I'm planning a new gaming PC in the UK and would appreciate feedback on this complete parts list. My current system dates back to 2014, so this will be a substantial upgrade. I'll mainly play single-player games and some non-competitive online titles, along with normal desktop tasks. I'm also planning to run Linux. My budget is roughly £1,000–£1,500, and I don't need peripherals. For memory, I'll choose the best-value kit available with equivalent specifications.
Current parts list:
- CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 9600X
- CPU cooler: AMD Wraith Prism
- Motherboard: Asus PRIME B850-PLUS WIFI ATX AM5
- Memory: Patriot Viper Venom 16GB (1 x 16GB) DDR5-6000 CL30
- Storage: WD Blue SN5000 1TB PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD
- Graphics card: ASRock Challenger Radeon RX 9070 XT 16GB
- Power supply: Cooler Master MWE Gold V3 850W 80+ Gold
Are there any compatibility, value, cooling, or performance issues I should address before buying?
4 Answers
It’s worth comparing the total cost against prebuilt deals. A system with a Ryzen 7 9800X3D, RX 9070 XT, 32GB of RAM, and a 1TB NVMe drive has been advertised around £1,599. That’s slightly above the stated budget, but it may offer better gaming performance than buying the parts individually, especially once you add the case, cooler, and storage.
The biggest issue is the memory configuration. A single 16GB stick runs in single-channel mode, so I’d strongly recommend a 32GB kit made from 2 x 16GB modules. DDR5-6000 is a good target for AM5, although you can consider a slower kit if the savings are significant. X3D processors are also less dependent on memory speed.
Check the cooler carefully before ordering. The Wraith Prism is known for being quite loud, and it may not be included with the 9600X. A reasonably priced tower air cooler would generally be quieter and should handle this CPU comfortably.
The overall platform and graphics card combination makes sense for high-refresh 1440p gaming, and the 850W Gold PSU should provide plenty of headroom. I’d mainly spend the remaining budget on 32GB dual-channel memory, a suitable cooler, and possibly a 2TB SSD if your game library is large. Also check Linux support for the specific motherboard’s Wi-Fi hardware and any motherboard firmware updates before installation.
Good to know about the noise. I’ll compare the cost of a quieter tower cooler before finalizing the build.