I'm building my first custom PC in the United States and would appreciate advice on part selection, compatibility, and pricing. My comfortable budget is around $1,300, with $1,600 as the absolute maximum. I'll mainly use it for schoolwork, streaming, heavily modded Minecraft, and smaller Steam games. I'd like an all-white build using the Shiny Snake G600 Standard MicroATX case, with 32GB of RAM and 1TB–2TB of storage.
My current parts list includes a Ryzen 5 7600X, Peerless Assassin 120 SE White cooler, ASRock B650M Pro RS WiFi motherboard, 32GB of DDR5-6000 CL30 memory, a 2TB NVMe SSD, an RTX 4060, a 750W power supply, and Windows 11. The listed total is about $1,873, which is over budget, and some of the listed prices—especially the RAM, SSD, and Windows license—seem unusually high.
I'm not in a rush and would like to have the PC finished by the end of the year. Which components should I buy only when I find a good sale, and which parts are safe to purchase earlier? I also live within about an hour of two Micro Center stores, although visiting with a two-month-old baby may be difficult. Would a CPU, motherboard, and memory bundle be worthwhile, and is it practical to have someone else pick one up for me? I'm also new to Windows installation and BIOS updates, so beginner-friendly advice would be helpful.
3 Answers
For a first build, you don’t need to purchase a retail Windows USB immediately. You can create a Windows installation USB from another computer using a blank flash drive, then activate Windows later with a legitimate license. Also prepare a second USB for the motherboard’s BIOS file if an update is needed. Keeping the installer and BIOS files on separate drives makes the process less confusing.
Before installing everything into the case, test the motherboard, CPU, one or two memory sticks, and graphics card outside the case if possible. Confirm that it reaches the BIOS, then install the parts normally. The motherboard manual will explain the BIOS update process, memory slots, front-panel connections, and boot order.
The graphics card is the weakest part of the original list for the money. A faster card with more VRAM, such as a Radeon RX 9060 XT 16GB or a similar current-generation option, would provide better gaming performance and more headroom for modded Minecraft. You can still keep the Ryzen 5 7600X, motherboard, cooler, case, and 750W power supply.
The RAM and SSD prices in the list are extremely inflated. A normal 32GB DDR5-6000 CL30 kit should cost far less, and a good 2TB PCIe 4.0 SSD should also be much cheaper. Shop around instead of buying those specific listings. Since the build is several months away, I would not buy most parts yet; prices, availability, and newer products may change. The GPU, RAM, and SSD are the parts most worth watching for sales, but only purchase early if the return period will still cover your build and testing window.
Since you’re close to Micro Center, definitely check their CPU/motherboard/RAM bundles. They can save a substantial amount and the store will normally make sure the included parts are compatible. The main limitation is that bundle pickup is generally in-store, so a friend may need to collect it for you. Don’t buy a bundle months before you can test it, though, because the return period may expire before the rest of the computer is assembled.
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