Second attempt at creating a new computer for gaming

D

Deranger

Member
Case
CORSAIR 3500X ARGB TEMPERED GLASS MID-TOWER (WHITE)
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D Eight Core CPU (4.2GHz-5.0GHz/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 CL40 (1 x 32GB) AMD
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 1200W HXi SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® PLATINUM V2
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
PCS FrostFlow 200 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
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
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 7 to 9 working days
Price: £0.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/cYedMT3JfE/

The above is my current aim for an order, this would be coupled with a XFX Speedster MERC310 7900XTX 24GB graphics card.
My monitor is an old ROG Swift PG348 3440 x 1440 (QHD 100Hz), so at some point soon this will move to a 4k 140Hz+ type monitor (vague here as not selected exactly what I want/need).
The machine is pretty much only for gaming outside of internet browsing.
I already have 2 old M2 SSDs which will backup the main drive for slower long term storage (960 PRO 512 + 980 PRO 1TB).
Initially aiming for air cool over liquid as don't need the "looks" and presume the Frostflow will be adequate.
Sadly the case is sold out of Black so the White is the case I'll have to pick this time (long time since my PCs were all cream).
Out of interest is the basic fan layout good enough with this spec and case or would one advise more cooling added?

This would be for 1080p/1440p/4k gaming. For example currently playing Stalker 2 at 1440p on my 1080Ti and 7980XE on the above monitor.

Many Thanks.
EDIT: I have already changed my mind and the above would be: the same SSD as drive 2 but with also a new 512GB version as drive 1/OS.
 
Last edited:
D

Deranger

Member
I am also wondering the sort of Monitor to go for, I am presuming 4k monitor at 144HZ + and my budget would be £300 or around (Up to £400ish if I am gimoping myself too much with those under £300). Although I am only just starting to review the options.

Many Thanks.
 
Nursemorph

Nursemorph

Silver Level Poster
To do justice to that Merc, you'd be looking at a 1440p ultrawide or 4k. For a good 1440p UW, it'd probably be around £500..for a good 4k monitor, you would be looking at probably £800 minimum (I could be slightly wrong on the figures as I am not a monitor person but it will still be a sgnficiant sum)
 
Nursemorph

Nursemorph

Silver Level Poster
I'd make a few small adjustments to the build:

Case
CORSAIR 3500X ARGB TEMPERED GLASS MID-TOWER (WHITE)
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D Eight Core CPU (4.2GHz-5.0GHz/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
512GB SOLIDIGM P44 PRO GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 7000MB/sR, 4700MB/sW)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SOLIDIGM P41+ GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 4125MB/sR, 3325MB/sW)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1200W HXi SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® PLATINUM V2
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR ICUE LINK TITAN 240 RX 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
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
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 7 to 9 working days
Price: £1,421.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/hH9zsDQM8d/

The cooler: Not much choice really. The air coolers are not really good enough for that CPU. You don't want to save on this.

Fans: In terms of cooling, the basic fan layout will be fine as you get the 3 fans included for intake fans and the cooler has 3 fans for air out plus they usually add a rear exhaust...however, that rear fan is a plain black fan which won't really suit that case. Aesthetics-wise, it's up to you as to how much RGB you want.

Case: Yeah, there's shortages of cases currently. The one thing with that white case is how it is going to look with various black components inside. If you wanted the black case, you could always choose the "send in my own case" option, source your own and get it sent in.
 
Nursemorph

Nursemorph

Silver Level Poster
There is always the option of configuring a white build but it costs a bit more:

Case
CORSAIR 3500X ARGB TEMPERED GLASS MID-TOWER (WHITE)
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Eight Core CPU (Up to 5.2GHz/104MB w/3D V-CACHE/AM5)
Motherboard
GIGABYTE X870 AORUS ELITE WIFI7 ICE (AM5, DDR5, M.2 PCIe 5.0, Wi-Fi 7)
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE RGB DDR5 6000MHz CL40 (2 x 16GB) KIT - WHITE
Graphics Card
NONE, I ALREADY HAVE A GRAPHICS CARD
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
2TB SOLIDIGM P41+ GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 4125MB/sR, 3325MB/sW)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1200W HXi SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® PLATINUM V2
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR ICUE LINK TITAN 240 RX RGB HIGH PERFORMANCE CPU COOLER - WHITE
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
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
Browser
Microsoft® Edge
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 7 to 9 working days
Price: £1,576.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-white/FVzKtYvn6P/
 
D

Deranger

Member
Thank you very much for that explanation and advice.

