Needing a new PC, last built mine 10 yrs ago...

[Naan_H]

Hi everyone.

Happy new year!

So im currently using an i5 - 4670K running at stock, with 16GB RAM and an RX550 , and a samsung 840 evo SSD. Its not used for gaming and is rock solid, and Im using it to work from home, currently running 2 x 27" 1440 p monitors.

My son needs a PC for his school work, so will be passing it down to him.

I will be keeping one of the screens above and adding in 2 x 32 inch 4K monitors. I believe the RX550 will be capable of running both 4k monitors at 60hz and the 1440p screen all together at the same time.

This will 99% of the time be used purely for windows based applications/working from home; I need multiple windows open while working, hence 3 screens. The applications are not too intensive so i suspect I should be aiming for 32GB of RAM to future proof. I leave all gaming to my PS5 but would be tempted to dip back into PC gaming if there was an FPS title that would get me excited (like a Half life / Quake title etc) so I would like the base spec to be solid to allow a good graphics card option in the future.

So looking for CPU, Mobo, RAM, SSD (or M2), Case (with USB-C for future proofing), PSU, quiet heatsink/fan

The case will be mounted onto a secretlab magnus pro xl desk using their own PC mount, with allowed dimensions below

• Height: 354 - 543mm (14.0 - 21.5")
• Width: 170 - 300mm (6.7 - 11.8")
• Weight: Up to 25kg (55lb)

Budget £500-£700 - although would like to keep it as cheap as possible.

thanks in advance

 

[Tetras]

My basket at OcUK:

• 1 x Intel Core i5-13400 (Raptor Lake) Socket LGA1700 Processor - Retail (SKU: CP-6BC-IN) = £229.99
• 1 x Gigabyte B760M DS3H DDR4 (LGA 1700) DDR4 Micro-ATX Motherboard (SKU: MB-5C0-GI) = £114.99
• 1 x Team Group Vulcan Z T-Force 32GB (2x16GB) DDR4 PC4-25600C16 3200MHz Dual Channel Kit - Grey (SKU: MY-0AJ-TG) = £59.98
• 1 x Crucial P5 Plus 2TB M.2 2280 PCI-e 4.0 x4 3D NAND NVMe Solid State Drive (SKU: HD-075-CR) = £114.95
• 1 x AeroCool Trinity V2 Mini Tower PC Case - Black (SKU: CA-23J-AE) = £29.99
• 1 x Phanteks AMP 650W 80 Plus Gold Modular Power Supply (SKU: CA-09Q-PT) = £89.99

Total: £647.88 (includes delivery: £7.99)​

Case (with USB-C for future proofing), PSU, quiet heatsink/fan

The case doesn't have USB-C, but the motherboard does on the rear.

CPU

I'd recommend switching to the 13500 if you can get it for a reasonable price, it has a better IGP and 4 more E-Cores.

I will be keeping one of the screens above and adding in 2 x 32 inch 4K monitors.

The motherboard has 2x DP, 1x HDMI and 1x D-Sub. In theory, you should be able to use all of them together (Gigabyte's spec says quad display is supported), but I think the pipes may be shared, so the more bandwidth you use (res + refresh), the less that is likely to work.

quiet heatsink/fan

The bundled one is fine at idle and if you turn the turbo off, but it will be noisy under full load, so I'd suggest something like this, which is one of the best value air coolers you can buy.

 

[Naan_H]

My basket at OcUK:

thanks for the reply. Im so out of date with processors - I was under the impression that IGPs werent great as it made overclocking harder? I take it these processors are locked too? I have seen the 13500 at a similar price of the 13400 so would be tempted. The specs on gigabytes website do state 4k 60hz simultaneously.

Regarding the case, im quite happy to go for something a little bigger or more solid. I currently have a bittfenix prodigy and its a pain in the arse to open up when something goes wrong. The thermalright looks great, i suspect it will fit a micro-ATX case fine ?

 

[Tetras]

I was under the impression that IGPs werent great as it made overclocking harder? I take it these processors are locked too?

I don't think they have a big influence on overclocking, but you can't overclock a non-K CPU on a non-Z board anyway (except for removing their power limits). If I were you I'd prefer it over keeping the 550, for the simplicity and lower power usage of a GPU-less system.

