Hello everyone! I'm from Portugal and want to get my first proper gaming pc. Totally new to this, and I've been researching over the past week about components and info on how everything works, and have read most guide threads posted here, but am still a bit overwhelmed and was hoping you all could help. First things first, what I want out of this PC and my budget:
Uses: Pretty much exclusively for gaming. I want this pc to be able to comfortably run pretty much any game out there at recommended settings without any real hits to FPS, hopefully be able to run them at the highest graphical settings or close to them. More specifically, I'd like to be able to run games like Skyrim and New Vegas while heavily modded and with ENBs (ENBs, short for Enhanced Natural Beauty, is a graphical suite that aims to improve the visual fidelity of games like Skyrim with post-processing effects and other features). I don't need to run these at 4k for example, but would like to be able to run these games like this without much issue.
Budget: My budget for everything (monitor and keyboard included, which I am thinking of buying elsewhere) would be around a maximum of 2800 euros (~1666 pounds).
I initially ran the Jargon free 5 step configurator, with the few changes I made being the case and the wireless network card. Here's the spec:
Now for my questions, starting with my main issue: A monitor.
Monitor: I am seriously unsure about this topic. I've read the guides here, I've watched a few youtube videos, and am still unsure of how much I need to spend on a monitor to get the effect I want. I want a smooth, graphically-impressive display, but don't require things like super low input lag or ridiculous frames to play first-person shooters at a competitive level. I just want my games to look as pretty as possible. Regarding the graphics card the configurator selected, as well as my specific goals with this PC, I'm not sure if the 3070 Ti is necessary (and thus require me to get a 4k or otherwise really expensive monitor to take advantage of it), or if I could go for something lower and have more budget for a better monitor. I was thinking I'd like a curved, 1440p monitor, don't know whether 60hz would be sufficient (Skyrim for example doesn't run well engine-wise above 60 fps, but other more recent games would make use of higher frame rates) or if I should go for 144hz. Clearly, this topic is one of the most complicated ones for me, sorry!
Case: I originally was going for the Corsair 5000X because it looked sleeker, but from your threads it seemed like the 4000X was a great, cheaper, almost identical alternative. What are your thoughts on this? It isn't a huge price increase, but is the 5000X worth it in any way over the 4000X?
Motherboard: This is another topic that I'm more unsure of. I was thinking of just keeping the base motherboard the configurator selected, or perhaps going with a version with Wifi instead of picking up the AX200. Is there a point in selecting a more expensive option considering the other components and what my goals and budget are?
Memory (RAM): The configurator selected a 32gb RAM. I heard it's nice for futureproofing, but that for virtually all gaming uses, 16gb should be enough. And it should be easy to add more RAM myself if needed in the future, correct? So this would be better as just 16gb, no?
Graphics Card: Already mentioned the main aspect in the Monitor bulletpoint. This was the GPU the configurator gave me, and I see it often online as a great default. But for my goals and budget, I'd be struggling to get a 4k monitor that fully takes advantage of it. Would it be better to go with a 3060 and a better monitor, or would it be fine to keep the 3070 Ti and just use a 1440p monitor?
Power Supply: If I went ahead with the 3070 Ti GPU, should I get a 750w PSU instead of the 650w the configurator gave me?
Processor Cooling: Haven't been able to figure out if what the configurator picked would be good, or if I should be going for liquid cooling. Would it be necessary the few extra euros for liquid cooling?
Sound Card: Didn't understand this. Does this come integrated in the motherboard, or is it its own component?
Drives: A main SSD drive with the OS and games, is that fine? While using the HDD for storage? Would it be preferrable to use the first drive for regular files and OS, and the secondary one for the games? Would it be preferrable to use SSDs for both in that case?
Operating System: Now here's a little pickle. If I could save the money from the OS here, it could make the difference for selecting a better monitor. I already have a laptop running a licensed Windows 8.1 (yes, still. don't kill me). Could I use installation media starting from this laptop to install windows 10 through a flash drive into the new pc myself, and once there update it to 11? Or even just start with 11 through the flash drive + installation media, without having to update my windows 8.1 laptop to 10 (I'd need to do a clean install of 10 on the laptop and currently do not wish to do so)?
I think that's all my questions currently... Thank you so much if you've read this far. Again, I've been researching a bunch, but it's hard to wrap my head around all these technical terms and issues, so having all my questions condensed here for a group of more knowledgeable people to help me with seemed like the smart move.
Uses: Pretty much exclusively for gaming. I want this pc to be able to comfortably run pretty much any game out there at recommended settings without any real hits to FPS, hopefully be able to run them at the highest graphical settings or close to them. More specifically, I'd like to be able to run games like Skyrim and New Vegas while heavily modded and with ENBs (ENBs, short for Enhanced Natural Beauty, is a graphical suite that aims to improve the visual fidelity of games like Skyrim with post-processing effects and other features). I don't need to run these at 4k for example, but would like to be able to run these games like this without much issue.
Budget: My budget for everything (monitor and keyboard included, which I am thinking of buying elsewhere) would be around a maximum of 2800 euros (~1666 pounds).
