I'm putting together my first new PC build in France with a budget of roughly €1,000–€1,200. I already have an Asus 27-inch monitor with a 165Hz refresh rate and very fast response time; although it supports 4K, I don't plan to game at 4K. My main goals are streaming and playing AAA games at 1080p or 1440p with high settings and high frame rates. I need both Wi-Fi and wired networking, but I have no size, noise, or lighting preferences, so I'd rather spend the money on performance. I don't need to include an operating system license. What parts should I prioritize for this budget?
2 Answers
1440p is a much more sensible target here. Choose a strong midrange GPU with enough VRAM, pair it with a recent six- or eight-core CPU, and avoid spending extra on RGB, premium cases, or unnecessary accessories. A motherboard with built-in Wi-Fi will cover both wireless and wired networking, while hardware encoding on the GPU can handle streaming without putting too much load on the CPU.
For this budget, focus most of the money on the graphics card, followed by a capable modern CPU. A balanced 1080p or 1440p gaming-and-streaming build is realistic, but 4K at 165Hz is far beyond what a €1,000–€1,200 system can comfortably deliver in demanding AAA games.
That makes sense. I was initially thinking about the monitor’s 4K capability, but I’m mainly targeting 1440p instead.
I’m happy to skip lighting and cosmetic upgrades if that leaves more room for the GPU and CPU.