Advice on PC Build for son (1st build)

[Buddhahat]

I'm helping my son to build a PC for his school work/gaming but am a complete novice at all this and would greatly appreciate some pointers if possible.

I have gathered together a list of parts as follows. I am definitely trying to keep costs down where possible:

Motherboard - ASRock B550 Phantom Gaming 4, AMD B550
CPU - AMD Ryzen 5 3600
GPU - MSI Radeon RX 5600 XT Mech OC 6GB
SSD - 1TB Crucial P1 M.2
SSD - 1TB WD Blue SN550
RAM - Vengenance Pro 16GB (2 X 8GB) Corsair DDR4
RAM - Vengenance Pro 16GB (2x8GB) Corsair DDR4 (3200)
Power supply - 650W Corsair CV Series 80PLUS Bronze
Power supply - 650W Seasonic Core Gold GM-650 80PLUS Gold
Case - NZXT H510 Mid Tower Chassis
Extra fans - 120mm Corsair iCUE SP120 RGB PRO, 9 Blade, 8 LED Addressable, Triple Fan Pack

But I am a little confused about what else I need and have some questions as follows, if anybody would be so kind to offer their expertise:

1. Would the above function as a gaming machine / be able to handle graphically demanding AAA stuff?
2. Will the stock CPU cooler (Wraith Stealth) be sufficient? I don't know what overclocking is, but should my son attempt this at any point, will the system be able to handle it?!
3. What other fans will I need? My son wants some RGB fans ideally so would I need 2 or 3 Case fans to keep things cool?
4. Does the RGB stuff (fans / RAM) just automatically light up when plugged into the motherboard, or do I need any other components / software to achieve this?
5.To get Wifi into the machine, do I just need to but a separate card for the motherboard and does this need some sort of antenna (which would need to be bought separately too)?

I appreciate it's a lot of questions - Thanks so much in advance for any tips on the above!

Best,

Ben

 

[mickyflinn]

Hi,

Rgb memory should work plugged straight in case fans some have built in controler and some can also be connected to the motherboard .

You should aim for 3200mhz ram its optimal speed for the 3600. The cooler on the 3600 is adequate but can be noisy .

5600xt is good for gaming depending on resoloution.

Wifi you can get a pcie wifi card this will have an antenna or a usb Wi-Fi. Motherboard maybe you could changec to one with built in wifi.

Psu is low end budget model spending a bit more on a quality unit would be my advice.

Rgb cases

My basket at Overclockers UK:

• 1 x Aerocool Python Midi Tower RGB Case - Black Tempered Glass= £54.95
• 1 x Kolink Observatory Lite ARGB Midi Tower Gaming Case - Black= £59.99
• 1 x Aerocool Aero One Eclipse ARGB Mid-Tower Case - Black Tempered Glass= £64.99
• 1 x BitFenix Nova Mesh A-RGB Midi-Tower Case - Black Window= £69.95

Total: £275.02 (includes shipping: £25.14)
​

 

[Buddhahat]

Hi,

Rgb memory should work plugged straight in case fans some have built in controler and some can also be connected to the motherboard .

You should aim for 3200mhz ram its optimal speed for the 3600. The cooler on the 3600 is adequate but can be noisy .

5600xt is good for gaming depending on resoloution.

Wifi you can get a pcie wifi card this will have an antenna or a usb Wi-Fi. Motherboard maybe you could changec to one with built in wifi.

Psu is low end budget model spending a bit more on a quality unit would be my advice.

Mickyflinn - thanks so much for the info. The memory info is particularly useful but some other good points too.

 

[lee32uk]

Hi welcome

You can save money on the board by going with a B450 one such as the MSI B450 Tomahawk MAX. You can add a cheap wifi adapter.

The Bitfenix Formula is a better psu.

My basket at Overclockers UK:

• 1 x MSI B450 TOMAHAWK MAX (Socket AM4) DDR4 ATX Motherboard= £92.99
• 1 x Bitfenix Formula Series 650W 80 Plus Gold Power Supply= £74.99
• 1 x ADDON Wireless AC 600Mbps USB High Gain USB Adapter (AWU680)= £10.99

Total: £190.07 (includes shipping: £11.10)​

​

 

[Buddhahat]

Thanks for this Lee32uk.

That's great to know an alternative power supply. Is 650W the minimum I need or could I go lower for my build?

Also, is that Wireless USB adapter everything I need for Wifi, or would I need to purchase a separate card? Would the signal be strong enough?

Cheers for the help,

Ben

 

[lee32uk]

Thanks for this Lee32uk.

That's great to know an alternative power supply. Is 650W the minimum I need or could I go lower for my build?

Also, is that Wireless USB adapter everything I need for Wifi, or would I need to purchase a separate card? Would the signal be strong enough?

Cheers for the help,

Ben

I would stick with 650W as it will allow for future cpu/gpu upgrades.

That adapter is all you would need. Honestly no idea how good it will be as wifi can be a bit hit and miss depending on how far the router is etc. If you wanted an alternative to wifi then you could look at powerline adapters.

The one below is an example. If you are shopping around you can probably find a cheaper alternative. I would stick with brands such as TP-Link, Devolo or Belkin etc. You should be able to find a basic kit for around £25 - £30 if you don't need one with an A/C passthrough.

My basket at Overclockers UK:

• 1 x TP-Link AV600 2-Port Passthrough Powerline Starter Kit (TL-PA4022P KIT)= £39.95

Total: £48.65 (includes shipping: £8.70)
​

 

[Buddhahat]

Lee32uk - thanks so much for answering these questions. All really useful info and much appreciated.

