~£2K (first) build, advice on parts

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Hi Everyone,

I hope you are all doing well.

I have been researching for a couple of months and finally managed to put together a theoretical system to buy.

My current system is a laptop with the following:
Dell G3 3759
intel 8th gen core i-7 8750H (I have undervolted it because it uses intel turbo boost and reaches 95 degrees which was very concerning to me)
Nvidia 1060 with max-Q design
a 256GB SSD (CUK Hynix BC501 256GB) and 1TB HDD


Now this is my first time building a system and I'm all over the place. I would have liked to buy a prebuilt one from Costco (they stock AWD-IT and cyberpower) but I get no customization, no choice of ram/ssd brand and speeds etc. (though the price is pretty good) and that is really annoying to me.

This is my current cart:
b]My basket at OcUK:[/b]

Total: £1,838.78 (includes delivery: £0.00)​


Only extra things would be 3 more fans from amazon and some dust filters (the dust is horrible in my house)

My monitor will be a DELL AW2723DF (found a good deal on it, basically costs me around 350). so basically 1440p res.

MAIN USES/POINTS:
I could care less about RGB, or the color. I went white but again I don't even mind if they are all mismatched. I would make it look like a 1995 brick if I could (actualy that would be fantastic)

I want it to be future proof, HOPEFULLY, 7 years plus.

I do some gaming (never new releases), and just regular web browsing, watch youtube videos, tinkering in desktop environment etc. (I want to transition to linux but I doubt it makes a difference) The things that really matter to me and trigger me, is the speed of windows startup, application startup (say librewolf), me wasting time by going through multiple files and stuff and closing everything again, speed of file moving from one folder to another, etc.
I currently doubt I will do anything computationally heavy in the future, but it could change.

I will use 2 SSDs and 1 HDD, I doubt I'll add more later.

(If I can lower the overall price of the build, thats all the better)

Now my main issues are the following:

CPU: Either 9800X3D vs 9950X3D

So, coming from an intel background (my previous cpu was a i7-3750H) I always thought more cores is faster and better.
As such, I am torn on the above and can't make up my mind. Now I know most of my above points depend on the SSD speed, but is it affected by RAM timings? will the extra CPU cores have any noticeable effect on it?
Any help here is appreciated. (that extra 250 for 9950x3d is kinda damaging, so I want to know if it is worth it for me)

GPU: (It is a **** show)
I can't afford to spend over 600 on a GPU, so I was thinking of going either with a Sapphire Pulse 9070XT (if it is close to msrp) or wait for the 9060 that they are going to release later this month or next month. (hopefully it will be cheap and STAY cheap)


RAM: I wanted to buy this:


but also saw this is cheaper and has a slightly better timing (the last 2 digits, it think it is tRAS)


I don't really like Corsair, so Do those timings matter that much?

Also, I think they will release these shortly (the price is placeholder, right?)

Should I wait for them because of the CAS 26 timing?

PSU:
is the seasonic one good? I looked thourgh a lot of tier lists and reviews and they say it is pretty good. Should I worry about the 12VHPWR socket?

MB:
is it okay? I searched a lot but this is the one I decided on.

Sorry for the long rant, and apologies if it is not very well structured. This is my first post here and I don't know how to format stuff properly.

I would appreciate your advice on this matter.
 
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I've kept the case as guess that's what you see and chosen so using that as a basis
put in a slightly cheaper mobo that does the same thing..bit of white and black
keept the aio, though you can go air cooler..
ram, stick to 6000c30...lower latency will have a benefit, but not worth extra cost..same goes for 64gb ram..if you look at it that way, might as well get 32gb ram and when the lower latency stuff drops in price, upgrade then,,but 6000c30 still sweet spot and not as relevant for x3d cpu's..kingston fury alternative to the corsair ram as you don't like that...the gskill only ram ocuk do that'll tie in with the white theme
I have ditched the iron rust bucket of a hard drive...and just put a 2tb drive as your os and a 4tb as the games library etc. I've got sn850x myself, but the crucial T500 is newer, equally as fast and cheaper
for gpu, still a sapphire 9070xt pure in thre..alternative asrock steel legend or the 9070xt nitro+ as it's a grey colour anyway(rather than black)
and psu bit of overkill. the seasonic superflower more than enough

still a little confused as you said you don't care about rgb or colour, then chose white and all rgb aio/ram etc. alternative mobo I'd go gigabyte aorus b850 elite wifi7 board..will be a nice clean look..think would look good with the nitro+ gpu honestly with hidden cables


My basket at OcUK:

Total: £1,607.83 (includes delivery: £0.00)​
 
intel 8th gen core i-7 8750H (I have undervolted it because it uses intel turbo boost and reaches 95 degrees which was very concerning to me)
You might not be a fan of modern CPUs then :D They see temperature headroom as wasted performance.


