I recently got a temporary job that should pay about £2,500 in total, and I've always wanted to build my own gaming PC. My current plan is to spend roughly £1,000 on an AM4 system with a Ryzen 5 5600X, Radeon RX 9060 XT 16GB, 16GB of RAM initially, and a 1TB SSD. I would upgrade to 32GB of RAM later when I can afford it.
Gaming is my main use case, although I already have a PS5 for demanding games. In the next few years, I'll also be using 3D software for college and possibly work. I expect this build to handle my software needs, but I'm unsure whether AM4 will remain practical over the next few years.
Should I build this PC now, or wait a year or so until I can afford an AM5 system? Is AM4 still a sensible choice for a new build at this budget?
5 Answers
You could also compare the total price with a newer Intel build, since something like a Core i5-13600KF can be faster in CPU-heavy workloads. The RX 9060 XT should work well with either Intel or AMD; the important thing is comparing the full platform cost, power requirements, motherboard quality, and upgrade options rather than choosing a CPU brand automatically.
For this budget, the proposed system should be perfectly capable, and it may actually be faster than a PS5 in many games. You don’t necessarily have to reserve the most demanding titles for the console. It should also be suitable for learning and moderate 3D work, although specific software and project complexity will determine how much RAM and CPU performance you eventually need.
Before buying new parts, check the used market. Complete AM4 systems with a Ryzen 5 5600X and a graphics card around an RTX 3070 can sometimes cost roughly £400–£500. You could put the remaining money aside and build or upgrade to AM5 later. That said, buying used only makes sense if you’re comfortable giving up the experience of assembling the PC yourself.
The biggest issue with your parts list is using a single RAM stick. Get a 2x8GB kit so the system can run in dual channel; that will give you noticeably better performance and smoother frame times. You can replace it with 2x16GB later if you need more capacity.
You also don’t need an expensive NVMe drive for the operating system. A smaller boot drive plus a SATA SSD, or just one reasonably priced SATA SSD, can save money. AM4 is an older platform and doesn’t offer much of an upgrade path now, but it can still be a good choice when you need to stay near a £1,000 budget. Just make sure the motherboard and power supply are good enough for the system you actually plan to build.
I made the mistake of using one RAM stick with an early Ryzen system, and the stuttering and poor frame times were frustrating. Even 16GB in a proper 2x8GB configuration is better than one 16GB stick, unless you can stretch the budget to 2x16GB immediately.
AM4 is already an aging platform, and its fastest processors are based on several-year-old designs. I wouldn’t choose it for a long-term upgrade project, but that doesn’t mean it’s automatically a bad purchase. If AM5 would require waiting another year while you save for a permanent job, a well-balanced AM4 build can still provide excellent 1080p or 1440p gaming and handle plenty of 3D software.
Think of it as a complete system rather than a platform you’ll gradually upgrade. Choose a decent motherboard, 32GB of RAM when your workload requires it, and a reliable power supply. If you can wait comfortably, AM5 is the better foundation; if waiting means going without a PC you genuinely need, AM4 is reasonable at this price.
My current budget is about £1,000, so AM5 would probably mean waiting roughly another year. I’m mainly trying to decide whether the older platform is still worth using if I need the PC sooner.
I did consider a used system, but building the PC myself is part of what I’m looking forward to.