New PC advice

fenderman · Feb 13, 2021

Hi all,

I'm planning on upgrading my existing PC, which is an Intel i7 based PC. It is probably about 7 years old now having survived a few rebuilds and disk upgrades.

I will be using the new PC for music collection storage, streamed around the house to a few Logitech squeezebox players, and for some music recording. I have a dedicated external Focusrite Scarlett sound interface for the music recording so won't need anything more than the normal on-board audio. I do tinker a bit with virtualisation (both VMware and Microsoft but that may diminish after retirement in June.

I'm not a games player at all so don't see the need for any high-end graphics card. I've read some of the articles posted in the forums regarding CPU choice and have rejigged my build from an Intel i9-10850 chip to the AMD Ryzen 7 one.

My budget is around the £1700 mark but there is some leeway. Any advice would be appreciated.

Case
COOLERMASTER SILENCIO S600 QUIET MID TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X Eight Core CPU (3.8GHz-4.7GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B550-PLUS (DDR4, USB 3.2, 6Gb/s) - ARGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3600MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
4GB AMD RADEON™ RX 5500 XT - HDMI, DP, DX® 12
1st Storage Drive
4TB SEAGATE IRONWOLF PRO 3.5", 7200 RPM 128MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 3300MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Power Supply
CORSAIR 650W TXm SERIES™ SEMI-MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
Wireless Network Card
WIRELESS 802.11N 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Professional 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 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
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Monitor Cables
1 x 2m DisplayPort Adapter Cable - DP to HDMI
Warranty
3 Year Gold Warranty (2 Year Collect & Return, 2 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 15 to 18 working days
Price: £1,710.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/rFPEGeStb2/

Many Thanks

Dave

Citrus_9 · Feb 13, 2021

5800X is hot, I think you'd need to think about a more opened PC case and maybe a better cooler. If you play and stream same time, CPU will run on more loads and will need to be cooled better.

Very important question you've missed (or I missed the answer?) is what your monitor is?

Why HDD Ironwolf? Barracuda is ok. PSU upped to 850W in case if you'll want to upgrade in future. Upped wifi to AX as N isn't good enough.

Case
COOLERMASTER SILENCIO S600 QUIET MID TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X Eight Core CPU (3.8GHz-4.7GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B550-PLUS (DDR4, USB 3.2, 6Gb/s) - ARGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3600MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
4GB AMD RADEON™ RX 5500 XT - HDMI, DP, DX® 12
1st Storage Drive
2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 3300MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
Wireless Network Card
WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 2,400Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Professional 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 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
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Monitor Cables
1 x 2m DisplayPort Adapter Cable - DP to HDMI
Warranty
3 Year Gold Warranty (2 Year Collect & Return, 2 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 15 to 18 working days
Price: £1,676.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/56dkUFzB06/

fenderman · Feb 13, 2021

Citrus_9 said:
5800X is hot, I think you'd need to think about a more opened PC case and maybe a better cooler. If you play and stream same time, CPU will run on more loads and will need to be cooled better.

Very important question you've missed (or I missed the answer?) is what your monitor is?

Why HDD Ironwolf? Barracuda is ok. PSU upped to 850W in case if you'll want to upgrade in future. Upped wifi to AX as N isn't good enough.

Case
COOLERMASTER SILENCIO S600 QUIET MID TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X Eight Core CPU (3.8GHz-4.7GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B550-PLUS (DDR4, USB 3.2, 6Gb/s) - ARGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3600MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
4GB AMD RADEON™ RX 5500 XT - HDMI, DP, DX® 12
1st Storage Drive
2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 3300MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
Wireless Network Card
WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 2,400Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Professional 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 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
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Monitor Cables
1 x 2m DisplayPort Adapter Cable - DP to HDMI
Warranty
3 Year Gold Warranty (2 Year Collect & Return, 2 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 15 to 18 working days
Price: £1,676.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/56dkUFzB06/

Thanks for the feedback, much appreciated. I’m running 2 monitors, both ASUS 247HR. Nothing fancy but good enough for what I need.

I went for the Ironwolf as it’s a 7200 rpm 4TB disk and the Barracuda 4TB is only a 5400rpm. I’m interested in the disk setup that Nursemorph has suggested so will look at that

Citrus_9 - you mentioned the 5800X runs hot. Is that an issue, would I be better choosing a different CPU or just improving the cooling as Nursemorph has suggested. I’ve looked at the Fractal case and am liking that, thanks.

