Mac noob $3K PC build

[ElMack]

Budget (including currency): ~£2,500 GBP ($3,200 USD)

Country: UK

Games, programs or workloads that it will be used for: Flight sims on max settings, all the games that tempted me to bootcamp my macbook pro but didn't, some 3D rendering (blender) and I want to get a VR headset in the near future.

Other details: This is for the tower only. I have an HP z27 monitor for work, will look for a decent 2 monitor setup for flightsims in the future but for now I just want to get the PC right.

 

I use a mac for my day job but gaming even on "top end" macs is sad. Now it's time to shut up and take my money with what is probably not best performance per dollar - but will allow me to make the video settings tab my bitch and never have to click "use optimal performance settings" ever again.

 

Here's my current parts list

 

I'm very close to pulling the trigger due to prices and stock worries about CPU and graphics card but I have three questions:

 

1. Is this mostly fine? Are there any glaring mistakes in my choices?

2. That graphics card tho, I'm looking at it in stock on NVIDIA for £1,149 ($1,432 USD) - would you buy any other 2080ti, not to save money but as a better choice?

3. This is extravagant but I certainly can't spend any more than this, are there new releases on the horizon or should I buy now or are prices set to drop very soon for some reasons unknown.

 

Thank you.

 

 

 

[jaslion]

Well the thing is that rtx3000 is coming out in september so spending so much on an old gpu is a pretty poor decision. That and ryzen 3000 refresh is coming out too then. Can you wait?

 

There's also a lot of spending on bling and over the top parts you can easily save yourself a lot a money not doing that and not be off any worse.

[ElMack]

Hey jaslion, probably yes I can wait but I have already been waiting to do this properly for quite a while. Will I be able to get the same spec or better for the same money in September? I know the GPU is a little older now but it wont be junk in 2 years right, or will it fall behind quick?

 

Also I'm really not fussed about bling and lights but if I'm spending the money it would be a shame if it looked like sad Dell office machines of my early work life. I'm very happy to hear specific suggestions for more modest parts if you have them?

 

Thanks!

[jaslion]

21 minutes ago, ElMack said:

Hey jaslion, probably yes I can wait but I have already been waiting to do this properly for quite a while. Will I be able to get the same spec or better for the same money in September? I know the GPU is a little older now but it wont be junk in 2 years right, or will it fall behind quick?

 

Also I'm really not fussed about bling and lights but if I'm spending the money it would be a shame if it looked like sad Dell office machines of my early work life. I'm very happy to hear specific suggestions for more modest parts if you have them?

 

Thanks!

Considering new consoles are about to launch and cause another leap in graphics it will become outdated much quicker than you'd think.

 

In terms of price in september you'll be able to get the same system for less and a better system for the same price especially if you drop the bling.

Rgb is overrated and well kinda obnoxious. Do you like the simplicity of a mac? Plenty of cases that go for no nonsense looks.

[ElMack]

Okay, that's good to know, will have to see if I have the will power for that delayed gratification.

 

Haha, as a career mac user you don't have to tell me RGB is a little obnoxious design-wise but I figured that's kinda what I'm buying into with a kinda high end rig.

 

Can you please then reccommend me non RGB cooler, fans etc. that would suit this build instead?

 

Thanks again

[jaslion]

2 minutes ago, ElMack said:

Okay, that's good to know, will have to see if I have the will power for that delayed gratification.

 

Haha, as a career mac user you don't have to tell me RGB is a little obnoxious design-wise but I figured that's kinda what I'm buying into with a kinda high end rig.

 

Can you please then reccommend me non RGB cooler, fans etc. that would suit this build instead?

 

Thanks again

If you can't wait I can make you a build that will game quite well with very entry level components and you can easily upgrade the cpu and gpu in september then and resell the current ones with maybe only a 60-70 pound loss all in all.

 

If you can wait you could get something like this (replace the 3900x with the refresh or keep it because the price dropped even harder) and replace the 2080 super with a better rtx3000 card.

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 9 3900X 3.8 GHz 12-Core Processor	£417.97 @ Laptops Direct
CPU Cooler	be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4 50.5 CFM CPU Cooler	£74.98 @ Amazon UK
Motherboard	Asus TUF GAMING X570-PLUS (WI-FI) ATX AM4 Motherboard	£229.95 @ AWD-IT
Memory	Crucial Ballistix Sport LT 32 GB (4 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 CL15 Memory	£145.19 @ Amazon UK
Storage	Western Digital Blue 1 TB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive	£107.13 @ CCL Computers
Storage	Seagate Barracuda Compute 2 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive	£54.78 @ Aria PC
Video Card	EVGA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER 8 GB BLACK GAMING Video Card	£714.98 @ Amazon UK
Case	Fractal Design Define R5 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case	£120.62 @ Amazon UK
Power Supply	Corsair RM (2019) 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply	£120.43 @ Overclockers.co.uk
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	£1986.03
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-06-02 11:57 BST+0100

 

Closed case so won't see any cables, rgb, mess,... just clean.

