I've noticed that PC prices have skyrocketed recently, which is a bummer because Black Friday is here and I'm in the market for a new gaming rig. My current setup struggles with some of my favorite story-driven games like Expedition 33 and Lies of P; even on the lowest settings, they just don't perform well. Since I have a 1440p monitor, I really don't want to drop down to 1080p because it looks off, and I'm not looking to buy a new monitor either. So, what kind of budget should I be considering for a PC that can handle 1440p gaming with decent settings, ideally medium to high? I initially thought $1500 would cover it, but it looks like that might not go as far as I'd hoped. Currently, I'm using an Intel Core i7-6700, 16GB of RAM, an SSD, and a GeForce GTX 1650 Super.
3 Answers
Just a heads up, if you're considering taking out a payday loan to boost your budget, really think twice about that! The interest can be insane, and you don't want to start your uni experience in debt. It's better to find something within your current range or save up a little longer.
If you can stretch your budget, that would help a lot. For under $1200, you could build a PC with solid specs:
- Intel i5-14400F
- 32GB DDR4 RAM
- RTX 5070 graphics card
That total is around $1200 and would still give you a nice performance boost for 1440p gaming. Don’t forget the CPU cooler usually comes included with the processor too, saving you a bit more.
For a solid 1440p gaming experience, you'd want to consider AMD or Intel options. AMD typically gives you more power for the price, but Intel has good bargains too. For around $1500, you can get a strong build. Check out this suggested list:
- AMD Ryzen 5 7600X
- MSI PRO B850M Motherboard
- 48GB DDR5 RAM
- Western Digital 1TB SSD
- Radeon RX 9070 XT
All of that comes in just under $1500! It should run your favorite games on medium to high settings easily.
Here's the link for a detailed build: PCPartPicker List.
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