First proper PC purchase since 2012! What do you think?

[AlexG0811]

Hello!

First time posting here and incredibly excited to be getting my first proper PC.

Back in 2012 i bought the cheapest PC i could find and now have a bigger budget I would love some feedback on it.

Main activities are work (project management, creative suite Photoshop etc, occasionally 3d work) gaming (rocket league, gta5, quake) and video editing (after effects, premier pro etc).

I hope this PC will last me 10 years but not sure if that's being too optimistic!

Anyway, here are the specs!

Case
FRACTAL FOCUS G BLACK GAMING CASE (Window)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i9 12 Core Processor i9-10920X (3.5GHz) 19.25MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® ROG STRIX X299-E GAMING II: ATX, USB 3.2, SATA 6 GB/s, Wi-Fi AC - ARGB Ready
Memory (RAM)
16GB PCS PRO DDR4 2666MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
12GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3080 Ti - HDMI, DP, LHR
Graphics Card Support Bracket
PCS GRAPHICS CARD SUPPORT BRACKET
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB INTEL® 670p M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 3500MB/sR | 2700MB/sW)
Memory Card Reader
USB 3.0 EXTERNAL SD/MICRO SD CARD READER
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
PCS FrostFlow 150 Series High Performance CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
LED Lighting
50cm ARGB LED Strip
Extra Case Fans
3x PCS ARGB LED Fan + Controller Kit
Sound Card
ONBOARD 8 CHANNEL (7.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 6 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00003]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Google Chrome™
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 4 to 6 working days
Price: £2,841.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-x299-pc/9MFFqYSF4V/

 

[Martinr36]

Well with a budget like that, I'd wait until the 27th, when AMD launch a whole new generation that will give you way better bang for your buck

 

[AlexG0811]

Well with a budget like that, I'd wait until the 27th, when AMD launch a whole new generation that will give you way better bang for your buck

Is AMD better than Nvidia? I've always used Nvidia and feel comfortable with what they build but no real logical reason... I didn't add any AMD items in the list, or you saying the price drop regardless?

 

[Martinr36]

New generation of CPU, motherboards, PSU, etc, the bottom of the CPU tier will be the equivalent of a top tier CPU at present

 

[SpyderTracks]

Is AMD better than Nvidia? I've always used Nvidia and feel comfortable with what they build but no real logical reason... I didn't add any AMD items in the list, or you saying the price drop regardless?

That’s GPUs, we’re talking cpu

 

[AlexG0811]

That’s GPUs, we’re talking cpu

Got it! I'll wait and see then! But Intel seems to be more popular and stable than AMD?

 

[SpyderTracks]

Got it! I'll wait and see then! But Intel seems to be more popular and stable than AMD?

Since Ryzen 3000, and especially since Ryzen 5000, Intel have been on the back foot generally.

They're having to basically overclock each processor so hard to remain relevant which leads to insanely hot thermals requiring top end cooling, warping of the actual chip as a result, and they're still very expensive for what they are. Intel have lost any thermal management to the point where they claim it's by design and it's ok to run thermal throttling which any tech will assure you is complete outright lies, and will destroy your silicon

How Intel laughs at thermal throttling, and why it shouldn't | Digital Trends

Intel's 16-core HX processors are the best of the best, but that comes at the cost of pushing against a thermal wall that could become a problem in the future.

www.digitaltrends.com

Intel Comments On Alder Lake's Warping and Bending Issues, Mods Void Warranty

"Nothing to see here, folks"

www.tomshardware.com

Plus Intel have played incredibly dirty tricks over the last decade without facing any particular consequences, they now think they can do whatever they want. They completely thwarted any kind of development for a decade because AMD had nothing to compete, Skylake was exactly the same processor for 6 years, just overclocked and additional cores, in one next gen processor, it was exactly the same processors, no change at all, but they charged more and called it a new one.

https://www.courthousenews.com/intel-fined-1-45-billion-for-dirty-tactics-in-sales/

Chip manufacturer Intel is said to have used nasty tactics to annoy AMD - now they suddenly want 600 million euros from the EU - Latest Game Stories

The manufacturer Intel is currently demanding 600 million euros from the EU. Behind this is a billion-dollar fine that Intel had to pay at the time. But now

latestgamestories.com

Intel CEO sold all the stock he could after Intel learned of security bug

Intel claims sale was unrelated, but he planned sale after researchers disclosed bugs.

arstechnica.com

But as of this year, AMD are now the headliners stealing all the customers, due to performing far better at the same power / price envelope

AMD passes Intel in market cap

The milestone also suggests that investors may value an asset-light chipmaker over one that's investing heavily in manufacturing.

www.cnbc.com

AMD beats Intel in cloud CPU performance research

Overall price-performance in Big 3 hyperscalers a dead heat, says CockroachDB

www.theregister.com

 

[Scott]

Even with all of the above, which I wholeheartedly agree with, you have landed on the X299 platform..... which is from years back, and most definitely not what you would want even if you did choose Intel.

