Recommendations and tips on building my first PC from scratch.

[mike0z]

I recently made a pc build post where I asked about workstation suggestions, but I gave up on that idea.
I've decided to build a pc from scratch, suitable for gaming on most new titles, preferably high settings, 120-144 fps stable if possible so I can pair it up with a 144hz monitor.
Its hard to hit the number of frames and performance exactly, but Im just saying a rough range.

I need suggestions and build ideas.
I am unexperienced with building pc's so any tips on - case size , additional cooling, power supply pins and more will be greatly appreciated.

The budget for this is going to be roughly ~950$. Maybe its too little of a budget for playing new games on 144 fps, but lets see what we can come up with.
A few ideas and things I want the build to have -

- An Intel processor, preferably higher than 8th gen, since I've heard that after windows 10 gets no more support, windows 11 will not support intel cpu's lower than 8th gen.
I was thinking 6 or 8 cores, but I am not sure.

- At least 16 GB of ram, don't know what DDR version it has to be and I also don't know if its MHz matter in gaming and work overall.

- A normal sized motherboard (ATX?) that supports quad channel memory, has an M.2 slot, has built in wifi and all normal everyday uses like ports. Don't know if I will need to overclock my pc, so its not needed for the motherboard to allow overclocking.

- NVIDIA GPU - I don't know anything about graphics cards, so I have no clue what the number and names in the product mean, but I've heard that I will have a better time with NVIDIA, since I am also used to the control panel and I've just been using Nvidia for a while now.

- Nvme ssd or a sata ssd thats 500gb
- HDD 1 TB

I don't know how to pick the case, I will use pc part picker for compability checking, I also don't know what power supply or cooling I need to get.

I have no clue about today's market and whats worth it and whats not.
I also need to chose a monitor, which I will think about after the PC, but we will see.
I will be happy if I can get some reccomendations on builds, tips on what to watch out for and any other tips while actually building the thing. Thanks in advance!

[Wichtelman]

you are talking about 1080p 144 hz?
add your country to get the correct prices on pcpartpicker...

[mike0z]

引用自 Wichtelman：

you are talking about 1080p 144 hz?
add your country to get the correct prices on pcpartpicker...

yes, 1080p.
how do I add my country? Its not at the top right in the list, I am in Bulgaria

[Supafly]

引用自 m1ke0z：

引用自 Wichtelman：

you are talking about 1080p 144 hz?
add your country to get the correct prices on pcpartpicker...

yes, 1080p.
how do I add my country? Its not at the top right in the list, I am in Bulgaria

Visit the site then use the country dropdown on the right side
https://pcpartpicker.com/

[mike0z]

引用自 Supafly：

引用自 m1ke0z：

yes, 1080p.
how do I add my country? Its not at the top right in the list, I am in Bulgaria

Visit the site then use the country dropdown on the right side
https://pcpartpicker.com/

My country isn't listed.

[Supafly]

Then pick one with the same currency, if you can. If you can't, just use it to spec the system and source items elsewhere

[Wichtelman]

for a rough estimate...
https://de.pcpartpicker.com/list/BgxHXy

https://de.pcpartpicker.com/list/VnRKfv

any cooler of that size will do...
any motherboard with vrm heatsinks on your socket...
any nvme with pcie4 but normal sata will do aswell...
any gpu with 12gb vram...
any case thats large enough for your cooler + gpu and with good airflow...

i7 with 8 cores or more aswell as i5 with more than 6 seems to be out of budget...

[Wichtelman]

引用自 Rikishi：

There us currently nothing Nvidia sells worth buying for 1080P, so for this the 6800 XT was selected.

The 4070 costs more, less Vram and is slower.

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/KBn6C6

This is USD so Bulgarian LEV is 1.7 to 1 USD.

Roughly 2,937 LEV, this is without import duties, and does not take into context prices in Bulgaria. This is just a rough price guide.

