Moderate All-Around build with a quirky case layout. Feedback requested.

[sailsman63]

Well, it's time that I admit that my well-used laptop (nearly 10yo ThinkPad W510 - Intel i7-720QM & Quadro FX 880M) has a certain family resemblence to a Starchy Tuber. I've decided for a couple of reasons that I don't want to do the laptop thing again, but I do want something fairly compact. This would be my first scratch-build, though I have messed about in the case before, mostly back with 386/486/Pentium class stuff.

 

Location: USA
Budget: Flexible, but I'd like to see if/where I'm being inefficient. Current listing is ~$US900 all in on the electronics, not including case. I would love to get this number down to $US500ish.
Timeframe: Probably a winter project. I procrastinate, and I work in the retail sector, so no time to mess with Black Friday deals.
Use Case: Sort of moderately specd all-rounder, as I dabble in a lot of things. I'd like to hang on to it for a while.

•  Light gaming. I'll be quite happy with 60 FPS on a single montior w/something like minecraft. I never play AAA titles, mostly weird open-source/indy stuff or old backlog games.
• Some 3d - think light blender use
• Ditto photo/image manipulation (Hobby level photography - Gimp and Inkscape, depending on what I'm up to)
• A bit of programming, possibly including compute-on-GPU - at a hobby level, so doesn't need to be the fastest at any one thing.
• General utility work - browsing, stream video, video-conference. Not a high bar, but I do tend to keep massive numbers of tabs open when I deep-dive into something.

This is kind of where I've started:

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/Vbvmv3

 

CPU  AMD Ryzen 5 5600G 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor (some alts in the listing)

        $128.00     (Intending to use the stock Wraith Stealh cooler, or if aftermarket needed, something similarly low-profile.)
Motherboard   ASRock B550 Phantom Gaming-ITX/ax Mini ITX AM4 Motherboard
        $159.99
Memory  Silicon Power GAMING 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory
        $68.97     
Storage  Samsung 970 Evo Plus 500 GB M.2-2280 PCIe 3.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive
        $59.99     
Video Card  MSI Radeon RX 6600 MECH 2X 8G Radeon RX 6600 8 GB Video Card (some alts in the listing)
        $189.99     
Power Supply SeaSonic FOCUS SGX 500 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular SFX Power Supply
        $100, incl shipping on Ebay  -- I Picked this one because it was less expensive than lower power PSUs from brands that I recognized.

Stuff I have:

• 2x 1440p monitors, 60 hz
• All major peripherals
• OS will be some flavor of Linux - probably Arch, so no need for product key.

Stuff not on the list that I know I need:

• Case. This one is going to be a custom build (As in "Start with a stack of Acrylic sheet and several feet of extruded aluminum angle bar") I have the hand and tool skills to deal with that and will take details to the appropriate forum. Not part of the budget that is listed here.
• Power button/power light/hdd light combo harness
• beeper speaker $2
•  Case ventilation fan(s)? (May need some help here)
• Case connectivity "Front" panel - hopefully including a memory card reader.
• 15.6"-17" class portable monitor, 1080p-2k range. Somewhere between $50-$125 depending on what I find on Ebay.
• PCIe3x16 Riser ribbon cable ~$30

So, are any parts here really unbalanced or over/under specd compared to the rest? I'm pretty much willing to be talked into anything, brand/model wise, if you make a good case. I do need WiFi, so either on-board or the cost of the expansion card factored in.

 

A note on form-factor: I'm intending a rather odd bespoke case, so keep that in mind when suggesting stuff. I'm willing to be talked into, say, a micro-ATX motherboard if you've got a good reason, but there are some size constraints. I'm working with a notional volume 12"-14" x 17" x 3"-3.5" (300-360mm x 430mm x 90mm) internal measurements. These numbers can flex, but I'm not expanding it to fit in a full ATX board or PSU. Note that no matter what, the GPU will be off the main board on a riser ribbon laid parallel to the main board, so no need to limit to ITX/low profile cards . I still don't think I want to try make a tripple-thick card work, though.

