…yeah, it’s time. I’ve finally found games I actually want to play that require a half-decent machine, I make all my money on the computer, and I regularly do video editing as well. I always keep my machines for a long time, so they need to be as future-proof as possible and I can’t justify saving up for a PC unless it’s going to be good enough for the foreseeable future. So here’s where my head is at, I’d be grateful for any advice.

tl;dr https://pcpartpicker.com/list/xjP3yF for the general idea, but I’m open to other ideas. It’s going to be a linux machine, and all AMD since I hear the drivers work better/are less fiddly. Aesthetically, I like an all-white motif but looks are secondary to pure power and long life. I would like to be able to emulate PS4, Xbox 360, run S&box so my kid can make games, and render my clip shows at high speed. The budget I’m targeting is about £2k. Will mean saving up for a couple months. Parts I’m considering:

CPU

  • Ryzen 9 9950X3D (I’m most excited about having a strong CPU, this one appeals to me even though it’s a bit of a splurge)
  • Ryzen 9 7950X3D
  • Ryzen 9 7900X3D

GPU

Anything AMD, 16gb preferred but at least 12gb. AMD RX 6800XT or higher perhaps. RX 7800 XT or similar would be great.

Memory

16gb preferred, DDR5, not too fussy about brand. Maybe someday another 16gb if it becomes worthwhile.

Storage

1 or 2TB M.2 NVMe SSD, any really who cares. I don’t need a lot of storage, most of my games are lightweight indies or backed up on my server.

Power Supply

Anything 850-1000w, preferably modular? I dunno.

Cooling

Possibly an AIO liquid cooler. I’m iffy on that, would be happy with a fan if it’s more recommended.

Case

Fractal does a nice white wood effect one (North XL), as does Antec (Flux Pro). Happy with anything that matches, but don’t really love showy RGB, prefer understated and clean looks.

  • brucethemoose@lemmy.world
    2·
    3 days ago

    That was my thought when I built my first PC, but in hindsight I wish I had gone SFF from the start, and spent more everywhere else.

    Moving big towers is such a pain, especially when you move. ATX boards are more expensive than Micro ATX for basically no reason. Small towers fit nicer in rooms, and are (ironically) much quieter and cooler than a bunch of fans in a big tower.

    And it’s not that hard to configure. Its note really any harder to replace components. My case is extreme, but box SFF cases have tons of room for a big GPU and a CPU tower.

    The only caveat (IMO) would be if you want to go dual GPU in the future (very niche these days), if you plan to use a high end desktop (eg CPUs with 4+ channels of RAM, that generally require an ATX mobo), or if you just can’t find an SFF case you like (which is quite reasonable; cases are to taste).

    • Brave Little Hitachi Wand@feddit.ukOPEnglish
      1·
      3 days ago

      After something like ten years with a 27" iMac in my life, practically no PC case on the market could help but feel less awkward and painful to move with! can’t wait to turn this big bastard into a headless file server stashed away somewhere. But yeah, looking around at smaller cases I’m not seeing much that grabs me the same way.

      Except the Lian Li A3-mATX Tempered Glass Micro-ATX, that kind of works for me… It’s hard to tell if everything will fit, though. If I ended up getting a 185mm tall heat sink, would that actually fit?

      Edit: Seems like it will! Wow. I was going to argue, but the more I look the more it makes sense. Thanks for this!

      • brucethemoose@lemmy.world
        1·
        3 days ago

        Oh yeah, that’ll work! That’s a beautiful case, and not outrageously priced nor cramped, but still saves tons of space.

        Further suggestions:

        • Look up “weather stripping” on Amazon. It’s foam with one sticky side designed for doorways and such, but I stick it on my GPU (or case) to form a “seal” between the GPU and the outside grate, so it uses its own fans to suck in ambient temperature air (instead of recirculating it inside the case). It looks like it’ll work in the Lian Li:

        • I’d suggest configuring the CPU tower so it sucks in air from the back, in a similar manner. Or the top, if you rotate it 90 degrees. There are simple ducts you can buy to aid with this.

        This all may sound crazy, but you’d be shocked how quiet a PC can be with no (or extremely low RPM) case fans, no grinding pump or anything.

        You could go AIO. But I never liked the leak risk of water cooling, nor the expense over excellent tower coolers.

        • Brave Little Hitachi Wand@feddit.ukOPEnglish
          1·
          3 days ago

          I had thought I’d do the standard thing of intake bottom/front and exhaust top/rear, but I’m not fully visualizing it yet. Does it always make more sense to duct in than out, so to speak? I assume so.

          Weather stripping I’ve actually used on doors and windows, I can get that from my evil international conglomerate of choice. A full-on duct would look kind of janky but that I can get behind.

          I have misgivings about liquid too. I’m sure it’s great while it’s working, but I’m building towards peace of mind. I would rather just spend more on an overkill CPU rather than overclock.

          • brucethemoose@lemmy.world
            2·
            2 days ago

            Does it always make more sense to duct in than out, so to speak?

            Always in! You want cool, filtered outside air hitting the heatsinks, instead of hot air swirling in the case. And you want postitive pressure in the case (more fans sucking air in rather than out) to avoid dust buildup.

            Here’s an example with that Lian Li you’re looking at, though there are generic 120mm ducts you can buy as well:

            https://www.printables.com/model/1235597-lian-li-a3-rear-fan-duct-for-air-intake

            duct

            Note that I may have been delirous earlier: it’s not trivial to duct a GPU on a MicroATX board, as there is a considerable distance from the GPU surface to the bottom grates. But if it were me, being crazy and all, I’d sure as heck try.

              • brucethemoose@lemmy.world
                1·
                2 days ago

                I dunno about ducts for that case. Anything tailor-made is good though; you could even order that shroud in the earlier post from some “3D printer as a service” type place.

                And this is what I meant about routing the CPU heat towards the upper exhaust. That would hopefully keep all the airflow going from bottom to top, yeah?

                That’s not critical for exhaust, and it would really obstruct flow through the heatsink, if I’m understanding you correctly.

                I’d just leave the heatsink exhaust unobstructed. The natural positive pressure and the two top fans will suck the hot air out.

            • Brave Little Hitachi Wand@feddit.ukOPEnglish
              1·
              2 days ago

              Okay so, this looks really good. Maybe it makes the most sense to duct in the heat sink at the rear, have intake fans below, and have the front and top as exhaust so that airflow goes in one direction. The only problem there is that it’ll be blowing hot air forwards, but I can just position it on my left facing away… That would put the window facing guests anyway, which works. Is it possible to face the PSU exhaust forwards or upwards so it all goes in one direction?

              I would kind of like to route the heat sink exhaust upwards without crowding the case, but maybe not needed. As long as there’s a general sense to the air flow I’m sure it’s fine, right?