PC Newbie needing help buying a Gaming PC for teenage son

[SteMcKay]

Hey guys,

Would really appreciate some help please in purchasing a gaming PC for my 13 year old son.

We have agreed to get him a PC (well actually him donating me his Xbox Series X in return for me buying him a gaming PC)

I have no idea when it comes to PC's. I have a very basic understanding.

I have been going back and forth on myself for the last 2 weeks now trying to understand the differences between all components. My main concern is spending a large amount of cash and not getting my moneys worth as I don't fully understand what is what and the difference between graphic cards etc etc...

He has been sending me all sorts of links and I've been trying to get to grasps with it, he doesn't fully understand it all either but probably a bit more knowledgable than myself.

He wants to play the likes of CS Go, Call of Duty, Minecraft, Fortnight, Rainbow Six etc on high settings.

I was looking at a few different options and initially had a budget of around £1200, but after looking on this forum briefly have saw some setups for around £1500 which I'd happily go up to if it means I'm getting the best for my money and once he learns more he can upgrade in the future.

He's not fussed on 4k at the moment but I personally think it would be wise to consider the option in the near future.

He's buying his own monitor out of his Xmas money so looking at getting something that can take out the box and play without too much fiddling.

Really appreciate any help guys, I'm literally at the end of my tethers with looking into what's what!

Budget - Around £1500
Main uses - High End gaming, CS Go, Call of Duty, Minecraft etc...
Secondary uses - School work

No monitor in the budget, but would take advice on best monitor for the builds recommended to me.
Monitor budget - £300 of his own money but can add a little more to it if needed)

4k Prepped for future use would be ideal but it's not essential as lad isn't overly fussed about 4k

 

[Citrus_9]

Hey guys,

Would really appreciate some help please in purchasing a gaming PC for my 13 year old son.

We have agreed to get him a PC (well actually him donating me his Xbox Series X in return for me buying him a gaming PC)

I have no idea when it comes to PC's. I have a very basic understanding.

I have been going back and forth on myself for the last 2 weeks now trying to understand the differences between all components. My main concern is spending a large amount of cash and not getting my moneys worth as I don't fully understand what is what and the difference between graphic cards etc etc...

He has been sending me all sorts of links and I've been trying to get to grasps with it, he doesn't fully understand it all either but probably a bit more knowledgable than myself.

He wants to play the likes of CS Go, Call of Duty, Minecraft, Fortnight, Rainbow Six etc on high settings.

I was looking at a few different options and initially had a budget of around £1200, but after looking on this forum briefly have saw some setups for around £1500 which I'd happily go up to if it means I'm getting the best for my money and once he learns more he can upgrade in the future.

He's not fussed on 4k at the moment but I personally think it would be wise to consider the option in the near future.

He's buying his own monitor out of his Xmas money so looking at getting something that can take out the box and play without too much fiddling.

Really appreciate any help guys, I'm literally at the end of my tethers with looking into what's what!

Hi Do you have a monitor if yes, what's the monitor size, resolution and refresh rate? If you don't have a monitor, what you'd be looking to buy? Would monitor be included in the above budget or that is just for a PC tower?

 

[SteMcKay]

Thanks for replying.

No monitor yet and not included in the budget above. He's going to buy that himself, main concern is getting the main bit then the monitor after but would love advice on the monitor separately, think his budget will be £300 but I'd happily add a little to that too if means getting the right monitor to match the build.

 

[Resistance100]

Case
CORSAIR iCUE 220T RGB AIRFLOW MID TOWER GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X Six Core CPU (3.7GHz-4.6GHz/35MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B550-PLUS (DDR4, USB 3.2, 6Gb/s) - ARGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3060 Ti - HDMI, DP
1st Storage Drive
2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (2000 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RM SERIES™ 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)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
Wireless Network Card
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 [KUK-00001]
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 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
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 15 to 18 working days
Price: £1,486.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/724Ma!cFJB/

Will run great at 1440p 144htz and you can get a Samsung G5 for around £300 at the moment.

Plenty of room for upgrades in the future as well (as well as supporting more powerful GPU's if you ever go the 4K route in the future)

Samsung G5

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/9430066?istCompanyId=a74d8886-5df9-4baa-b776-166b3bf9111c&istFeedId=c290d9a9-b5d6-423c-841d-2a559621874c&istItemId=iatwawmql&istBid=t&&cmpid=GS001&_$ja=tsid:59157%7cacid:804-627-9544%7ccid:9596128022%7cagid:97868754454%7ctid:aud-641224040817:pla-1175093722074%7ccrid:424831971331%7cnw:g%7crnd:5859691220057592977%7cdvc:c%7cadp:%7cmt:%7cloc:9045334&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=9596128022&utm_term=9430066&utm_content=shopping&utm_custom1=97868754454&utm_custom2=804-627-9544&gclid=CjwKCAiA65iBBhB-EiwAW253W4NyAYLvHAVfAwxzWbR8TD_AWPxx8cNj6V0KDYMc6TMvmUHRf1eyqBoCbSsQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[SteMcKay]

