First Gaming PC Advice

[CamHea]

Case : CORSAIR CRYSTAL SERIES 570X RGB GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU) : AMD Ryzen 7 3800X Eight Core CPU (3.9GHz-4.5GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard : ASUS® TUF X570-PLUS GAMING (USB 3.2 Gen 2, PCIe 4.0, CrossFireX) - ARGB Ready!
Memory RAM : 16GB Corsair VENGEANCE RGB PRO DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card : 6GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 2060 - HDMI, DP - VR Ready!
1st Storage Device : 500GB SEAGATE BARRACUDA 120 2.5" SSD, (up to 560MB/sR | 540MB/sW)
2nd Storage Device : 1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive : NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply : CORSAIR 450W CV SERIESTM CV-450 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable : 1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling : Corsair H80i V2 Hydro Series High Performance CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste : ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND
LED Lighting : 50cm Blue LED Strip
Extra Case Fans : 3x Corsair LL120 RGB LED Fan + Controller Kit
Sound Card : ASUS STRIX Soar 7.1 PCIe sound card
Network Card : 10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
Wireless Network Card : ASUS PCE-AX58BT Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) 2400Mbps/5GHz, 600Mbps/2.4GHz
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 : BullGuardTM Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode Google ChromeTM
Monitor : ASUS TUF GAMING VG259Q 24" IPS

This is what I’ve come up with for a 2k budget. With my limited knowledge, I hope this spec is well rounded and a good setup + with Black Friday just around the corner, if I can get better equipment at the same kind of price I’d prefer that rather than extra savings if anything I’d order is included in the sales. I am looking to order for Xmas delivery, any advice from the community / PC Specialist would be much appreciated.

One thing I’d like to know is, looking to the future, is the setup I’ve chosen good for upgrading. Up until now I’ve had a basic laptop which barely runs Football Manager now and is 7 years old. Please note I already have a keyboard and mouse which I’m happy with atm.

• I did get this message with my quote: Please note that as this monitor only supports a full size DP connection you may, dependant on Graphics card choice, need to order a mDP to DP monitor cable. Can anyone advise if I will need the extra cable please.
• 
  Many Thanks in advance and everyone stay safe.
• 
  

 

[CamHea]

You can ignore the mDP to DP message...it isn't relevant with the specs chosen

Black Friday: PCS don't offer any large discounts etc for Black Friday (I made the mistake of assuming they did recently and was told they don't)...they simply offer the lowest prices possible all year round.

I'd be aiming for a much higher graphics level as you have chosen a 1080p system whereas we can get a 1440p system for your budget. If you can stretch the budget a bit, this would be an excellent system which will cope excellently with anything you can throw at it gaming-wise...we can adjust if your budget can't be stretched quite that far:
Case
CORSAIR CRYSTAL SERIES 570X RGB GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X Eight Core CPU (3.8GHz-4.7GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF X570-PLUS GAMING (USB 3.2 Gen 2, PCIe 4.0, CrossFireX) - ARGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3070 - HDMI, DP
1st Storage Drive
1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (2000 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Corsair H100i RGB PLATINUM Hydro Series 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
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
Firefox™
Monitor
IIYAMA G-MASTER GB2760QSU-B1 27"
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
TIMED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND - MON-FRI (BEFORE 2PM)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 13 to 15 working days
Price: £2,154.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/kEF9UFZTR0/

Hi,

I saw the below link about BF and thought maybe there could be discounts and it would be worth waiting, but from what you say this may not be the case.

PCSPECIALIST - Black Friday Deals 2025

See our Black Friday Deals for 2025 including a range of selected Gaming PCs, Laptops and much more. Don't miss out on our Black Friday Deals!

www.pcspecialist.co.uk

I set myself a £2k max budget, but if the specs are a lot higher and worth it, I may have to think again!

I went for a more expensive wireless adapter because early next month BT are installing gigabit BB in my property and with the much higher speeds ect I wasn’t sure which wireless adapter to pick tbh, will the intel one be sufficient?

Also, are the extra case fans not really required then, I just put them in as I wasn’t sure. Same really with the dearer 7.1 sound card and SSD, is M.2 the way to go then... had no idea and so just put SSD as 1st device as I heard they are faster.
Thank you for the tips

 

[skewball]

I personally would not bother with a HDD at all now. I recently got a reasonably high spec pc with 1tb of M2 but also 3tb HDD for storage. but I wish I had pushed the boat out a bit for 2tb SSD to go with the M2. (And just use an external HDD if need more). The reason being it's surprising how often the PC decides it needs to 'look' at the HDD (usually when searching for a file or using software that might by using the HDD) and then you get a bit of a delay as you hear the HDD whir into action... It just makes the PC feel a bit old fashioned..!!

 

[SpyderTracks]

I personally would not bother with a HDD at all now. I recently got a reasonably high spec pc with 1tb of M2 but also 3tb HDD for storage. but I wish I had pushed the boat out a bit for 2tb SSD to go with the M2. (And just use an external HDD if need more). The reason being it's surprising how often the PC decides it needs to 'look' at the HDD (usually when searching for a file or using software that might by using the HDD) and then you get a bit of a delay as you hear the HDD whir into action... It just makes the PC feel a bit old fashioned..!!

So long as you understand the caveats of SSD vs HDD, there is a reason they're still chosen as data drives.

An SSD catastrophically fails, there is no warning at all, it works fine one second and is gone the next and it's the whole drive that fails, not one portion.

An HDD will degrade sector by sector, so you usually have a month or more to swap it out for a replacement.

 

[AgentCooper]

Yep, I keep some backups on a HDD. As well as media, seeing as it gets no benefit from being on an SSD.

And maybe I’m just getting old but there’s something slightly comforting about the scratch and whir of a HDD drive 😀