First build... am I doing anything wrong?

[mattl64]

Hi, as it says above. My first pc after years of using a laptop, for gaming - not too heavy, I mostly play sim/strategy games, also some very basic editing but not a large amount. My budget is roughly the 900-1100 range but I don't mind going over.

Totally new to this so if I'm making stupid mistakes or missing something then please point me in the right direction, everything is helpful. Two places I know that I might be going wrong are power supply and cooling.

Thank you in advance!

Case
FRACTAL FOCUS G BLACK GAMING CASE (Window)
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 3600 Six Core CPU (3.6GHz-4.2GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® PRIME B450-PLUS (DDR4, USB 3.1, 6Gb/s) - RGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
6GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1660 - HDMI, DP - GeForce GTX VR Ready!
1st Storage Drive
500GB SEAGATE BARRACUDA 120 2.5" SSD, (up to 560MB/sR | 540MB/sW)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (2000 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 450W CV SERIES™ CV-450 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
PCS FrostFlow 100 V2 Series High Performance CPU Cooler (AMD)
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 2,400Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD + BT 5.0

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/tWBRKGbV0j/

 

[apersonwhoexists]

Upgrading to a 550W PSU will give you more clearance, and will make your system more efficient, as will as giving you some room for upgrades.

 

[Scott]

What monitor are you pairing the system with? The following takes you a bit of budget, but it has some good reason to. The Motherboard you have selected is not going to be compatible with the next gen of AMD chips unfortunately. The X570 and B550 are going to be what's needed going forward.

I've bumped up the GPU to the 1660 Super which is a good 1080p high refresh card. If you don't need 100+ FPS then you could save the money and opt for the 1650 Super instead.

Echo the thoughts on the PSU and also re-configured the storage a little.

Case
FRACTAL FOCUS G BLACK GAMING CASE (Window)
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 3600 Six Core CPU (3.6GHz-4.2GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF X570-PLUS GAMING (USB 3.2 Gen 2, PCIe 4.0, CrossFireX) - RGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
6GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1660 SUPER - HDMI, DP - GeForce GTX VR Ready!
1st Storage Drive
1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (2000 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply
CORSAIR 550W TXm SERIES™ SEMI-MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 2,400Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KK3-00002]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Google Chrome™
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 12 to 14 working days
Price: £1,155.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/SygDcampJ2/

 

[mattl64]

Thanks both for your responses, PSU and motherboard were both things I should've put more work into. I have an AOC Thanks both for your responses. Scott, my current monitor is an AOC e2770Sh but if this poses an issue then upgrading that is not a problem at all and I can easily find another use for the current one. Do you think this monitor will do?

Thanks again.

What monitor are you pairing the system with? The following takes you a bit of budget, but it has some good reason to. The Motherboard you have selected is not going to be compatible with the next gen of AMD chips unfortunately. The X570 and B550 are going to be what's needed going forward.

I've bumped up the GPU to the 1660 Super which is a good 1080p high refresh card. If you don't need 100+ FPS then you could save the money and opt for the 1650 Super instead.

Echo the thoughts on the PSU and also re-configured the storage a little.

Case
FRACTAL FOCUS G BLACK GAMING CASE (Window)
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 3600 Six Core CPU (3.6GHz-4.2GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF X570-PLUS GAMING (USB 3.2 Gen 2, PCIe 4.0, CrossFireX) - RGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
6GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1660 SUPER - HDMI, DP - GeForce GTX VR Ready!
1st Storage Drive
1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (2000 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply
CORSAIR 550W TXm SERIES™ SEMI-MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 2,400Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KK3-00002]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Google Chrome™
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 12 to 14 working days
Price: £1,155.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/SygDcampJ2/

 

[apersonwhoexists]

Upgrading to a 144Hz monitor will give you a lot better overall quality, and games will become much smoother (assuming you can reach around 144fps), however you could alternatively upgrade to a 1440p 60Hz monitor, or if you don't want to upgrade monitor until 4K gaming becomes the norm, then a 1440p 144Hz monitor should suit you. However it depends on your budget, and what you will be using it for. Sure its a great quality of life upgrade to change to a 144Hz or 1440p monitor, but a 1440p 144Hz monitor will set you back around £270+ and a 144Hz 1080p monitor will cost around £160+. Ultimately, it depends on what games you play and whether you have sufficient budget to upgrade both your monitor and the spec to make use of the improved monitor.

 

[Scott]

With that GPU you will want a 1080p 144hz monitor

 

[Vaio]

What monitor are you pairing the system with? The following takes you a bit of budget, but it has some good reason to. The Motherboard you have selected is not going to be compatible with the next gen of AMD chips unfortunately. The X570 and B550 are going to be what's needed going forward.

Hi Scott, Is the Ryzen 5 next gen? and is it okay to pair with B450 motherboard? would going for a higher spec motherboard only be useful if you're looking to upgrade CPU in a few years time?

 

[Scott]

Hi Scott, Is the Ryzen 5 next gen? and is it okay to pair with B450 motherboard? would going for a higher spec motherboard only be useful if you're looking to upgrade CPU in a few years time?

Ryzen 5 is the model number. We are currently on AMD 3000 Zen2, AMD 4000 Zen3 is coming out very soon and isn't supported on the B450 boards.

I strongly believe it's worth paying the extra now to get the X570. That way, you can upgrade the chip in a couple of years like you say. If you stuck with the B450 it would be a motherboard replacement which would be diminished returns.

 

[Vaio]

Ryzen 5 is the model number. We are currently on AMD 3000 Zen2, AMD 4000 Zen3 is coming out very soon and isn't supported on the B450 boards.

I strongly believe it's worth paying the extra now to get the X570. That way, you can upgrade the chip in a couple of years like you say. If you stuck with the B450 it would be a motherboard replacement which would be diminished returns.

I too have the ryzen 5 3600 and the ASUS B450 specced, but for future upgrading purposes and overall performance what one would you recommened? ASUS TUF x570 or the Gigabyte X570, I believe both are very similar in price.

 

[Scott]

I too have the ryzen 5 3600 and the ASUS B450 specced, but for future upgrading purposes and overall performance what one would you recommened? ASUS TUF x570 or the Gigabyte X570, I believe both are very similar in price.

Either is fine to be honest. The ASUS is often recommended as it's good value for money and the VRMs are good as stock. Gigabyte often used to be better value but it isn't any different in this instance.