Overbudget, trying to get things cheaper.

[Tomj]

So my the spec I have managed to configure is below. However, slight suspicion that it is vastly overspeced and it is slightly out my price range.

My Max Budget is 3k, but I'm looking for something around 2.5k so I have some money to spend on Games, etc.
My PC will primarily be used for Gaming (Games like Battlefield to Simulators like Euro Truck), but is sometimes used for work (very rarely).

My Monitor is a:
Acer K272HL H - 1920x1880 - 72hz

I would appreciate any help and advice to lower the price. Thanks.

Case
PCS PULSE MID TOWER CASE (PWM)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 14-Core Processor i5-14600KF (Up to 5.3GHz) 24MB Cache
Motherboard
GIGABYTE Z790 EAGLE AX (LGA1700, DDR5, M.2 PCIe 4.0, Wi-Fi 6E)
Memory (RAM)
192GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 5200MHz CL38 (4 x 48GB)
Graphics Card
32GB PALIT GEFORCE RTX 5090 GAMEROCK - HDMI, 3 x DP
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SAMSUNG 990 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe 4.0 & 5.0 NVMe (up to 7250MB/R, 6300MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ ATX 3.1, MODULAR, CYBENETICS GOLD
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
PCS FrostFlow 200 Series High Performance CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Extra Case Fans
3 x 120mm PCS Black Case Fan
Sound Card
ASUS Xonar AE 7.1-Channel Gaming Audio Card
Network Card
ONBOARD LAN PORT
Wireless Network Card
NONE OR ONBOARD Wi-Fi (MOTHERBOARD DEPENDENT)
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 Professional 64-bit - inc. Single Licence
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 (6 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: £3,686.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z790-ddr5-pc/4kg5JzjaC3/

 

[TonyCarter]

That build is all over the place.

• You've selected a top-end 4k GPU (at £2500) when you've only got a 1080p office monitor
• 192GB is just stupid - even with fully-modded MSFS, you'll not need over 64GB (this also means you won't need W11 Pro)
• Poor case
• Poor cooling
• No need for extra sound-card as they're built into the motherboard nowadays
• Intel is a DOA platform - the current gaming CPU of choice is the AMD 9800X3D

If you're after a 1080p gaming PC then you can easily reduce your budget significantly, but I'll post a decent 1440p build below...and suggest a monitor to suit that will take you up to about £2600 of your max budget.

 

[TonyCarter]

This is under your £2.5k budget, but adding the monitor takes you just over.

This AOC is one of our favourite 1440p monitors...

https://www.currys.co.uk/products/aoc-q27g3xmnbk-quad-hd-27-va-mini-led-gaming-monitor-black-10265220.html

Case
CORSAIR 3500X ARGB TEMPERED GLASS MID-TOWER (PCS) - better case for upgrades & airflow, and comes with decent fans
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Eight Core CPU (Up to 5.2GHz/104MB w/3D V-CACHE/AM5) - the best CPU for 1080p high FPS gaming
Motherboard
GIGABYTE B850 AORUS ELITE WIFI 7 (AM5, DDR5, M.2 PCIe 5.0, Wi-Fi 7) - good tier B850 motherboard with wifi / audio built in
Memory (RAM)
64GB Corsair VENGEANCE RGB DDR5 6000MHz CL30 (2 x 32GB) - plenty of RAM, even for MSFS and other sims
Graphics Card
16GB SAPPHIRE PULSE RADEON™ RX 9070 XT GAMING - 2 x HDMI, 2 x DP - latest gen 1400p GPU
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB CORSAIR ELITE MP600 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD (up to 7000 MB/R, 6200 MB/W) - very fast primary drive for Windows, apps, game launchers only
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB CORSAIR CORE XT MP600 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD (up to 5000 MB/R, 4400 MB/W) - slightly slower secondary drive for game installs
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ ATX 3.1, MODULAR, CYBENETICS GOLD - about the lowest we recommend now, with future (7+ years) upgradability in mind
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR NAUTILUS 360 RS ARGB HIGH PERFORMANCE CPU COOLER - sufficient for the 9800X3D, and matches the fans included in the case
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
ONBOARD 2.5Gbe LAN PORT
Wireless Network Card
NONE OR ONBOARD Wi-Fi (MOTHERBOARD DEPENDENT)
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
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 Silver Warranty (1 Year 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: £2,347.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/Am9CpFdS0m/

 

[Tomj]

This is under your £2.5k budget, but adding the monitor takes you just over.

