Christmas build - entry level gaming PC for the wife!

[thall320578]

The wife has been using a desktop that I pieced together for her a while ago. A second hand Dell OptiPlex with the original Core2 Duo in it, 6gb or Corsair XMS that I had left over from an old decommissioned system, a Radeon HD 6970 that I also had laying around that I had to "trim" the cooling shroud to get to fit into the Dell case... and a 300gb spinner hard drive. She's at home most of the day, cannot work because of her disability, and she starting to get into some gaming and the hardware is starting to show it's limitations...

 

Although I could just update my FX 8350 rig to a newer gen setup and pass the 8350 setup to her and it would be MORE than adequate for her needs, I'd rather just build a new Ryzen setup for her and later update my rig (I would like to go the route of Threadripper for my rig but I may end up settling for Ryzen 7). She doesn't need anything super outrageous, just something more current. So here's my current Newegg parts list.

 

Asrock AB350 Pro4

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157761

Ryzen 3 1200

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819113446

Asus GTX 1050ti

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814126172

8gb (2x4gb) Ballistix Sport LT

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820156082

525gb Crucial MX300 M.2

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIAEM96656212

Corsair CX550M PSU

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139147

Wrapping it all in a DIYPC Jax12-W white case

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811353131

 

 

I've never used Asrock products but I do read good things about their motherboards. This would be my first Ryzen build so I'm excited to play with that. I've been on the ATI bandwagon for a few years, hints the HD 6970 I put in the Dell and the RX 480 in my rig, but I feel the 1050ti is a good middle ground when it comes to price/performance ratio right now, and I'm a long time fan of Asus products. I've never played with Ballistx memory before but they seem to have decent reviews, and Amazon reviews show this set as playing nice with Ryzen, and I think that 8gb will be plenty for her. Actually hard to find a 2x4gb DDR4 set with white head spreaders to try and keep with the aesthetic theme of the system... I've been rocking a 1tb Crucial SATA SSD in my rig for a little over a year now and have never had a single issue, so I have no fears of going with Crucial for the storage on her rig. 525gb should be plenty, she doesn't need all the 1tb that I have. This would also be my fist time playing with M.2 storage so that'll be fun. I'm a huge fan of Corsair power supplies, I have 750 watt CX in my rig, so as long as 550 watt would be enough for this build then I have no hesitations on going with it. And I also have no experience with the DIYPC line of cases. I've always stuck with Coolermaster or Antec, I'm hoping the build quality is at least somewhat to those standards, but it is a budget case so I have to lower my expectations a little  Aside from that, I'll be swapping the 120mm fans out for some Corsair ones with purple LED's (she has Cystic Fibrosis, the awareness color is purple, thus the reasoning behind that move; a subtle but obvious choice) and I'm also throwing some RGB LED strips in it for a little more flare.

 

The setup leaves TONS of room for upgrades, so if she gets into anything more demanding there's room to grow.

 

All in all, does anyone have any input on the parts list, good or bad, suggestions or thoughts?

 

Thanks!

[sallamby]

the only thing I would consider is trying to squeeze a 1060 3gb in because its a considerable jump in performance from the 1050ti and doesnt cost much more

[Orochimario]

is a ssd necessary at that price range? anyway great build

[TraskJ]

1 minute ago, Orochimario said:

is a ssd necessary at that price range? anyway great build

I say the SSD is a must in this day and age. One that size? Maybe not, but hey, it's OP's money. 

5 minutes ago, sallamby said:

the only thing I would consider is trying to squeeze a 1060 3gb in because its a considerable jump in performance from the 1050ti and doesnt cost much more

Agree. OR you could save that extra cash and spend it on that potential upgrade down the line for more demanding games, or, if you don't need the upgrade, trick out the PC with some sick peripherals and RGB. Best of luck with the build! 

[thall320578]

So jumping from a 1050ti @ $170 to a 1060 @ $220 would be a good noticeable difference? It's been a long time since I've went team green, and have NEVER had any of the 10 series cards. Review videos will only tell you so much, real world experience is always better in my opinion, thus why I'm asking you guys  

 

This would be my other choice. Sticking with Asus, the Dual series 1060 3gb, mainly this one for the aesthetics again with the white shroud so it fits into the overall look.

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814126133

[kevdotcom]

According to pretty much all benchmarks and comparisons I saw, a 1060 is quite a big jump compared to the 1050ti. 

 

Defnitely worth the added cost. I will buy one soon.

[thall320578]

Very good to know, thanks!

 

And yes an SSD is a must. I put a 256gb in her laptop and there's no going back lol

[thall320578]

Well I ordered everything last Wednesday, Newegg says everything should be here this Tuesday and Wednesday (two separate packages...). Then I've got $70 worth of mail in rebates to play with. 'Tis the season!

