PC Review (Ordered but processing)

[Hix]

Good afternoon!

I've just ordered this build and it's currently processing. I've done quite a bit of research for each part and I don't think I've missed anything major, i.e. no PCIe lane sharing between GPU & SSDs, plenty of room to fit my GPU, power draw should be at around 600W, thus at the 60% sweet spot etc...

Though I would appreciate another pair of eyes before building commences, as one often does not catch their own mistakes.

My GPU to be installed is the NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 5080 FE 16GB.

My current monitors are 2x LG UltraGear Gaming Monitor 27GN850-B - 27 inch, 144 Hz, 1ms, 2560x1440px, Adaptive-Sync, IPS.

My budget is £2000 as I already have the GPU.

Case
FRACTAL NORTH TG XL GAMING CASE (BLACK)
Promotional Item
Get a discount code for 20% off select peripherals at Corsair.com
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Eight Core CPU (Up to 5.2GHz/104MB w/3D V-CACHE/AM5)
Motherboard
GIGABYTE X870 EAGLE WIFI7 (AM5, DDR5, M.2 PCIe 5.0, Wi-Fi 7)
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE RGB DDR5 6000MHz CL36 (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
NONE, I ALREADY HAVE A GRAPHICS CARD
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SOLIDIGM P44 PRO GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 7000MB/sR, 6500MB/sW)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1000W RMx 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 LINK TITAN 360 RX RGB HIGH PERFORMANCE CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND APPLICATION
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
NO OPERATING SYSTEM REQUIRED
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
NO RECOVERY MEDIA REQUIRED
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/2CAvjHkxrs/

My logic:
Case - Great looking, plenty of room for cable management and great thermals
CPU - Best there is for gaming, which is the intention, more explained further on
MOBO - Plenty of ports and supports PCIe Gen 5 for the CPU and NVMe SSD without lane sharing and supports WiFi 7 (albeit the lower spec), all on a good price
RAM - Nothing special needed here regarding timings, CL36 is more than fine and 6000Mhz is the sweet spot for the 1:1 ratio
M.2 SSD - One of if not the best Gen 4 SSD for Random Read/Write speeds assuming the OS and games are on the same drive. Gen 5 is not worth it as Random Read/Write speeds are basically identical, only the Sequential Read/Write speeds are blazing fast which 99% of us won't actaully see or use
PSU - Nothing special needed here, 1000W should be ample for what I work out to be about 600W~ power draw
Cooler - Ensured 360mm fans for ample cooling and likely quieter than 280mm. Woulnd't have minded an air cooler than an AIO but none to choose from that I'd want, i.e. Noctua, ID Cooling or DeepCool (contraversial at the moment)

Happy with the onboard capabilities of the MOBO regarding 2.5Gbps LAN & audio codec.

I am happy to flex +/- £200 per item if there is compelling reason to do so. This PC is intended to be a gaming PC for games such as Cyberpunk, RDD2, GTA5 (6 when available), POE2, WoW and the like. I also work from home but my type of work is not taxing on a PC, it can be done via a laptop.

Many thanks!

EDIT:

I've amended my order based on the recommendations you guys have given:

Item 1
Change to [STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING] from [ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND APPLICATION]
Item 2
Change to [512GB SOLIDIGM P44 PRO GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 7000MB/sR, 4700MB/sW)] from [2TB SOLIDIGM P44 PRO GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 7000MB/sR, 6500MB/sW)]
Item 3
2TB SOLIDIGM P41+ GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 4125MB/sR, 3325MB/sW)
Item 4
Change to [CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ ATX 3.1, MODULAR, CYBENETICS GOLD] from [CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ - MODULAR 80 PLUS GOLD, ULTRA QUIET]
Item 5
Change to [1 x Corsair ICUE LINK RX120 RGB PWM Fan] from [NONE]

EDIT2: Consolidated the information into the OP.

 

[Paul1964]

You manged to get a 5080FE?? 🤯 You must have one of only about 3 in the country! 😁

 

[stegor]

Personally I would always have a separate OS drive. Makes it easier to reinstall windows and stops clutter/maintains boot speed.

Edit: 2 others beat me to it. I must go on a typing course.

 

[TonyCarter]

If that's the older ATX2.4 PSU then I'd change it to the newer ATX3.1 PSU as it has much more headroom for power spikes and future GPU upgrades.

Also, you don't need the Arctic MX4 paste, as the pre-applied stuff on the Corsair AIO is better, and they'd have to remove that to fit the inferior Arctic paste.

Best practice is to have 2 SSDs. Smaller/faster primary SSD for Windows/apps/game installers, and a secondary larger one (PCIe3 is fine) for games storage (possibly a 3rd internal/external HDD for documents/media files to keep them off the primary).

Also, don't forget that any Windows OS that comes with the PC will be an internal PCS test install, so DO NOT use it, as it may never allow you to update it...and it may be missing key items.

 

[Ekans2011]

In my opinion, the build is bang on (assuming you're pairing it with a suitable monitor); I would only split the M.2 drives to keep the OS distinct from the rest (512GB P44 PRO for the OS, P41+ 2TB or Corsair MP600 Core XT 4TB for games), upgrade the PSU to the 1200W HXi ATX 3.1, and remove the MX-4, which is a downgrade.

