Planning a $3000 gaming PC

[BondiBlue]

Budget (including currency): $3000 USD

Country: United States

Games, programs or workloads that it will be used for: All types of games, virtual reality games down the road (Beat Saber for sure), general web browsing, etc. This will be their main computer for everything. 

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): No existing parts, no peripherals needed. 

 

I have a friend who has saved up for a few years and would like to build a kick-ass gaming rig. They have a budget of $3000, and they're ready to spend it all on a very nice computer. Yes, they know that they can do a lot of gaming (even VR gaming) with a less expensive build, but they want something that looks nice, runs as fast as it can, and lasts them a long time. This isn't intended to be a system built to keep costs as low as possible. They're ready to spend the money on the best parts they can get within $3000. 

 

With Ryzen 7000 coming out later this year I'd rather not build a new AM4 rig at this point in time. 12th Gen Intel should be fine for their needs, and it would let them use DDR4. The only specific part I have in mind right now is the PC-O11 Dynamic case from Lian Li, so everything else is a blank slate. I'd be willing to change the case to something else if needed, just keep the good looks part in mind. They like RGB, so the more the merrier in that regard (AIO, case fans, motherboard, etc.). Also, overclocking isn't really in the picture right now, so it's not a big concern. 

 

I'd love some help putting together a parts list for this build. If you have any questions feel free to ask. 

[brob]

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i7-12700F 2.1 GHz 12-Core Processor  ($307.99 @ Newegg) 
CPU Cooler: Lian Li GALAHAD AIO 360 RGB UNI FAN SL120 EDITION 58.54 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler  ($159.99 @ Amazon) 
Motherboard: MSI MAG B660 TOMAHAWK WIFI DDR4 ATX LGA1700 Motherboard  ($189.99 @ Newegg) 
Memory: Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory  ($124.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Western Digital Black SN850 2 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive  ($237.91 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: MSI GeForce RTX 3080 10GB LHR 10 GB GAMING Z TRIO Video Card  ($849.99 @ GameStop) 
Case: Lian Li O11 Dynamic EVO ATX Mid Tower Case  ($169.99 @ Newegg) 
Power Supply: Corsair RMx (2021) 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  ($124.99 @ Amazon) 
Case Fan: Lian Li UNI SL120 58.54 CFM 120 mm Fans 3-Pack  ($84.98 @ Newegg) 
Case Fan: Lian Li UNI SL120 58.54 CFM 120 mm Fans 3-Pack  ($84.98 @ Newegg) 
Total: $2335.80
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2022-05-29 02:00 EDT-0400

[Ryuikko]

Yea the list @brob put is really all you would need for a sick vr gaming setup. If you wanted you could probbaly spend extra on rgb strips or get gskill ram If you care that much about the look

1 hour ago, BondiBlue said:

This isn't intended to be a system built to keep costs as low as possible. They're ready to spend the money on the best parts they can get within $3000. 

If you really wanted to you could crank up the cpu to a 12900ks and get a 3090 or what ever but I don't see the point in that since you don't want to oc,making it aesthetic per your request while still handling  vr games with ease seems like a better management of capital

[Kangaroo Factory]

I've seen two Asus 3080 Ti LC's pop up on Amazon warehouse for 1300 and 1200 in the last week. Lots of RGB goodness. I snatched up the 1200 dollar one myself.

 

You should get these lian li  strimer rgb power cables.

 

Four T Force rgb ram sticks look really cool.

 

Asus makes a PSU that lights up. Thor I think. There's a used 850 listed on Amazon for $150 right now. But new, they're like a hundred bucks more than an equivalent corsair RM.

[rikitikitavi]

Case: Fractal Design Torrent w/glass to show off all that RGB and get a bit better thermals