I'm planning my first proper desktop PC after gaming on a laptop with an i7-12700H and RTX 4060. The laptop performs reasonably well, but it gets extremely loud under load. My main games are Valorant and Minecraft, though I'd also like to play single-player AAA games occasionally.
I use a 1440p 360Hz monitor, so stable high FPS in Valorant is my top priority. My current laptop delivers roughly 180–300 FPS, but the frame rate is inconsistent; getting a stable 240 FPS would be more than enough for me.
The build I'm considering costs about €1,530 and includes a Ryzen 5 9600X, Intel Arc B580 12GB, 32GB of DDR5 memory, a B650 motherboard, a 650W Gold-rated PSU, a Phantom Spirit EVO cooler, and a 1TB NVMe SSD.
For AAA games, I'm aiming for 1440p at good settings. I don't need 4K, maximum settings, or ray tracing. I'd also like to keep the AM5 platform for several years and potentially upgrade the graphics card later, so the B580 would mainly be a temporary starting point. Does this combination make sense, or would you change any components?
4 Answers
The 9600X is a solid processor for this use case, but the B580 is more of an entry-level 1440p card. Expect around 60 FPS or more in many AAA games with medium settings and quality upscaling, rather than consistently high settings. Valorant should run well, but reaching a stable 240 FPS at 1440p may require lowering some settings.
The build is a little unbalanced for a 1440p 360Hz monitor. For competitive games, a faster gaming-focused CPU such as a 7600X3D could improve minimum and average FPS, while a stronger GPU would help with AAA titles. That said, the 9600X should still be fine for Valorant and Minecraft, especially if you’re happy to adjust settings. Check used parts and local pricing before committing; the B580 only makes sense if it’s significantly cheaper than the alternatives.
I’d be cautious about relying on Intel’s upscaling right now. The B580 can work, but when you need to render below native resolution, the image quality may look noticeably softer than comparable quality modes from Nvidia. If the budget allows, a 16GB Radeon 9060 XT would be a stronger and more suitable 1440p choice, although it costs considerably more.
I’d avoid the B580 unless it’s the only graphics card that fits your budget. Since you’re deliberately building on AM5 for future upgrades, it may be worth choosing a less expensive CPU or waiting a little longer and putting the savings toward a stronger 1440p GPU. The 9600X and B580 will function together, but the graphics card will be the clear limitation in newer AAA games.
I’m in France, and the 7600X3D isn’t really available here at a reasonable price, so I’d need to consider other CPU options.