If the 4070 is cheaper than either the 6800 or 6900 XT cards buy it, otherwise you are getting ripped off.

did you read anything he did write about his budget and prefered intel+nvidia?

personally i would go for an amd gpu for better value and probably 11th gen i5 with 6 cores at his 950 budget... at 1200 budget 13th gen or 7000 or x3d series of amd would be an option... keep in mind amd wants faster more expensive ram...

[Rod]

You cant afford intel and nvidia. And worse, This is a bad time for value. Try 5800x3d or 7600x build and AMD gpu. 32gb ram 1tb ssd 750w psu is the sort of spec.

[Skkooomer Lord]

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/XKt7Kp

No Nvidia GPU is worth their cost at 1080P.
The 5800 x3D will deliver 144fps easily.

The board chosen says compatibility issue is likely but the board does have a bios update to support the 5800x3D.

[Skkooomer Lord]

引用自 Wichtelman：

引用自 Rikishi：

There us currently nothing Nvidia sells worth buying for 1080P, so for this the 6800 XT was selected.

The 4070 costs more, less Vram and is slower.

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/KBn6C6

This is USD so Bulgarian LEV is 1.7 to 1 USD.

Roughly 2,937 LEV, this is without import duties, and does not take into context prices in Bulgaria. This is just a rough price guide.

If the 4070 is cheaper than either the 6800 or 6900 XT cards buy it, otherwise you are getting ripped off.

did you read anything he did write about his budget and prefered intel+nvidia?

personally i would go for an amd gpu for better value and probably 11th gen i5 with 6 cores at his 950 budget...

That is why I deleted that post before you quoted and got him a better deal.

[Skkooomer Lord]

6700 XT 12GB build.

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/rnDZhk

A bit more but worth the jump.

Depends how strict the budget is.

[76561199496784570]

ideally larger cases offer more cooling , more fan space more air flow, ideally you want a large case with not alot in it, so air can flow freely , you want to bring air into the system in the front or side, an circulate that air flow across the board , venting out the top and rear, really it doesn't matter which way you do it, but heat rises, so the top is always the best place to vent, lower fan in the front as intake.

i would recommend getintg some older pc's to work on first an experiment with including software before devoting a large amount of money to a pc build you could potentially break.

while top of the line equipment might sound appealing, you are better off getting a system a few years older that is alot cheaper, when you do goto upgrade you can then get another cheaper spec system, which improves your current but again is cheaper.

great example is my system is roughly 2015, build in 2018 for about 1/4 of the retail price it cost in 2015, it is still a viable system today in 2023, and i expect it to run until 2032

[DasWulf]

Best price to performance Intel Build: Great gaming + productivity (multithreading)
Pick out the CPU, Mobo and Case first, and see what your budget is left with. Then see which RAM, Storage and PSU you can go with. Then add the rest with whats left over.

---CPU/Coooler---
CPU: 13600k/13700k (pick one depending on budget)
CPU Cooler: Thermal Right Peerless Assassin 120 or FS140

---Motherboard---:
Pick any z690 or b660 of your choice. Ideally, for productivity & gaming use, the ASUS ProArt B660 or B760 has a great value proposition.

Note: the ProArt does not come with built in wifi support. They assume you would use a hard connection, which I generally recommend for professional use anyhow. You can slap on a USB wifi adapter if you need it, asus makes a nice one but there are plenty of cheaper options.

Note2: Motherboards will have to have their latest bios updated. This is as easy as putting the file on a USB from the brand's website, making sure it gets renamed (usually tells you what it should be called, or has a exe that does it for you), then plugging it into the proper slot on the motherboard's io panel. Push the flash bios button and it will do the rest, the mobo does not need to be powered on, only plugged in with access to power.


--- RAM ---:
DDR4, this really depends on pricing in your area. If you want to max out all 4 slots, then look for two 2x32gb or 2x16gb kits. Silicon Power GAMING tends to have the cheapest RAM from what I have seen. I'd prioritize getting a better GPU than more expensive RAM at this point.

