Help - Advice for PC Build (Beginner to PC gaming)

[FocusOnPoint]

Hi, my budget is roughly £1000-1500 for a gaming PC, and £2,000 if I include monitors and other accessories. I'm also using it for video editing, though not as much. I want to play games like VRChat, Skyrim, Marvel Rivals, Dead by Daylight and GTA on high settings. I was wondering if this is a good PC to buy from Currys as a entry point. https://www.currys.co.uk/products/p...mtdqpkWQHJSytC1vkKQl2e6qjxnLFzHBoCSHoQAvD_BwE - It is a PCSPECIALIST PC, as I am not allowed to discuss other company PCs. Also, I was thinking of getting a tiny PC from the PCSpecialist website for portability and space, but I'm not sure how it compares to a full-rig gaming desktop...Perhaps the cooling is worse.

 

[Ekans2011]

Hi, my budget is roughly £1000-1500 for a gaming PC, and £2,000 if I include monitors and other accessories. I'm also using it for video editing, though not as much. I want to play games like VRChat, Skyrim, Marvel Rivals, Dead by Daylight and GTA on high settings. I was wondering if this is a good PC to buy from Currys as a entry point. https://www.currys.co.uk/products/p...mtdqpkWQHJSytC1vkKQl2e6qjxnLFzHBoCSHoQAvD_BwE - It is a PCSPECIALIST PC, as I am not allowed to discuss other company PCs. Also, I was thinking of getting a tiny PC from the PCSpecialist website for portability and space, but I'm not sure how it compares to a full-rig gaming desktop...Perhaps the cooling is worse.

Hello, I wouldn't recommend a prebuilt system (such as that Currys one) because they are usually poorly designed, not upgradeable and definetely not worth the money.

I'd also recommend waiting a few weeks because the new hardware will be announced at CES on January 6th, and you'll be able to get a better machine for the same or even lower price.

At current prices, a 1080p entry-level gaming PC would cost roughly £1700, around £2100 for 1440p and over £2600 for 4K.

 

[FocusOnPoint]

Oh, I wouldn't be able to upgrade it if I purchased that one from curry? I thought since it's a PCSPECIALIST PC I can perhaps do that and would be a good PC. Nonetheless, I definitely want to buy a PC that I can upgrade later on, so I appreciate the input. Would you be able to give me a build I can perhaps look into and buy for 1080 gaming and 1440p gaming.

 

[Ekans2011]

Oh, I wouldn't be able to upgrade it if I purchased that one from curry? I thought since it's a PCSPECIALIST PC I can perhaps do that and would be a good PC.

That Currys is not well designed at all: it's an outdated platform (AM4/DDR4) with a two-generation-old non-gaming CPU, a low-end GPU (lack of VRAM), and no essential information regarding the PSU or the case.

Nonetheless, I definitely want to buy a PC that I can upgrade later on, so I appreciate the input. Would you be able to give me a build I can perhaps look into and buy for 1080 gaming and 1440p gaming.

Yes, we can, but for £1500, you can get only a subpar 1080p gaming system with limited room for future upgrades.

At 1440p, the budget is insufficient for a decent rig.

 

[FocusOnPoint]

When you say limited room for future upgrades? What do you mean by that because Isn't it about the case you get for when you want to upgrade later on? I just really want to know my stuff before I get a gaming PC. Also on the currys website it says it runs the games on 154 FPS+ or is this misleading. Also, can you give me a build then for a 1080p gaming PC. When it comes to the cost is it because it is this high due to it being prebuilt then when if I built it myself, it would be much cheaper?

 

[TonyCarter]

Room for upgrades, e.g.:

• Old platform, so no possibility to put a newer/faster CPU in to refresh the system (maybe 5-7 years time)
• Low power/quality PSU, which means you won’t be able to put in a more powerful GPU in (every 2-3 years)
• Low level motherboard with fewer RAM slots, fewer USB headers, fewer M.2 slots

Claimed GPU performance of 154+fps in COD (at 1080p medium), when COD will give you 100fps on a potato as it‘s not a demanding game (same for Fortnite, GTAV, Rocket League, etc.), but the Curry's website also claims EXACTLY the same performance in heavy games like Cyberpunk, Hogwarts, Alan Wake 2, so I’m not sure I believe any of it (it might simply be broken, but the link to the UL benchmarking explanation goes nowhere either).

 

[Ekans2011]

When you say limited room for future upgrades? What do you mean by that because Isn't it about the case you get for when you want to upgrade later on? I just really want to know my stuff before I get a gaming PC. Also on the currys website it says it runs the games on 154 FPS+ or is this misleading. Also, can you give me a build then for a 1080p gaming PC. When it comes to the cost is it because it is this high due to it being prebuilt then when if I built it myself, it would be much cheaper?

