£2,000 to spend on a PC

Blackwolf said:
I recently bought a Sony ECM-CS3(https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0058MJX4O/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) as I heard the quality was good for the price, I had massive issues with my kraken, people could hear my gameplay through my microphone. It was all correctly socketed, it was just a hardware issue.
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Then stick with the Sony for mic, if happy with it.


Blackwolf said:
With the Philips Fidelio X2HR I take these are premium quality for audio?
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Yes. Great soundstage and also bassy and fun for an open-back.


Blackwolf said:
SoundblasterX G1 is a usb toggle? Is that the future of soundcards now or are soundcards really worth the cash when you get built in one's on a motherboard?
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Pretty much. It's a USB DAC AMP. And just the software alone makes it better than that which the onboard typically provides (if any). USB also tends to avoid ground loop issues better. Friend of mine has Fidelio X2HR+Soundblaster G1+Vmoda Boom Pro and it sounds amazing. I've got the cheaper Philips SHP9500+Soundblaster Play3+Vmoda Boom Pro. The difference the cheap soundcard made was stunning. You don't need a £100 soundcard for either of these headphones to sound amazing or to give you competitive advantage.
 
EsaT said:
Fidelio X2 should be good for sound, if you want balance between bass fun and details.
But for comfort they're quite heavy at 400+ grams, which could bother in any longer gaming sessions.
For example those Beyers are ~150 grams lighter.
And replacement ear pads might not be easy to get. (those get dirty/wear down and need to be replaced over he years)

Also if you have background noises in your room they're open design just like DT990 and leak noises through basically unmuffled.


Sound BlasterX G1 is really low tech wise and you're paying quite lot for that USB form factor.
Its very basic level D/A converter is class lower than in PCIe budget/entry level Audigy Fx.
Assuming avoiding interference, most motherboard integrated sound cards are likely better in that technical signal quality.
Though most integrated sound cards also lack binaural sound simulation for headphone gaming.
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I'm a dad of three kids, my computer is in the living room so background noise will be a massive issue when I do get down to gaming. Some days I can spend a fair few hours playing a game so perhaps comfort and noise reduction would be better for me.
 
Blackwolf said:
My days of playing competitive FPS ended with Counter-Strike on Half-Life, I've moved on to more single-player games and RPG's these days, I play World of Warcraft occasionally too.

Some of the games I'd be looking to play in the future would be Baldur's Gate 3, The Next Elder Scrolls Game(TBA), Football Manager, Survival Style games like ARK, and RTS games like Total Warhammer. I'd love to play Half-Life: Alyx as I'm a huge HL fan, who isn't? But I can't justify the price of buying a VR set for just one game. So I don't know what style of monitor that would suit?
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I'd personally say an ultrawide would be ideal for the sorts of games you're looking at, but as mentioned I'd do some research into them before taking the leap.

The audio solutions recommended by @Danny75 and @EsaT are good ones, but I would lean towards closed back headphones such as the aforementioned DT770 if you're going to put your PC in an environment where you have others around you.
 
Gray2233 said:
I'd personally say an ultrawide would be ideal for the sorts of games you're looking at, but as mentioned I'd do some research into them before taking the leap.

The audio solutions recommended by @Danny75 and @EsaT are good ones, but I would lean towards closed back headphones such as the aforementioned DT770 if you're going to put your PC in an environment where you have others around you.
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Without putting a link, which model of the DT770 would you recommend? Comes in all different OHM(Have no idea what that means), also studio/mobile.
 
Depends on the rest of the audio hardware you plan on using, the 80ohm Studio version is a good all-rounder and I think it's generally the cheapest model at roughly £90. It'll work well with most things you plug it into.
 
Blackwolf said:
I'm a dad of three kids, my computer is in the living room so background noise will be a massive issue when I do get down to gaming. Some days I can spend a fair few hours playing a game so perhaps comfort and noise reduction would be better for me.
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No hope for open headphones in such environment.
Unless you just want to make yourself prematurely deaf by hearing dangerous SPL.
Because open headphones leak basically any noise below 2kHz through completely unmuffled like you weren't wearing any headphones at all.
(even mechanical keyboard could be annoying)


Blackwolf said:
Without putting a link, which model of the DT770 would you recommend? Comes in all different OHM(Have no idea what that means), also studio/mobile.
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80 ohm version comes with straight 3m cable, so that's more versatile for connector position.
250 ohm version has coiled cable and benefits from external USB sound card, unless you have PC case on table next to monitor.
 
So if I bought a soundcard, which headphones and soundcard should I get? Or should I just use the USB soundcard on a SoundblasterX G1 or 250 ohm version?

Sorry for asking 100's of questions.
 
Blackwolf said:
So if I bought a soundcard, which headphones and soundcard should I get? Or should I just use the USB soundcard on a SoundblasterX G1 or 250 ohm version?

