Spec me a 9800X3D/5070Ti System - £2000ish

[kration]

I'm looking to get a new system, mainly to be used for gaming (including VR). I usually go for a CPU and Motherboard to see me over a couple of generations of graphics cards. My current system is an ancient i5 4690 CPU and a 1080ti.

I've got 3 x Dell U2414H monitors and a Valve Index VR headset which I'll be keeping, but may change in the future.

As I usually stay with the same CPU/Motherboard/PSU and change other components when needed. basically need headroom and longevity re. MBoard, CPU and PSU. I'm not interested in overclocking (unless the component comes with OC), watercooling, flashy lighting etc.

The 9800X3D CPU and 5070Ti GPU are the main components I've identified. NVidia seems better suited to VR at the moment. The 5080 isn't that much of a step up to justify the price from a 5070ti, especially as I may be changing the card in a couple of years, and I can't justify the price of a 5090. I'd rather get a 5070ti and spend the money on other components at this time.

Budget is about £2000 with some flexibility.

This is the general build with comments, any recommendations to fill in the gaps?:

CPU - AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Eight Core 5.20GHz (Socket AM5) Processor - £399.95 (best CPU for this build?)

CPU Cooler - ???? (Air cooler, not watercooled or all in one etc.)

MBoard - ????

GPU - 5070Ti (cheapest are about £680 ish - worth spending more?).

Memory - ???? (32 GB - can't justify more for gaming at the moment)

SSD - ???? (At least 2TB for OS and basic programs)

HDD - ???? (At least 4TB for game storage)

PSU - ???? (1000W or 1200W to cope with future upgrades?)

Case - ???? (nothing flashy, ideally with decent case fans included)

Case Fans - ???? (extra case fans?)

Win 11 License


Any advice is much appreciated.

 

[Tetras]

I've got 3 x Dell U2414H monitors and a Valve Index VR headset which I'll be keeping, but may change in the future.

What display outputs and USB ports (including Type-C and Type-A USB 3.x) do you need?

Is SPDIF needed? If not, how many jacks are required?

CPU - AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Eight Core 5.20GHz (Socket AM5) Processor - £399.95 (best CPU for this build?)

It is the best CPU for a gaming PC right now. One alternative is to buy a lower-end one, like the 9600X and then upgrade to the 10800X3D (or whatever it is called), which is expected to have 12 cores on one CCD.

Memory - ???? (32 GB - can't justify more for gaming at the moment)

Prices have been going up lately, but I'd aim for 48 or 64GB if you can, with a £2K budget, especially since DDR5 is not a fan of running 4 sticks.

CPU Cooler - ???? (Air cooler, not watercooled or all in one etc.)

Air is fine for these CPUs, but with some adjustment of fan curves for "quality of life" with the boost behaviour.

GPU - 5070Ti (cheapest are about £680 ish - worth spending more?).

The warranty length is all over the place, so I'd be careful of that (2, 3, 4, 5 year). The Zotac should be 5, with registration.

HDD - ???? (At least 4TB for game storage)

Is this just for an archive, or will you actually play games from it? If you're playing games from it, I'd only suggest HDDs for old games, you really want to be on a SSD for anything modern.

My basket at OcUK:

• 1 x AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Eight Core 5.20GHz (Socket AM5) Processor - Retail (SKU: PRO-AMD-03517) = £399.95
• 1 x Sapphire Nitro+ B850A WiFi 7 (Socket AM5) DDR5 ATX Motherboard (SKU: MOT-SPR-05688) = £157.99
• 1 x Crucial Pro 64GB (2x32GB) DDR5 PC5-44800C46 5600MHz Dual Channel Kit (SKU: MEM-CRU-01085) = £158.99
• 1 x Zotac GeForce RTX 5070 Ti Solid Core 16GB GDDR7 PCI-Express Graphics Card (SKU: GRA-ZTC-04471) = £728.98
• 1 x Gigabyte Aorus 7300 2TB SSD M.2 2280 NVME PCI-E Gen4 Solid State Drive (SKU: STO-GIG-05732) = £110.00
• 1 x Crucial P310 4TB M.2 2280 PCIe 4.0 NVMe Solid State Drive (SKU: STO-CRU-05068) = £210.35
• 1 x Phanteks XT Silent ATX Case Closed Panel Black (SKU: CAS-PHK-03106) = £77.98
• 1 x Phanteks AMP GH 850W 80PLUS Gold ATX Power Supply Modular - Black (SKU: POW-PHK-02519) = £104.99
• 1 x Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 SE Black CPU Air Cooler (SKU: COO-TLR-03291) = £33.95

Total: £1,995.17 (includes delivery: £11.98)​

 

[Samhfx]

What display outputs and USB ports (including Type-C and Type-A USB 3.x) do you need?

Is SPDIF needed? If not, how many jacks are required?


It is the best CPU for a gaming PC right now. One alternative is to buy a lower-end one, like the 9600X and then upgrade to the 10800X3D (or whatever it is called), which is expected to have 12 cores on one CCD.


Prices have been going up lately, but I'd aim for 48 or 64GB if you can, with a £2K budget, especially since DDR5 is not a fan of running 4 sticks.