Definitely stick around and get some advice once the AMD chips are out. Even if you want to stick with Intel after the fact, you wouldn't go anywhere near the X299.

 

[AlexG0811]

Even with all of the above, which I wholeheartedly agree with, you have landed on the X299 platform..... which is from years back, and most definitely not what you would want even if you did choose Intel.

Definitely stick around and get some advice once the AMD chips are out. Even if you want to stick with Intel after the fact, you wouldn't go anywhere near the X299.

Thanks so much, super helpful. Which motherboard should I go for instead? I assume I can't just swap out this one out for another with other components being comparable?

I'm following the custom pc build but I can't seem any additional options in the drop down menu for other motherboards, maybe i need to start from scratch? I wouldn't really want to build this myself.

 

[SpyderTracks]

Thanks so much, super helpful. Which motherboard should I go for instead? I assume I can't just swap out this one out for another with other components being comparable?

I'm following the custom pc build but I can't seem any additional options in the drop down menu for other motherboards, maybe i need to start from scratch? I wouldn't really want to build this myself.

The new motherboards haven't been announced yet, will be tomorrow.

 

[AlexG0811]

The new motherboards haven't been announced yet, will be tomorrow.

Ohh yeah. But just for AMD though right?
Is PC specialist usually that fast to update their site with the latest products too?

 

[SpyderTracks]

Ohh yeah. But just for AMD though right?
Is PC specialist usually that fast to update their site with the latest products too?

Any partner gets stock on release day, that's how it works in the industry.

Yes, that's just for AMD, but their entry level processor is supposed to outperform intels top tier for under half the price, so you'd be a bit nuts to go Intel.

 

[AlexG0811]

Any partner gets stock on release day, that's how it works in the industry.

Yes, that's just for AMD, but their entry level processor is supposed to outperform intels top tier for under half the price, so you'd be a bit nuts to go Intel.

Some interesting options... AMD Ryzen 9 7900X or Ryzen 5 7600X?

 

[SpyderTracks]

Some interesting options... AMD Ryzen 9 7900X or Ryzen 5 7600X?

The 7600x is just not really viable value wise until they release the B550 boards in a few weeks, just doesn't make sense otherwise.

I still haven't read up too much on the 7700x to comment, but the 7900x and 7950x will give a fantastic system.

It will be expensive, but IMHO I think all computer components will be far more expensive than we've been used to over the last few decades due to the state of world economics and wars going on. The inflation and recessions are hitting everyone.

 

[AlexG0811]

The 7600x is just not really viable value wise until they release the B550 boards in a few weeks, just doesn't make sense otherwise.

I still haven't read up too much on the 7700x to comment, but the 7900x and 7950x will give a fantastic system.

It will be expensive, but IMHO I think all computer components will be far more expensive than we've been used to over the last few decades due to the state of world economics and wars going on. The inflation and recessions are hitting everyone.

Ok thank you again! Honestly this is so helpful you have no idea!!

I think I'm ready to order, this looks better than the original one? The main things are the new CPU, motherboard and graphics card

Case
FRACTAL FOCUS G BLACK GAMING CASE (Window)
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 9 7900X 12 Core CPU (4.7GHz-5.6GHz/76MB CACHE/AM5)
Motherboard
ASUS® ROG STRIX X670E-F GAMING WIFI (WIFI 6E, DDR5, PCIe 5.0) - RGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 5200MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
12GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3080 Ti - HDMI, DP, LHR
Graphics Card Support Bracket
PCS GRAPHICS CARD SUPPORT BRACKET
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB INTEL® 670p M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 3500MB/sR | 2500MB/sW)
Memory Card Reader
USB 3.0 EXTERNAL SD/MICRO SD CARD READER
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RMe SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
PCS FrostFlow 100 RGB V3 Series High Performance CPU Cooler (AMD)
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
LED Lighting
50cm ARGB LED Strip
Extra Case Fans
2x 120mm Black Case Fan
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00003]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Google Chrome™
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 5 to 7 working days
Price: £2,830.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/kN35Xjg4a9/