advice on build First computer build in a long time

[Frogrock]

Budget (including currency): 2000$

Country: USA

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

Programs: Blender, Surface Painter, Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign

Workloads: Graphic Design, Illustration, 2d digital art, 3d art (main focus on modeling/sculpting), CAD

Games: Dead Cells, Terraria, Doom Eternal

 

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):

 

When I plan to buy: Within 3 months, I don't have a strict timeline.

 

Monitor: 1440p, 144hz minimum, color accuracy is important.

 

Existing equipment

My Current setup

Case: NZXT Source 210 Mid Tower case

PSU: Thermaltake SMART 650w

RAM: 4x 4 GB DDR3-1600 G. Skill Ripjaws X

CPU: Intel Core I7 3770 3.4 ghz

Video Card: EVGA GTX 970

Monitors: Dell SE2717h/hx 27’’, Wacom Cintiq 16’’

Motherboard: ASUS P8Z77-V LX

Storage:

Adata SSD S510 120 gb SATA

Samsung SSD 860 evo SATA

1 500 gb HDD

1 1 TB HDD

Peripherals:

Keyboard, Mouse, Wacom Cintiq 16, PS3 controller, Creative Pebble 2.1 speakers

OS: Windows 10 Pro

Proposed Build

I’m using JayzTwoXCents Inexpensive build guide as a starting point

https://pcpartpicker.com/user/Bolerto/saved/BpLkD3

 

I will probably be reusing SSDs and HDDs.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

[PC HEROES]

4 hours ago, Frogrock said:

Budget (including currency): 2000$

Country: USA

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

Programs: Blender, Surface Painter, Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign

Workloads: Graphic Design, Illustration, 2d digital art, 3d art (main focus on modeling/sculpting), CAD

Games: Dead Cells, Terraria, Doom Eternal

 

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):

 

When I plan to buy: Within 3 months, I don't have a strict timeline.

 

Monitor: 1440p, 144hz minimum, color accuracy is important.

 

Existing equipment

My Current setup

Case: NZXT Source 210 Mid Tower case

PSU: Thermaltake SMART 650w

RAM: 4x 4 GB DDR3-1600 G. Skill Ripjaws X

CPU: Intel Core I7 3770 3.4 ghz

Video Card: EVGA GTX 970

Monitors: Dell SE2717h/hx 27’’, Wacom Cintiq 16’’

Motherboard: ASUS P8Z77-V LX

Storage:

Adata SSD S510 120 gb SATA

Samsung SSD 860 evo SATA

1 500 gb HDD

1 1 TB HDD

Peripherals:

Keyboard, Mouse, Wacom Cintiq 16, PS3 controller, Creative Pebble 2.1 speakers

OS: Windows 10 Pro

Proposed Build

I’m using JayzTwoXCents Inexpensive build guide as a starting point

https://pcpartpicker.com/user/Bolerto/saved/BpLkD3

 

I will probably be reusing SSDs and HDDs.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Hello, Your list was quite nice, However I did make some changes. I think they work better and is a bit cheaper. I hope you like it. The m.2 drives are for your OS on the smaller one and the larger one is where you store your games. I switched the CPU to the i5 model because if all you are doing is gaming then the i7 isn't needed. I'm here for any questions.

 

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/qCgVv3

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-13600K 3.5 GHz 14-Core Processor  ($319.83 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE ARGB 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler  ($40.90 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte Z790 AORUS ELITE AX DDR4 ATX LGA1700 Motherboard  ($249.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Kingston FURY Beast RGB 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory  ($79.99 @ B&H)
Storage: Kingston NV2 250 GB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive  ($22.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Black SN770 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive  ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Zotac GAMING Twin Edge OC White Edition GeForce RTX 3070 LHR 8 GB Video Card  ($549.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Pop Air ATX Mid Tower Case  ($88.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Enermax Revolution D.F. 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Case Fan: Antec Prizm 5+C 45.03 CFM 120 mm Fans 5-Pack  ($59.95 @ Amazon)
Monitor: Asus TUF Gaming VG27AQA1A 27.0" 2560 x 1440 170 Hz Monitor  ($269.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1877.59
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

[Queen Chrysalis]

This will shred any of that for about $50 more:

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i5-13500 2.5 GHz 14-Core Processor  ($249.98 @ Newegg) 
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE ARGB 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler  ($40.90 @ Amazon) 
Motherboard: ASRock B760M Pro RS/D4 WiFi Micro ATX LGA1700 Motherboard  ($149.99 @ Newegg) 
Memory: Silicon Power GAMING 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory  ($62.97 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Crucial P5 Plus 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive  ($80.99 @ B&H) 
Video Card: Asus TUF GAMING GeForce RTX 4070 Ti 12 GB Video Card  ($799.99 @ ASUS) 
Case: Lian Li LANCOOL 216 ATX Mid Tower Case  ($109.99 @ Newegg) 
Power Supply: Super Flower Leadex III Gold 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  ($119.99 @ Newegg Sellers) 
Monitor: Gigabyte M27Q-P 27.0" 2560 x 1440 170 Hz Monitor  ($349.99 @ Amazon) 
Total: $1964.79
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-02-18 18:46 EST-0500

• 3D stuff leverage CUDA and tensor cores way more now than ever, so your GPU is abig deal.
• The 13500 is identical to the 13600k save for unlocked OC, but it already boosts to 5GHz to it's a null point.
• The Vertoo U5 is a good cooler, but the PA120 outdoes it handily for $4 more, and with a 14-croe chip you'll wanna do what you can to ensure you're hitting max boost on renders.
• Same with z-series motherboards
• The P3 Plus is fine, but the DRAM cache on the P5 will be really nice for large ile movements, as well as bringing in fresh assets constantly.  If you are fine with a dramless drive, the Kingston NV2 is a better value.
• The leadex III is a really nice PSU, 750w is plenty, but 850 is only like $10 more
• Having a 4070ti would be night and day over a 3070, ESPECIALLY with hitting the 12GB VRAM mark for rendering in 4K.  It'll also be way faster for real-time accelerations when scrubbing and building models.  The 3070 is also way overpriced at $550.  The 4070ti is a little overpriced at $800, but it's still a better deal.