Air is fine for these CPUs, but with some adjustment of fan curves for "quality of life" with the boost behaviour.


The warranty length is all over the place, so I'd be careful of that (2, 3, 4, 5 year). The Zotac should be 5, with registration.


Is this just for an archive, or will you actually play games from it? If you're playing games from it, I'd only suggest HDDs for old games, you really want to be on a SSD for anything modern.

My basket at OcUK:

• 1 x AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Eight Core 5.20GHz (Socket AM5) Processor - Retail (SKU: PRO-AMD-03517) = £399.95
• 1 x Sapphire Nitro+ B850A WiFi 7 (Socket AM5) DDR5 ATX Motherboard (SKU: MOT-SPR-05688) = £157.99
• 1 x Crucial Pro 64GB (2x32GB) DDR5 PC5-44800C46 5600MHz Dual Channel Kit (SKU: MEM-CRU-01085) = £158.99
• 1 x Zotac GeForce RTX 5070 Ti Solid Core 16GB GDDR7 PCI-Express Graphics Card (SKU: GRA-ZTC-04471) = £728.98
• 1 x Gigabyte Aorus 7300 2TB SSD M.2 2280 NVME PCI-E Gen4 Solid State Drive (SKU: STO-GIG-05732) = £110.00
• 1 x Crucial P310 4TB M.2 2280 PCIe 4.0 NVMe Solid State Drive (SKU: STO-CRU-05068) = £210.35
• 1 x Phanteks XT Silent ATX Case Closed Panel Black (SKU: CAS-PHK-03106) = £77.98
• 1 x Phanteks AMP GH 850W 80PLUS Gold ATX Power Supply Modular - Black (SKU: POW-PHK-02519) = £104.99
• 1 x Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 SE Black CPU Air Cooler (SKU: COO-TLR-03291) = £33.95

Total: £1,995.17 (includes delivery: £11.98)​

Hey, I plan on upgrading to AM5 in the near future and I will most likely choose the same CPU for my 5070 ti. Does it matter what motherboard to get? I remember when I built my current PC I needed a high end mobo, has things changed now? I can pick up the 9800X3D and buy a cheaper mobo? I'm pretty dumb when it comes to this stuff just wanted to double check!

For example in my basket I have MSI MAG B850 TOMAHAWK MAX WIFI (AMD AM5) B850 ATX Motherboard. I can go for something cheaper or will I lose much performance? I will probably make my own thread when I'm closer to the time of upgrading, just wanted some quick advice beforehand

 

[Tetras]

Hey, I plan on upgrading to AM5 in the near future and I will most likely choose the same CPU for my 5070 ti. Does it matter what motherboard to get? I remember when I built my current PC I needed a high end mobo, has things changed now? I can pick up the 9800X3D and buy a cheaper mobo? I'm pretty dumb when it comes to this stuff just wanted to double check!

For example in my basket I have MSI MAG B850 TOMAHAWK MAX WIFI (AMD AM5) B850 ATX Motherboard. I can go for something cheaper or will I lose much performance? I will probably make my own thread when I'm closer to the time of upgrading, just wanted some quick advice beforehand

The only time the motherboard loses performance is if the VRM is too weak and throttles the CPU, but the 9800X3D doesn't need a strong VRM anyhow, so that's very unlikely unless you buy some garbage level board without a heatsink.

You can also lose performance on the graphics card if it lacks PCI-E 5.0 graphics, but almost all B850 boards have that feature.

Other than that, just check it has what you want, in terms of USB ports (rear and headers), PCI-E/M.2 slots, sound jacks, etc.

 

[Samhfx]

The only time the motherboard loses performance is if the VRM is too weak and throttles the CPU, but the 9800X3D doesn't need a strong VRM anyhow, so that's very unlikely unless you buy some garbage level board without a heatsink.

You can also lose performance on the graphics card if it lacks PCI-E 5.0 graphics, but almost all B850 boards have that feature.

Other than that, just check it has what you want, in terms of USB ports (rear and headers), PCI-E/M.2 slots, sound jacks, etc.

I see, I think with my current build which is over 4 years old now maybe I wasted money. I bought a msi tomahawk mag x570, apparently has wifi and I've never used it. Paid extra for something I don't use, I wanna avoid that mistake this time.

 

[Tetras]

I see, I think with my current build which is over 4 years old now maybe I wasted money. I bought a msi tomahawk mag x570, apparently has wifi and I've never used it. Paid extra for something I don't use, I wanna avoid that mistake this time.

The B850 Tomahawk is fine, but you can downgrade to the Gaming Plus if it doesn't lose anything you want. I suggested the Sapphire in this thread because it has a good balance of features/price.

 

[kration]

What display outputs and USB ports (including Type-C and Type-A USB 3.x) do you need?

Is SPDIF needed? If not, how many jacks are required?


It is the best CPU for a gaming PC right now. One alternative is to buy a lower-end one, like the 9600X and then upgrade to the 10800X3D (or whatever it is called), which is expected to have 12 cores on one CCD.