Case
CORSAIR iCUE 220T RGB AIRFLOW MID TOWER GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X Six Core CPU (3.7GHz-4.6GHz/35MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B550-PLUS (DDR4, USB 3.2, 6Gb/s) - ARGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3060 Ti - HDMI, DP
1st Storage Drive
2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (2000 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RM SERIES™ 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)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
Wireless Network Card
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 [KUK-00001]
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 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
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 15 to 18 working days
Price: £1,486.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/724Ma!cFJB/

Will run great at 1440p 144htz and you can get a Samsung G5 for around £300 at the moment.

Plenty of room for upgrades in the future as well (as well as supporting more powerful GPU's if you ever go the 4K route in the future)

Really appreciate this. A lot of the stuff in here is popping out to me as looked over so much, but a lot does't make too much sense to me haha

Just confused on what's best and what matches what.

Ideally this is what I was looking for, someone to recommend the best for my budget.

I'll get my lad to look over these specs too.

Any idea what the pre order status is on the graphic card? says pre order only at the moment. I know there is a lot of stock issues currently.

 

[Resistance100]

Really appreciate this. A lot of the stuff in here is popping out to me as looked over so much, but a lot does't make too much sense to me haha

Just confused on what's best and what matches what.

Ideally this is what I was looking for, someone to recommend the best for my budget.

I'll get my lad to look over these specs too.

Any idea what the pre order status is on the graphic card? says pre order only at the moment. I know there is a lot of stock issues currently.

The 3060ti wait doesn't seem to be as long as the other RTX cards. A number of people on hear recently have got theres within 20-30 working days.

The pre-order just means PCS can't guarantee the timeframe atm due to the stock issues. However its better to wait a bit longer and get it right Especially with just a couple of GPU upgrades over the years this PC will last 7-10 years

 

[Citrus_9]

Really appreciate this. A lot of the stuff in here is popping out to me as looked over so much, but a lot does't make too much sense to me haha

Just confused on what's best and what matches what.

Ideally this is what I was looking for, someone to recommend the best for my budget.

I'll get my lad to look over these specs too.

Any idea what the pre order status is on the graphic card? says pre order only at the moment. I know there is a lot of stock issues currently.

I think Resistance100 did a nice job here - it's a very well balanced PC build for 1440p monitor. And the one recommended (Samsung G5) is really a good price for performance monitor - not embracing to have and worth the money.

 

[SteMcKay]

So showed my lad the link created above, he's got near identical or very similar himself.

He has said though that he was looking at the 3070 graphics card instead of the 3060.

Will this make much of a difference? Is it worthwhile getting the 3070 now?

Is the 3070 compatible with the rest of the setup on that link?

Sorry I know these are very basic questions, but I really don't know and just want to make sure that I get it right first time. Thanks

 

[Citrus_9]

So showed my lad the link created above, he's got near identical or very similar himself.

He has said though that he was looking at the 3070 graphics card instead of the 3060.

Will this make much of a difference? Is it worthwhile getting the 3070 now?

Is the 3070 compatible with the rest of the setup on that link?

Sorry I know these are very basic questions, but I really don't know and just want to make sure that I get it right first time. Thanks

3070 is more for ultrawide monitors, not worth the money for 1440p monitor. And your's speced not 3060, but 3060Ti (yes, they're very different. 3060 is for 1080p monitor and not yet released, will be after a few weeks)

 

[Martinr36]

Case
CORSAIR iCUE 220T RGB AIRFLOW MID TOWER GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X Six Core CPU (3.7GHz-4.6GHz/35MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B550-PLUS (DDR4, USB 3.2, 6Gb/s) - ARGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3060 Ti - HDMI, DP
1st Storage Drive
2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (2000 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RM SERIES™ 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)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
Wireless Network Card
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 [KUK-00001]
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 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
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 15 to 18 working days
Price: £1,486.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/724Ma!cFJB/

Will run great at 1440p 144htz and you can get a Samsung G5 for around £300 at the moment.

Plenty of room for upgrades in the future as well (as well as supporting more powerful GPU's if you ever go the 4K route in the future)

Samsung G5

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/9430066?istCompanyId=a74d8886-5df9-4baa-b776-166b3bf9111c&istFeedId=c290d9a9-b5d6-423c-841d-2a559621874c&istItemId=iatwawmql&istBid=t&&cmpid=GS001&_$ja=tsid:59157%7cacid:804-627-9544%7ccid:9596128022%7cagid:97868754454%7ctid:aud-641224040817:pla-1175093722074%7ccrid:424831971331%7cnw:g%7crnd:5859691220057592977%7cdvc:c%7cadp:%7cmt:%7cloc:9045334&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=9596128022&utm_term=9430066&utm_content=shopping&utm_custom1=97868754454&utm_custom2=804-627-9544&gclid=CjwKCAiA65iBBhB-EiwAW253W4NyAYLvHAVfAwxzWbR8TD_AWPxx8cNj6V0KDYMc6TMvmUHRf1eyqBoCbSsQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Good choice of monitor recommendation @Resistance100

 

[SteMcKay]

3070 is more for ultrawide monitors, not worth the money for 1440p monitor. And your's speced not 3060, but 3060Ti (yes, they're very different. 3060 is for 1080p monitor and not yet released, will be after a few weeks)

Absolute legend mate!