 

[brob]

There are a couple of good deals at the moment if you are good with mail in rebates.

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 5600G 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor  ($128.00 @ Amazon) 
Motherboard: ASRock B550 Phantom Gaming-ITX/ax Mini ITX AM4 Motherboard  ($159.99 @ Newegg) 
Memory: Silicon Power GAMING 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory  ($68.97 @ Amazon) 
Storage: TEAMGROUP MP33 512 GB M.2-2280 PCIe 3.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive  ($31.99 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: *MSI Radeon RX 6600 MECH 2X 8G Radeon RX 6600 8 GB Video Card  ($189.99 @ Newegg) 
Power Supply: Cooler Master V550 V2 550 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  ($54.99 @ Newegg) 
Total: $633.93
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2022-11-18 00:05 EST-0500

[sailsman63]

Thanks for the callout on the power supply! I've reviewed, and yes, I can fit an ATX form factor supply into my space. (for some reason, I'd got it in my head that they were taller.)

 

Thinking about swapping to a MicroATX board, both because they are a bit cheaper, and simpler to add ram later. Anything that I'm giving up with this config?

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: *AMD Ryzen 5 5600G 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor  ($128.00 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI PRO B550M-VC WIFI Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Silicon Power GAMING 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory  ($66.97 @ Amazon)
Storage: TEAMGROUP MP33 512 GB M.2-2280 PCIe 3.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive  ($31.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: MSI Radeon RX 6600 MECH 2X 8G Radeon RX 6600 8 GB Video Card  ($219.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Cooler Master V550 V2 550 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $611.93
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2022-11-18 13:48 EST-0500

 

Also, when comparing GPU from different manufacturers, I'm under the impression that the major differences between cards based on the same chipset + ram are down to exact form factor and cooling setup. Is this pretty much the case?

[brob]

1 hour ago, sailsman63 said:

Thanks for the callout on the power supply! I've reviewed, and yes, I can fit an ATX form factor supply into my space. (for some reason, I'd got it in my head that they were taller.)

 

Thinking about swapping to a MicroATX board, both because they are a bit cheaper, and simpler to add ram later. Anything that I'm giving up with this config?

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: *AMD Ryzen 5 5600G 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor  ($128.00 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI PRO B550M-VC WIFI Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Silicon Power GAMING 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory  ($66.97 @ Amazon)
Storage: TEAMGROUP MP33 512 GB M.2-2280 PCIe 3.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive  ($31.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: MSI Radeon RX 6600 MECH 2X 8G Radeon RX 6600 8 GB Video Card  ($219.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Cooler Master V550 V2 550 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $611.93
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2022-11-18 13:48 EST-0500

 

Also, when comparing GPU from different manufacturers, I'm under the impression that the major differences between cards based on the same chipset + ram are down to exact form factor and cooling setup. Is this pretty much the case?

 

Should be fine, although I don't know the motherboard. You might consider a 2x8GB memory kit if you want additional savings.

[sailsman63]

Hmm... Dropping to a 2x8GB saves me about $25. I'm a little uncertain if this is actually a good idea, as I've got 16GB on my current system, and I'm already bumping up against the memory overhead a bit. (I've got a small swapfile that the scheduler can use as a headroom buffer - this due to occasionally hitting an OOM killrace when switching between multiple desktop spaces.)

 

I would be more inclined to give up a bit of GPU capability, actually. Unfortunately, the RX 6600 seems to be right at the inflection point for price/capability. I'd be willing to drop back to, say, a GTX 1660/1660 Super --- If the price were at least $50 less or so. As things are right now, there's only a $10 difference. Some refurbished cards are actually more expensive.

 

I suppose there is the used market, but I'm not sure what warning signs to watch out for there.

[sailsman63]

After digging around a little bit, I think that I'm actually going to try for at least some used parts. Most of what I'm targeting is just old enough that there are decent-looking examples on the market.

 

Does anyone know if, in general, there would be a perceptible change in used market prices after all of the holiday buying craziness is behind us? I'm willing to wait a month or so if that is likely to net me some significant savings. Otherwise, I'll go with what seems best.