First gaming desktop

A

Acerakis

Member
I wanted to buy my first gaming desktop, but I am just completely lost on where to even begin. I'm afraid of posting on the actual desktop help sections as they suggest you need to already have a good idea of what you are looking for, but I don't. I have no idea how to decide what I am supposed to be aiming for. I tried to just looking at the PCs by game section, but it's still completely over my head as to what those lists of parts would actually translate to how it would look.

Sorry, I am probably still posting this in the wrong section.
 
Ekans2011

Ekans2011

VALUED CONTRIBUTOR
Acerakis said:
I wanted to buy my first gaming desktop, but I am just completely lost on where to even begin. I'm afraid of posting on the actual desktop help sections as they suggest you need to already have a good idea of what you are looking for, but I don't. I have no idea how to decide what I am supposed to be aiming for. I tried to just looking at the PCs by game section, but it's still completely over my head as to what those lists of parts would actually translate to how it would look.

Sorry, I am probably still posting this in the wrong section.
Click to expand...
There is no reason to be afraid; there are plenty of wonderful people here. ;)

Please look into this and provide the essential details to receive the best advise for your needs.

Please read before posting:- Collaboration of Helpful Hints

NB: These forums are not an official support channel. None of us work for PCS, we're all either customers or techies who just like to help out where possible. For any official support, you need to contact PCS directly either through your PCS account, or via the contact details on the main...
www.pcspecialist.co.uk www.pcspecialist.co.uk
 
A

Acerakis

Member
Hello, I was hoping to buy my first gaming desktop but was feeling a bit lost. I will try to answer the required questions. I'm really not tech-savvy, so sorry for any mistakes I make.

Monitor: Well, I think the easiest option might be if just kept on with the TV that is already in my gaming setup. It is 1080p and correction: 60hz apparently.
https://www.sony.co.uk/electronics/support/televisions-projectors-lcd-tvs/kdl-32w5500/specifications
I would be open to getting a new monitor and budget wise spending up to £300.

Uses: Primarily gaming. This is where I am most lost on what I should actually be aiming for. I feel like bare minimum, I would be wanting something at least on par with my PS5. Would be used for other general household desktop stuff, but I doubt that is a major factor.

Budget: I think I would probably be aiming for something around £2000 but could go up to £3000 total including stuff like a new monitor.

So I had initially been looking at the 3 options listed as tailored for Cyberpunk 2077, as putting things in terms of how good that would look compared to it on my PS5 I might understand.
£1570 https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z690-pc/9UY3w3sJcb/
£1911 https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/vcPKSyPP9T/
£2258 https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/vxcYFEvBTx/

So would the cheapest of the three, or something similar, be suitable if I was expecting something on par with my PS5 and continuing with my current 1080p/100hz tv? Or am I completely off the mark and that is notably better/worse than PS5.

One thing I was unsure of, all 3 had the wifi card set as NOT REQUIRED. Is that because it already has wifi from another component or because the expectation is stuff should be cabled for gaming? Because when we upgraded to fibre broadband, there were no ethernet ports on the hub, and we were told everything was just wifi these days, which I was dubious of but not really in a position to argue as it didn't come up until it had already been installed. I don't really play multiplayer games, so wifi only would be acceptable to me.

Thank you for your help.
 
Last edited:
A

Acerakis

Member

First gaming desktop

Hello, I was hoping to buy my first gaming desktop but was feeling a bit lost. I will try to answer the required questions. I'm really not tech-savvy, so sorry for any mistakes I make. Monitor: Well, I think the easiest option might be if just kept on with the TV that is already in my gaming...
www.pcspecialist.co.uk www.pcspecialist.co.uk

I posted.
 
SpyderTracks

SpyderTracks

We love you Ukraine
Acerakis said:
Hello, I was hoping to buy my first gaming desktop but was feeling a bit lost. I will try to answer the required questions. I'm really not tech-savvy, so sorry for any mistakes I make.

