I'm in the US and am moving from consoles to PC gaming and building. I'm still learning, rarely use a keyboard and mouse, and don't know what performance or parts are realistic for my budget. I have about $1,200 maximum for the entire setup, including peripherals, but I'd prefer to stay near $800 if possible.
I'd like to play games such as Vein, Surroundead, the Gothic 1 remake, Crimson Desert, Oblivion Remastered, and Project Zomboid. My initial budget-oriented idea was a Ryzen 5 5600, Radeon RX 5600 XT, 32GB of DDR4-3200 or 3600, a B550 motherboard, a 1TB SSD, and a Corsair 4000D case. I would also need a 27-inch 1080p monitor with at least a 144Hz refresh rate, plus a keyboard and mouse.
If I spend closer to my maximum budget, I was considering a Ryzen 7 7800X3D, a Radeon RX 7700 XT or RX 9060 XT, 32GB of DDR5-6000, 2TB of storage, and a 27-inch 1440p 144Hz monitor. I'm unsure how much of this is genuinely useful versus marketing hype, and what gaming compromises I would make with the cheaper Ryzen 5 build. What would be a realistic parts strategy for both budgets?
1 Answer
I would avoid building around the RX 5600 XT today. A newer Radeon RX 9060 XT with 16GB of VRAM would be a better target, or you could look for a used RX 6700 XT or RX 6800 if those are priced well.
For a lower-cost system, a Ryzen 5 3600 or 5600 on a B550 motherboard is still a reasonable combination. The Ryzen 5 5600 is preferable if the price difference is manageable. A B550 system also gives you a useful upgrade path to a later X3D processor. Start with 16GB of DDR4 if necessary, though 32GB is more comfortable for newer games. Pair it with a quality 750W power supply.
That kind of system should handle the listed games well at 1080p, although the more demanding newer titles may require reduced settings or upscaling. The RX 6700 XT has less graphics memory and performance than the RX 6800, while the non-XT RX 6800 is often recommended because it can offer strong value used without the higher price of the XT model.
What would the real-world difference be between the RX 6700 XT and RX 6800, and why recommend the regular RX 6800 instead of the XT version?