Prices have been going up lately, but I'd aim for 48 or 64GB if you can, with a £2K budget, especially since DDR5 is not a fan of running 4 sticks.


Air is fine for these CPUs, but with some adjustment of fan curves for "quality of life" with the boost behaviour.


The warranty length is all over the place, so I'd be careful of that (2, 3, 4, 5 year). The Zotac should be 5, with registration.


Is this just for an archive, or will you actually play games from it? If you're playing games from it, I'd only suggest HDDs for old games, you really want to be on a SSD for anything modern.

My basket at OcUK:

• 1 x AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Eight Core 5.20GHz (Socket AM5) Processor - Retail (SKU: PRO-AMD-03517) = £399.95
• 1 x Sapphire Nitro+ B850A WiFi 7 (Socket AM5) DDR5 ATX Motherboard (SKU: MOT-SPR-05688) = £157.99
• 1 x Crucial Pro 64GB (2x32GB) DDR5 PC5-44800C46 5600MHz Dual Channel Kit (SKU: MEM-CRU-01085) = £158.99
• 1 x Zotac GeForce RTX 5070 Ti Solid Core 16GB GDDR7 PCI-Express Graphics Card (SKU: GRA-ZTC-04471) = £728.98
• 1 x Gigabyte Aorus 7300 2TB SSD M.2 2280 NVME PCI-E Gen4 Solid State Drive (SKU: STO-GIG-05732) = £110.00
• 1 x Crucial P310 4TB M.2 2280 PCIe 4.0 NVMe Solid State Drive (SKU: STO-CRU-05068) = £210.35
• 1 x Phanteks XT Silent ATX Case Closed Panel Black (SKU: CAS-PHK-03106) = £77.98
• 1 x Phanteks AMP GH 850W 80PLUS Gold ATX Power Supply Modular - Black (SKU: POW-PHK-02519) = £104.99
• 1 x Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 SE Black CPU Air Cooler (SKU: COO-TLR-03291) = £33.95

Total: £1,995.17 (includes delivery: £11.98)​

That's great, thanks for the excellent advice and recommendations.

Looking at some of the points you mention:

• What display outputs and USB ports (including Type-C and Type-A USB 3.x) do you need?
  • My current display outputs are 1xDisplayPort for the Valve Index headset; 2xDisplayPorts for 2 Dell monitors; and 1xHDMI via a cable adaptor for the third Dell monitor.
  • No idea re needed USB ports - but nothing excessive or specialised.
• Is SPDIF needed? If not, how many jacks are required?
  • I've never knowingly used SPDIF, though on googling it relates to high quality audio and Home Cinema, and on that basis its not needed.
• The warranty length is all over the place, so I'd be careful of that (2, 3, 4, 5 year). The Zotac should be 5, with registration.
  • Good point re warranty length - the Zotac looks good.
• Is this just for an archive, or will you actually play games from it? If you're playing games from it, I'd only suggest HDDs for old games, you really want to be on a SSD for anything modern.
  • It is mainly for older games, but the suggested mix of SSD's looks excellent.

A couple of other questions:

• The Sapphire Nitro+ B850A MBoard does look a good balance of features/price, but I'd rather have an established MBoard manufacturer due to updates and longevity. Would I lose much by going with a more established brand/model? In which case which one?
• If I'm looking at future graphics cards, will an 850W PSU be enough? I'm OK with paying more for a robust PSU.

Thanks for the comprehensive advice.

 

[Tetras]

If I'm looking at future graphics cards, will an 850W PSU be enough? I'm OK with paying more for a robust PSU.

There's a point that the average case/PSU can't easily fit, cool or power a monster card, so it is unlikely that they're going to push far beyond what 850 watt PSUs can handle, though the Phanteks 1000 is only ~£25 more, so no harm in having the headroom.

The Sapphire Nitro+ B850A MBoard does look a good balance of features/price, but I'd rather have an established MBoard manufacturer due to updates and longevity. Would I lose much by going with a more established brand/model? In which case which one?

No, but the prices of competing boards seem to have gone up around £20 in the last week or so, with the exception of Asus that have come down (they were way overpriced when B850 launched, so I guess they're correcting).

My current display outputs are 1xDisplayPort for the Valve Index headset; 2xDisplayPorts for 2 Dell monitors; and 1xHDMI via a cable adaptor for the third Dell monitor.

Most cards have 3x DP and 1x HDMI, though a few have 2x DP and 2x HDMI. Motherboards usually have at least output (1x DP), but 1x DP and 1x HDMI is very common.

No idea re needed USB ports - but nothing excessive or specialised.

The main issue I was thinking of is that accessories like controllers or headsets may need USB ports and USB Type-C is much more widespread now. Boards will usually prioritise USB 3.x Type-A, but MSI's B850 Gaming Plus and Tomahawk seem to have gone in the opposite direction and prioritised USB Type-C. Note that USB4 is mainly present only on X870/X870E.

It is mainly for older games, but the suggested mix of SSD's looks excellent.

Great! Though, if you can afford it, I'd recommend getting a TLC + DRAM drive like Crucial's T500, instead of the P310, due to the P310's low rated endurance.