS, as i might use something else, not only games even if the computer is for gaming, who knows in future what updates and things needed to install that will slow down the computer somehow or the performance will reduce a bit, so i try to have best of SSD and RAM and CPU if possible.

Other thing or reason, they made the motherboard with PCIe Gen 5 now, for what purpose? Future proof? what future proof if it will never happen then? I mean if it is there why not use it, and from what i read it can increase the speed up to 11k or even more, that is nearly double speed of PCIe Gen4, it is only one slot with Gen5 and one SSD, not 3, and i didn't clarify it that another build it will be for my astro processing where i am dealing with really large files [gigas] to process, videos and photos, also photography, one program i have is requiring more and more cores, so that i will buy a big cores CPU later not for gaming, and dealing with big files means i need drives speed, any increase in speed it will be a favor, and if two motherboards have it then why not even if it is not much noticeable for games, in fact i was thinking to install games on a second drive with Gen4, so are you still thinking that Gen5 is a waste so then new motherboards with Gen5 is a waste, same about Wifi7 being a waste too or moving to DDR5 is a waste.

[Chaosolous]

Buy an Nvidia GPU.

AMD is subpar. Intel is a joke.

Nvidia is expensive, but it's for a reason.

[tareqalhamrani]

Originally posted by Monk:

If you don't NEED to be using 3 pc's at once you are far better off not building a spare and specing better parts or setting the cash aside incase something dies.

As it is, if it's just gir gaming you've wasted a bunch of money.

B series boards are fine for ryzen.
32GB memory is all you really need.
Pcie gen 5 isn't really much faster than a sata ssd fir random load times which is all gaming tends to care about, so no need to go cutting edge there (standard nvne ssd will do fine).
Your cooler is overkill a £30 thermalright peerless assassin will handle your cpu just fine.

These changes alone will free up enough cash to go up an extra level on the gpu.

As to which to get, that's entirely based on budget.

A second hand 4080 /4090, or a new 5070ti, 7900xtx are all good strong options, though the 4090's are kind of spiking to be fair.

Not all 3 PCs for gaming, one will be for my astro work where i need to use big files and the apps needs high cores CPU, and with plugins it will require good enough GPU but not like for gaming, so if i will go with 8 cores CPU for gaming then the other one i will choose 16 cores CPU, and for that people told me to go with max RAM possible and fastest SSD, so i can understand when Gen5 could be an advantage here, while for gaming PC i don't min having the main drive OS with Gen 5 SSD, no harm, only the price of SSD is the stopping factor.

For gaming i can start with 32GB, and because they have 4 slots so i can upgrade to 64GB in future if necessary, i hope and pray that they never make games that require 96Gb or more, while for my astro work, i saw some using 128GB computer, maybe it is show off or just extreme usage who knows, but i have to be ready for that, i already bought 64GB DDR5 RAM so not a big deal, i could use this for gaming for a while until i buy another RAM with 32GB and keep that 64GB for creation/processing/editing computer.

I answered about SSD PCIe things, and TYI, the second and backup drives will be all SSDs with Gen 3/4 or SATA, i only talk about the Window OS drive, there is a reason why there is Gen5 PCIe, now you and all think it is unnecessary, but later it will be like the standard thing to use, people keep going with speed whenever they find, and i like to afford it now rather than i buy affordable Gen3/4 now and later i buy/upgrade to Gen5 which will cost me almost same as if i buy Gen5 from start.

About cooler, i am still not sure that i will keep using that CPU with that mobo, i bought this CPU because it was very cheap as an offer so i didn't want to miss it, but i might upgrade that CPU to 16 cores CPU, then i think i might need a better cooler for any reason, i bought that cooler inexpensive anyway, and that is also why i started this thread, so if i will buy something like 9800X3D CPU, do i really need a water/liquid cooler or your £30 thermalright peerless assassin suggestion can handle it? You might say yes, then someone else will come to recommend me something better which is a liquid cooling itself, so one person idea might not be all others same ideas, i didn't specify which CPU i will get later, but now i mentioned it, i think for my two X870 motherboards i should go with almost latest gen versions to stay as updated and future proof for long time without thinking about changing later.

