I'm building my first PC mainly for multiplayer games with friends, though I'll also play single-player titles occasionally. My monitor is 1080p, and I'm not sure of its refresh rate, but it probably isn't especially high. I'd still like to use high or ultra graphics settings where possible.
My planned build is:
- CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 5700X
- Motherboard: ASUS PRIME B550M-A Wi-Fi
- GPU: ASRock Radeon RX 9060 XT 16GB
- RAM: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2×8GB) DDR4
- Storage: Kingston NV3 1TB SSD
- PSU: MSI MAG A650BN 650W
- Cooling: A few air coolers
Does this setup make sense for 1080p gaming at ultra settings? Is choosing a DDR4 platform still reasonable, or is DDR5 now a much better investment? I'd also like feedback on the motherboard—was it a sensible choice, or should I pick a different model?
4 Answers
The motherboard is a fairly standard choice and should work with the parts listed. A full-size ATX board could give you more rear USB ports, expansion slots, and internal connectors, but you don’t need to replace this one unless you specifically need those features.
DDR4 is still perfectly fine for this build, especially since you’re gaming at 1080p and already have a compatible budget in mind. DDR5 offers a newer upgrade path, but switching platforms would usually mean buying a different CPU and motherboard as well. The performance difference may not justify the extra cost for your use case.
I’d prioritize upgrading the memory to 32GB rather than buying a larger power supply. A quality 650W unit should be adequate for this CPU and graphics card, while 16GB can become limiting in newer games and when multitasking. An inexpensive 2×16GB DDR4 kit would make the system more comfortable long term.
The RX 9060 XT 16GB should be more than capable for 1080p gaming. In most games, you can expect well over 60 FPS at high or ultra settings, with roughly 90 FPS or more in many titles. Ray tracing or path tracing can reduce performance significantly, but FSR and frame generation may help if you need extra frames. It’s still worth checking benchmarks for the specific games you care about, since the CPU can matter for multiplayer and high-refresh-rate gaming.
Is there a reliable website where I can easily check CPU and GPU performance for the games I want to play?
You probably don’t need a 750W or 850W PSU for this setup. Keeping the 650W model and putting the money toward 32GB of RAM makes more sense, assuming the power supply is a decent-quality unit.