My First PC Build: Advice Needed

[Viltaria]

Hey Guys,

 

I’m Michael (17) and I’ve finally saved up enough money to build my first PC. Since I’ll be heading off to uni extremely soon I wanted to use the PC for light gaming (League of Legends and CS:GO) and as part of my Software Engineering degree - but I’m unsure if all of the parts are fully compatible or not, and wanted some advice on the build before I go ahead and purchase all of the parts. Please note that I have checked everything through PCPartPicker.com and no compatibility issues have been confirmed (I just want to be safe, as its a relatively large sum of finances that I’m investing towards this PC).

 

The parts I’ve planned to use as part of my build are:

Please note that I have provided the price I will be expecting to pay for each of these components (NZD), as it might help suggest any places where I could potentially improve this build.

 

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600x (with the provided CPU cooler) $367

Motherboard: Asus TUF x570-Plus Gaming (Wi-Fi) $316

GPU: Sapphire Nitro+ Radeon RX-5700 XT (Special Edition - 3 Slot) $767

Storage: Samsung 970 Plus Pro - 500GB NVMe Drive $182

RAM: G.Skill Trident Z Neo 16GB - 3600MHz (2x8GB) $180

Power Supply: Corsair RM750X (80+ Gold) $218

Case: Phanteks Eclipse P400A ($150) or NZXT H710i ($250)

 

Total cost: $2,180 - $2,280

 

The PC will only be supporting one primary 1080P monitor, however I plan to upgrade to using two monitors in the near future (will also be 1080P or 1440P). I do not need to purchase any peripherals, I cover most of the bases with a gaming mouse and keyboard I have previously purchased. I won’t need an OS license as I am provided access with Windows 10 Student Edition through my tertiary education provider. I am hoping this build will supply me with enough processing power to meet my needs for the coming few years, and still be upgradable enough for the future.

 

In particular I have was unsure about the following few things (I apologise if these might sound like basic knowledge):

 

1. How important is airflow in a build like this? I personally prefer the aesthetic of the NZXT case much more, but understand that it offers significantly lower air cooling potential than the Phanteks. Just how important is airflow to the longevity of this build - and will this case provide sufficient airflow to keep temperatures at a reasonable level using the components mentioned above?
2. Will this power supply provide all of the necessary connectors to power the aforementioned build components?

 

For this build I am on a budget of approximately $2300, but I do have a small amount of flexibility. I’ve tried my best to make this as functional of a build as I can, while still incorporating some of the aesthetic features that I would like to have. I would love to hear your suggestions and constructive criticism - thank you so much for taking the time to read this!

 

A link to the PCPartPicker Page can be accessed here (the costs may not be exactly as described here, as I have found cheaper alternatives than what is offered from retailers within New Zealand). 

[Kenpachi1985]

3 advices:

1. You don't need a x570 board.

2. You don't need a 767$ GPU when you only want to do 1080p gaming.

3. You don't need a 750w PSU, 550w is more then sufficient.

 

This system is WAY overkill for just 1080p gaming. Either step it up to a 1440p 144hz Monitor and gaming or tune down your planned system.

[Fasauceome]

Very powerful build overall, don't leave it to drive a mere 1080p experience. Get yourself a 1440p monitor.

 

Nothing too bad about the parts selection either.

[lightfire]

Hey there!

You probably don't need an X570 motherboard. If I were you, I'd check out the msi B450 Tomahawk Max. The only big difference between X570 and B450 is PCI-E gen 4, which you won't be using with a 5700XT.

It also lowers your price of the motherboard, so you can invest it somewhere else  

You can also consider getting a cheaper SSD (adata sx8200 pro, corsair MP500, intel 660p), Samsung makes good ssd'ss but they also charge for the brand name

 

What is the ram speed? Ryzen loves fast memory, 3200MHz or even 3600MHz is what I would recommend!

Looks solid though, all parts will be compatible, good luck!

[ShinRamen]

Everything in your build should work together flawlessly. Very good selection of parts - somewhat expensive however. To answer your questions:
 

1. Airflow in both cases should not be a problem with the components you chose

2. Your PSU can easily handle your build.

 

With that being said: We could either help you save money with your build by going with less expensive options, without sacrificing performance. Or we could use the saved money to invest in a better GPU or CPU if you want. Let us know if you'd like an alternative build with that budget and if you'd rather save some money or increase performance for the same money.

[Viltaria]

1 minute ago, lightfire said:

What is the ram speed? Ryzen loves fast memory, 3200MHz or even 3600MHz is what I would recommend!

Hi again Thank you so much for the reply! The memory speed is 3600MHz. I've made the correction above too

[lightfire]

Just now, Viltaria said:

Hi again Thank you so much for the reply! The memory speed is 3600MHz. I've made the correction above too

That's great! I'd check out the B450 Tomahawk Max motherboard and maybe a different ssd. Otherwise, it's something I'd build too! 

Good luck!

[Viltaria]

15 minutes ago, ShinRamen said:

Or we could use the saved money to invest in a better GPU or CPU if you want. Let us know if you'd like an alternative build with that budget and if you'd rather save some money or increase performance for the same money.

Thank you so much for your input, I really appreciate it a lot! In terms of cutting costs to increase performance within the same budget, what components should I try to cut minor costs from first? 

Based on the replies mentioned so far, it seems that the order of cost reduction would seem to go: 
1. Change from an X570 motherboard to a cheaper alternative that better meets my needs (is someone able to recommend any other alternative to the B450 Tomahawk Max with integrated Wi-Fi and Bluetooth)? I'd prefer a fully integrated solution just as it reduces costs and simplifies my first build for me a little
2. Perhaps consider a lower wattage power supply or alternative SSD manufacturers.

 

And what would be the order to spend those 'saved' finances? Would the priority be to upgrade the CPU, GPU or cooling for this build? Thank you all for putting in so much time and effort, it means a lot!

[ShinRamen]

5 hours ago, Viltaria said:

And what would be the order to spend those 'saved' finances? Would the priority be to upgrade the CPU, GPU or cooling for this build? Thank you all for putting in so much time and effort, it means a lot!

 

Well I honestly don't know what a software engineering orientented PC would benefit from. You could either get the 3700X (2 extra cores, 4 extra threads) or get a 2070 Super instead o fthe 5700XT - for only light gaming the 5700XT should actually be sufficient, a couple of people had some issues with drivers for the card though. I'm not sure if that was only a release problem of if that's still a thing.

Here's your build with some cost savings (I couldn't find the ram and case for the price you mentioned on PCPP, so I just used your prices)
 

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor	$304.50 @ 1stWave Technologies
Motherboard	MSI B450 TOMAHAWK MAX ATX AM4 Motherboard	$224.00 @ 1stWave Technologies
Memory	G.Skill Trident Z RGB 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3600 Memory	$180.00
Storage	Crucial MX500 500 GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive	$118.95 @ Computer Lounge
Video Card	Sapphire Radeon RX 5700 XT 8 GB NITRO+ Video Card	$767.00
Case	Phanteks Eclipse P400A Digital ATX Mid Tower Case	$150.00
Power Supply	Corsair RMx (2018) 550 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply	$168.00 @ 1stWave Technologies
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	$1912.45
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-02-24 12:02 NZDT+1300