…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.
According to the vendor’s spec sheet, this case can handle a CPU cooler that is up to 180mm tall. I used an Arctic Freezer 36 which is 159mm tall and it fits really well with a fair bit of room to spare.
My biggest regret is getting a 2 fan GPU (Sapphire RX 9060XT): 1) because it has a lot of coil whine that even capping the frame rate at 120fps can’t completely eliminate and, 2) since I have so much extra space in the case and could have gone with a 3 fan model for even better cooling at lower fan speeds. This case can handle GPUs up to 380mm long (max) and even has a built in, adjustable sag support.
If you don’t mind a behemoth on your desk (or under it), I think this one was a good choice and it even had the seal of approval from Gamer’s Nexus (fwiw). Build quality is excellent and I have zero complaints so far.
Yeah I’m currently only considering 3 fan GPUs, but mostly because now I’m really interested in the XFX 9070 XT Mercury Magnetic Air. If I’ve written all that correctly. It’s the honking great big one that you could serve a pizza on top of.