I'm planning my first PC build and want to make sure the parts are sensible before buying them. I understand that the components should be compatible, but I don't know how well they will perform together. My current list includes a SilverStone PS13B case, a Gigabyte B550M K motherboard, a Ryzen 5 5500 with its stock cooler, a Noctua NH-L9a-AM4 cooler, one 3TB hard drive, three 2TB SATA SSDs, 64GB of DDR4-3200 memory, a 1000W 80+ Gold power supply, and an ASRock Intel Arc A580 graphics card. The total is just under $2,000. I mainly want to play games such as Cyberpunk 2077 at around 40 FPS on maximum settings, with possibly some coding as well. Are there better choices for gaming performance without exceeding $2,000?
4 Answers
The storage and RAM are far beyond what you need for a gaming system. Three 2TB SATA SSDs plus a 3TB hard drive is a huge amount of capacity, and 32GB is already enough for current gaming and normal coding. More RAM does not automatically increase FPS once you have enough available. Put the money saved from reducing storage and memory toward the graphics card and CPU instead.
The Ryzen 5 5500 has modest power and cooling requirements, so the included Wraith Stealth cooler should be adequate unless you want a quieter system. The Noctua low-profile cooler is unnecessary for this chip. Also, 1000W is excessive for an A580 build that would likely use well under 400W; 650W is enough with some upgrade headroom, and 750W is a sensible choice for a stronger future GPU. Be careful with the power supply because the exact manufacturer and model matter more than the generic 80+ Gold label. The listed unit should be replaced with a well-reviewed model from a reputable brand.
For nearly $2,000, this should be rebuilt around a modern AM5 platform and a much stronger GPU. A Ryzen 5 7600-class processor, 32GB of DDR5-6000 memory, a 2TB NVMe SSD, and a Radeon RX 9070 XT—or at least a 16GB RX 9060 XT—would provide dramatically better gaming performance. That kind of setup is much more balanced than pairing a relatively weak A580 with several expensive SATA drives.
This is more of an entry-level gaming build despite the high price. The Ryzen 5 5500 and Arc A580 can work, but too much of the budget is going toward unnecessary storage, memory, and power supply capacity. A Ryzen 5 5600 or a newer AM5 processor would be a better starting point, and the graphics card should get the largest share of the budget. A 750W or 850W quality Gold-rated PSU would be plenty, while a cheaper tower cooler—or the included stock cooler—would also be sufficient.
I chose the 1000W unit because I thought 80+ Gold meant higher wattage was better, but it sounds like I should focus more on the PSU's quality and model than simply choosing a large wattage rating.
I was worried that newer games would keep getting close to a terabyte each, and I assumed more RAM would always help. I understand now that extra capacity is convenient, but it does not make the games run faster.