Sorry for asking 100's of questions.
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Better to ask 100s of questions
Before buying
Than after buying
Sound cards I know nothing about
So no help to you on that
But some of the guys really know
Their audio stuff they will get
You sorted out
 
Gray2233 said:
Something like this would be an idea:

My basket at Overclockers UK:
Total: £1,423.58 (includes shipping: £14.70)
​

1. You could consider dropping to a 2070S or 5700XT to save some cash, as there's new GPU's on the horizon it might be an idea to buy something cheaper now and upgrade then.
2. It could be worth bumping up to 32GB of RAM as prices are on the rise.
3. More storage is easy to add if needed.
4. Case was chosen for airflow, although I realise it may not be to your taste.
5. If WiFi is needed you could switch motherboard to the MSI B450 Pro Carbon.
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1) Which model GPU would I go for if I went down to the 2070S, there seems a few on overclockers website.
2) I think I will bump it up to 32GB RAM so which one's are best to buy for this set up?
3) SSD I might go for a 2TB drive, on top of that I'll probably need storage drive, lets say 3TB for older games and the millions of videos/music and pictures I've got on my PC. What do you recommend in that bracket?
4) I really don't mind about the look of the PC, in fact I'd pay more just to know that it'll remain cool and not gather dust.
5) I've decided I'll go with the MSI B450 Pro Carbon for the WiFi option, I have a few gadgets around the house that'll just make things easier for a few extra pounds.

Some other questions if anyone else wants to answer,

6) I'll be buying a new monitor so still questioning if I should go Widescreen or just 27' - I suppose I'll decide this after I cost up the new hardware choices.
7) I'm totally clueless about audio, it looks like I'll be buying a new headset. I'll need a headset that is noise reduction as stated before, but do I go with buying a expensive soundcard or get a USB soundcard like the SoundblasterX G1 or one that comes with it naturally, like the DT770 250 ohm?
8) Finally if I get this new list of hardware, would I need to get a more powerful power unit?

I think I'll be ready to start buying after these questions are answers, thanks again for all the advice.
 
Blackwolf said:
snip
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My basket at Overclockers UK:
Total: £1,499.52 (includes shipping: £14.70)
​

1. 2070S specced in large due to it being one of the better priced while offering a 5 year warranty, as opposed to the 2-3 years from most other manufacturers. You may need to register on their website in order to get the full 5 years.
2. Went with 2x of the SN550 as it worked out cheaper than a single 2TB drive of comparable quality, the B450 Pro Carbon has two M.2 slots.
3. Added a large storage drive.
4. 32GB of RAM, the E-Die stuff should clock to 3600 without a problem.
5. The original power supply will be fine, that system wont draw much more than 400-450w under load.
6. Stuck with the original case since you seem to prefer performance over aesthetic, the Meshify cases are very hard to beat when it comes to airflow. Although I do find them to be great looking cases, which is definitely a plus!

You could consider the 5700XT instead of the 2070S, they're very close in performance despite the former being a fair bit cheaper. Currently I'd probably lean toward the following:

My basket at Overclockers UK:
Total: £379.99 (includes shipping: £0.00)​
​

It isn't the flat out cheapest, but it is one of the best 5700XT's on the market and is fairly well priced. It comes with a 4 year warranty, and being made by Gigabyte has the benefit of UK based customer support, there's even an active representative of the company on these forums.
 
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The B450 Carbon comes with a built in headphone amp so the DT770 250ohm should be fine, although obviously you'll get better positional with a dedicated soundcard.
 
Another question on the headphones, DT770. How well does it work for surround sound, say for example, I'm playing a FPS and someone is to my left, right or behind me. Will I be able to hear them from the right location or will it all be muddled together?
 
Blackwolf said:
Another question on the headphones, DT770. How well does it work for surround sound, say for example, I'm playing a FPS and someone is to my left, right or behind me. Will I be able to hear them from the right location or will it all be muddled together?
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From closed design headphones of their price class they're very good for that...
When fed binaural sound containing necessary cues brain uses to process sound source positions.

Without any binaural cues and stereo speaker mix signal you'll only get lovely artificial "sound inside left/right ear, or in center of head" immersion, no matter the headphones:

First minute or so of this is excellent quick test for capabilities of headphones with sounds in different directions and distances:
 
For a 3700X the stock would be fine, the Arctic Freezer 34 is a decent jump from that.

The OP's final build including headphones pretty much hits his 2K budget exactly, I'm guessing he doesn't want to go above that if he can help it.
 
Mcnumpty2323 said:
That's a nice healthy budget
16gb of ram is usual nowadays
Though you could do 32gb on that
Budget as future proofing
One good gpu rather than two
On board sound is pretty good though
I am not an audiophile
Some will say get a soundcard

Lists and baskets aren't my strongest points due to Dyslexia
But some one will spec you a basket
Some of the guys in here can do it
Faster than it took me to type this:)

Ps welcome to the forums
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32GB will never be used within 5 years.

I have 16GB and I use 6GB whilst gaming on CSGO so 10GB free. I'll need to check when playing Apex but 16GB is overkill right now. 32GB would be what is needed in 10-20 years time.
 
Psycho Sonny said:
32GB will never be used within 5 years.

I have 16GB and I use 6GB whilst gaming on CSGO so 10GB free. I'll need to check when playing Apex but 16GB is overkill right now. 32GB would be what is needed in 10-20 years time.
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I use around 12GB when playing The Division 2, we're not that far from breaking the 16GB barrier in games.
 
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