Monitor: Well, I think the easiest option might be if just kept on with the TV that is already in my gaming setup. It is 1080p and 100hz I believe.
https://www.sony.co.uk/electronics/support/televisions-projectors-lcd-tvs/kdl-32w5500/specifications
I would be open to getting a new monitor and budget wise spending up to £300.

Uses: Primarily gaming. This is where I am most lost on what I should actually be aiming for. I feel like bare minimum, I would be wanting something at least on par with my PS5. Would be used for other general household desktop stuff, but I doubt that is a major factor.

Budget: I think I would probably be aiming for something around £2000 but could go up to £3000 total including stuff like a new monitor.

So I had initially been looking at the 3 options listed as tailored for Cyberpunk 2077, as putting things in terms of how good that would look compared to it on my PS5 I might understand.
£1570 https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z690-pc/9UY3w3sJcb/
£1911 https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/vcPKSyPP9T/
£2258 https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/vxcYFEvBTx/

So would the cheapest of the three, or something similar, be suitable if I was expecting something on par with my PS5 and continuing with my current 1080p/100hz tv? Or am I completely off the mark and that is notably better/worse than PS5.

One thing I was unsure of, all 3 had the wifi card set as NOT REQUIRED. Is that because it already has wifi from another component or because the expectation is stuff should be cabled for gaming? Because when we upgraded to fibre broadband, there were no ethernet ports on the hub, and we were told everything was just wifi these days, which I was dubious of but not really in a position to argue as it didn't come up until it had already been installed. I don't really play multiplayer games, so wifi only would be acceptable to me.

Thank you for your help.
Click to expand...
That’s a 60Hz TV, it’s only high end OLEDs some of which are 120hz and normally only on 4k, other than that they’re all 60hz.

Ir wouldn’t be considered suitable for gaming as you’d be limited to 60fps at 1080p which is really poor these days, maybe 20 years ago

But with your budget you could get a top end ultrawide system including a monitor which would be a really rich experience
 
T

TonyCarter

VALUED CONTRIBUTOR
PCS really need to either get rid of those game-focused recommendations, or actually get them right...as neither of the AMD options is the optimal choice for gaming (that would be the 7800X3D).

PCS are probably going by the 'system requirements' that the game publisher releases, and then thinking xxx= 6 cores, so the yyy with 12 cores will be twice as fast.

If you're sticking to that 60Hz 1080p TV (the 100Hz marketing schpiel is just software doing frame insertion to make it smoother), then you stick to the lowest budget and get a 1080p AMD build for £1500-£1600.

If you're happy to spend £2000 on the PC, then we can go up to 1440p - assuming you're happy to go out and spend on a decent 1440p monitor.
 
A

Acerakis

Member
Does seem like a new monitor would be best then. Think for simplicity's sake, I would want one with speakers in it, so I can still use it for my PS5 and switch easily if possible.
 
SpyderTracks

SpyderTracks

We love you Ukraine
Acerakis said:
Does seem like a new monitor would be best then. Think for simplicity's sake, I would want one with speakers in it, so I can still use it for my PS5 and switch easily if possible.
Click to expand...
Monitor speakers are dire, best avoided, they're like 2 or 5 watt so sound attrocious.

That's aside from the fact that there are very few gaming monitors that include speakers for this exact reason.

An external pair of speakers would be a better option.
 
T

TonyCarter

VALUED CONTRIBUTOR
SpyderTracks said:
If you're going with 1440p, I'd highly recommend this monitor, it's an absolute steal at around £300, but be quick, these are insanely popular and will sell out fast

www.scan.co.uk

AOC Q27G3XMN/BK 27" Quad HD 180Hz Adaptive Sync Mini LED Gaming Monitor

Buy from Scan - 27" AOC Q27G3XMN/BK Gaming Monitor, MiniLED, 2560 x 1440, AdaptiveSync, 180Hz, 80M:1, 1000cd/m², HDR1000, DP/HDMI
www.scan.co.uk www.scan.co.uk
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Forgive my ignorance, but what’s so special about this VA version over the cheaper IPS version…is it the mini-LED backlighting & proper HDR?
www.scan.co.uk