Appreciate the feedback folks

Stephen M · Feb 13, 2021

Agree about the HDD, although only for storage and music does not need a fast drive the 5400s are slow and I certainly notice a difference when copying to my 7200rpm drives.

Just being nosey, is your user name related to your guitar. My mates hate me because I am a lousy guitarist but have a genuine Telecaster.

Citrus_9 · Feb 13, 2021

fenderman said:
Thanks for the feedback, much appreciated. I’m running 2 monitors, both ASUS 247HR. Nothing fancy but good enough for what I need.

I went for the Ironwolf as it’s a 7200 rpm 4TB disk and the Barracuda 4TB is only a 5400rpm. I’m interested in the disk setup that Nursemorph has suggested so will look at that

Citrus_9 - you mentioned the 5800X runs hot. Is that an issue, would I be better choosing a different CPU or just improving the cooling as Nursemorph has suggested. I’ve looked at the Fractal case and am liking that, thanks.

Appreciate the feedback folks

Are you sure you need 4TB HDD? Why not 2TB HDD and M.2 500GB and another M.2 1TB or one M.2 500GB/1TB and Sata SSD 1TB/2TB? Or get rid of HDD at all.

5800X is a great CPU, you just need a good cooler. Suggested CoolerMaster MasterLiquid Lite 240 is good for that, but I tend to spec with better coolers so I'd suggest for air cooling Noctua and AOI either Corsair H100x or H115i

fenderman · Feb 13, 2021

Stephen M said:
Agree about the HDD, although only for storage and music does not need a fast drive the 5400s are slow and I certainly notice a difference when copying to my 7200rpm drives.

Just being nosey, is your user name related to your guitar. My mates hate me because I am a lousy guitarist but have a genuine Telecaster.

I’m an OK guitarist and I did use my first decent guitar as inspiration for my username. I have a fair collection of them now including a Strat and a Tele, a PRS and Custom Shop Les Paul. I keep telling my wife that you just can’t have too many guitars 😀🎸🎸

fenderman · Feb 13, 2021

Citrus_9 said:
Are you sure you need 4TB HDD? Why not 2TB HDD and M.2 500GB and another M.2 1TB or one M.2 500GB/1TB and Sata SSD 1TB/2TB? Or get rid of HDD at all.

5800X is a great CPU, you just need a good cooler. Suggested CoolerMaster MasterLiquid Lite 240 is good for that, but I tend to spec with better coolers so I'd suggest for air cooling Noctua and AOI either Corsair H100x or H115i

Thanks for the advice on the CPU, I’ll stick with it and pair it with a good cooler in that case. I need a pretty big data disk as I have a lot of music collected over far too many years to remember now. It’s all been ripped to FLAC so takes up quite a lot of disk space and I wanted to give myself some space to “grow into”.

SpyderTracks · Feb 13, 2021

fenderman said:
Thanks for the advice on the CPU, I’ll stick with it and pair it with a good cooler in that case. I need a pretty big data disk as I have a lot of music collected over far too many years to remember now. It’s all been ripped to FLAC so takes up quite a lot of disk space and I wanted to give myself some space to “grow into”.

IMHO, although expensive, the Ironwolfs are a good investment if you have the budget. I have 4 of the Western Digital alternatives, the WD Reds and they're phenomenal drives.

Be aware though, the Ironwolfs can be quite loud. It is something you'll be able to hear over the noise of the PC. I say that as for some people it's been an annoyance. If that matters to you, I'd suggest leaving out the HDD for now, and getting yourself a WD Red pro separately as they're a lot quieter.

Stephen M · Feb 14, 2021

fenderman said:
I’m an OK guitarist and I did use my first decent guitar as inspiration for my username. I have a fair collection of them now including a Strat and a Tele, a PRS and Custom Shop Les Paul. I keep telling my wife that you just can’t have too many guitars 😀🎸🎸

Certainly right about guitars, when I get round to putting more time in and if I decide have improved enough will treat myself to a Strat, am very jealous of my Uncle, he has a 1955 Strat. Beautiful guitar but had to stop using at gig because too much to insurance.

Also agree about 4 TB storage, I use FLAC as well and have about 3 TB and still a lot of old vinyl to record.

fenderman · Feb 15, 2021

Hi all,

I thought that I had an initial reply from Nursemorph with a suggested config for me. I'm either having delirium after my Covid jab

or it's disappeared for some reason. There was some interesting options proposed but I can't see the post anywhere.

