I've mainly played on Xbox and have never built or really understood PCs before. I've saved around £2,000 and would like to put together a gaming-focused system. I play a wide range of games and would ideally like enough performance for demanding upcoming titles such as GTA 6. I don't need the PC for video editing, streaming, 3D work, or other professional tasks, although I could save for a few more months if spending slightly above budget would make a worthwhile difference. What parts and complete build would you recommend for a beginner?
3 Answers
For a gaming-first build, I’d aim for an AMD X3D processor such as the Ryzen 7 7800X3D or 9800X3D, 32GB of DDR5 memory, a 2TB PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD, an 850W 80 Plus Gold ATX 3.0 or 3.1 modular power supply, and a decent airflow-focused case. A good dual-tower air cooler is plenty for these CPUs and usually costs much less than a liquid cooler.
For the graphics card, the Radeon RX 9070 XT offers excellent standard-rendering performance, plenty of VRAM, and generally leaves more room in the budget for a 2TB SSD. The GeForce RTX 5070 Ti is a better choice if ray tracing is especially important to you, but it may require compromising on storage or going slightly over budget. If you plan to do serious 3D modeling, Nvidia is usually the safer choice because of CUDA support.
For memory, get a matched 2x16GB kit rather than one 32GB stick. DDR5-6000 is a good target, and CL30 is ideal, though CL36 is perfectly usable if it saves a significant amount. A full-size ATX motherboard and case are easy to work with, but a smaller format is fine as long as all the components are compatible. Use a parts-listing site to check compatibility and compare UK prices before buying.
£2,000 is a strong budget for a gaming PC. I’d look at a Ryzen 7 7800X3D or 9800X3D, a B850 motherboard from a reliable brand, 32GB of DDR5-6000 memory in a 2x16GB kit, and an 850W power supply. A mid-tower dual-chamber case can make airflow and cable management much easier, although it will take up more desk space.
There are plenty of build videos available, including guides for specific cases, so it’s worth watching one before assembling the system. Spending a little extra later is also reasonable if you want a more powerful graphics card or additional storage.
Thanks, that’s useful. I don’t mind waiting a few months and saving more if it means getting a system I won’t immediately want to replace.
Since this is almost entirely for gaming, the main decision is how much you value ray tracing and how much storage you want immediately. An RX 9070 XT build can fit a 2TB NVMe drive while staying close to £2,000. An RTX 5070 Ti build may offer noticeably better ray tracing, but you might need to start with a 1TB drive or spend roughly £100 more. Either option should be a strong choice for modern games; you can always add another SSD later.
I’m leaning toward spending a little more for the Nvidia option if the ray-tracing performance is significantly better. I can add more storage later if necessary.
That explanation helps a lot since I’m starting with almost no PC knowledge. I’ll compare the 9070 XT and 5070 Ti builds and check everything carefully.