Pre-Built or Build Myself?

[ChristGuard]

Budget (including currency): 1500USD

Country: USA

Games, programs or workloads that it will be used for: Adobe Suite (Ai, Ps, Pr, Ae)

Other details I love to build PC's, but I know the chip shortage has made things crazy. I need a PC that can run Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, After Effects, and Premier all at the same time. I do light graphic design and light video production (I put together a 6 minute video every week). Should I build my own or buy a pre-built to get the most bang for buck in todays economy? If prebuilt, suggestions? THANKS!!!

 

[adarw]

build your own.

[Curioisman]

Whit that price pool, most likely build it yourself. Prebuilt are okey value nowadays if you buy from a good place, for example in NZXT I think the flat fee is 350$ for building shipping testing etc.

[RONOTHAN##]

This comes down to whether you can even get a GPU. If you can get lucky and score a 3060Ti for a good price, buy it and build the rest of the system. However, getting lucky isn't super easy, and getting a pre-built might be the best option. 

[ChristGuard]

Just now, RONOTHAN## said:

This comes down to whether you can even get a GPU. If you can get lucky and score a 3060Ti for a good price, buy it and build the rest of the system. However, getting lucky isn't super easy, and getting a pre-built might be the best option. 

That's kind of where I am at, even trash GPU's are crazy expensive now a days. This will be my first non gaming machine I have ever built, so I don't even know what kind of GPU to aim for.

[CommanderAlex]

7 minutes ago, ChristGuard said:

I love to build PC's

I would build my own then. I can see the possibility of you buying a pre-built if you are on a time crunch and need a PC A.S.A.P. and don't feel like trying to source all the parts together. 

 

Finding a graphics card will be the hardest part of getting new without paying inflated prices or a really low-end GPU that costs more than the MSRP from a couple of years ago. 

[Dr0idGh0sT]

Prebuilt makers also making their builds with normal graphics card very expensive.

You'll be lucky to get even 3060 and good CPU in this price range and you are guaranteed to end up with bad cooling, Single RAM stick and bad storage configuration.

And most likely with badly designed OEM graphics card.

In worst case scenario, With proprietary parts and that's E-waste

 

 

[ChristGuard]

What's a good price for a used 3060 Ti? I see them going for about 900 USD used.

[Curioisman]

Honestly if you would ask me, I would not buy a GPU yet. What I would recommend for you is a iGPU, so AMD Ryzen 7 5700G which is actually really really good cpu and the APU is surprisingly good. You spend 360$ on this CPU, but you dont spend any money on gpu, you could save up little money here and then while you have this beast on your pc and just get a new gpu when the prices are down, and by then you have saved up a little money.

[ChristGuard]

Just now, Curioisman said:

Honestly if you would ask me, I would not buy a GPU yet. What I would recommend for you is a iGPU, so AMD Ryzen 7 5700G which is actually really really good cpu and the APU is surprisingly good. You spend 360$ on this CPU, but you dont spend any money on gpu, you could save up little money here and then while you have this beast on your pc and just get a new gpu when the prices are down, and by then you have saved up a little money.

How much will I bottle neck with that APU if running AI PS AE and PR all at the same time? Assuming 32 GB ram?

[Dr0idGh0sT]

I put list together, That leaves you with 750USD for GPU.

Ideally you could get 3060 ti, 3060 also be okey and that should not be big problem, Nvidia is preferable for adobe programs, But if you can't get those, 6600XT is no problem in this price range, Anytime, And it'll still be better than any prebuilt in this price range.

P.S. 32GB RAM for multitasking, You could get away with 16GB, But I think 32 GB is needed in this use case.

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 5600X 3.7 GHz 6-Core Processor  ($279.99 @ B&H) 
CPU Cooler: ID-COOLING SE-224-XT 76.16 CFM CPU Cooler  ($29.99 @ Amazon) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte B550M DS3H Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($101.86 @ Amazon) 
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory  ($124.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Team MP33 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive  ($85.99 @ Newegg) 
Case: Thermaltake Versa H18 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($54.99 @ Newegg) 
Power Supply: EVGA BQ 650 W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply  ($57.98 @ Newegg) 
Case Fan: ARCTIC P12 56.3 CFM 120 mm Fan  ($9.49 @ Amazon) 
Case Fan: ARCTIC P12 56.3 CFM 120 mm Fan  ($9.49 @ Amazon) 
Total: $754.77
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2021-09-28 12:42 EDT-0400

[ChristGuard]

1 minute ago, Dr0idGh0sT said:

I put list together, That leaves you with 750USD for GPU.

