New Gaming PC - Newbie

C

CarGod

Member
Hi all,

I’m looking to invest in a gaming PC for the first time. I’ll be using it for everyday usage but only the odd few hours during the week due to work and only probably a full day either on a Saturday or Sunday so no extreme usage.
I’ve got a PC configured to what I think I need/like, if you wouldn’t mind taking a look and advise if it’s ok or suggest any changes then your comments would be most welcome. The only think I’d definitely like to keep are the monitors but I’m open to changes/suggestions on everything else. Thanks for your help/advise in advance….

Case
PCS SPECTRUM RGB MID TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 Six Core Processor i5-10500 (3.1GHz) 12MB Cache
Motherboard
GIGABYTE B560M DS3H (rev. 1.0) : LGA1200, DDR4, USB 3.2
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2400MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
6GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1660 Ti - HDMI, DP - GeForce GTX VR Ready!
1st Storage Drive
1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
External DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
8x Slim USB 2.0 External DVD-RW
Power Supply
CORSAIR 450W CV SERIES™ CV-450 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
PCS FrostFlow 100 RGB V3 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 [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
Microsoft® 365 Personal (12 Month Subscription - Digital Key)
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Microsoft® Edge
Monitor
AOC G2790PX 27" LED Gaming Monitor
Monitor
AOC G2790PX 27" LED Gaming Monitor
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
FAST TRACK 5 WORKING DAY DISPATCH
Welcome Book
PCSpecialist Welcome Book - United Kingdom & Republic of Ireland
Logo Branding
PCSpecialist Logo
Price: £0.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-home-office-pc-III/z44jr58U6J/
 
D

DarTon

Well-known member
Welcome.

The spec you've chosen has some issues: a 10th gen Intel CPU (2 gens out of date), slow memory, no large fast SDD, office class PSU etc. So if you could give us the total budget, including monitors, that would be helpful. Also the use case. It is just for 1080p 144Hz gaming? Or anything else such as streaming, office apps, etc.
 
C

CarGod

Member
Thanks for your reply.
Budget I want to keep below £2000. The monitors I opted for were 27” and also inbuilt speakers which I thought was the best option unless you think external speakers would be better?
I’ve always been an Xbox gamer so PC gaming is something knew I’m coming into. I’m keen on RPG so not sure what specification would be best for that. I’ll also be using it for Microsoft Office and also running 2017 Solidworks on an occasional basis.
I hope this helps.
 
D

DarTon

Well-known member
You've chosen 2x27" 1080p monitors. I think that should be reconsidered as that gives you only about 82 pixels per inch. This can lead to a somewhat grainy image. I'd reconsider and go for 2x24" 1080p, 144Hz (at say< £200 each). Alternatively, you could probably afford a 1440p, 144Hz system but with only one 27" monitor.

For example here is a very adequate 1080p gaming PC. Add on two 1080p 24" monitors and total cost will be around £1,800. This can be easily upgraded later to do 1440p gaming.

Case
LIAN LI LANCOOL 215 GAMING CASE - Really good airflow case, that cna take bigger CPU and GPU later
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 Six Core Processor i5-12400F (2.5GHz) 18MB Cache - Great 6 core 12th gen CPU, equivalent performance to 5600X
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B660-PLUS WIFI D4: ATX, LGA1700, USB 3.2, SATA 6GBs - 12th Gen board with PCIe5, integrated wifi
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB) - 16GB of fast RAM is enough for now; add another 16GB if required
Graphics Card
12GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 2060 - HDMI, DP - VR Ready! - If you want to save money look at 1660 Super, spend more 3060 (but out of stock right now
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB INTEL® 670p M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 3000MB/sR | 1600MB/sW) - Fast PCIe3 MS SSD for OS and programs
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB INTEL® 670p M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 3500MB/sR | 2500MB/sW) - Fast PCIe3 M2 SSD for games
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 - Modular PSU with capacity for 1440p GPU upgrade. Ideally might want a 850W PSU for longer term
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
PCS FrostFlow 100 RGB V3 Series High Performance CPU Cooler - Simple tower air cooler is enough for 12400F
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
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 9 to 12 working days
Price: £1,426.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z690-pc/5N0Vsm0FUa/

If you switch the GPU for a 3060 Ti and upgrade the PSU to a 850W, then the price is £1566. Add in a single 27" 1440p 144Hz monitor (£300-325) and you could have a 1440p gaming system for around £1900. Unless you really need 2 monitor, I'd really consider going 1440p straight away since it's a much much better experience.
 
SpyderTracks

SpyderTracks

We love you Ukraine
Also be aware, there's no such thing as gaming on 2 monitors, only one would be used for gaming, so having the second as with gaming refresh is largely irrelevant.

