First Gaming Rig for my Son <$2.2k

[bethpapa74]

Hi to all gurus ... the story goes like this, I challenge my son if he gets all A's I will buy him a budget gaming rig, he worked really hard and gotten a all A's back. A promise is a promise, so here I am ... seeking your professional advise.
I did some last min research and came across few gurus suggestion and I try to copy here and paste there ....

My budget is around $2k -ish, and would most likely go to Dynacore to build this rig.
Please help me to check and see if this is Ok or not.... many many thanks in advance

https://dynacoretech.com/pricelist

CPU + MB	i7 12700F + ASUS TUF gaming b660m-plus wifi ddr5 - $801
CPU Cooler	Scythe Fuma2 Rev.B Kaze Flex ii Tower Heatsink. - $83
Ram	CORSAIR VENGEANCE DDR5 5200MHz CL40 32GB. - $255
SSD	1TB Samsung 980 NVMe 3500Mb/s M.2 Gen3 SSD. - $145
Case	Corsair 4000D Airflow TG ATX Casing. - $122
Case Fans	Arctic P12 PWM PST-Argb 3-Pack Fans - $55
GPU	Powercolor AMD Radeon Hellhound RX 6700 XT 12Gb OC GDDR6. - $635
PSU	Leadex iii SuperFlower 850W Gold Full Modular. - $160

Windows 11 Home 64-Bit Eng OEM DVD - $147

 

[tigerwoods]

I would get a gen4 WD_BLACK 1TB SN770 NVMe S$138 to take advantage of the mb PCIe 4.0 speed

https://www.amazon.sg/WD_BLACK-SN77...icXNhIjoiNS43NCIsInFzcCI6IjQuNDUifQ==&sr=8-18

 

[tigerwoods]

For GPU I prefer nvidia cards cos of DLSS, DLSS is magical

 

[Mach3.2]

For SSDs, I won't get anything without DRAM cache. Also avoid QLC.

Some tried and true models:
https://www.amazon.sg/Samsung-970-EVO-Plus-pci_express_x4/dp/B07MFZY2F2/https://www.amazon.sg/Crucial-Plus-PCIe-Gaming-6600MB/dp/B098WL46RS
Or you can pick your own poison from here:

 

[86technie]

Hi to all gurus ... the story goes like this, I challenge my son if he gets all A's I will buy him a budget gaming rig, he worked really hard and gotten a all A's back. A promise is a promise, so here I am ... seeking your professional advise.
I did some last min research and came across few gurus suggestion and I try to copy here and paste there ....

My budget is around $2k -ish, and would most likely go to Dynacore to build this rig.
Please help me to check and see if this is Ok or not.... many many thanks in advance

https://dynacoretech.com/pricelist

CPU + MB	i7 12700F + ASUS TUF gaming b660m-plus wifi ddr5 - $801
CPU Cooler	Scythe Fuma2 Rev.B Kaze Flex ii Tower Heatsink. - $83
Ram	CORSAIR VENGEANCE DDR5 5200MHz CL40 32GB. - $255
SSD	1TB Samsung 980 NVMe 3500Mb/s M.2 Gen3 SSD. - $145
Case	Corsair 4000D Airflow TG ATX Casing. - $122
Case Fans	Arctic P12 PWM PST-Argb 3-Pack Fans - $55
GPU	Powercolor AMD Radeon Hellhound RX 6700 XT 12Gb OC GDDR6. - $635
PSU	Leadex iii SuperFlower 850W Gold Full Modular. - $160

Windows 11 Home 64-Bit Eng OEM DVD - $147

Go for DDR4 if you want to save money, I am very skeptical with that DDR5 price.
Take note some RAM kits have Intel or AMD optimize so that kit could be for AMD Ryzen.
SSD wise go for Samsung 970 EVO Plus, it maybe old model but Samsung 980 is DRAMLess
meaning slower than the Samsung 970 which have DRAM.

Other than that looks OK, alternate shop you can take a look is PCThemes.

