I'm planning to replace my nearly 10-year-old PC, which has an i7-4770K and GTX 980. The new system will mainly be used for gaming, especially Path of Exile 1 and 2, along with newer AAA games at 1480p. I don't need every game running at ultra settings with extremely high frame rates, but I would like to maintain around 100+ stable FPS in the games I play most.
The current build costs roughly $2,200 in Ukraine, which is well above my preferred budget of about $1,500. I'm willing to save up if the more expensive parts will genuinely help the system remain useful for many years, but I'd appreciate suggestions for cutting costs without significantly hurting gaming performance. I'm not very experienced with PC building, so I'd also like general feedback on component choices, compatibility, and whether this is a sensible long-term build.
1 Answer
The biggest issue is the pricing, especially the memory. That 32 GB DDR5 kit is listed at an unusually high price, so finding a cheaper 32 GB DDR5-6000 CL30 kit should save a lot without changing performance. You can also use a less expensive AM5 motherboard and a basic tower cooler.
A Ryzen 7 7800X3D would still be an excellent gaming CPU and can reduce the cost compared with the 9800X3D. The money saved could instead go toward a stronger graphics card, such as an RX 9070 XT, which is likely to matter more for demanding games at higher resolutions. A 1 TB PCIe 4.0 SSD, a 750 W Gold power supply from a reputable brand, and an airflow-focused case would round out the system. The revised parts list comes to about $1,937 using those changes, though local Ukrainian pricing may differ. Reaching $1,500 would probably require compromising on either the CPU or GPU, buying used parts, or waiting for better prices.
Good point about the case—I accidentally left it out of the original list. I’ll also compare local prices for the cheaper memory and the 7800X3D before deciding how much performance I’m willing to give up.