I initially ran the Jargon free 5 step configurator, with the few changes I made being the case and the wireless network card. Here's the spec:
Case
CORSAIR iCUE 4000X RGB Tempered Glass Mid-Tower ATX Case
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i7 Eight Core Processor i7-11700F (2.5GHz) 16MB Cache
Motherboard
GIGABYTE B560M DS3H (rev. 1.0) : LGA1200, DDR4, USB 3.2
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3070 Ti - HDMI, DP, LHR
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (2200 MB/R, 1500 MB/W)
1st Storage Drive
1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
Power Supply
CORSAIR 650W CV SERIES™ CV-650 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre European Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
CoolerMaster Hyper 212 (120mm) Fan CPU Cooler Black Edition
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
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 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00003]
Operating System Language
Portugal/Portugal - Portuguese 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
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Firefox™
Warranty
3 Year Gold Warranty (2 Year Collect & Return, 2 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
3 DAY DELIVERY TO PORTUGAL
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 4 to 7 working days
Price: 2.401,00 € including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z590-pc/D8RrJrz5ce/
CORSAIR iCUE 4000X RGB Tempered Glass Mid-Tower ATX Case
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i7 Eight Core Processor i7-11700F (2.5GHz) 16MB Cache
Motherboard
GIGABYTE B560M DS3H (rev. 1.0) : LGA1200, DDR4, USB 3.2
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3070 Ti - HDMI, DP, LHR
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (2200 MB/R, 1500 MB/W)
1st Storage Drive
1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
Power Supply
CORSAIR 650W CV SERIES™ CV-650 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre European Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
CoolerMaster Hyper 212 (120mm) Fan CPU Cooler Black Edition
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
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 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00003]
Operating System Language
Portugal/Portugal - Portuguese 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
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Firefox™
Warranty
3 Year Gold Warranty (2 Year Collect & Return, 2 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
3 DAY DELIVERY TO PORTUGAL
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 4 to 7 working days
Price: 2.401,00 € including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z590-pc/D8RrJrz5ce/
Now for my questions, starting with my main issue: A monitor.
Monitor: I am seriously unsure about this topic. I've read the guides here, I've watched a few youtube videos, and am still unsure of how much I need to spend on a monitor to get the effect I want. I want a smooth, graphically-impressive display, but don't require things like super low input lag or ridiculous frames to play first-person shooters at a competitive level. I just want my games to look as pretty as possible. Regarding the graphics card the configurator selected, as well as my specific goals with this PC, I'm not sure if the 3070 Ti is necessary (and thus require me to get a 4k or otherwise really expensive monitor to take advantage of it), or if I could go for something lower and have more budget for a better monitor. I was thinking I'd like a curved, 1440p monitor, don't know whether 60hz would be sufficient (Skyrim for example doesn't run well engine-wise above 60 fps, but other more recent games would make use of higher frame rates) or if I should go for 144hz. Clearly, this topic is one of the most complicated ones for me, sorry!
Case: I originally was going for the Corsair 5000X because it looked sleeker, but from your threads it seemed like the 4000X was a great, cheaper, almost identical alternative. What are your thoughts on this? It isn't a huge price increase, but is the 5000X worth it in any way over the 4000X?
Motherboard: This is another topic that I'm more unsure of. I was thinking of just keeping the base motherboard the configurator selected, or perhaps going with a version with Wifi instead of picking up the AX200. Is there a point in selecting a more expensive option considering the other components and what my goals and budget are?
Memory (RAM): The configurator selected a 32gb RAM. I heard it's nice for futureproofing, but that for virtually all gaming uses, 16gb should be enough. And it should be easy to add more RAM myself if needed in the future, correct? So this would be better as just 16gb, no?
Graphics Card: Already mentioned the main aspect in the Monitor bulletpoint. This was the GPU the configurator gave me, and I see it often online as a great default. But for my goals and budget, I'd be struggling to get a 4k monitor that fully takes advantage of it. Would it be better to go with a 3060 and a better monitor, or would it be fine to keep the 3070 Ti and just use a 1440p monitor?
Power Supply: If I went ahead with the 3070 Ti GPU, should I get a 750w PSU instead of the 650w the configurator gave me?
Processor Cooling: Haven't been able to figure out if what the configurator picked would be good, or if I should be going for liquid cooling. Would it be necessary the few extra euros for liquid cooling?
Sound Card: Didn't understand this. Does this come integrated in the motherboard, or is it its own component?
Drives: A main SSD drive with the OS and games, is that fine? While using the HDD for storage? Would it be preferrable to use the first drive for regular files and OS, and the secondary one for the games? Would it be preferrable to use SSDs for both in that case?
Operating System: Now here's a little pickle. If I could save the money from the OS here, it could make the difference for selecting a better monitor. I already have a laptop running a licensed Windows 8.1 (yes, still. don't kill me). Could I use installation media starting from this laptop to install windows 10 through a flash drive into the new pc myself, and once there update it to 11? Or even just start with 11 through the flash drive + installation media, without having to update my windows 8.1 laptop to 10 (I'd need to do a clean install of 10 on the laptop and currently do not wish to do so)?
I think that's all my questions currently... Thank you so much if you've read this far. Again, I've been researching a bunch, but it's hard to wrap my head around all these technical terms and issues, so having all my questions condensed here for a group of more knowledgeable people to help me with seemed like the smart move.
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If you don't think you'll be storing much else aside from games on this PC, you could always remove the HDD and save a few euros, but it's a nice thing to have on there if you have the budget