For gaming i know you want me high performance GPU such as 4090 or 5080 and alike, i understand, but this is not top priority now as i didn't finish my build completely, i can save budget later for GPUs alone, the computers will not run away to force myself with a GPU now, i won't play heavy games or max setting tomorrow, so i can wait like 4-6 months before i can buy a nice GPU, and again, only for one computer, not all 3 computers together, i think for Chinese motherboard i will go with 8GB card, and creation/processing 12-16GB card, and for gaming i will see what is the maximum i can afford, some will say 16Gb is more thasn enough, but others will recommend 24GB one, so for gaming i will delay it, and because i can wait it means i can buy parts one by one with good prices and performance, i didn't let myself to go with 16GB RAM, in fact even 32GB is like minimum i should start with, but i jumped to 64GB because i found nice prices, that is why i have three motherboards, one build i started and almost not much left to complete it.

[Rumpelcrutchskin]

Originally posted by tareqalhamrani:

Let me answer or comment about SSD PCIe first.

I knew you will say that, actually it is not only for gaming, but for the whole system, i said it will be for the main drive OS, as i might use something else, not only games even if the computer is for gaming, who knows in future what updates and things needed to install that will slow down the computer somehow or the performance will reduce a bit, so i try to have best of SSD and RAM and CPU if possible.

Other thing or reason, they made the motherboard with PCIe Gen 5 now, for what purpose? Future proof? what future proof if it will never happen then? I mean if it is there why not use it, and from what i read it can increase the speed up to 11k or even more, that is nearly double speed of PCIe Gen4, it is only one slot with Gen5 and one SSD, not 3, and i didn't clarify it that another build it will be for my astro processing where i am dealing with really large files [gigas] to process, videos and photos, also photography, one program i have is requiring more and more cores, so that i will buy a big cores CPU later not for gaming, and dealing with big files means i need drives speed, any increase in speed it will be a favor, and if two motherboards have it then why not even if it is not much noticeable for games, in fact i was thinking to install games on a second drive with Gen4, so are you still thinking that Gen5 is a waste so then new motherboards with Gen5 is a waste, same about Wifi7 being a waste too or moving to DDR5 is a waste.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWTGzcTJ-TY&t=180s

[Phénomènes Mystiques]

When I built my first PC, I got a bundle and hated it but it got my hands dirty to build my second monster and custom PC and all you really need to do is research parts on your own using Tech guides cause people here are pretty lame and will make you either spend massive amounts of money or they will suggest bad parts, so it is best to do your own research as it is not that hard.

A good self-built custom PC should last up to 7-10 years WITHOUT any major upgrades.

[tareqalhamrani]

Originally posted by 󠀡󠀡󠀡󠀡⁧⁧Kei:

the 9800X3D is the only valid option out of the other ryzen normal 8 core chips, it beats the 7700X and the 9700X in both gaming and productivity but it is more pricy, if money is no issue then get that one
and I would not cheap put on motherboard at all

Money is no issue as long i keep waiting and saving, but my main problem is having so many hobbies and interests that is killling my budget, so instead i can spend like $2000-3000 one computers only i have to split that amount on many different hobbies and fields of interest, i hope you understand my point, so i can afford 9800X3D maybe in 3 months later, i just wish if i can find it at around $500 , but if those manufacturers are just trying to .... up with us then i don't think i can go with anything that high end any soon, and if i go with 9800X3D it means i also should go with expensive GPU.

[tareqalhamrani]

Originally posted by Chaosolous:

Buy an Nvidia GPU.

AMD is subpar. Intel is a joke.

Nvidia is expensive, but it's for a reason.

Is that for gaming or everything? I will try to stick with Nvidia as much i can, my daughter is happy with the new bought old card of AMD RX 580 so far, and i still use GTX Titan on my old computer which i am discussing/posting from until i start using my new builds computers.

I hope if you can list the reasons if applicable to learn.