~$500USD+ Gaming Build

[rphawks]

Putting together a list for a less tech-inclined friend. It'll be his first time building. I'm not too familiar with this price point. His budget is "$500 give or take", but I struggled to get it that low without sacrificing performance or buying some bad deals.

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor	$159.97 @ Amazon
Motherboard	ASRock B450 Pro4 ATX AM4 Motherboard	$108.10 @ Amazon
Memory	Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-2400 CL16 Memory	$49.90 @ Amazon
Storage	ADATA SU635 240 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive	$27.99 @ Amazon
Video Card	MSI Radeon RX 570 8 GB GT OC Video Card	$149.99 @ Newegg
Case	Phanteks Eclipse P300A Mesh ATX Mid Tower Case	$59.99 @ Amazon
Power Supply	EVGA BQ 500 W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply	$83.27 @ Amazon
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	$639.21
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-07-23 16:09 EDT-0400

 

 

Budget (including currency): $500+ USD

Country: USA

Games, programs or workloads that it will be used for: Gaming primarily, schoolwork

 

[5x5]

The power supply is shit but the rest is fine. Get a Be Quiet Pure Power Gold or Cooler Master MWE Gold

[Guest]

Get memory that is atleast 3000MHz or higher, it's usually only a couple dollars and helps performance.

[Hairless Monkey Boy]

If he can wait it's probably a good idea to. New parts are due to release pretty soon and pricing might get better for the parts in your price range.

[rphawks]

2 minutes ago, 5x5 said:

The power supply is shit but the rest is fine. Get a Be Quiet Pure Power Gold or Cooler Master MWE Gold

Didn't see the be quiet! one. I've replaced the EVGA one with it.

[Oswin]

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 5 2600 3.4 GHz 6-Core Processor	$139.69 @ Amazon
Motherboard	ASRock B450M PRO4 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard	$82.99 @ Newegg
Memory	Team T-FORCE VULCAN Z 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory	$57.99 @ Amazon
Storage	ADATA SU635 240 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive	$27.99 @ Amazon
Video Card	Zotac GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER 4 GB Twin Fan Video Card	$153.00 @ Amazon
Case	Phanteks Eclipse P300A Mesh ATX Mid Tower Case	$59.99 @ Amazon
Power Supply	be quiet! Pure Power 11 CM 500 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply	$79.31 @ Amazon
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	$600.96
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-07-23 16:19 EDT-0400

 

[rphawks]

1 minute ago, HairlessMonkeyBoy said:

If he can wait it's probably a good idea to. New parts are due to release pretty soon and pricing might get better for the parts in your price range.

How soon exactly? Isn't a lot of stuff released Q2?

[rphawks]

1 minute ago, Oswin said:

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 5 2600 3.4 GHz 6-Core Processor	$139.69 @ Amazon
Motherboard	ASRock B450M PRO4 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard	$82.99 @ Newegg
Memory	Team T-FORCE VULCAN Z 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory	$57.99 @ Amazon
Storage	ADATA SU635 240 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive	$27.99 @ Amazon
Video Card	Zotac GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER 4 GB Twin Fan Video Card	$153.00 @ Amazon
Case	Phanteks Eclipse P300A Mesh ATX Mid Tower Case	$59.99 @ Amazon
Power Supply	be quiet! Pure Power 11 CM 500 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply	$79.31 @ Amazon
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	$600.96
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-07-23 16:19 EDT-0400

 

2600 seems fine, don't know if it's worth the $20 to take that cut. Why the 1650 over the 570? Also, I would like to stay ATX on this build. Interesting memory pick though, it may be worth the extra.

[Oswin]

4 minutes ago, rphawks said:

2600 seems fine, don't know if it's worth the $20 to take that cut. Why the 1650 over the 570? Also, I would like to stay ATX on this build. Interesting memory pick though, it may be worth the extra.

the 1650 super is faster on most games compared to the rx570, and it comsumes less power. you can still go with the 3600 if your budget allows, or with the 3300x if their prices are reasonable.

[rphawks]

1 hour ago, Oswin said:

the 1650 super is faster on most games compared to the rx570, and it comsumes less power. you can still go with the 3600 if your budget allows, or with the 3300x if their prices are reasonable.

Switched for the MSI Ventus 1650 Super. The one you have is more expensive and currently sold out.

[5x5]

4 hours ago, rphawks said:

Switched for the MSI Ventus 1650 Super. The one you have is more expensive and currently sold out.

Keep in mind the 1650 is crippled by it's super shit 128-bit interface so it will be bandwidth starved.

 

Also, don't drop the 3600. Get a 3300X is you really need to save money, not a 2600.

[rphawks]

4 hours ago, 5x5 said:

Keep in mind the 1650 is crippled by it's super shit 128-bit interface so it will be bandwidth starved.

 

Also, don't drop the 3600. Get a 3300X is you really need to save money, not a 2600.

What would the preferred card be then? Also don't plan on dropping the 3600.