Stephen M · Feb 15, 2021

Can't help on the build but Covid Jab Delerium sounds like a great title for a Blues number.

AgentCooper · Feb 15, 2021

fenderman said:
Hi all,

I thought that I had an initial reply from Nursemorph with a suggested config for me. I'm either having delirium after my Covid jab or it's disappeared for some reason. There was some interesting options proposed but I can't see the post anywhere.

Hi there, that superuser did indeed do a spec for you which disappeared. Using my modlike powers I have been able to recover it, hopefully @Nursemorph won't mind me resurrecting it...

I have adjusted things somewhat which, whilst being a bit more money, is worth it: have changed the case to a much better one which is quiet and has the bay for the DVD drive; slightly better motherboard; reconfigured your hard drives so you have a smaller primary drive for Windows (just makes it easier if Windows needs reinstalling) and a secondary M.2 for files etc that may need faster speeds; cooler added. Not sure if Windows Pro is really needed as it is essentially the same besides some domain tools so could save £20 there:

Case
FRACTAL DEFINE 7 BLACK QUIET MID-TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X Eight Core CPU (3.8GHz-4.7GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF X570-PLUS GAMING (USB 3.2 Gen 2, PCIe 4.0, CrossFireX) - ARGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3600MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
4GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1050 Ti - DVI, HDMI, DP
1st Storage Drive
2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
500GB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 3200MB/W)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (2000 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
CoolerMaster MasterLiquid Lite 240 High Performance Liquid Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
Wireless Network Card
WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 2,400Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Professional 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 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
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Monitor Cables
1 x 2m DisplayPort Adapter Cable - DP to HDMI
Warranty
3 Year Gold Warranty (2 Year Collect & Return, 2 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 15 to 18 working days
Price: £1,781.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/kjGBjutdeW/

fenderman · Feb 19, 2021

I've made some changes based on your feedback - much appreciated. I've a couple of questions if anyone can answer them that would be great.

Are there any other case options that I should consider, I'm not looking for lots of coloured lights (or any coloured lights for that matter), just a decent looking but suitable case for the build. I quite like the look of the Fractal case that @Nursemorph suggested but it's quite a big one according to the specs (475 mm x 240 mm x 547 mm), not a major issue but I'd appreciate a second opinion.

Secondly, I've gone with the Nvidia GeForce 1650 GPU largely because there's limited choice at the moment for the lower end cards and that one seems to be good enough for what I need. The 1050 that I was considering seems to be out of stock at the moment. I don't play games at all and am not planning to at the moment, but I do use 2 monitors (Asus VS247). Does anyone know what ports that card has, the configurator says it has 2 but doesn't specify what type and googling the card gives a variety of HDMI and DP quantities. I just want to make sure it will drive both monitors.

Thanks for your help so far.

Case
FRACTAL DEFINE 7 BLACK QUIET MID-TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X Eight Core CPU (3.8GHz-4.7GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF X570-PLUS GAMING (USB 3.2 Gen 2, PCIe 4.0, CrossFireX) - ARGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
4GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1650 - HDMI
1st Storage Drive
3TB SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
500GB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 3200MB/W)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (2000 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
CoolerMaster MasterLiquid Lite 240 High Performance Liquid Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
Wireless Network Card
WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 2,400Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Professional 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 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
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Warranty
3 Year Gold Warranty (2 Year Collect & Return, 2 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 12 to 15 working days
Price: £1,672.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/HCX7tkUeST/

MrWilson · Feb 19, 2021

fenderman said:
I've made some changes based on your feedback - much appreciated. I've a couple of questions if anyone can answer them that would be great.

Are there any other case options that I should consider, I'm not looking for lots of coloured lights (or any coloured lights for that matter), just a decent looking but suitable case for the build. I quite like the look of the Fractal case that @Nursemorph suggested but it's quite a big one according to the specs (475 mm x 240 mm x 547 mm), not a major issue but I'd appreciate a second opinion.

Secondly, I've gone with the Nvidia GeForce 1650 GPU largely because there's limited choice at the moment for the lower end cards and that one seems to be good enough for what I need. The 1050 that I was considering seems to be out of stock at the moment. I don't play games at all and am not planning to at the moment, but I do use 2 monitors (Asus VS247). Does anyone know what ports that card has, the configurator says it has 2 but doesn't specify what type and googling the card gives a variety of HDMI and DP quantities. I just want to make sure it will drive both monitors.

Thanks for your help so far.