Here's an example of a subpar, but still worthwhile, 1080p modern PC with some space for future upgrades.

A high-end 1080p gaming PC would need the 9800X3D (+£280), H115i Capellix XT (+£35), a suitable case for the 280mm AIO (5000D +£20), a 2TB M.2 for games (+£60), and a better PSU (1200W RMx SHIFT +£65).

Case
FRACTAL FOCUS 2 ARGB GAMING CASE (BLACK)
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 7700 Eight Core CPU (3.8GHz-5.3GHz/40MB CACHE/AM5)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B650-PLUS WIFI (AM5, DDR5, PCIe 4.0, Wi-Fi 6)
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 6000MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
12GB GIGABYTE RADEON™ RX 7700 XT GAMING OC - 2 x HDMI, 2 x DP
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
1TB SOLIDIGM P41+ GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 4125MB/sR, 2950MB/sW)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W RMe SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR H100x RGB ELITE 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
Wireless Network Card
NONE OR ONBOARD Wi-Fi (MOTHERBOARD DEPENDENT)
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
Christmas Delivery No Longer Guaranteed
Price: £1,553.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/Dp5E7mbhNY/

 

[TonyCarter]

But if you're happy that you'll be playing those sort of 'lighter' games, and are happy to replace the PC in 2-3 years time when you want to move up to 1440p or play 'heavier' games, then £899 does seem like good value for a 'throwaway PC' as nothing in it other than the SSD & Windows licence will be transferrable.

 

[FocusOnPoint]

Here's an example of a subpar, but still worthwhile, 1080p modern PC with some space for future upgrades.

A high-end 1080p gaming PC would need the 9800X3D (+£280), H115i Capellix XT (+£35), a suitable case for the 280mm AIO (5000D +£20), a 2TB M.2 for games (+£60), and a better PSU (1200W RMx SHIFT +£65).

Case
FRACTAL FOCUS 2 ARGB GAMING CASE (BLACK)
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 7700 Eight Core CPU (3.8GHz-5.3GHz/40MB CACHE/AM5)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B650-PLUS WIFI (AM5, DDR5, PCIe 4.0, Wi-Fi 6)
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 6000MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
12GB GIGABYTE RADEON™ RX 7700 XT GAMING OC - 2 x HDMI, 2 x DP
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
1TB SOLIDIGM P41+ GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 4125MB/sR, 2950MB/sW)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W RMe SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR H100x RGB ELITE 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
Wireless Network Card
NONE OR ONBOARD Wi-Fi (MOTHERBOARD DEPENDENT)
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
Christmas Delivery No Longer Guaranteed
Price: £1,553.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/Dp5E7mbhNY/

Thank you appreciate it, would the Corsair 4000d case mid be suitable for the 280mm AIO?

 

[FocusOnPoint]

Room for upgrades, e.g.:

• Old platform, so no possibility to put a newer/faster CPU in to refresh the system (maybe 5-7 years time)
• Low power/quality PSU, which means you won’t be able to put in a more powerful GPU in (every 2-3 years)
• Low level motherboard with fewer RAM slots, fewer USB headers, fewer M.2 slots

Claimed GPU performance of 154+fps in COD (at 1080p medium), when COD will give you 100fps on a potato as it‘s not a demanding game (same for Fortnite, GTAV, Rocket League, etc.), but the Curry's website also claims EXACTLY the same performance in heavy games like Cyberpunk, Hogwarts, Alan Wake 2, so I’m not sure I believe any of it (it might simply be broken, but the link to the UL benchmarking explanation goes nowhere either).

View attachment 43213View attachment 43214View attachment 43215View attachment 43216View attachment 43217View attachment 43218

Thank you, really appreciate your insight on this as it helps alot. Do you think this would be a better alternative: https://www.currys.co.uk/products/p...7600-1-tb-ssd-10254551.html?searchTerm=pcspec. Also I want to be able to run GTA 6 when it drops next year, will it be good for that or no?

 

[SpyderTracks]

Thank you appreciate it, would the Corsair 4000d case mid be suitable for the 280mm AIO?

If your budget has changed, let us know the new budget.

We would never recommend a pre-built as they're generally poorly designed and not upgradeable.

If you let us know a budget and what monitor you're pairing it with, we can recommend something.

 

[FocusOnPoint]

If your budget has changed, let us know the new budget.

We would never recommend a pre-built as they're generally poorly designed and not upgradeable.

