Gaming and Photoshop

[Solvipants]

Hi guys,
I'm looking to get a desktop built for photo editing with Photoshop, but also for gaming. The main game at the moment is No Man's Sky.
I need a lot of storage for the editing side and want things to run really smoothly and be slightly future proof.
I really have limited knowledge when it comes to the technical so any advice on a build would be really appreciated. I will also need a second better monitor for the editing side but can utilise my old monitor as a second screen.
Budget is £800-£1200 with a bit of wiggle room if it will hugely improve the system.

Thanks in advance

Solvi

 

[Solvipants]

Hi all,

I need help making a system for editing of static images on photoshop and gaming. The main game I play at the moment is No Man's Sky.
This is what I've played with but it's over budget I was hoping for closer to £1500, but I've no idea what I'm doing or what is important and all the options and numbers are just gibberish to me.

Case
COOLERMASTER MASTERBOX TD500 MESH ARGB GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i7 12-Core Processor i7-12700K (3.6GHz) 25MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING Z690-PLUS WIFI D4 (LGA1700, USB 3.2, PCIe 5.0) - ARGB Ready
Memory (RAM)
64GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2666MHz (4 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
12GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 2060 - HDMI, DP - VR Ready!
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB INTEL® 670p M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 3500MB/sR | 2500MB/sW)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 3300MB/W)
External DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
8x Slim USB 2.0 External DVD-RW
Power Supply
CORSAIR 650W RM SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Corsair iCUE H150i RGB PRO XT 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
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 [KUK-00003]
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
Microsoft® Edge
Monitor
IIYAMA ProLite B2791QSU-B1 27" WQHD
Monitor Cables
1 x 2 METRE DVI-D CABLE
Keyboard & Mouse
ASUS TUF K1 Gaming Keyboard & M3 Mouse Bundle
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 7 working days
Price: £2,370.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z690-pc/jgJ5CUrDPZ/

 

[Salmon Fisher]

This is my take on this.
Case
COOLERMASTER MASTERBOX TD500 MESH ARGB GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 10-Core Processor i5-12600K (3.7GHz) 20MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING Z690-PLUS WIFI D4 (LGA1700, USB 3.2, PCIe 5.0) - ARGB Ready
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
8GB AMD RADEON™ RX 6600 - HDMI, DP - DX® 12
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB INTEL® 670p M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 3500MB/sR | 2500MB/sW)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 3300MB/W)
External DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
8x Slim USB 2.0 External DVD-RW
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W TXm SERIES™ SEMI-MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Corsair iCUE H150i RGB PRO XT 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
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 [KUK-00003]
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
Microsoft® Edge
Monitor
IIYAMA ProLite B2791QSU-B1 27" WQHD
Monitor Cables
1 x 2 METRE DVI-D CABLE
Keyboard & Mouse
ASUS TUF K1 Gaming Keyboard & M3 Mouse Bundle
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 7 working days
Price: £2,139.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z690-pc/f2xu59cgHF/

 

[Solvipants]

This is my take on this.
Case
COOLERMASTER MASTERBOX TD500 MESH ARGB GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 10-Core Processor i5-12600K (3.7GHz) 20MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING Z690-PLUS WIFI D4 (LGA1700, USB 3.2, PCIe 5.0) - ARGB Ready
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
8GB AMD RADEON™ RX 6600 - HDMI, DP - DX® 12
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB INTEL® 670p M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 3500MB/sR | 2500MB/sW)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 3300MB/W)
External DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
8x Slim USB 2.0 External DVD-RW
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W TXm SERIES™ SEMI-MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Corsair iCUE H150i RGB PRO XT 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
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 [KUK-00003]
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
Microsoft® Edge
Monitor
IIYAMA ProLite B2791QSU-B1 27" WQHD
Monitor Cables
1 x 2 METRE DVI-D CABLE
Keyboard & Mouse
ASUS TUF K1 Gaming Keyboard & M3 Mouse Bundle
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 7 working days
Price: £2,139.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z690-pc/f2xu59cgHF/

Thank you for that, that’s still quite over budget, so you think that is a necessary sec or can I dumb it down a bit?

 

[AgentCooper]

Thank you for that, that’s still quite over budget, so you think that is a necessary sec or can I dumb it down a bit?

I think the issue here is that you’re going to struggle to get a decent 1440p system with a budget of around £1500, especially when you’re factoring the monitor and peripherals as part of that budget.

1080p is probably achievable but isn’t the ideal resolution for photo editing or gaming.

 

[sck451]

This is a tricky budget to aim for, if you want a 1440p display as part of it! I think it's probably impossible to hit properly. There will be some compromise in the system. You have three choices:

1. Go for a 1080p display.
2. Have a 1440p display and a graphics card that's weaker than is ideal, therefore requiring low quality settings.
3. Up the budget.

I think it depends on the priorities. Presuming (3) is not an option, you need to ask whether the photo editing or the gaming is more important. If it's photo editing, go for 1440p and accept that your system will be underpowered for gaming, and that you'll therefore have to run at lower quality settings (or even at a lower resolution than your display's native). If gaming is the higher priority, get a 1080p display, even though this isn't ideal for photo editing.

Here's a spec that would work for either case; the only decision is what monitor to buy. If you're going 1080p, the cost is under £200 (e.g. AOC 24G2U). If it's to be 1440p, the cost is around £300 (e.g. Dell S2721DGF).

Case
LIAN LI LANCOOL 215 GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 Six Core Processor i5-12400F (2.5GHz) 18MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B660-PLUS WIFI D4: ATX, LGA1700, USB 3.2, SATA 6GBs - ARGB Ready
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
8GB AMD RADEON™ RX 6600 - HDMI, DP - DX® 12
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB INTEL® 670p M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 3500MB/sR | 2500MB/sW)
External DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
8x Slim USB 2.0 External DVD-RW
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
AKASA AK-CC6606BP01 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
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 [KK3-00027]
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
Microsoft® Edge
Keyboard & Mouse
ASUS TUF K1 Gaming Keyboard & M3 Mouse Bundle
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 7 working days
Price: £1,349.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z690-pc/BY6vU0gb0r/

 

[Solvipants]

Thank you all for your comments, this is exactly the kind of information I needed to know where I stand budget Vs performance wise. Time to raid the piggy bank I think x