Ben

 

[EsaT]

That RGB overpriced dog slow would cripple Ryzen's performance.
3200MHz is minimum level if you care about performance.

And Crucial drive is level worser QLC Flash drive and not really cheaper than TLC drive.
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/wd-b...-solid-state-drive-wds100t2b0c-hd-56l-wd.html

 

[Buddhahat]

EsaT - thanks for the info about the RAM. Mickyflinn also pointed that out and meant to change it in the OP.

This is the RAM I'm now going for. Would this be OK?:

My basket at Overclockers UK:

• 1 x Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 PC4-25600C16 3200MHz Dual Channel Kit= £128.99

Total: £137.69 (includes shipping: £8.70)
[/INDENT

And will check your recommendation on SSD too - cheers for that.​

 

[MissChief]

EsaT - thanks for the info about the RAM. Mickyflinn also pointed that out and meant to change it in the OP.

This is the RAM I'm now going for. Would this be OK?:

My basket at Overclockers UK:

• 1 x Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 PC4-25600C16 3200MHz Dual Channel Kit= £128.99

Total: £137.69 (includes shipping: £8.70)
[/INDENT

And will check your recommendation on SSD too - cheers for that.​

Yes, but available cheaper elsewhere. And not by a couple of quid either.

 

[Buddhahat]

Yes, but available cheaper elsewhere. And not by a couple of quid either.

Thanks for the heads up.

Apart from some extra fans, this is what I have at the moment.

Cheers to all for the help so far.

Just need to be patient waiting for the graphics card (had no idea these were currently so hard to get):

My basket at Overclockers UK:

• 1 x Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 PC4-25600C16 3200MHz Dual Channel Kit= £128.99
• 1 x AMD Ryzen 5 3600 Six Core 4.2GHz (Socket AM4) Processor - Retail= £179.99
• 1 x Asrock B550 Phantom Gaming 4 (AMD AM4) B550 ATX Motherboard= £108.95
• 1 x MSI Radeon RX 5600 XT Mech OC 6144MB GDDR6 PCI-Express Graphics Card= £278.99
• 1 x Seasonic Core Gold GM-650 650W 80+ Gold Modular Power Supply= £89.99
• 1 x NZXT H510 Midi Tower Gaming Case - White Tempered Glass= £69.95
• 1 x WD Blue SN550 1TB NVME M.2 2280 PCIe Gen3 Solid State Drive (WDS100T2B0C)= £94.99

Total: £964.15 (includes shipping: £12.30)
​

 

[didgemaster]

@buddahat

Just a quick word of advice for a newbie: don't post about other shops and prices that they are offering on kit otherwise you will be reprimanded and continued infringement will get you band

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/forums/help/boardRules/

 

[Buddhahat]

@buddahat

Just a quick word of advice for a newbie: don't post about other shops and prices that they are offering on kit otherwise you will be reprimanded and continued infringement will get you band

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/forums/help/boardRules/

Thanks for this - have edited previous posts.

 

[didgemaster]

Thanks for this - have edited previous posts.

No worries I made the mistake when I first posted - many moons ago!

 

[Buddhahat]

No worries I made the mistake when I first posted - many moons ago!

Yeah - didn’t realise the forum was affiliated with a retailer initially!

 

[Buddhahat]

You've all been v helpful so far, thank you.

I have one more query before purchasing the build.

I'm having trouble sourcing the original Graphics card so have switched it to the following, which hopefully will be arriving at the end of March:

GPU - PNY NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 6GB Dual Fan Turing Graphics Card

Is this an OK card and will it work with the set up below?

Motherboard - ASRock B550 Phantom Gaming 4, AMD B550
CPU - AMD Ryzen 5 3600
GPU - PNY NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 6GB Dual Fan Turing Graphics Card
SSD - 1TB WD Blue SN550
RAM - Vengenance Pro 16GB (2x8GB) Corsair DDR4 (3200)
Power supply - 650W Seasonic Core Gold GM-650 80PLUS Gold
Case - NZXT H510 Mid Tower Chassis
Extra fans - 120mm Corsair iCUE SP120 RGB PRO, 9 Blade, 8 LED Addressable, Triple Fan Pack

Also, my son believes that, worst case, we can build the PC without the graphics card and it will be useable for word processing etc. Just not gaming!! Is this true?!

TIA

 

[MissChief]

That will be a good match and will work just fine.

It won't work without a graphics card though, the Ryzen 3600 has no internal graphics card.

 

[Shawreyboy]

2060 is a capable card for 1080p gaming. Should be a good stopgap

EDIT

I see OP mentions a 5600XT? The 2060 is as good if not faster. Would be money wasted trying to find a 5600XT as I am pretty sure they are EoL now. The ideal card to look for in the future for a good upgrade over the 2060 at 1080/1440p gaming would be AMD 6800 / Nvidia 3060ti or 3070.

 

[BlueInf]

Have you built that PC in the end?

sorry to hear you have troubles with the graphic card, there is a shortage at the moment.

 

[ASMB]

Also, my son believes that, worst case, we can build the PC without the graphics card and it will be useable for word processing etc. Just not gaming!! Is this true?!

TIA

The 2060 might be very overpriced. Your son is right that you can buy a processor with built in graphics while you wait for a gpu at a suitable price. It can even do basic gaming. https://youtu.be/x78I00NSVTU