 

[poooooo]

CPU + MB	i5-13600KF + MSI MAG B660 TOMAHAWK WIFI DDR4 - $721
CPU Cooler	Scythe Fuma2 Rev.B Kaze Flex ii Tower Heatsink. - $83
Ram	CRUCIAL BALLISTIX GAMING RGB 3600MHz CL16 16GB - 119
SSD	1TB Samsung 980 NVMe 3500Mb/s M.2 Gen3 SSD. - $145
Case	Corsair 4000D Airflow TG ATX Casing. - $122
Case Fans	Arctic P12 PWM PST-Argb 3-Pack Fans - $55
GPU	Powercolor AMD Radeon Hellhound RX 6700 XT 12Gb OC GDDR6. - $635
PSU	Leadex iii SuperFlower 850W Gold Full Modular. - $160

Window 11 find any keys seller on Shopee/ lazada/ other sites $20 +/-, you can ask the shop you are getting from to install unactivated windows first.

32GB slow DDR5 ram doesn't really benefit gaming the majority of the time, just opt for a faster CPU and cheaper DDR4 16GB ram.

 

[Koenig168]

For the GPU, you can get the top-tier Red Devil for slightly more.

https://www.amazon.sg/PowerColor-Gr...==&sprefix=red+devil+6700,aps,238&sr=8-1&th=1

 

[Koenig168]

There are two sales this month, 11/11 and Black Friday on 25/11. You should be able to get some good deals on the usual online platforms.

 

[NightRaven49]

I challenge my son if he gets all A's I will buy him a budget gaming rig

My budget is around $2k -ish

wah 2k is now considered budget ah 2k is upper midrange liao, budget is normally 1k and below, and now is a pretty good time to build at that price point.

personally i would suggest a more modest build, especially if the monitor ur son has is 1080p.
going back to ur proposed parts list, i would agree with the rest on getting cheaper ddr4 and ddr4 mobo (@poooooo's suggestion is good) and a gen 4 ssd. u could also just run unactivated windows as it will work just fine, u maybe lose out on some cosmetic customisation that have easy workarounds. i would also drop the psu down a couple of notches as 850w is for top end systems, ur 12700f + 6700xt wont even come close to hitting half of that rated power; a 650w unit like the legion gx pro (@$105) should suffice. the rest of the parts are good picks though.

 

[Koenig168]

For the casing and fans, get this instead which is a much better deal. The BeQuiet 500FX comes with 4 ARGB Light Wing fans at S$175. Grab the 40/200 coupon so you only pay S$160 after adding another $25 worth of "free" stuff.

https://www.qoo10.sg/item/BEQUIET-D...CK-TG-ATX-PC-CASE/727148421?banner_no=1305330

 

[86technie]

CPU + MB	i5-13600KF + MSI MAG B660 TOMAHAWK WIFI DDR4 - $721
CPU Cooler	Scythe Fuma2 Rev.B Kaze Flex ii Tower Heatsink. - $83
Ram	CRUCIAL BALLISTIX GAMING RGB 3600MHz CL16 16GB - 119
SSD	1TB Samsung 980 NVMe 3500Mb/s M.2 Gen3 SSD. - $145
Case	Corsair 4000D Airflow TG ATX Casing. - $122
Case Fans	Arctic P12 PWM PST-Argb 3-Pack Fans - $55
GPU	Powercolor AMD Radeon Hellhound RX 6700 XT 12Gb OC GDDR6. - $635
PSU	Leadex iii SuperFlower 850W Gold Full Modular. - $160

Window 11 find any keys seller on Shopee/ lazada/ other sites $20 +/-, you can ask the shop you are getting from to install unactivated windows first.

32GB slow DDR5 ram doesn't really benefit gaming the majority of the time, just opt for a faster CPU and cheaper DDR4 16GB ram.

FYI Crucial Ballistix line have been discontinued by Crucial but some shops still sell them.
Warranty can be claimed but most likely distro will honor exchange to another RAM.
Opt to consider Corsair instead.

