I'm planning my first PC build mainly for iRacing, Assetto Corsa, Richard Burns Rally, and eventually Le Mans Ultimate and Assetto Corsa Rally. My budget is about €500, and I'll be buying most parts in Northern Cyprus, where used hardware is difficult to find and local store prices are high. I already own a PS5, so this PC only needs to handle sim racing, older games, and a few PC-only indie titles. My wheel and other peripherals are already covered.
I found a reasonably priced combination of an RTX 2060 6GB, Ryzen 5 3600, MSI A520M-A PRO motherboard, 16GB of RAM, and an SSD. I have a 32-inch 1080p 144Hz monitor and would use low settings to maximize FPS while keeping the image reasonably clean. Ideally, I'd like around 80–120 FPS in races, especially in iRacing.
Would this combination realistically reach that performance in iRacing? What kind of FPS should I expect during normal sessions, large starts, and bad weather? I'd also like to upgrade later to run newer sims such as LMU and Assetto Corsa Rally at around 90 FPS on low settings. What would be the best upgrade path?
I also found an inexpensive 500W Thermaltake 80+ Bronze power supply, but I haven't bought anything yet. Is that enough, and what should I check before purchasing it?
2 Answers
The system should be quite usable for iRacing, but the newer sims are a different story. Le Mans Ultimate may run on the 3600 and 2060, but the RTX 2060’s 6GB of VRAM and the older CPU make consistent 90+ FPS unlikely without aggressive settings and some compromises. Assetto Corsa Rally is likely to be even more demanding, with the GPU being the main limitation.
The AM4 platform gives you a useful upgrade route. You could start with the Ryzen 5 3600, then later move to a Ryzen 5 5600 or another compatible Ryzen 5000 chip, provided the motherboard has the required BIOS update. For newer sims, a stronger graphics card would probably make the biggest difference, although upgrading both the CPU and GPU eventually would be ideal. Moving to 32GB of RAM would also be worthwhile if you start playing the heavier titles or running other software while racing.
For iRacing at 1080p, the Ryzen 5 3600 and RTX 2060 are a sensible pairing. With low or medium settings, around 80–120 FPS should be achievable in many practice sessions and normal races. The biggest drops will probably happen during large-grid starts, heavy traffic, and rain, because iRacing can become CPU-limited when it has to simulate many cars. I wouldn’t expect a completely locked 144 FPS in every situation, though.
The 16GB kit is fine to start with, but make sure it is two matched 8GB sticks running in dual channel. Also verify the exact PSU model before buying. A 500W unit is enough for this hardware, but the 80+ Bronze label only describes efficiency; it does not guarantee good build quality. An unreliable or generic power supply is worth replacing even if the brand name sounds familiar.
Thanks, that helps. I’ll check that the memory is a matched dual-channel kit and will look up the exact power supply model before paying for it.
I probably won’t play LMU for a few months, so I may have time to upgrade the processor or graphics card first. I’ll prioritize a reliable PSU and then see which part is holding performance back.