Ideally you could get 3060 ti, 3060 also be okey and that should not be big problem, Nvidia is preferable for adobe programs, But if you can't get those, 6600XT is no problem in this price range, Anytime, And it'll still be better than any prebuilt in this price range.

P.S. 32GB RAM for multitasking, You could get away with 16GB, But I think 32 GB is needed in this use case.

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 5600X 3.7 GHz 6-Core Processor  ($279.99 @ B&H) 
CPU Cooler: ID-COOLING SE-224-XT 76.16 CFM CPU Cooler  ($29.99 @ Amazon) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte B550M DS3H Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($101.86 @ Amazon) 
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory  ($124.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Team MP33 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive  ($85.99 @ Newegg) 
Case: Thermaltake Versa H18 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($54.99 @ Newegg) 
Power Supply: EVGA BQ 650 W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply  ($57.98 @ Newegg) 
Case Fan: ARCTIC P12 56.3 CFM 120 mm Fan  ($9.49 @ Amazon) 
Case Fan: ARCTIC P12 56.3 CFM 120 mm Fan  ($9.49 @ Amazon) 
Total: $754.77
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2021-09-28 12:42 EDT-0400

Thank you! I just got outbid on a 3060Ti Founders Edition on ebay at $850. Is there a better place to snag these? I agree, 32 Gb Ram.

[Curioisman]

2 minutes ago, ChristGuard said:

How much will I bottle neck with that APU if running AI PS AE and PR all at the same time? Assuming 32 GB ram?

Honestly, the only one that needs a GPU is AI, PS is usually faster whit GPU if you do 3D stuff, but it works fine on iGPU too. Atleast whit little research I did on them, someone more experienced about those could probably confirm or deny

 

Also https://pcpartpicker.com/list/PX9m68 I made this it goes a few bucks over the budget, but it trully is a beast computer without a gpu. Also the PSU should handle a 3060 ti when the prices drop down

[Dr0idGh0sT]

46 minutes ago, Curioisman said:

Honestly, the only one that needs a GPU is AI, PS is usually faster whit GPU if you do 3D stuff, but it works fine on iGPU too. Atleast whit little research I did on them, someone more experienced about those could probably confirm or deny

 

Also https://pcpartpicker.com/list/PX9m68 I made this it goes a few bucks over the budget, but it trully is a beast computer without a gpu. Also the PSU should handle a 3060 ti when the prices drop down

Why you had any need to go over budget with 5700G build? Don't get me wrong, But that is literally one of the worst build Price/Value wise you could make... If you insist on 5700G build, This is how should it be!

I made sure I haven't downgraded anything, Even included one Gen 4 drive...

Even this build is not reasonable to be real... But compared to what you made?.. 

 

 

PCPartPicker Part List

 

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 5700G 3.8 GHz 8-Core Processor ($349.00 @ Newegg) 

CPU Cooler: Scythe FUMA 2 51.17 CFM CPU Cooler ($59.99 @ Amazon) 

Motherboard: MSI MAG B550 TOMAHAWK ATX AM4 Motherboard ($159.99 @ Amazon) 

Memory: Crucial Ballistix 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3600 CL16 Memory ($169.99 @ B&H) 

Storage: Team CARDEA ZERO Z440 1 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($137.99 @ Amazon) 

Storage: Team T-Force Cardea Zero Z330 2 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($179.99 @ Amazon) 

Case: Corsair 4000D Airflow ATX Mid Tower Case ($94.99 @ Amazon) 

Power Supply: MSI 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($86.40 @ Amazon) 

Case Fan: ARCTIC P12 56.3 CFM 120 mm Fan ($9.49 @ Amazon) 

Total: $1247.83

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2021-09-28 13:46 EDT-0400

[Dr0idGh0sT]

1 hour ago, ChristGuard said:

Thank you! I just got outbid on a 3060Ti Founders Edition on ebay at $850. Is there a better place to snag these? I agree, 32 Gb Ram.

850 Is somewhat expensive, I would not pay this much for 3060 ti, While you can get 6600XT for around 650USD on ebay listed new, Or even cheaper on auction. You can get 6700XT for 850 USD no problem and that's better card.

 

Even amazon have better prices for 6600XT and 6700XT...

 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B099Y6439Y/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_8GF5J1FVPE0099DCESZR

 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09B46MZ3T/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_JAZE7Y47SJFTJV9C6027

 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09B46MZ3T/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_JAZE7Y47SJFTJV9C6027

 

Those does have longer delivery time, But it's sold by Amazon, So it's guaranteed to be delivered and gives you examples of prices.

 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08Y934HZQ/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_BHT3YVFX9KQHV693D0A9

 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B091ZKN2RV/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_QFS0WKRSYB80QWPQQFE4