If you let us know a budget and what monitor you're pairing it with, we can recommend something.

Hi, my budget is 2k just on the PC alone and spend extra money seperately on the monitor, looking to get some recommendations on what monitor I should get but I was thinking of the Samsung odyssey g5 Monitor. I am using it for gaming to play all sorts of games atleast 1080p high setting and will use it occasionally for video editing and streaming perhaps.

 

[Ekans2011]

Hi, my budget is 2k just on the PC alone and spend extra money seperately on the monitor, looking to get some recommendations on what monitor I should get but I was thinking of the Samsung odyssey g5 Monitor. I am using it for gaming to play all sorts of games atleast 1080p high setting and will use it occasionally for video editing and streaming perhaps.

With £2000, you can get a far superior build.

This is an example of a good 1080p gaming PC.

N.B. If you do not require USB4 or WiFi 7, you can save approximately £100 by dropping to the TUF B650 MB.

Case
CORSAIR 4000D RGB AIRFLOW TEMPERED GLASS GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Eight Core CPU (Up to 5.2GHz/104MB w/3D V-CACHE/AM5)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING X870-PLUS WIFI (AM5, DDR5, M.2 PCIe 5.0, Wi-Fi 7)
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 6000MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
12GB GIGABYTE RADEON™ RX 7700 XT GAMING OC - 2 x HDMI, 2 x DP
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
1TB SOLIDIGM P41+ GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 4125MB/sR, 2950MB/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 H115i ELITE CAPELLIX XT 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
Wireless Network Card
NONE OR ONBOARD Wi-Fi (MOTHERBOARD DEPENDENT)
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
Christmas Delivery No Longer Guaranteed
Price: £2,057.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/t8S8Yj3rMy/

 

[FocusOnPoint]

With £2000, you can get a far superior build.

This is an example of a good 1080p gaming PC.

N.B. If you do not require USB4 or WiFi 7, you can save approximately £100 by dropping to the TUF B650 MB.

Case
CORSAIR 4000D RGB AIRFLOW TEMPERED GLASS GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Eight Core CPU (Up to 5.2GHz/104MB w/3D V-CACHE/AM5)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING X870-PLUS WIFI (AM5, DDR5, M.2 PCIe 5.0, Wi-Fi 7)
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 6000MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
12GB GIGABYTE RADEON™ RX 7700 XT GAMING OC - 2 x HDMI, 2 x DP
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
1TB SOLIDIGM P41+ GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 4125MB/sR, 2950MB/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 H115i ELITE CAPELLIX XT 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
Wireless Network Card
NONE OR ONBOARD Wi-Fi (MOTHERBOARD DEPENDENT)
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
Christmas Delivery No Longer Guaranteed
Price: £2,057.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/t8S8Yj3rMy/

And will this be cheaper in the next few weeks after the CES happen? Thanks again

 

[SpyderTracks]

And will this be cheaper in the next few weeks after the CES happen? Thanks again

Impossible to say

By the way, the Samsung G5 is a 1440p monitor, you can't reduce to 1080p on a 1440p monitor without significantly affecting the image quality, as 1080p doesn't factorise into 1440p ( x 1.33) so you end up with a lot of pixels not being where they should be

If you want to game at 1080p, you'd either need a high quality 1080p monitor, or pay a premium for a 4k gaming monitor and downscale.

 

[Ekans2011]

And will this be cheaper in the next few weeks after the CES happen? Thanks again

NVIDIA and AMD will reveal new GPUs at CES; while we can't say anything about prices, we expect (hope ) tier-by-tier performance and technology (aka generational) improvements.

 

[SpyderTracks]

NVIDIA and AMD will reveal new GPUs at CES; while we can't say anything about prices, we expect tier-by-tier performance and technology (aka generational) improvements.

Just additionally, in the first wave, they're only releasing down to the 5070 tier, the 1080p cards will follow later, this can often be 3 to six months later.

But this launch is already different, normally it would be the 5080 first, then the 5090, then the 70 tiers, and finally the 60 tiers.

So who knows what will happen.

 

[Ekans2011]

Just additionally, in the first wave, they're only releasing down to the 5070 tier, the 1080p cards will follow later

True, my bad

 

[SpyderTracks]

True, my bad

It's all guesswork at the moment, so much is different with this launch, with AMD not competing above the mid range, and now with Intel really strongly competing at 1080p.

Many unknowns!

 

[Ekans2011]

It's all guesswork at the moment, so much is different with this launch, with AMD not competing above the mid range, and now with Intel really strongly competing at 1080p.

Many unknowns!

Less than 2 weeks and we'll know something more for sure