--- PSU---:
750w+ Super Flower (ideally you should never cheap out on PSU, I can vouch for this brand as they are the OEM for the more premium PSUs on the market). If these are still too much, refer to the PSU tier list and get the cheapest while highest ranking PSU you can afford.
Link: https://cultists.network/140/psu-tier-list/

--- Case & Fan ----
Get a High Air Flow Case. On the cheap you can check out the:
-Cougar MX330-G Air (comes with fans) (good choice)
-Bit Fenix Nova Mesh
-Montech X3 Mesh
-Phanteks Eclipse G360A (comes with fans)
-Montech Sky Two (comes with fans) (good choice)


It really comes down to preference and what you are willing to spend. Some of those don't come with case fans, which means you still have to spend more.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QeHGDq5TCOw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvaQMua1Ldo


--- FANS ---:
In the off chance you need fans because the case won't come with them. Get the ThermalRight TL-c12. Here in the US they are about $11 for a 3 pack, $14 for argb. These can also be daisy chained.

Fan hub (if needed): Stick with thermalright. They are cheap and effective. Again the fans I recommended, if your case doesnt have them in it, can be daisy chained so these might not be necessary, however I like to power them from the PSU rather than the motherboard.

--- Storage---:

1 or 2tb m.2 SSD to start, gen 3 is more affordable these days. You can add more later on down the line. Some brands are much better than others. For the sake of affordability, check out the:

-LEVEN JPR700 2TB with Dram Cache.

You can get this for under $80 here, so it might be similar based on where you are. Dram is good to have in a m.2 ssd, many of the cheaper ones don't have it, even from reputable brands.

If for some reason later on you add more m.2 drives that are exposed (no heat sink), be sure to buy one with it or buy one you can attach, they are cheap. Heat is the worst enemy for m.2 drives.


---GPU---
This is the challenge because, for productivity, you will ideally want to avoid AMD.
Depending on what you are left over with, it might not be enough for a good mid to high range GPU, even from last gen. For new games, hitting that 144fps might be difficult, as you want both a decent amount of vram and speed.

Also prices in certain regions differ greatly. Its fairly easy to find a cheaper 3060 these days, but if you can save up for a 40 series card, that would be ideal.

[Illusion of Progress]

I imagine you're going to have a hard time configuring something that meets that criteria for $950, especially with Intel and nVidia (mostly nVidia really because Intel isn't exactly some super bad value anymore, at least not compared to AM5, but AM4 probably represents the best value right now). Some people seem to acknowledge this because they're just ignoring your budget and suggesting things that will likely result in something probably closer to double your budget.

You can definitely get something for $950 though. It's just that the requirement for an nVidia GPU especially is going to lessen what you get. The RTX 3060 is probably the realistic best you're looking at with a budget like that, and that's a really mediocre option. The RTX 40 series starts at $600+, and it probably takes up way too much of your budget.

You're not going to get quad channel on modern consumer boards/CPUs. Older HEDT stuff or modern stuff closer to server territory (and well above your budget) is really the only place you'll find support for that, but not on modern consumer boards.

[Rod]

引用自 Illusion of Progress：

I imagine you're going to have a hard time configuring something that meets that criteria for $950, especially with Intel and nVidia (mostly nVidia really because Intel isn't exactly some super bad value anymore, at least not compared to AM5, but AM4 probably represents the best value right now). Some people seem to acknowledge this because they're just ignoring your budget and suggesting things that will likely result in something probably closer to double your budget.

You can definitely get something for $950 though. It's just that the requirement for an nVidia GPU especially is going to lessen what you get. The RTX 3060 is probably the realistic best you're looking at with a budget like that, and that's a really mediocre option. The RTX 40 series starts at $600+, and it probably takes up way too much of your budget.

You're not going to get quad channel on modern consumer boards/CPUs. Older HEDT stuff or modern stuff closer to server territory (and well above your budget) is really the only place you'll find support for that, but not on modern consumer boards.

A620 motherboard and 7600x? The rams cheap now i got 32gb 6000mhz c36 for 121 uk pounds on amazon. That should all work. 1tb 980/990 pro also cheap atm. That is about 500-530 if you bargain hunt.