 

[bethpapa74]

guys, many many thanks for all your suggestions and advises.
Is it more advantageous to use Ryzen 5800X3D?
if so, may i know which MB I should couple that with?
sorry for the noob questions

 

[KYZT2021]

if AMD can consider MSI b550 mortar or Tomahawk, if no frills can B550-A pro

 

[bethpapa74]

Guys, how about this Ryzen 5800X3D configuration?

CPU + MB	RYZEN R7 5800X3D ASUS TUF GAMING B550M-PLUS WI-FI II - $795
CPU Cooler	Scythe Fuma2 Rev.B Kaze Flex ii Tower Heatsink. - $83
Ram	CORSAIR VENGEANCE RGB PRO SL 3600MHz CL18 (2x 16GB) - $236
SSD	Wd Black SN770 5150MB/s Gen4 Nvme M.2 Ssd - $158
Case	Corsair 4000D Airflow TG ATX Casing. - $122
Case Fans	Arctic P12 PWM PST-Argb 3-Pack Fans - $55
GPU	Gigabyte RTX3070 Gaming OC 8Gb Triple Fan GDDR6 - $845
PSU	Leadex iii SuperFlower 650W Gold Full Modular - $127

 

[tigerwoods]

Guys, how about this Ryzen 5800X3D configuration?

CPU + MB	RYZEN R7 5800X3D ASUS TUF GAMING B550M-PLUS WI-FI II - $795
CPU Cooler	Scythe Fuma2 Rev.B Kaze Flex ii Tower Heatsink. - $83
Ram	CORSAIR VENGEANCE RGB PRO SL 3600MHz CL18 (2x 16GB) - $236
SSD	Wd Black SN770 5150MB/s Gen4 Nvme M.2 Ssd - $158
Case	Corsair 4000D Airflow TG ATX Casing. - $122
Case Fans	Arctic P12 PWM PST-Argb 3-Pack Fans - $55
GPU	Gigabyte RTX3070 Gaming OC 8Gb Triple Fan GDDR6 - $845
PSU	Leadex iii SuperFlower 650W Gold Full Modular - $127

Nice.

I'm using the MB & GPU with a 5800X.

I would add a Toshiba 7200RPM P300/X300 2TB $72 for secondary storage of music, video, photos & backups.

32GB Ram abit overkill if just for games.

 

[NightRaven49]

Guys, how about this Ryzen 5800X3D configuration?

Ram	CORSAIR VENGEANCE RGB PRO SL 3600MHz CL18 (2x 16GB) - $236
GPU	Gigabyte RTX3070 Gaming OC 8Gb Triple Fan GDDR6 - $845

for just games, 16gb of ram is enough, and even that price is quite high for a 32gb kit. 5800x3d does not require high speed low latency ram to extract the most out of it, so u could settle for a cheaper slower 3200mhz or even 3000mhz kit. as for the gpu, i would say that $200 premium is not worth it, as the 6700xt can come quite close in some scenarios and packs more memory, not to mention that the gaming oc model is a budget offering vs the midrange hellhound, so the 6700xt would likely run cooler and quieter too. but to truly make the right choice, it is best to know what games ur son plays and at what resolution + refresh rate. the rest of the parts are still p good otherwise.

 

[Mach3.2]

Guys, how about this Ryzen 5800X3D configuration?

CPU + MB	RYZEN R7 5800X3D ASUS TUF GAMING B550M-PLUS WI-FI II - $795
CPU Cooler	Scythe Fuma2 Rev.B Kaze Flex ii Tower Heatsink. - $83
Ram	CORSAIR VENGEANCE RGB PRO SL 3600MHz CL18 (2x 16GB) - $236
SSD	Wd Black SN770 5150MB/s Gen4 Nvme M.2 Ssd - $158
Case	Corsair 4000D Airflow TG ATX Casing. - $122
Case Fans	Arctic P12 PWM PST-Argb 3-Pack Fans - $55
GPU	Gigabyte RTX3070 Gaming OC 8Gb Triple Fan GDDR6 - $845
PSU	Leadex iii SuperFlower 650W Gold Full Modular - $127

If you can find Crucial Ballistix kits those are better.

