Hey gaming community! A friend asked me for help with a gaming PC build under $2000 for their buddy, but they didn't provide a lot of details—just that it's solely for gaming. I put together a potential build but would love to hear your thoughts and suggestions on it! Thanks a bunch! (I noticed that the specific Radeon RX 9070 XT is sold out as I'm posting this, but the original total was just under $2000).
4 Answers
Check out my recommended build: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/yTkcjn. I’ve improved the cooling capacity to accommodate the new X3D chips. I also opted for a B850 chipset motherboard and better RAM, plus saved some cash on the SSD since the performance difference is negligible. Also, you might want to update the PSU as I linked in my build, it's a solid choice for the price.
Does anyone else think that the performance per dollar for the RX 9070 XT was overhyped? I doubt many people would pay $400 above MSRP for a mid-range card. It’s all about making smart choices for the GPU at this price point!
Using the Peerless Assassin for a 9800X3D is a bit of a questionable choice. While it's not horrible, consider using liquid metal for better thermal performance under load, keeping those temps down when gaming!
You might want to be careful with that advice; I think recommending liquid metal is a bit extreme for this setup.
If you're looking to optimize your build a bit more, I suggest spending just $10 extra for lower latency DDR5 RAM (like CL30 at 6000 MHz). Also, consider a higher wattage PSU around 850W for better future-proofing and overclocking. For gaming, especially at higher resolutions, maybe consider reallocating some budget from the Ryzen 9 9800X3D towards a better GPU. For around $1000, you could find a used 4090 or 4080 that would really elevate your gaming experience.