 

Will update with some progress photos as parts roll in. I told the wife a while back that someone at work wanted me to build a gaming PC for their daughter for Christmas and I think I've got her convinced on that lol, so as parts roll in and she sees purple LED lit fans she shouldn't get suspicious. I'm pretty sure she's buying it, we'll see. I'm going to have her do most of the assembly too

[thall320578]

And we've got a shipment already Motherboard, CPU, GPU, PSU, RAM, SSD, fans, RGB LED strips, and an optical drive showed up in a box today. Case and keyboard/mouse I also ordered for it should be in very soon. I see this PC coming together this weekend. Last decision I need to make is Windows 7 or Windows 10...

[thall320578]

and the obligatory "parts spread out" photo

 

[thall320578]

Last packages arrived today. The Coolermaster keyboard/mouse combo and the DIYPC case

 

 

 

 

The one thing I was worried about, the case quality, is eh, so-so, but it is a pretty low budget case at a whopping $30, so I didn't set my expectations super high anyhow, but it will fit the needs perfect. She burns DVD's and CD's for her mother quite often, thus the need for the optical drive, and the need for a case that has the front 5.25 bay. It is all steel construction, pretty thin steel, but I suppose I'm just use to working on my heavyweight Antec 902 case I may end up applying some sort of sound deadening to the inside of the top and side panels if it makes too much noise. The front is all plastic of course. And I've GOT to ditch the cheapo plastic thumb screws that hold the side panels on... I mean really, how much could have actual METAL thumb screws cost to throw in... Luckily I have some of those laying around And forget about tooless installing anything lol. But all in all at first glance right now, I'm rather impressed for just $30

 

 

 

 

[thall320578]

Everything got thrown together last night! No hitches during assembly. I popped the shroud off the stock Ryzen cooler and rotated the fan 90 degrees because it struck an OCD nerve and wanted it facing right side up... Also ditched the thermal paste it came with and applied some Arctic Silver 5. Was able to easily route and hide all the cables and wires accept for the 8 pin CPU/motherboard connector. Would have been much cleaner if the case had a larger hole up at the top of the motherboard tray so I could keep it behind the motherboard, but I was able to hide it for the most part between the rear exhaust fan and IO shield. The only few last cosmetic mods I plan to do is put some black vinyl wrap on the inside of the other side panel so it's white doesn't show threw the openings in the black internal structure, and also see what it looks like if I use the same black vinyl wrap to cover the rear housing of the optical drive because it looks absolutely hideous, sticking out like a sore thumb right now through the side panel window... Don't know if I want to do white or black on it though; maybe get both colors and hold them up and see how they look. The side of it may be a good spot for some stickers of some sort  But overall I think it's a pretty clean looking build! Haven't even powered it up since I got it all together lol so this weekend I'll get it fired up and load an OS on it and some programs, then put it back in the case box where it'll sit until Christmas  unless I get antsy and give it to her for an early gift lol

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[thall320578]

Well it's certainly purple! (despite the photos making it look pink...)

 

Keep in mind the clear plastic is still on the side window. I wont rob her of that pleasure of removing it

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Luckily the LED's can be dimmed lol As a need side effect of the LED's dimming via PWM, the fan blades become visible while in motion

 

 

 

 

 

 

This baby is pretty peppy too. I thought my FX 8350 and SSD was quick. This thing boots to the Windows 10 Pro desktop before the monitor turns on that I'm using for setup lol. I think it's going to work out great for her

[thall320578]

Made a shroud yesterday for the optical drive. Looks MUCH better than bare aluminum... Used some white plastic that I had laying around, worked perfect. I attempted to make a similar shroud/backplate for the 1060 but it turned out terrible looking lol

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Also made a quick DIY magnetic mount for the LED remote with a little round magnet, a rubber cushion, and some double sided tape. Will let her keep the remote nearby attached to the case wherever she wants to put it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[thall320578]

Well I couldn't help myself... I jumped the gun and gave her the PC early... Didn't think I'd be able to keep it under wraps for another 2 weeks lol

 

Stepped the clock speed up to 3.7ghz and she's still cool, quiet, and stable. Not going to push it too much further on the stock cooler.

 

She's super happy and excited, which makes me happy. I'd say it was a success!

 

Birthday coming up, might get her a larger monitor lol

 

 

[lukart]

Good job! love that black and white theme,,,

[thall320578]

8 hours ago, lukart said:

Good job! love that black and white theme,,,

 

thanks

 

first time building a white PC since the late 90's LMAO I've always been partial to black for custom builds