I will definitely step back from lowering my monitor budget now aswell, as would be otherwise wasting money. And I was not so worried about the looks, though I admit a white case probably highlights these different colour schemes to an extreme, but definite food for thought.

Edit: I only just noticed the change of RAM from one to two sticks (my original thinking had been one day I might just pop another of the DIMMS to double it to 64GB at some point), so points me in the right direction of how I should be selecting the parts.

Many thanks again.
 
D

Deranger

Member
Two last points if possible:

As adding my own GPU, would a Graphics Card Support Bracket be required (presuming as it was not selected then it is not needed anyway)?

How did you turn the selections for items (case/memory/cooler) to be "White"/filter the items to be that colour set? I did not realise you were able to filter in this way and could not see how.

Thanks.
 
T

TonyCarter

VALUED CONTRIBUTOR
Deranger said:
Two last points if possible:

As adding my own GPU, would a Graphics Card Support Bracket be required (presuming as it was not selected then it is not needed anyway)?

How did you turn the selections for items (case/memory/cooler) to be "White"/filter the items to be that colour set? I did not realise you were able to filter in this way and could not see how.

Thanks.
Click to expand...
The white options are under a different configurator…called Luna (about half way sown the front page), but we don’t use it unless we really need to as the choices are significantly reduced and usually ends up costing more.
 
T

TonyCarter

VALUED CONTRIBUTOR
Deranger said:
Thank you very much for that explanation and advice.

I will definitely step back from lowering my monitor budget now aswell, as would be otherwise wasting money. And I was not so worried about the looks, though I admit a white case probably highlights these different colour schemes to an extreme, but definite food for thought.

Edit: I only just noticed the change of RAM from one to two sticks (my original thinking had been one day I might just pop another of the DIMMS to double it to 64GB at some point), so points me in the right direction of how I should be selecting the parts.

Many thanks again.
Click to expand...
Yes, 2 sticks are faster/better as they can make full use of the 2 available memory controllers.

Conversely, 4 sticks are worse, as the same 2 memory controllers now have to share capacity with 4 sticks of RAM, so to maintain stability it has to be slowed down to 4800MHz or below…but in cases where more than 96Gb of RAM is a non-negotiable that’s the downside you have to live with (or go for a very expensive Threadripper system).
 
Nursemorph

Nursemorph

Silver Level Poster
Yeah, the white configurator is not readily apparent on the front page....they called it Luna for some reason when it would have been better to call it "all-white" to make it more obvious. As you can see from the 2 builds, it adds about £150 to the price which is a lot for aesthetics
 
D

Deranger

Member
Hello again.

I have decided to choose this build as recommended above (non-white)

Case
CORSAIR 3500X ARGB TEMPERED GLASS MID-TOWER (WHITE)
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D Eight Core CPU (4.2GHz-5.0GHz/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
512GB SOLIDIGM P44 PRO GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 7000MB/sR, 4700MB/sW)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SOLIDIGM P41+ GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 4125MB/sR, 3325MB/sW)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1200W HXi SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® PLATINUM V2
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR ICUE LINK TITAN 240 RX 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
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
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 7 to 9 working days
Price: £1,421.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/hH9zsDQM8d/

One last query is regarding the M2 SSD cards. Currently I have a 1TB M2 SSD main drive with OS and main games I am playing, then a 500GB M2 SSD secondary for some extra storage (I will not be reusing these).

So with the new build I was wondering why have a slower secondary drive (P41), I presume my first drive (P44) would be comfortable with mainly the OS and my games would play from the secondary drive mostly.

Mainly I am wondering why not recommending a P44 for the 2TB drive, as I presume there is a good reason for this setup to with how M2s work and their durability. Just a guess of course.

Thanks again.
 
Nursemorph

Nursemorph

Silver Level Poster
The smaller fast primary drive is for Windows and your games launchers...Windows always wants to be on the fastest drive. Your second drive is where you store your games and run them from...it is slower because games don't need as fast a drive to run from. Having all your games on a separate drive means if/when Windows needs reinstalling, you don't need to reinstall your games, just Windows and the launchers etc
 
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