 

 

Just because you are buying a gaming pc doesn't mean you need rgb that's your choice to get. It's your system so do as you please with how it looks and such.

[ElMack]

Thank you! I'd be very keen to see a build that would be a solid foundation for upgrading in Sept (whilst letting me have some fun in the meantime.)

 

Very happy to save £40 on the cooler and forgo lights. My thinking is that me buying a gaming pc (especially and expensive one) is completley indulgent and unnessesary, so it might be fun if it looks a bit ridiculous and over the top. But I wouldn't put that fun above me enjoying a great gaming experience  - so if the money saved will get me more than marginal performance gains then great, let's go dark.

 

Thanks again.

 

 

[Guest]

Cheaper cooler. The Arctic Freezer 34 esports duo is also a good option, but it is out of stock at a lot of places, and the price has gone up a well.

 

https://www.enostech.com/gelid-solutions-phantom-black-cpu-air-cooler-review/#:~:text=In our testing%2C this cooler,Black comes recommended by us.

 

The MSI X570 Tomahawk is the best board at this price point. It was in stock yesterday at overclockers, but the initial supply has been bought. Should be back in stock pretty soon.

 

The 2070 Super (Or 5700XT) is better value for the gpu if you are upgrading later this year. 

 

Lots of power supplies are also out of stock. A 650W is more than enough though.

 

The WD SN550 is also a better option for the SSD as it is NVMe rather than SATA.

 

You could even consider going with a 3700X and then upgrading the cpu to a Ryzen 4000 later on.

 

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 3900X 3.8 GHz 12-Core Processor  (£417.97 @ Laptops Direct) 
CPU Cooler: Gelid Solutions Phantom Black CPU Cooler  (£41.80 @ Amazon UK) 
Motherboard: MSI MAG X570 TOMAHAWK WIFI ATX AM4 Motherboard  (£229.99) 
Memory: Team T-FORCE VULCAN Z 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory  (£139.01 @ More Computers) 
Storage: Western Digital Blue SN550 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive  (£114.44 @ Amazon UK) 
Storage: Seagate Barracuda Compute 2 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (£54.78 @ Aria PC) 
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER 8 GB GAMING OC 3X Video Card  (£505.97 @ Amazon UK) 
Case: Phanteks ECLIPSE P600S ATX Mid Tower Case  (£121.03 @ Ebuyer) 
Power Supply: Corsair RMx (2018) 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  (£110.40 @ Alza) 
Total: £1735.39
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-06-02 13:01 BST+0100

[jaslion]

On 6/2/2020 at 1:37 PM, ElMack said:

Thank you! I'd be very keen to see a build that would be a solid foundation for upgrading in Sept (whilst letting me have some fun in the meantime.)

 

Very happy to save £40 on the cooler and forgo lights. My thinking is that me buying a gaming pc (especially and expensive one) is completley indulgent and unnessesary, so it might be fun if it looks a bit ridiculous and over the top. But I wouldn't put that fun above me enjoying a great gaming experience  - so if the money saved will get me more than marginal performance gains then great, let's go dark.

 

Thanks again.

 

 

I didn't see your response due to not being tagged here's a budget build that will game just fine and is easily upgraded in september.

 

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 3 3300X 3.8 GHz Quad-Core Processor	£138.40 @ Alza
Motherboard	Asus TUF GAMING X570-PLUS (WI-FI) ATX AM4 Motherboard	£229.95 @ AWD-IT
Memory	Crucial Ballistix Sport LT 32 GB (4 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 CL15 Memory	£145.19 @ Amazon UK
Storage	Western Digital Blue 1 TB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive	£105.48 @ Amazon UK
Storage	Seagate Barracuda Compute 2 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive	£54.50 @ Amazon UK
Video Card	PowerColor Radeon RX 580 8 GB Red Dragon Video Card	£163.44 @ Ebuyer
Case	Fractal Design Define R5 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case	£120.62 @ Amazon UK
Power Supply	Corsair RM (2019) 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply	£121.40 @ Alza
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	£1078.98
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-06-04 09:19 BST+0100

Pretty much the same but the only difference being that I swapped the cpu and gpu for mid range parts that will run anything at 1080p high 60fps. I also left the cooler as well no point in getting it now when the stock cooler for the 3300x is more than plenty.

 

[UpTheDons]

On 6/2/2020 at 11:11 AM, ElMack said:

Hey jaslion, probably yes I can wait but I have already been waiting to do this properly for quite a while. Will I be able to get the same spec or better for the same money in September? I know the GPU is a little older now but it wont be junk in 2 years right, or will it fall behind quick?

 

Also I'm really not fussed about bling and lights but if I'm spending the money it would be a shame if it looked like sad Dell office machines of my early work life. I'm very happy to hear specific suggestions for more modest parts if you have them?

 

Thanks!

there is always gonna be new hardware on the horizon, in this case the 2000 series was not a huge improvement and hopefully the 300 series is gonna offer more. i would say that if you want it now the 2080ti is still a great card and will last you for quite a few year or more. however i think waiting a few months could be defiantly worth it.