Don't forget to clean install and properly configure the OS once you receive the PC.

 

[Ekans2011]

I must go on a typing course

So am I

 

[Hix]

You manged to get a 5080FE?? 🤯 You must have one of only about 3 in the country! 😁

I am very lucky indeed

 

[Hix]

I edited my post to add some extra context to my build to hopefully help you and I. Many thanks for advice already given <3

 

[Hix]

If that's the older ATX2.4 PSU then I'd change it to the newer ATX3.1 PSU as it has much more headroom for power spikes and future GPU upgrades.

Also, you don't need the Arctic MX4 paste, as the pre-applied stuff on the Corsair AIO is better, and they'd have to remove that to fit the inferior Arctic paste.

Best practice is to have 2 SSDs. Smaller/faster primary SSD for Windows/apps/game installers, and a secondary larger one (PCIe3 is fine) for games storage (possibly a 3rd internal/external HDD for documents/media files to keep them off the primary).

Also, don't forget that any Windows OS that comes with the PC will be an internal PCS test install, so DO NOT use it, as it may never allow you to update it...and it may be missing key items.

Thanks for the advice, I'll clarify with PCS which version of PSU it is.

Do you have a source for the thermal paste comparison? I always thought Arctic was the go to, but that was years ago when I last built my own PC...

I have a perpetual Windows Retial license, my plan was to activate W11 which would have been installed. I take it I'd need to fresh install then?

 

[Hix]

In my opinion, the build is bang on (assuming you're pairing it with a suitable monitor); I would only split the M.2 drives to keep the OS distinct from the rest (512GB P44 PRO for the OS, P41+ 2TB or Corsair MP600 Core XT 4TB for games), upgrade the PSU to the 1200W HXi ATX 3.1, and remove the MX-4, which is a downgrade.

Don't forget to clean install and properly configure the OS once you receive the PC.

My current monitors are 2x LG UltraGear Gaming Monitor 27GN850-B - 27 inch, 144 Hz, 1ms, 2560x1440px, Adaptive-Sync, IPS

Thanks for the advice about the seperate M.2, a few people have mentioned that now. I'll definately consider what yourself, stegor and Tony said about one for OS one for games/storage.

 

[TonyCarter]

I have a perpetual Windows Retial license, my plan was to activate W11 which would have been installed. I take it I'd need to fresh install then?

Yes, a fresh install would be best, as we've seen plenty of issues from users who've simply activated the PCS-installed version.

 

[TonyCarter]

Do you have a source for the thermal paste comparison? I always thought Arctic was the go to, but that was years ago when I last built my own PC...

There was one posted on these forums a while back, but I can't find it at the moment.

The other issue, is some technicians are better than others at applying the paste, so what you get may not be the best application either. The machine-applied XTM70 stuff on the Corsair AIO is very well applied.

Corsair XTM70 vs ARCTIC MX-4 | igor´sLAB

www.igorslab.de

 

[Hix]

@stegor @TonyCarter @Ekans2011 would you mind confirming what believe to be correct?

GIGABYTE states for their X870 EAGLE WIFI7:

1 x PCI Express x16 slot (PCIEX16), integrated in the CPU:
AMD Ryzen™ 9000/7000 Series Processors support PCIe 5.0 x16 mode
AMD Ryzen™ 8000 Series-Phoenix 1 Processors support PCIe 4.0 x8 mode
AMD Ryzen™ 8000 Series-Phoenix 2 Processors support PCIe 4.0 x4 mode
* The PCIEX16 slot can only support a graphics card or an NVMe SSD. If only one graphics card is to be installed, be sure to install it in the PCIEX16 slot.

1 x M.2 connector (M2A_CPU), integrated in the CPU, supporting Socket 3, M key, type 25110/22110/2580/2280 SSDs:
AMD Ryzen™ 9000/7000 Series Processors support PCIe 5.0 x4/x2 SSDs
AMD Ryzen™ 8000 Series- Phoenix 1 Processors support PCIe 4.0 x4/x2 SSDs
AMD Ryzen™ 8000 Series- Phoenix 2 Processors support PCIe 4.0 x4/x2 SSDs
1 x M.2 connector (M2C_SB), integrated in the Chipset, supporting Socket 3, M key, type 25110/22110/2580/2280 PCIe 4.0 x2 SSDs
1 x M.2 connector (M2B_SB), integrated in the Chipset, supporting Socket 3, M key, type 25110/22110/2580/2280 PCIe 4.0 x4/x2 SSDs
* The M2B_SB connector shares bandwidth with the M2C_SB connector. The M2B_SB connector operates at up to x2 mode when a PCIe SSD is installed in the M2C_SB connector.

So that would mean I could install a 512GB M.2 into M2A_CPU and the 2TB into either M2B_SB or M2C_SB and it will not lane share with the PCI Express x16 slot?

I know it's almost 99.9% sure that my 5080 FE will not come close to needing 16 lanes of PCIe Gen 5 but I don't want hamstring myself for zero reason or gain.