 

[GrimaH]

Guys, how about this Ryzen 5800X3D configuration?

CPU + MB	RYZEN R7 5800X3D ASUS TUF GAMING B550M-PLUS WI-FI II - $795
CPU Cooler	Scythe Fuma2 Rev.B Kaze Flex ii Tower Heatsink. - $83
Ram	CORSAIR VENGEANCE RGB PRO SL 3600MHz CL18 (2x 16GB) - $236
SSD	Wd Black SN770 5150MB/s Gen4 Nvme M.2 Ssd - $158
Case	Corsair 4000D Airflow TG ATX Casing. - $122
Case Fans	Arctic P12 PWM PST-Argb 3-Pack Fans - $55
GPU	Gigabyte RTX3070 Gaming OC 8Gb Triple Fan GDDR6 - $845
PSU	Leadex iii SuperFlower 650W Gold Full Modular - $127

Yep, pretty solid build.

 

[bethpapa74]

for just games, 16gb of ram is enough, and even that price is quite high for a 32gb kit. 5800x3d does not require high speed low latency ram to extract the most out of it, so u could settle for a cheaper slower 3200mhz or even 3000mhz kit. as for the gpu, i would say that $200 premium is not worth it, as the 6700xt can come quite close in some scenarios and packs more memory, not to mention that the gaming oc model is a budget offering vs the midrange hellhound, so the 6700xt would likely run cooler and quieter too. but to truly make the right choice, it is best to know what games ur son plays and at what resolution + refresh rate. the rest of the parts are still p good otherwise.

hi NightRaven49 - just check with my son, he is playing varolant and one more (I forgotten) .. his currently monitor is Asus VP249QGR w/ 144Hz refresh

 

[NightRaven49]

hi NightRaven49 - just check with my son, he is playing varolant and one more (I forgotten) .. his currently monitor is Asus VP249QGR w/ 144Hz refresh

valorant is a very easy game to run, and that monitor is 1080p144 so also not difficult to max out. i would suggest 2 builds, 1 actually budget build that is good enough for the forseeable future, and 1 that (roughly) fits ur 2.2k budget that would last probably a bit longer.

for the budget build, i recommend going with a 6600 as it is the best value brand new gpu and will easily drive 200+ fps in valorant at 1080p max settings which is more than enough for the monitor. because of that, i also suggest getting a r5 5600 as cpu performance is also more than adequate. however, do confirm the other game and search a bit on youtube what the performance numbers are like with a rx 6600: if it can drive around or more than 144fps at 1080p max this is the build that i feel u should be picking.

r5 5600 + asrock b550m pro 4	373
id-cooling se 224 xt	36
klevv bolt x 2x 8gb 3600mhz	80
wd black sn770 1tb	158
powercolor fighter rx 6600	439
super flower legion gx pro 650w	105
tecware nexus air m2 (comes with 3 fans)	45
total	1236

this one is more of maxing out ur budget and following what u have been speccing out so far but when using the mentioned monitor, likely u wont be able to tell the difference between this and the budget build above. still, this is more powerful and will likely fare better as newer games become more and more demanding. how worth this almost 100% premium is depends on whether ur son will be sticking to current games or chiong for latest ones and whether he will be getting a higher resolution monitor sometime in the future.

r7 5800x3d + asus tuf gaming b550m plus ii wifi	795
scythe fuma2 rev b	83
klevv bolt x 2x 8gb 3600mhz	80
wd black sn770 1tb	158
asus tuf gaming rtx 3070	845
super flower legion gx pro 650w	105
corsair 4000d	122
arctic p12 pwm pst argb 3 pack	55
total	2243

not sure how dynacore does business nowadays, but if u wanna try luck, maybe can bargain the overall price a little bit.