I'm putting together a budget build for 2025-2026 and would love some feedback before I finalize my parts. The goal is to create a balanced system for gaming and general use, keeping the total under $650. Here's what I'm considering:
- **CPU**: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core ($67)
- **CPU Cooler**: be quiet! Pure Rock 3 59.6 CFM ($37.90)
- **Motherboard**: MSI B550M PRO-VDH WIFI Micro ATX ($79.99)
- **Memory**: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4-2400 ($96.99)
- **Storage**: PNY CS1030 500GB NVMe SSD ($39.99)
- **GPU**: ASRock Challenger OC Arc B570 10GB ($209.99)
- **Case**: Phanteks Eclipse G370A ATX Mid Tower ($49.98)
- **PSU**: Lian Li RB 550W 80+ Bronze ($49.99)
The total comes to $631.83, including shipping and taxes. I expect the price to rise to around $680 or more by the time I save enough to order everything. What do you think about these choices?
1 Answer
To save some cash, you might want to grab a cheaper Thermalright cooler instead of the be quiet! one; they go for less than $20. You could also find used DDR4 for about $50-60 right now, which would help. Plus, if you can stretch your budget, upgrading to an RX 9060 XT or 5060 would really boost your GPU performance compared to the B570.
The heaviest game I'm planning to run is probably RDR2 and Helldivers 2.