So it's been over 7.5 years since I've done a a completely new desktop PC build for myself. With the huge generational leap in CPU (zen 3) and GPU (RTX 3080) and Cyberpunk 2077 release I figure it was the perfect time to pull the trigger on a new pc. It was the best and absolute worst time to build though. Great as far as technological advancements and a target application/game that can take advantage of it creating a perfect storm but horrible from a product availability standpoint with demand way out stripping supply and scalper bots gobbling up a lot of the scarce inventory.
I have to say Best Buy really came through for me. It is where I was able to get both the PS 5 and Xbox series X pre orders in, rtx 3080, and now finally the ryzen 5950x. The cpu took almost 2 months to finally acquire. I'm so glad I was able to buy everything at retail prices. I did use alert bots (does NOT auto buy, just alerts) like this one running on a dedicated pc with mullvad vpn with kill switch on. There are also several discord shopping bot servers like this one. Finally, I wrote my own bot because I could.
In the past I've typically targeted mid to high end with a budget of $1300 or less. This time I kind of went all out. The hope is this PC will last a LONG time with the typical GPU upgrade every 2-3 years.
Here is the complete parts list:
https://pcpartpicker.com/user/arogan/saved/#view=N6mHGX
This is by far the most insane and expensive build I've done clocking in at $3,100 and after taxes closer to $3,355. But it runs Cyberpunk 2077 so totally worth it! Seriously, I'm loving it with 60 hrs in so far and still in Act 2.
Some notes on the parts I chose:
- Rzyen 5950x: Pretty much overkill for purely gaming but I want this cpu to last a long time and to use it for more productivity tasks, virtualization, and coding. First cpu I had was a 5600x which partially broke in the first 4 hours. You can read more about my painful experience if you are curious. I know the 5600x are the lowest bin parts but I think this one fell out of the bin, got smashed under the bin, was found and shipped to me. So far the 5950x has been working great though.
- Noctua NH-D15: It's massive but so effective, quiet, and surprisingly really easy to mount. Just a really well designed cooler. Worth it if you've got the space but again probably overkill if you are running stock (which I plan to for quite a while).
- Arctic MX-4: Spread method for LIFE.
- Asus TUF Gaming x570 pro. Has all the headers I wanted to plug in all the connectors for my case including front usb-c. Wifi is pointless so that part is a waste but I like having bluetooth built in. It was a bit more than I wanted to spend.
- Corsair Vengeance LPX 32 GB 3600: Went for higher speeds vs lower latency since higher clock speeds directly impacts infinity fabric in a 1:1 scenario.
- Samsung 970 evo Plus 2TB: Got a pretty good price and I wanted to fill all the nvme holes since filling it later would be difficult with that Noctua in place. I stuck a cheap little heatsink on it since the motherboard only came with one nvme heatsink. Not sure if it helps all that much but might as well.
- Sabrent Rocket 4.0: Gen 4 speeds for the boot drive
Evga RTX 3080 XC3 Ultra: It's a 3080.- Upgraded to a RTX 3090 Founder's Edition. See details below. DLSS and ray tracing were very important features for me. I run a 4K 32" display so the more GPU the better.
- Phanteks p500a: First time working with a phanteks. I love the overall build quality with a lot of nice cable management features. I HATE that this particular model is missing a HDD LED and reset button which I had to add on myself and just have it tied to one of the gpu pcie power cables. The phanteks fans are really nice too and having all the RGB synced up is cool. Good Temps, Good looks, Good low noise levels. If you find it a bit confusing on how to wire up all the fans and rgb take a look at this video.
- EVGA 850w: Spent a bit more here for more headroom to accommodate any future gpu upgrades.
- Seagate 16TB: Immediately shucked it and installed it internally. It's always nice to have a large amount of local storage.
- Install latest chipset drivers directly from AMD.
- Start from optimized defaults
- AI over clock tuner: DOCP
- SVM Mode: enabled
- Wifi controller: disabled
- Resize BAR: ON
OCCT:
- Ducky One 2 Midnight TKL Double Shot PBT Mechanical Keyboard with Cherry MX Brown switches
- Logitech G Pro Wireless Gaming Mouse
- SeelSeries QcK mouse pads
- Grifiti wrist pad
- Xbox Series X Controller in Shock Blue with wireless adapter. I think it has lower latency than bluetooth.
- Jabra Evolve 40 Mono headset. I prefer to keep game audio on speakers and only have chat through the headset.
- 32" 4K 60hz monoprice monitor with freesync.
- Cheap HP and LG 1080p 60hz IPS 27" monitors (each were around $100-120)
- Logitech Z-5300e THX-Certified 280-Watt 5.1 Surround Sound PC and Gaming Speaker System. I don't have the rear speakers hooked up just because I don't have a good place to put them.
- Logitech c920s webcam
- I picked up a RTX 3090 Founders Edition from Best Buy at retail price. I got pretty lucky. I gave my son the 3080. Now there is literally nothing left in my system I would want to upgrade. It's about as top of the line as it gets for me at least. I think it's time I stop fiddling and enjoy the system.
- Updated pcpartpicker list. Now it's up to $3842. So around a bank breaking $4160 after taxes. Uggg!!!
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