 

[TonyCarter]

Even the 5090 doesn't saturate 16 lanes of PCIe 5 - and doesn't even saturate 16 lanes of PCIe 4, but your motherboard doesn't use the GPU PCIe lanes for m.2 anyway.

Even if both m.2 B & C slots were populated, and you're limited to PCIe 4.0x2, it would still be 8GB/s which is plenty for gen 4 SSDs.

 

[Hix]

Even the 5090 doesn't saturate 16 lanes of PCIe 5 - and doesn't even saturate 16 lanes of PCIe 4, but your motherboard doesn't use the GPU PCIe lanes for m.2 anyway.

Even if both m.2 B & C slots were populated, and you're limited to PCIe 4.0x2, it would still be 8GB/s which is plenty for gen 4 SSDs.

Thank you very much for taking the time for reading and replying.

I've amended my order based on the recommendations you guys have given:

Item 1
Change to [STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING] from [ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND APPLICATION]
Item 2
Change to [512GB SOLIDIGM P44 PRO GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 7000MB/sR, 4700MB/sW)] from [2TB SOLIDIGM P44 PRO GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 7000MB/sR, 6500MB/sW)]
Item 3
2TB SOLIDIGM P41+ GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 4125MB/sR, 3325MB/sW)
Item 4
Change to [CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ ATX 3.1, MODULAR, CYBENETICS GOLD] from [CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ - MODULAR 80 PLUS GOLD, ULTRA QUIET]

Many thanks once again! 👍

 

[Paul1964]

Do you have a source for the thermal paste comparison? I always thought Arctic was the go to, but that was years ago when I last built my own PC...

It probably was at one time but would have been overtaken by better options.

 

[Hix]

Good morning all. Just had an update regarding my build, it's currently in the 'In Building' phase. I reviewed the 360 degree picture they sent and noticed an extra fan. Don't get me wrong, I am not complaining about it, in fact I think it was a very nice touch. However, it got me wondering if I should add in an additional fan? (i.e. a Corsair ICUE LINK RX120 RGB Kit to go with the aesthetics). I just didnt consider it at all as I thought the three fans supplied via the case and the three from the AIO would suffice. Please see attached the picture of the PC and the case manual.

Now according to the manual for my setup (which is 3x 140mm in the front and a top mounted 360mm AIO) there doesn't 'need' to be a fan at the rear. Am I over thinking this? I suppose the extra air flow is nice? Will it create negative/positive pressure by splitting the direction of air flow?

 

[SpyderTracks]

Good morning all. Just had an update regarding my build, it's currently in the 'In Building' phase. I reviewed the 360 degree picture they sent and noticed an extra fan. Don't get me wrong, I am not complaining about it but it got me wondering if I should add in an additional fan? (i.e. a Corsair ICUE LINK RX120 RGB Kit to go with the aesthetics). I just didnt consider it at all as I thought the three fans supplied via the case and the three from the AIO is suffice. Please see attached the picture of the PC and the case manual.

Now according to the manual for my setup (which is 3x 140mm in the front and a top mounted 360mm AIO) there doesn't 'need' to be a fan at the rear. Am I over thinking this? I suppose the extra air flow is nice? Will it create negative/positive pressure by splitting the direction of air flow?

Yeah, PCS will normally add one of their basic fans as an extractor for cases that don't include one.

For aesthetics and quieter operation, it would be worth adding another one to match the rest of your build and ask them to swap it out.

I would personally always opt for a rear fan in that kind of PC case. There are some newer designs that are bottom input with extraction from the roof, but that case isn't one of them, it's designed as input at the front with extraction through the rear and top.

 

[Nursemorph]

I would second asking PCS to swap it out, although they don't offer a single Corsair fan as an option but no harm asking if they are willing to do it. The alternative is to ask them to take the fan out completely and fit one yourself when you get it.

What you don't want to do is have PCS fit the fan and try to replace it when you get the system...I tried that with my PC but, due to the technician's exceptional cable management, I couldn't follow the fan's wiring to know where to unplug it from

 

[Hix]

Yeah, PCS will normally add one of their basic fans as an extractor for cases that don't include one.

For aesthetics and quieter operation, it would be worth adding another one to match the rest of your build and ask them to swap it out.

I would personally always opt for a rear fan in that kind of PC case. There are some newer designs that are bottom input with extraction from the roof, but that case isn't one of them, it's designed as input at the front with extraction through the rear and top.

I would second asking PCS to swap it out, although they don't offer a single Corsair fan as an option but no harm asking if they are willing to do it. The alternative is to ask them to take the fan out completely and fit one yourself when you get it.

What you don't want to do is have PCS fit the fan and try to replace it when you get the system...I tried that with my PC but, due to the technician's exceptional cable management, I couldn't follow the fan's wiring to know where to unplug it from

Rang them up and asked if it was possible to amend the order to include 1x Corsair ICUE LINK RX120 RGB in place of the PCS one to which they did. Top notch service from them considering they only sell those in packs of three or more.

I did also apologise for my egregious oversight and the fact the technician will need to refit and cable manage again! 🤣