New Build - Gaming PC

Matthew Borgia · May 5, 2021

Budget (including currency): $1500 USD

Country: USA

Games, programs or workloads that it will be used for: Call of Duty, etc (mostly for gaming, currently using an Xbox but want to shift to PC)

Other details (existing parts lists, whether any peripherals are needed, what you're upgrading from, when you're going to buy, what resolution and refresh rate you want to play at, etc): I am looking for advise/recommendations on what parts to buy to get to build a PC gaming computer around $1500USD total. As of now I have a monitor and keyboard/mouse...so pretty much from square one.

Chris Pratt · May 5, 2021

Can you provide some more specifics about what your goals are? CS:GO will virtually run on a potato, but people still get 3080s to play it for maximum FPS.

Also, not to discourage you, but this is a horrible time to decide to join the PCMR. Graphics card prices are beyond insane, and getting even a half way decent one could eat up the better part of your budget. Even before things went nuts, it took a $1000 build to match the performance of the Series X. You might want to stay a console gamer just a little longer.

Forleb · May 5, 2021

Realistically, this is what $1500 can get you if you're lukcy with a GPU:

• Motherboard: B550 of some kind ($100) • I'd personally recommend this or this.

• CPU: Ryzen 5 5600X ($300) • Stellar single thread performance that will give your games a notable boost in FPS.

• RAM: 2x8GB kit @ 3600MHz CL16 ($100) • Ryzen loves fast memory, so chipping in that extra premium over 3000 or 3200 is worth it in the long run.

• Storage: 500GB NVMe Gen 3 M.2 ($80) • Your best options are usually Samsung, Crucial, or PNY.

• Case: Thermaltake Versa H18 ($50) • Very easy to build in & offers great thermals at the expense of not being a dazzling showpiece.

• Fans: a few 140mms ($40) • The H18 comes with a rear fan, but adding two in the front & one up top will keep things much cooler.

• PSU: 650W, preferably 80+ Gold ($80) • RTX 30 Series can be quite demanding sometimes, so having this much headroom doesn't hurt.

• GPU: RTX 3060 or 3060 Ti ($500-700) • Sadly, these prices are lowballed, generally speaking. It is possible to find them at this price, but it will take some effort and luck.

Final Total: $1290-1490

If you're able to manage all of that, then I'd recommend watching tutorials from Linus / JayzTwoCents / BitWit to ensure that everything goes smoothly; Collectively, they should cover pretty much everything you'd want to know if you search long enough. This build will be plenty for 1080p and should be good enough for 1440p with perhaps a few settings tweaks depending on the game, and overall will offer a great first experience while discovering the luxuries of a personal PC.