Case
FRACTAL DEFINE 7 BLACK QUIET MID-TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X Eight Core CPU (3.8GHz-4.7GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF X570-PLUS GAMING (USB 3.2 Gen 2, PCIe 4.0, CrossFireX) - ARGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
4GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1650 - HDMI
1st Storage Drive
3TB SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
500GB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 3200MB/W)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (2000 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
CoolerMaster MasterLiquid Lite 240 High Performance Liquid Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
Wireless Network Card
WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 2,400Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Professional 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 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
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Warranty
3 Year Gold Warranty (2 Year Collect & Return, 2 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 12 to 15 working days
Price: £1,672.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/HCX7tkUeST/

Yep, I think this build will serve your needs comfortably.
Done a bit of googling, and it does seem like different manufacturers of the 1650 have different outputs, but the vast majority seem to be 1 DP, 1 HDMI and 1 VGA or DVI output. Adapter cables are readily available online so your best bet would probably to see what model your GPU is on arrival, and then purchase the suitable adaptor to allow it to run with your monitors.

fenderman · Feb 26, 2021

Hi all,

I've been pondering the spec for a new computer and have had some great advice from @Citrus_9 , @AgentCooper and @Nursemorph which has got me a (hopefully) good spec. I'd planned to press the button and put the order in today but my graphics card of choice is now out of stock, along with almost every other one by the look of it.

I'm not a gamer so don't need anything super duper but I had decided on the GeForce 1650 which seemed to be reasonable but without being ultra-expensive.

That is now out of stock, it's looking like a choice between the GeForce 1030, the AMD 550 neither of which look particularly attractive from a spec level. Either that or the 4GB AMD 5500 XT which is a bit more expensive. It's either that or put the project on hold for a few weeks. There is an ETA of mid-march for the GeForce 1650 but it won't let me proceed to placing an order.

I use a pair of Asus VS247 monitors .

What's your thoughts folks? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

I've added the 5500XT temporarily so I can post a spec.

Case
FRACTAL DEFINE 7 BLACK QUIET MID-TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X Eight Core CPU (3.8GHz-4.7GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF X570-PLUS GAMING (USB 3.2 Gen 2, PCIe 4.0, CrossFireX) - ARGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
4GB AMD RADEON™ RX 5500 XT - HDMI, DP, DX® 12
1st Storage Drive
3TB SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
500GB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 3200MB/W)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (2000 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
CoolerMaster MasterLiquid Lite 240 High Performance Liquid Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
Wireless Network Card
WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 2,400Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Professional 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
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3 Year Gold Warranty (2 Year Collect & Return, 2 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
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STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 10 to 12 working days
Price: £1,741.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/0FkFUnwFEP/

Martinr36 · Feb 26, 2021

Maybe look at the 3060 that was released yesterday

SpyderTracks · Feb 26, 2021

Nursemorph said:
Do you really need anything above the GT 1030 though? My understanding is that your uses are basically music related yes? So all you need from your graphics card is the ability to display a signal to your monitors.

I think it depends on how you use your monitors and what connections you need...seems the 550 has DP and HDMI whereas the 1030 has....I am not sure.

The 1030 would be ample unless you need hardware acceleration for something you haven’t mentioned?

SpyderTracks · Feb 26, 2021

Nursemorph said:
My only hesitation with the 1030 was what connections it had as PCS don't list them and I was too lazy to look it up. Not much between the 1030 and 550 really...well, the 1030 is £8 cheaper

As a minimum it’s one HDMI and one DVI, but a lot of models do have DP also.

AgentCooper · Feb 26, 2021

And you can potentially put the savings towards getting 32GB RAM - could be handy depending on how seriously you're into the music production.

By the way... I'm also a believer that you can never have too many guitars, I myself have a bad case of GAS (guitar acquisition syndrome). Mrs Cooper feels differently so I'm banned from making any further purchases until we get a bigger house...

fenderman · Feb 26, 2021

Appreciate the advice folks. I'm trying to future-proof this build to an extent. I was a bit concerned about the connections on the 1030 as well, the 2 monitors I've got have VGA and DVI but anything I buy to replace them in the future is likely to either have HDMI or DP so would ideally like the graphics card to have those. Ah well, something to mull over.

I've managed to keep the number of guitars down to single figures so far (just), but I'm sorely tempted to treat myself to a new one when I retire in a few months. An Epiphone Casino would go nicely with the collection and isn't expensive at all - might need to bring that into a conversation with my wife at some point

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