I'm building my first gaming PC in Australia and trying to keep the tower close to A$3,000, with a 27-inch 1440p high-refresh OLED monitor bought separately. I've only used consoles before, so I'd appreciate a careful sanity check before ordering anything.
My main games are CPU-heavy simulation and management titles such as Cities: Skylines II, Planet Zoo, Planet Coaster 2, The Sims and Farming Simulator. I'd also like strong 1440p performance in games such as Battlefield 6 and Diablo IV. I care more about smooth frame rates in large cities, busy parks and heavily populated saves than maximum ray-tracing performance. Quiet operation, reliability and a clean black-and-walnut appearance are also important, and I don't want excessive RGB.
The proposed build is:
- CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D
- CPU cooler: DeepCool AK500 Digital
- Motherboard: MSI B650 Gaming Plus WiFi
- Memory: TEAMGROUP T-Create Expert 32GB (2x16GB) DDR5-6000 CL30
- Storage: Lexar NM790 2TB PCIe 4.0 NVMe
- Graphics card: Gigabyte Radeon RX 9070 XT Gaming OC 16GB
- Case: Fractal Design North XL
- Power supply: Corsair RM850e 850W
- Case fans: initially the three fans included with the case
I'm unsure whether the AK500 Digital is sufficient for the 9800X3D without excessive noise, whether the B650 Gaming Plus WiFi is an appropriate board if its BIOS is current, and whether 850W is comfortably enough for this CPU and graphics card. I'm also wondering if the North XL is unnecessarily large compared with the regular North, and whether a different RX 9070 XT model or the less expensive RX 9070 would make more sense with Australian pricing.
Are there any clearance, connector, RAM profile, BIOS or airflow issues I've overlooked? Please be honest about anything you would change before I start buying parts.
3 Answers
The full-size B650 Gaming Plus WiFi should be a sensible match for the 9800X3D, assuming the board has a compatible BIOS. The earlier concern about weaker power delivery appears to have been based on the smaller B650M version, which is a different board. You only need to spend more on the motherboard if you specifically want extra USB, storage, networking or expansion features.
For the power supply, 850W is enough for this combination when using a good-quality unit. I’d seriously consider the RM850x if it is only about A$20 more than the RM850e, since it is the nicer choice for a long-term build. Connect the graphics card using the recommended separate PCIe power cables rather than relying on one daisy-chained cable.
You’re spending at the high end, but there’s nothing inherently wrong with that. The 9800X3D is stronger than strictly necessary for many of these games, although simulation titles with very large populations can benefit from extra CPU performance and it should remain useful for a long time. The RX 9070 XT is also a strong 1440p choice, but compare its Australian price with the regular RX 9070. If the XT costs substantially more for a relatively small improvement in the games you play, the regular 9070 could be the better-value option.
The North XL will fit everything easily, but it is probably more case than this build requires. Choose it if you genuinely like the design or want lots of room for future upgrades; otherwise, the regular North should fit these components comfortably and may look more balanced. Enable the memory’s EXPO profile in the BIOS, confirm the board’s BIOS version before installation, and check the specific graphics card’s length and power-connector clearance against the case specifications.
The overall parts list is solid, but I’d compare the AK500 Digital with a larger dual-tower cooler such as a Phantom Spirit. The AK500 may be perfectly usable for gaming, especially with sensible fan curves, but a bigger cooler gives you more thermal and noise headroom for long simulation sessions. If the display and compact appearance matter to you, keeping the AK500 is reasonable as long as you accept that temperatures and acoustics may be a little less comfortable under sustained loads.
That makes sense. I prefer the AK500’s smaller look and display, but I’ll switch to a larger dual-tower model if testing shows the AK500 would be marginal rather than merely a little warmer.