First Budget PC Build

[Woosha]

I'm building a PC which won't be used for heavy gaming. This is my first time building it. It'll be used mainly as a utility PC (programming and Photoshop) and the occasional CSGO/LoL. I might even replace the 2600 with a 2200G and get a used GTX 960/970/RX570/1050Ti. My main goal is to have a decent workstation that looks clean(I'm going for a white and black theme)

• I'm using the AMD Wraith Prism CPU cooler
• I chose an ATX form factor Motherboard because I want it to fill up the case as it'll look really empty if I use an mATX or mITX mobo (especially with the inside panels being white)
• I kept future upgrades in mind - such as getting better CPU and RAM (but I don't think I'll really need it). 2 x 8GB 2666mhz RAM should suffice (many entry level prebuilt PCs use similar or lower specs).

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 2600 3.4 GHz 6-Core Processor  ($179.00 @ Shopping Express) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte B450 Gaming X ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($149.00 @ Amazon Australia) 
Memory: Kingston FURY 8 GB (2 x 4 GB) DDR4-2666 Memory  ($67.00 @ Skycomp Technology) 
Storage: Kingston A2000 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive  ($99.00 @ IJK) 
Video Card: MSI Radeon RX 570 4 GB ARMOR OC Video Card  ($199.00 @ Mwave Australia) 
Case: Phanteks P300 ATX Mid Tower Case  ($89.00 @ PCCaseGear) 
Power Supply: Corsair CXM 550 W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply  ($96.90 @ Shopping Express) 
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WN881ND PCIe x1 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi Adapter  ($16.50 @ Shopping Express) 
Case Fan: Cooler Master MF120R ARGB 3in1  59 CFM 120 mm Fans  ($59.00 @ BudgetPC) 
Total: $954.40
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-10-11 08:26 AEDT+1100

 

Thoughts?

 

Cheers

[Fasauceome]

6 minutes ago, Woosha said:

mainly as a utility PC (programming and Photoshop) and the occasional CSGO/LoL

This would serve as a more suitable choice, low core count CPU because photoshop isn't super multithreaded and some decent integrated graphics. Affords you more ram, and faster.

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 3 3200G 3.6 GHz Quad-Core Processor	$129.00 @ Shopping Express
Motherboard	Gigabyte B450 Gaming X ATX AM4 Motherboard	$149.00 @ Amazon Australia
Memory	GeIL EVO POTENZA 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory	$102.30 @ Newegg Australia
Storage	Kingston A2000 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive	$99.00 @ IJK
Case	Phanteks P300 ATX Mid Tower Case	$89.00 @ PCCaseGear
Power Supply	Corsair CXM 550 W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply	$96.90 @ Shopping Express
Wireless Network Adapter	TP-Link TL-WN881ND PCIe x1 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi Adapter	$16.50 @ Shopping Express
Case Fan	Cooler Master MF120R ARGB 3in1 59 CFM 120 mm Fans	$59.00 @ BudgetPC
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	$740.70
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-10-11 08:51 AEDT+1100

 

[Streetguru]

23 minutes ago, Woosha said:

I'm building a PC which won't be used for heavy gaming. This is my first time building it. It'll be used mainly as a utility PC (programming and
Case Fan: Cooler Master MF120R ARGB 3in1  59 CFM 120 mm Fans  ($59.00 @ BudgetPC) 

That case appears to have awful cooling, you should get anything with a mesh front like a fractal focus G or Coolermaster MB511

Why are you buying $60's worth of fans(for a case with no airflow) instead of 16GBs of RAM?

 

 

15 minutes ago, Fasauceome said:

This would serve as a more suitable choice, low core count CPU because photoshop isn't super multithreaded and some decent integrated

The R5 2600 is a way better purchase so that it never has to be upgraded, it's also going to help with some compiling workloads.

[Woosha]

21 minutes ago, Fasauceome said:

This would serve as a more suitable choice, low core count CPU because photoshop isn't super multithreaded and some decent integrated graphics. Affords you more ram, and faster.

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 3 3200G 3.6 GHz Quad-Core Processor	$129.00 @ Shopping Express
Motherboard	Gigabyte B450 Gaming X ATX AM4 Motherboard	$149.00 @ Amazon Australia
Memory	GeIL EVO POTENZA 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory	$102.30 @ Newegg Australia
Storage	Kingston A2000 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive	$99.00 @ IJK
Case	Phanteks P300 ATX Mid Tower Case	$89.00 @ PCCaseGear
Power Supply	Corsair CXM 550 W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply	$96.90 @ Shopping Express
Wireless Network Adapter	TP-Link TL-WN881ND PCIe x1 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi Adapter	$16.50 @ Shopping Express
Case Fan	Cooler Master MF120R ARGB 3in1 59 CFM 120 mm Fans	$59.00 @ BudgetPC
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	$740.70
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-10-11 08:51 AEDT+1100

 

Fair point, I could go this route as I could always add a GPU later on.

