Recommend a pre-built PC for (mostly) Sim Racing

Hi.

I hope I'm in the correct section. I was tempted to post in Check This Spec! but, crucially, I don't have a spec!

I'm about to buy my first PC and, as the title suggests, I want to choose one of the pre-built/recommended options from PC Specialist. I know I'm paying a premium when going this route but I'm simply not going to DIY a PC. I am the guy that has to get his partner to help him put together an IKEA coffee table. I wouldn't allow myself to be left in a room with a box full of computer parts.

Anyway, the PC will be primarily used for sim racing (iRacing, ACC etc.) however I do also dabble in computer games. I tend to veer toward low-spec indie games (that I can play on my potato laptop) but I'd still like the ability to play shiny new games like Baldur's Gate 3 and Starfield when they come along. So while the emphasis is very much on sim racing I would still like to give myself that option.

My budget is €2,000 and I only need the computer itself. I have a monitor, mouse, keyboard and headset (and of course I have the sim racing wheel and pedals).

My monitor is a 4K, 60Hz LG unit. I don't have the model number to hand but I can check later if it's necessary. It's a pretty basic monitor but it served me well during lockdown with my Xbox One X. The only 'gaming' feature is its FreeSync capability.

However, I will eventually be upgrading to a 1440p, 144hz monitor, which seems to be the sweet spot in terms of value/performance.

Finally, I have no interest in Ray Tracing. It looks incredible but my layman's understanding is that it can result in big drops off in performance and if that's correct it's a dead end for me right now.

Thanks for reading.
 

Aza

Rising Star
Being brutally honest, I dont think anyone would recommend any of the prebuilt options...
For the same budget a custom spec can be put together that would be far better suited and outperform in nearly all situations.

in terms of monitors, the same GPU that will run a 4K 60Hz will also happily run 1440p 144Hz (you're looking around the 3070/3070Ti mark, I think 3070 being the likely best fit)

Im assuming you are looking at prebuilt as you need it sooner rather than later? But even a custom build isnt going to take long with current lead times.... if you can wait however, theres a LOT of new kit coming out in Autumn that will see big performance increases (CPUs/GPUs/RAM/Motherboards/Storage...the works basically) and you wont see much difference in prices compared to now either.
 

Aza

Rising Star
Oh, and just in case theres a little confusion, when you do a custom spec, you dont put it together, PCS do... just in case you thought you did... I could be misreading what you meant in your post though.

Im gonna tag in @Scott as he had a post all about F1 2022 so I think this would be right up his street
 
Oh, and just in case theres a little confusion, when you do a custom spec, you dont put it together, PCS do... just in case you thought you did... I could be misreading what you meant in your post though.
Thanks for your reply and no you didn't misread me at all. My reluctance to do a custom spec was based on the (incorrect) assumption that I'd have to put it together myself, which is a big no for me.

Selecting the parts but having it built and delivered to my door really changes things. So please, anyone, feel free to recommend a custom build if you've built something similar yourself.

In terms of the lead time, I'm happy to wait a few weeks but I definitely can't wait until the Autumn. I am currently without any type of gaming platform for the first time in 30 years and my stress levels are growing exponentially. I need my hobby back and I need it now!

Thanks again.
 

Scott

Behold The Ford Mondeo
Moderator
This is a little over budget but it's where I would land performance/spec wise for simming. If you want RGB bells n whistles you would need to pay a little bit more, but it wouldn't be a ton more money to get it looking flash.

Let me know what you think:

Case
CORSAIR 4000D AIRFLOW TEMPERED GLASS GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D Eight Core CPU (3.4GHz-4.5GHz/100MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF X570-PLUS GAMING WIFI (USB 3.2 Gen 2, PCIe 4.0, CrossFireX) - RGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3600MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3070 - HDMI, DP, LHR
1st M.2 SSD Drive
500GB SAMSUNG 980 PRO M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 6900MB/R, 5000MB/W)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB INTEL® 670p M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 3500MB/sR | 2500MB/sW)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Corsair iCUE H115i RGB PRO XT Hydro Series High Performance 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
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
NO RECOVERY MEDIA REQUIRED
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Firefox™
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 4 to 7 working days
Price: £2,059.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/hybtJQkf4k/
 

Aza

Rising Star
This is a little over budget but it's where I would land performance/spec wise for simming. If you want RGB bells n whistles you would need to pay a little bit more, but it wouldn't be a ton more money to get it looking flash.

Let me know what you think:

Case
CORSAIR 4000D AIRFLOW TEMPERED GLASS GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D Eight Core CPU (3.4GHz-4.5GHz/100MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF X570-PLUS GAMING WIFI (USB 3.2 Gen 2, PCIe 4.0, CrossFireX) - RGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3600MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3070 - HDMI, DP, LHR
1st M.2 SSD Drive
500GB SAMSUNG 980 PRO M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 6900MB/R, 5000MB/W)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB INTEL® 670p M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 3500MB/sR | 2500MB/sW)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Corsair iCUE H115i RGB PRO XT Hydro Series High Performance 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
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
NO RECOVERY MEDIA REQUIRED
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Firefox™
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 4 to 7 working days
Price: £2,059.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/hybtJQkf4k/
Now to throw in teh wild card..... the budget was in Euros :O
 

Scott

Behold The Ford Mondeo
Moderator
Indeed.

I can't get a recommendable build inside 2k Euro unfortunately. Best I could do was 2.2k and that was with a 3060Ti, which I would prefer the 3070 in play.
 
That looks fantastic. Admittedly I'm completely clueless on the topic but my layman's brain didn't anticipate something of that level for just over €2,500. I certainly expected to be getting a less powerful CPU and GPU for my €2K. So I'm very happy with the pricing. I don't have money to burn but I'm also not one to ponder over something for weeks so I'll be pulling the trigger on this as soon as payday rolls around.

Thank you very much for taking the time to help me with this.
 

Scott

Behold The Ford Mondeo
Moderator
Glad you like it. Apologies I didn't notice the Euro sign.

The above will absolutely tick every box though.
 
Glad you like it. Apologies I didn't notice the Euro sign.

The above will absolutely tick every box though.
Apologies for digging up this thread but I have to thank you again for the above build and also recommend it to anyone with similar needs as myself.

I took delivery of the PC seven days ago and it's been one hell of a week. I am quite simply blown away by what I'm experiencing. It is blasting through every sim racer I can throw at it and it's also reignited my interest in balls-to-the wall AAA games because they look incredible and perform brilliantly. The sense of satisfaction I get when I see that each game has defaulted to the 'ultra' settings is just unreal.

I cringe when I think of what I was on the verge of buying before I stumbled upon this forum and asked for advice.

I am one happy bunny right now. Thank you.
 
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