You could get a cheaper case if you wanted, but that's all just about taste.

[Frogrock]

15 hours ago, Queen Chrysalis said:

This will shred any of that for about $50 more:

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i5-13500 2.5 GHz 14-Core Processor  ($249.98 @ Newegg) 
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE ARGB 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler  ($40.90 @ Amazon) 
Motherboard: ASRock B760M Pro RS/D4 WiFi Micro ATX LGA1700 Motherboard  ($149.99 @ Newegg) 
Memory: Silicon Power GAMING 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory  ($62.97 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Crucial P5 Plus 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive  ($80.99 @ B&H) 
Video Card: Asus TUF GAMING GeForce RTX 4070 Ti 12 GB Video Card  ($799.99 @ ASUS) 
Case: Lian Li LANCOOL 216 ATX Mid Tower Case  ($109.99 @ Newegg) 
Power Supply: Super Flower Leadex III Gold 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  ($119.99 @ Newegg Sellers) 
Monitor: Gigabyte M27Q-P 27.0" 2560 x 1440 170 Hz Monitor  ($349.99 @ Amazon) 
Total: $1964.79
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-02-18 18:46 EST-0500

• 3D stuff leverage CUDA and tensor cores way more now than ever, so your GPU is abig deal.
• The 13500 is identical to the 13600k save for unlocked OC, but it already boosts to 5GHz to it's a null point.
• The Vertoo U5 is a good cooler, but the PA120 outdoes it handily for $4 more, and with a 14-croe chip you'll wanna do what you can to ensure you're hitting max boost on renders.
• Same with z-series motherboards
• The P3 Plus is fine, but the DRAM cache on the P5 will be really nice for large ile movements, as well as bringing in fresh assets constantly.  If you are fine with a dramless drive, the Kingston NV2 is a better value.
• The leadex III is a really nice PSU, 750w is plenty, but 850 is only like $10 more
• Having a 4070ti would be night and day over a 3070, ESPECIALLY with hitting the 12GB VRAM mark for rendering in 4K.  It'll also be way faster for real-time accelerations when scrubbing and building models.  The 3070 is also way overpriced at $550.  The 4070ti is a little overpriced at $800, but it's still a better deal.

You could get a cheaper case if you wanted, but that's all just about taste.

Cool, thank you for the detailed feedback.

[Frogrock]

17 hours ago, PC HEROES said:

Hello, Your list was quite nice, However I did make some changes. I think they work better and is a bit cheaper. I hope you like it. The m.2 drives are for your OS on the smaller one and the larger one is where you store your games. I switched the CPU to the i5 model because if all you are doing is gaming then the i7 isn't needed. I'm here for any questions.

 

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/qCgVv3

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-13600K 3.5 GHz 14-Core Processor  ($319.83 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE ARGB 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler  ($40.90 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte Z790 AORUS ELITE AX DDR4 ATX LGA1700 Motherboard  ($249.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Kingston FURY Beast RGB 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory  ($79.99 @ B&H)
Storage: Kingston NV2 250 GB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive  ($22.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Black SN770 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive  ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Zotac GAMING Twin Edge OC White Edition GeForce RTX 3070 LHR 8 GB Video Card  ($549.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Pop Air ATX Mid Tower Case  ($88.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Enermax Revolution D.F. 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Case Fan: Antec Prizm 5+C 45.03 CFM 120 mm Fans 5-Pack  ($59.95 @ Amazon)
Monitor: Asus TUF Gaming VG27AQA1A 27.0" 2560 x 1440 170 Hz Monitor  ($269.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1877.59
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

I plan on doing 3d work in Blender. I Also use Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign for graphic design. With that in mind. What are your thoughts on i5 versus i7? Thank you for your help.

[PC HEROES]

4 minutes ago, Frogrock said:

I plan on doing 3d work in Blender. I Also use Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign for graphic design. With that in mind. What are your thoughts on i5 versus i7? Thank you for your help.

The Intel Core i5 I picked has more than enough power and cores to do all this. Basically the 13th Gen i5 is like the i9 10900k. This new wave of CPUs are really amazing. I don't think you will have any issues doing your productivity work as well as game at the same time.

[Frogrock]

3 minutes ago, PC HEROES said:

The Intel Core i5 I picked has more than enough power and cores to do all this. Basically the 13th Gen i5 is like the i9 10900k. This new wave of CPUs are really amazing. I don't think you will have any issues doing your productivity work as well as game at the same time.

Alright, good to know. Thanks.

[Queen Chrysalis]

5 hours ago, PC HEROES said:

The Intel Core i5 I picked has more than enough power and cores to do all this. Basically the 13th Gen i5 is like the i9 10900k.

It's significantly faster, actually.  At like, literally everything.  I don't know how they still manage to sell i7s.