 

6 minutes ago, Streetguru said:

That case appears to have awful cooling, you should get anything with a mesh front like a fractal focus G or Coolermaster MB511

Why are you buying $60's worth of fans(for a case with no airflow) instead of 16GBs of RAM?

 

 

The R5 2600 is a way better purchase so that it never has to be upgraded, it's also going to help with some compiling workloads.

The P300 isn't bad, its a good budget case and I've done plenty of research on it. I'm spending 60 bucks worth of fans because:

• First - to put 2 intake fans on the front to improve the airflow.
• Second - for style points (I want some kind of RGB lighting, I was planning to get the RGB LED strips but it's more convenient to let the RGB fans light the case up instead).
• Third - they come in single units or a 3 pack. If i buy 2 single units I'll save 5 bucks so I might as well buy the 3 pack, use all 3 in the case and maybe use the included fan as the top exhaust fan if it fits.

Does the RAM size really matter for what I want it to do? I work on a laptop that has 8GB 1867Mhz RAM and a desktop with 8GB 1666Mhz RAM with no problems.

 

At the end of the day I just want a PC that looks half decent without over killing it for my needs.

[Streetguru]

16 minutes ago, Woosha said:

Fair point, I could go this route as I could always add a GPU later on.

There's a 20 degree difference in this testing with the P400's solid front panel, vs the mesh panel in their other models

The P300 is pretty bad as it should be close to the P400's lack of airflow, adding extra fans doesn't help if their intake is heavily restricted.

You should just get 16Gbs of RAM so you never have to replace it, and you can always buy the fans later.

The P400a has a mesh panel, or there's the Fractal Focus G, or Coolermaster MB511 or NR400/NR600
https://www.coolermaster.com/catalog/cases/mini-tower/masterbox-nr400-with-odd/

 

 

[Woosha]

19 minutes ago, Streetguru said:

There's a 20 degree difference in this testing with the P400's solid front panel, vs the mesh panel in their other models

The P300 is pretty bad as it should be close to the P400's lack of airflow, adding extra fans doesn't help if their intake is heavily restricted.

You should just get 16Gbs of RAM so you never have to replace it, and you can always buy the fans later.

The P400a has a mesh panel, or there's the Fractal Focus G, or Coolermaster MB511 or NR400/NR600
https://www.coolermaster.com/catalog/cases/mini-tower/masterbox-nr400-with-odd/

 

 

Thanks for the info, I've always questioned its airflow but because of its overwhelmingly good reviews online, I kind of decided to choose it. Unfortunately there aren't many white cases with a front mesh panel. The P400a is 60 dollars more expensive than the P300. NZXT H510 Mid Tower Case is slightly less expensive than the P400a but It's got a similar design to the p300.

 

 

[Streetguru]

40 minutes ago, Woosha said:

Thanks for the info, I've always questioned its airflow but because of its overwhelmingly good reviews online, I kind of decided to choose it. Unfortunately there aren't many white cases with a front mesh panel. The P400a is 60 dollars more expensive than the P300. NZXT H510 Mid Tower Case is slightly less expensive than the P400a but It's got a similar design to the p300.

 

 

The Versa N29 has some mesh at least
https://au.pcpartpicker.com/product/287CmG/thermaltake-versa-n27-atx-mid-tower-case-ca-1h6-00m6wn-00

The In Win 101 has a large side/back intake
https://au.pcpartpicker.com/product/8wNypg/inwin-101-white-atx-mid-tower-case-101-white

Otherwise you could just plastidip/automotive paint any case

[Woosha]

On 10/11/2019 at 11:17 AM, Streetguru said:

The Versa N29 has some mesh at least
https://au.pcpartpicker.com/product/287CmG/thermaltake-versa-n27-atx-mid-tower-case-ca-1h6-00m6wn-00

The In Win 101 has a large side/back intake
https://au.pcpartpicker.com/product/8wNypg/inwin-101-white-atx-mid-tower-case-101-white

Otherwise you could just plastidip/automotive paint any case

I've decided to return the P300 for a MetallicGear Neo Air Mid White Case (it's got a mesh front panel and comes with 2 x RGB 120mm fans). I've been thinking about the airflow and also, most of all the white P300 builds generally looks messy due to the contrast of white inside panels and black/coloured wires connecting to the mobo.