AOC Q27G4X 27" Quad HD 180Hz Adaptive Sync Gaming Monitor

Buy from Scan - 27" AOC Q27G4X Gaming Monitor, IPS, 2560 x 1440, AdaptiveSync, 180Hz, 80M:1, 450cd/m², HDR400, DP/HDMI
www.scan.co.uk www.scan.co.uk
 
A

Acerakis

Member
Okay, so if I am getting a new monitor, and it sounded like three builds I posted first are wrong then I am not really sure what to be looking for in a build. In deals, I saw this, hope the link works okay as there didn't seem to be the usual 'post to forum' option for deals.

PCSPECIALIST - Configure the Vector Pro to your ideal requirements.

PCSpecialist is an award-winning manufacturer of high quality custom PCs & Laptops. Configure the Vector Pro to your ideal requirements.
www.pcspecialist.co.uk www.pcspecialist.co.uk

Or does anything else in deals look good? At least as a starting point to figure out what I am looking for.

PCSPECIALIST - Deals and offers on the latest custom-built PCs and Laptops

Browse our latest daily deals and offers on the latest custom-built PCs and Laptops. Offers available for a limited time only!
www.pcspecialist.co.uk www.pcspecialist.co.uk
 
Ekans2011

Ekans2011

VALUED CONTRIBUTOR
Acerakis said:
Okay, so if I am getting a new monitor, and it sounded like three builds I posted first are wrong then I am not really sure what to be looking for in a build. In deals, I saw this, hope the link works okay as there didn't seem to be the usual 'post to forum' option for deals.

PCSPECIALIST - Configure the Vector Pro to your ideal requirements.

PCSpecialist is an award-winning manufacturer of high quality custom PCs & Laptops. Configure the Vector Pro to your ideal requirements.
www.pcspecialist.co.uk www.pcspecialist.co.uk

Or does anything else in deals look good? At least as a starting point to figure out what I am looking for.

PCSPECIALIST - Deals and offers on the latest custom-built PCs and Laptops

Browse our latest daily deals and offers on the latest custom-built PCs and Laptops. Offers available for a limited time only!
www.pcspecialist.co.uk www.pcspecialist.co.uk
Click to expand...
Given a total budget of £3000, here is the top-tier build I would go to play in 1440p. :)

I would avoid pre-assemblies, which are often poorly designed platforms.

Case
CORSAIR iCUE 5000X RGB MID TOWER GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D Eight Core CPU (4.2GHz-5.0GHz/104MB w/3D V-CACHE/AM5)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING X670E-PLUS WIFI (AM5, DDR5, PCIe 5.0, Wi-Fi 6E)
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 6000MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
16GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 4070 Ti SUPER - HDMI, DP, LHR
Graphics Card Support Bracket
NONE (BRACKET INCLUDED AS STANDARD ON 4070 Ti / RX 7700 XT AND ABOVE)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB SOLIDIGM P44 PRO GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 7000MB/sR, 4700MB/sW)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SOLIDIGM P41+ GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 4125MB/sR, 3325MB/sW)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1200W RMx SHIFT SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR ICUE LINK H115i RGB HIGH PERFORMANCE CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
ONBOARD 2.5Gbe LAN PORT
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 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
Firefox™
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 4 to 6 working days
Price: £2,453.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/ThztJyNDfH/
 
Scott

Scott

Behold The Ford Mondeo
Moderator
Above is exactly what I would have recommended, the only slight thing for aesthetics that I would consider would be the H150i over the H115i. This is because the H150i is 360mm and has the same looking 3 fan setup as the case itself.

Paired with a good monitor and a small set of speakers it would be an epic gaming build. You'll notice the difference with your PS5 on that monitor as well.
 
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