This AOC is one of our favourite 1440p monitors...

https://www.currys.co.uk/products/aoc-q27g3xmnbk-quad-hd-27-va-mini-led-gaming-monitor-black-10265220.html

Case
CORSAIR 3500X ARGB TEMPERED GLASS MID-TOWER (PCS) - better case for upgrades & airflow, and comes with decent fans
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Eight Core CPU (Up to 5.2GHz/104MB w/3D V-CACHE/AM5) - the best CPU for 1080p high FPS gaming
Motherboard
GIGABYTE B850 AORUS ELITE WIFI 7 (AM5, DDR5, M.2 PCIe 5.0, Wi-Fi 7) - good tier B850 motherboard with wifi / audio built in
Memory (RAM)
64GB Corsair VENGEANCE RGB DDR5 6000MHz CL30 (2 x 32GB) - plenty of RAM, even for MSFS and other sims
Graphics Card
16GB SAPPHIRE PULSE RADEON™ RX 9070 XT GAMING - 2 x HDMI, 2 x DP - latest gen 1400p GPU
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB CORSAIR ELITE MP600 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD (up to 7000 MB/R, 6200 MB/W) - very fast primary drive for Windows, apps, game launchers only
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB CORSAIR CORE XT MP600 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD (up to 5000 MB/R, 4400 MB/W) - slightly slower secondary drive for game installs
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ ATX 3.1, MODULAR, CYBENETICS GOLD - about the lowest we recommend now, with future (7+ years) upgradability in mind
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR NAUTILUS 360 RS ARGB HIGH PERFORMANCE CPU COOLER - sufficient for the 9800X3D, and matches the fans included in the case
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
ONBOARD 2.5Gbe LAN PORT
Wireless Network Card
NONE OR ONBOARD Wi-Fi (MOTHERBOARD DEPENDENT)
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
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 Silver Warranty (1 Year 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: £2,347.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/Am9CpFdS0m/

I already have the monitor. Thank you for the suggestions, though!

 

[Ekans2011]

I already have the monitor. Thank you for the suggestions, though!

As said, that Acer is not suitable for gaming and will bottleneck any modern system. You'd need a proper gaming monitor.

 

[TonyCarter]

I already have the monitor. Thank you for the suggestions, though!

In that case, you could swap out the 9070XT for the 9060XT, as you won’t be able to make use of the extra power of the 9070XT.

 

[BlessedSquirrel]

Needs to be said though, the monitor dictates the final display of the entire system, doesn’t matter if you’ve got a £7000 PC driving it, if you’ve got a poor display it’s going to be a poor experience.

Would strongly urge you to consider upgrading that monitor, it’s just not suitable for a modern pc, even a 9060XT is going to be mostly held back

You may not be aware but as that’s a 60Hz monitor you can only ever achieve 1080p 60Hz which just isnt even a desktop gaming experience, it’s what you’d find on a handheld gaming system. The most you can ever achieve is 60fps, no matter what your pc is producing. It's also 27" 1080p and a basic VA so it's going to be very blurry anyway. It's just no good, pointless having a good pc just to reduce it that poor.

Pair that with the fact it’s not even a gaming monitor so doesn’t have VRR and you’re going to get huge screen tearing and ghosting, it’s going to be absolutely dreadful. You don’t need to spend to much to get a decent gaming monitor

 

[Tomj]

Needs to be said though, the monitor dictates the final display of the entire system, doesn’t matter if you’ve got a £7000 PC driving it, if you’ve got a poor display it’s going to be a poor experience.

Would strongly urge you to consider upgrading that monitor, it’s just not suitable for a modern pc, even a 9060XT is going to be mostly held back

You may not be aware but as that’s a 60Hz monitor you can only ever achieve 1080p 60Hz which just isnt even a desktop gaming experience, it’s what you’d find on a handheld gaming system. The most you can ever achieve is 60fps, no matter what your pc is producing. It's also 27" 1080p and a basic VA so it's going to be very blurry anyway. It's just no good, pointless having a good pc just to reduce it that poor.

Pair that with the fact it’s not even a gaming monitor so doesn’t have VRR and you’re going to get huge screen tearing and ghosting, it’s going to be absolutely dreadful. You don’t need to spend to much to get a decent gaming monitor

So, would you say the one that Terry suggested is a good option?
https://www.currys.co.uk/products/a...a-mini-led-gaming-monitor-black-10265220.html

 

[Ekans2011]

So, would you say the one that Terry suggested is a good option?
https://www.currys.co.uk/products/a...a-mini-led-gaming-monitor-black-10265220.html

It depends on the budget; that one is definitely a great deal.

 

[Tomj]

It depends on the budget; that one is definitely a great deal.

My Budget is 3k, but im looking to have a bit of a buffer zone of atleast 100 pound to buy games for it.

 

[Ekans2011]

My Budget is 3k, but im looking to have a bit of a buffer zone of atleast 100 pound to buy games for it.

So, @TonyCarter's build is roughly £2350, this AOC AGON PRO AG276QZD2 (https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0D966ZJGR?) is slightly more than £400, and you'll have around £200 for games.

Here you have the reviews of both monitors

AOC Q27G3XMN Review

The AOC Q27G3XMN is a 27-inch budget gaming monitor. Competing with the Acer Nitro XV275U P3biipx, it's rather unique for a low-cost monitor as it features Mini ...

www.rtings.com

AOC AGON PRO AG276QZD2 Review

The AOC AGON PRO AG276QZD2 is a mid-range gaming monitor with a 27-inch 1440p QD-OLED display. It has a lower 240Hz refresh rate than most other QD-OLEDs at this...

www.rtings.com