The thermalright looks great, i suspect it will fit a micro-ATX case fine ?

Yeah, but be careful of the case max height and motherboard VRM & RAM clearance, especially on a 2 slot board.

Regarding the case, im quite happy to go for something a little bigger or more solid.

I have a few cheap Aerocool cases and they've been fine, very thin metal, but sturdy enough. Your call

 

[Naan_H]

I don't think they have a big influence on overclocking, but you can't overclock a non-K CPU on a non-Z board anyway (except for removing their power limits). If I were you I'd prefer it over keeping the 550, for the simplicity and lower power usage of a GPU-less system.


Yeah, but be careful of the case max height and motherboard VRM & RAM clearance, especially on a 2 slot board.


I have a few cheap Aerocool cases and they've been fine, very thin metal, but sturdy enough. Your call

Im assuming the thermalright is fine in the aerocool case then ? its a nice case and nicely priced.

 

[mickyflinn]

Im assuming the thermalright is fine in the aerocool case then ? its a nice case and nicely priced.

It will .

The fan speed on the aerocool case are not controlleable and run loud they have priority connections , I believe you can get a controller but can't remember if that's just for the RGB.

@Wing-Man knows more about this , I'll send out an SOS

 

[Naan_H]

It will .

The fan speed on the aerocool case are not controlleable and run loud they have priority connections , I believe you can get a controller but can't remember if that's just for the RGB.

@Wing-Man knows more about this , I'll send out an SOS

That’s a shame, I saw they run on molex and not 3 pin, but you can’t get everything at that price !

 

[mickyflinn]

That’s a shame, I saw they run on molex and not 3 pin, but you can’t get everything at that price !

True.

See what wing man says I think the controller is only £5

Alternatively 3 x 120mm arctic pwm fans cost £15 , the pst you can link together so they connect to one 4 pin header .

Arctic F12 PWM PST Black Fan - 120mm

Order Arctic F12 PWM PST Black Fan - 120mm now online and benefit from fast delivery.

www.overclockers.co.uk

Theese are f12 fans more suited as case fans the p12 have higher pressure/ airflow..

 

[Naan_H]

True.

See what wing man says I think the controller is only £5

Alternatively 3 x 120mm arctic pwm fans cost £15 , the pst you can link together so they connect to one 4 pin header .

Arctic F12 PWM PST Black Fan - 120mm

Order Arctic F12 PWM PST Black Fan - 120mm now online and benefit from fast delivery.

www.overclockers.co.uk

Theese are f12 fans more suited as case fans the p12 have higher pressure/ airflow..

I have two Noctua NF-P12 redux-1700 PWM Fans unused, so may hook these up instead. Ill await wing man's input

 

[Naan_H]

My basket at OcUK:

@Tetras , the Crucial P5 and PSU seem to be out of stock. Any suitable similarly priced alternatives you can recommend ? TIA

 

[Tetras]

@Tetras , the Crucial P5 and PSU seem to be out of stock. Any suitable similarly priced alternatives you can recommend ? TIA

Hmm. MSI 480 Pro or Kioxia Exceria Pro are the only similar drives (high-end PCI-E 4.0) that I can see, but they're £10 more. You could go dramless and get something like: NM790, SN580 or SN770.

PSU: Seasonic GX-650 is £5 more, or you could get the GX-750 or Corsair RMx750 for £110.

 

[Naan_H]

It will .

The fan speed on the aerocool case are not controlleable and run loud they have priority connections , I believe you can get a controller but can't remember if that's just for the RGB.

@Wing-Man knows more about this , I'll send out an SOS

@Wing-Man , any thoughts on this, would really appreciate your feedback. . is there a controller to control the speed of the fans ?

 

[Wing-Man]

ive used a few and its hit and miss TBF, my 2 sons both had(had) the aero one, one of the controllers dose work and one dose not. but i wouldn't say the fans are loud unless you putting it on your desk

they do have a priority connections, i have a controller spear if any wants one lol..

 

[Naan_H]

ive used a few and its hit and miss TBF, my 2 sons both had(had) the aero one, one of the controllers dose work and one dose not. but i wouldn't say the fans are loud unless you putting it on your desk

they do have a priority connections, i have a controller spear if any wants one lol..

I might take you up on that - any details on the one you have spare ?