In PC gaming it's either 1 or 3 monitors or superwide / ultrawide.

With your budget, you could afford a 1440p system which would be a far better gaming experience. The real estate of 1080p is very poor both for productivity and gaming. 1440p is substantially better in all aspects.

Any in built speakers are going to be poor. It would always be recommended to have external speakers.
 
D

DarTon

Well-known member
I'd very much agree with what @SpyderTracks is saying. There is no point having 2 high refresh monitors. If your budget can stretch to £2k then I'd go for the 1440p system at around £1566. Add in a 27" monitor like the Dell S2721DGFA for £314 or Gigabyte M27Q for £320. That leaves you just over £100 for a bog standard 24" 60Hz type side monitor for web/discord etc.
 
C

CarGod

Member

I’ve switched to the 3060 TI upgrade (I think I’ve selected the right ones) as below
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 NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3060 Ti - HDMI, DP, LHR
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB INTEL® 670p M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 3000MB/sR | 1600MB/sW)
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 850W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
PCS FrostFlow 100 RGB V3 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
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 9 to 12 working days
Price: £1,566.00 including VAT and Delivery

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

I’m happy going with one 27” as suggested, I couldn’t find the monitor to attach from this website, would I be correct in saying it’s purchased from another site? Could you also suggest a good keyboard and mouse set-up to suit from around the £100 mark please?

Thank you again for all your help so far.
 
D

DarTon

Well-known member
Yes. Purchase the monitor from another site. We've seen IPS 1440p models like the Gigabyte M27Q, Dell S2721DGFA, and Asus TUF Gaming VG27AQ all below £300 pre Xmas. Post Xmas the price seems to be hovering in the £300-325 mark with clearly less stock. VA panels are at around £275 for the Samsung G5 or Dell S2722DGM. Most (inc me) would say IPS is worth the extra but compared to any 1080p panel, a VA 1440p experience would still be great for gaming.

Not an expert on keyboards and mouse. I'll leave that to others.
 
C

CarGod

Member
Excellent, thank you so much for all the advice. I’ll proceed with my PC build on here.

Is this the right monitor I should go for please?

ao.com

VG27AQ | Asus Gaming Monitor | ao.com

This VG27AQ Asus gaming monitor has a 1 millisecond response time and a 165Hz refresh rate. It also has an Quad HD resolution and Anti-Flicker technology.
ao.com ao.com

No worries on the keyboard and mouse set-up; I’ll seek the advice of others that can help me.
Really appreciate the help though, I’d of completely purchased the wrong thing ha.
 
sck451

sck451

MOST VALUED CONTRIBUTOR
That's a great display option, yes.

It's worth noting that the system will not be amazing in Solidworks. It'll be perfectly good, but it will not be top-of-the-line. If you are doing serious work and want a strong machine, you need to get one of the K options (e.g. the 12700KF) and a Z690 motherboard, and beefier cooling. That's probably not possible within £1700, sadly. This is not to discourage you from the build, just to note that, while amazing for gaming, it's less strong in more CPU-intensive tasks. If I was making my living out of the PC, I'd want to spend the extra.
 
S

Salmon Fisher

Enthusiast
For a keyboard I can highly recommend the Corsair K63, lovely cherry red mechanical switches, feels great. Mice are highly subjective and depend on usage, hand size, weight and what actually feels right for you.
 
C

CarGod

Member
sck451 said:
That's a great display option, yes.

It's worth noting that the system will not be amazing in Solidworks. It'll be perfectly good, but it will not be top-of-the-line. If you are doing serious work and want a strong machine, you need to get one of the K options (e.g. the 12700KF) and a Z690 motherboard, and beefier cooling. That's probably not possible within £1700, sadly. This is not to discourage you from the build, just to note that, while amazing for gaming, it's less strong in more CPU-intensive tasks. If I was making my living out of the PC, I'd want to spend the extra.
Click to expand...
Ok, thank you for the advice.
 
D

DarTon

Well-known member
Yes, if Solidworks is a big deal then you may well want at least a 12700KF or 5900X etc but that would mean a more expensive CPU, motherboard, cooling solution and really 32GB RAM. By the time you've added that you might aswell up the PSU and SDD to an ultra fast one. That's not going to happen on a £2k budget inc monitor

What I would say is that the 12400F still gives you about 50% more multi-core performance than the original 10500 you chose. In that sense it will still be better. Intel 12th gen really is a lot better than 10th gen.
 
C

CarGod

Member
It’s only for doing small projects from time to time and I don’t use it small time.
I’ve just purchased the most recent specification I posted so think I’m all sorted for now thank you.
Thanks again for the help.
 
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