I'm trying to decide between two gaming PC builds, and both are priced at $1290. Here's what each build includes:
1)
- CPU: Intel® Core™ i7-12700
- Motherboard: ASUS Z 790 DDR5
- Graphics: RTX 3070 TI 8 GB
- RAM: 32 GB DDR5 6000MHz
- SSD: 1 TB M2
- Power Supply: ZALMAN 700 W
2)
- CPU: Intel® Core™ i5-12400
- Motherboard: ASUS H 610
- Graphics: RTX 4070 12 GB
- RAM: 32 GB DDR5
- SSD: 1 TB M2
- Power Supply: ZALMAN 700 W
I'm purely interested in gaming performance, so which build would you recommend?
3 Answers
Neither seems like a great choice. If you’re strictly gaming, consider looking at AMD processors like the Ryzen 7 9800X3D. It's a powerful alternative that can typically give you a better bang for your buck. You might find a killer build under $1300 with that setup, outperforming both of these.
I'd suggest going for the second build. The RTX 4070 is a stronger GPU for gaming compared to the 3070 TI, even if the CPU is a bit lower tier. It should definitely give you better performance.
Honestly, I wouldn't go with either build if the power supply is a ZALMAN. They tend to be unreliable. Can you share more about the specific power supply model?
I think the AMD suggestion is valid, but finding that build under $1290 is really challenging. Can you share specific examples?