Will pass this onto my lad now and hopefully he agrees and I can finally get it purchased and be done with it all haha

 

[Resistance100]

So showed my lad the link created above, he's got near identical or very similar himself.

He has said though that he was looking at the 3070 graphics card instead of the 3060.

Will this make much of a difference? Is it worthwhile getting the 3070 now?

Is the 3070 compatible with the rest of the setup on that link?

Sorry I know these are very basic questions, but I really don't know and just want to make sure that I get it right first time. Thanks

That Set up will support pretty much any GPU for a long time to come

The 3070 is a more powerful GPU capable of 4k as well or maxing out 1440p completely. (i only use it at 1440p as found one at retail price and didn't want to risk a long wait, plus i use 2 monitors)

Big issue with the 3070 is stock with the configurator showing stock due in May and you can't order it atm it's also just over £100 more.

You can always order the PC without the GPU and try and source your own 3070 they appear at retail for around £600 every now and then (have to be quick) or resellers are selling them for £800ish.

TBH the 3060ti is more than good enough

 

[Resistance100]

Good choice of monitor recommendation @Resistance100

Someone has to pick up your slack

 

[SteMcKay]

That Set up will support pretty much any GPU for a long time to come

The 3070 is a more powerful GPU capable of 4k as well or maxing out 1440p completely. (i only use it at 1440p as found one at retail price and didn't want to risk a long wait, plus i use 2 monitors)

Big issue with the 3070 is stock with the configurator showing stock due in May and you can't order it atm it's also just over £100 more.

You can always order the PC without the GPU and try and source your own 3070 they appear at retail for around £600 every now and then (have to be quick) or resellers are selling them for £800ish.

TBH the 3060ti is more than good enough

Brilliant mate, really appreciate it.

Fully understood.

What is the wait like at the moment for the 3060ti?

I'm not bothered as just want the headache gone, but just so can give the lad a timeframe. I wasn't sure if @Resistance100 meant 20-30 days for that graphics card to come into stock?

 

[Citrus_9]

Brilliant mate, really appreciate it.

Fully understood.

What is the wait like at the moment for the 3060ti?

I'm not bothered as just want the headache gone, but just so can give the lad a timeframe. I wasn't sure if @Resistance100 meant 20-30 days for that graphics card to come into stock?

Have a look this thread to have some idea of how long it takes with 3060Ti.

The Great RTX 3060ti Wait and Delivery Thread

Another 18 days to go for me if working to that rough timeline! Could be a little sooner, I had a delay where both cpu & gpu were available but the were held up by the case! But heck, don't let that get your hopes up just in case.

www.pcspecialist.co.uk

 

[Resistance100]

Brilliant mate, really appreciate it.

Fully understood.

What is the wait like at the moment for the 3060ti?

I'm not bothered as just want the headache gone, but just so can give the lad a timeframe. I wasn't sure if @Resistance100 meant 20-30 days for that graphics card to come into stock?

Once you place the order it has a working days count on how long its taken. Most 3060ti orders are taking between 20-30 working days Obviously thats not a guarantee at the moment with the stock issues

 

[SteMcKay]

Have a look this thread to have some idea of how long it takes with 3060Ti.

The Great RTX 3060ti Wait and Delivery Thread

Another 18 days to go for me if working to that rough timeline! Could be a little sooner, I had a delay where both cpu & gpu were available but the were held up by the case! But heck, don't let that get your hopes up just in case.

www.pcspecialist.co.uk

Thank you so much, having a read now.

 

[Martinr36]

Someone has to pick up your slack

Just be careful or the penguin gets it

 

[Citrus_9]

Once you place the order it has a working days count on how long its taken. Most 3060ti orders are taking between 20-30 working days Obviously thats not a guarantee at the moment with the stock issues

In this time people forget that they ordered and get a surprise to their home one day...

 

[SteMcKay]

Right, headache finally over with.

After weeks and weeks of trying to get my head around all of it. It took just 14 minutes from posting this to get the PC needed with a huge thanks to @Resistance100

Huge thanks to everyone for their input. PC ordered and paid for. Samsung G5 monitor just been purchased too and getting collected from Argos tomorrow. He can sit and stare at the monitor on his new gaming desk whilst he waits for the PC haha.

Thanks again guys, really saved me so many more sleepless nights!