I'm in the UK and have a budget of around £1,500 for a new desktop, although I could stretch slightly if the extra cost makes a meaningful difference. Video editing is my main priority, followed by gaming.
I edit 1080p footage from a Samsung S20, Canon G7 X, GoPro, and OBS, with occasional 4K clips. For gaming, I'd like to play current and future titles at 1440p using medium settings with high or maximum textures, without motion blur. Ideally, the system should remain useful for at least four years.
I'd like 32GB of RAM if possible, but memory prices seem unusually high. Please specify whether the recommended memory is DDR4 or DDR5 rather than only listing the capacity. I'd also prefer a graphics card with 16GB of VRAM for better longevity, although I'm unsure whether that is realistic within this budget.
I'm replacing an old Samsung P2450H and would like a modern monitor that looks good for games and films. It should be larger than the old display while retaining comfortable pixel density; extremely high PPI and aggressive scaling made video editing difficult on my Lenovo Legion 7. I'm considering using two monitors, possibly keeping the P2450H as a secondary display. Is that preferable to buying one larger monitor?
I may also be able to reuse the 1TB SSD from my Lenovo Legion if the manufacturer lets me keep the laptop after a partial refund. Is transferring that drive to the new PC sensible, and should I plan to add another SSD? I know 1TB may fill quickly with games and video projects.
I'd prefer a system that stays reasonably cool, quiet, and power-efficient, and I'm happy to use an air cooler. Should I build now, or are component prices likely to improve if I wait? I'd also appreciate advice on whether an older AM4 build makes sense for this use case, or whether a newer platform would be a better long-term investment.
2 Answers
You should be able to fit 32GB into the budget, especially if you consider reputable used memory. For a new gaming-focused build, a Radeon RX 9070 XT would be attractive if you can find one at a good price, particularly because it offers 16GB of VRAM. The competing GeForce RTX 5070 has 12GB, while the 5070 Ti may push the total beyond budget. For the memory, make sure the platform determines the type: a modern AM5 build uses DDR5, while an older AM4 build uses DDR4. I wouldn’t choose DDR3 for a new system.
One possible configuration is an AMD Ryzen 9 5900XT with a Peerless Assassin air cooler, a B550 motherboard, 32GB of DDR4-3200 CL16, a 2TB PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD, and a 16GB Radeon RX 9060 XT. Add a 750W Gold-rated PCIe 5 power supply and a reasonably ventilated case. With a 27-inch 1440p monitor, the total comes to roughly £1,537, so it is only slightly over budget. The Ryzen 9’s extra cores could be useful for video editing, and 32GB is more practical than limiting the system to 16GB.
I’m concerned that the Ryzen 9 5900XT and B550 are based on the older AM4 platform. Since this is a completely new build, would moving to a newer platform provide better performance and upgrade options over the next several years?
Would you recommend buying the RX 9070 XT new or used? Also, would you choose DDR4 or DDR5 for this build? I’m not sure how much suitable used memory is available beyond older DDR3 systems.