I would have liked to buy a prebuilt one from x (they stock x and x)
FYI: this forum is owned and run by overclockers UK, so no competitors are mentioned here.

I would make it look like a 1995 brick if I could (actualy that would be fantastic)
You can get cases that recreate old look on purpose.

I want it to be future proof, HOPEFULLY, 7 years plus.

I do some gaming (never new releases), and just regular web browsing, watch youtube videos, tinkering in desktop environment etc. (I want to transition to linux but I doubt it makes a difference) The things that really matter to me and trigger me, is the speed of windows startup, application startup (say librewolf), me wasting time by going through multiple files and stuff and closing everything again, speed of file moving from one folder to another, etc.
I currently doubt I will do anything computationally heavy in the future, but it could change.
CPU and RAM should be alright for 7 years, but a 9070 XT? Hmm, maybe, especially since you say that you don't play newer releases.

or wait for the 9060 that they are going to release later this month or next month. (hopefully it will be cheap and STAY cheap)
Nah, I don't think they will be good for 7 years @ 1440p, these 60 models are usually intended for 1080p.

Should I wait for them because of the CAS 26 timing?
No.

PSU:
is the seasonic one good? I looked thourgh a lot of tier lists and reviews and they say it is pretty good.
On the forum here if you look at the PSU section, the Antec version is very popular and is usually cheaper, though it does have 2 years less warranty than the Vertex.

Should I worry about the 12VHPWR socket?
I'm pretty sure the pulse doesn't use it, only the Nitro.

If you mean the PSU, I think Seasonic are updating them and if you buy the Antec version, it has the updated connector anyhow.
 
Thank you for your replys everyone.
just a couple points.

I have ditched the iron rust bucket of a hard drive.
I kinda want that for long term storage of media files (family photos, etc) and I might just yank it out and put it a NAS perhaps a year or two down the line
still a little confused as you said you don't care about rgb or colour, then chose white and all rgb aio/ram etc.
Believe it or not, the RGB g.skill RAM has better timings than the pure black one. Makes no sense. and I thought I'll just make things white as possible, makes the room a bit less gloomy.


FYI: this forum is owned and run by overclockers UK, so no competitors are mentioned here.
Sorry I didn't know I can't mention anything, figured only no links. And it doesn't let me edit my post to remove the mentions.


Final two questions,
The PSUs do come with the all the cables, right? I don't have to buy them separately right? (doesn't say anything on most of their product pages)

And for the MB, is Asrock B850 steel legend not good? I don't mind spending the 20 bucks compared to MSI B850 gaming plus, but is the only difference just the number of PCIE and nvme ports (and usb)?
(I need wifi 7 and bluetooth, if it has that LED thingy that shows error codes it would be pretty nice, but I understand that is a premium nowadays)
Also, Do I have to worry about this lane sharing thing they mention?

(Sorry about the quotations, I can't do it properly)
 
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The PSUs do come with the all the cables, right? I don't have to buy them separately right? (doesn't say anything on most of their product pages)
The manufacturer's page should list the cables that they come with, alternatively you can check reviews.

E.g.

99% of PSUs are bundled with the cables, but there are some rare cableless examples like Phantek's Revolt.

Also, Do I have to worry about this lane sharing thing they mention?
That's primarily an issue on X870/X870E boards due to the use of USB4, B850 is less likely to have a problem, but you can check on the manufacturer's website, or in the manual. In the worst case if you do end up with 8 lanes for the graphics card, the performance loss is pretty small (a few percent with a 5090).
 
Thank you, I might swap with that.


Also, Does anyone know whether 9800x3d iGPU can run windows at 60 or 120hz at 1440p?
I can't for some reason find any info on the integrated graphics. (intel Ark has info on their iGPUs and the resolutions and refresh rates they support)
I want to just run it like that until I can buy a GPU maybe later when the prices are better with more supply?
 
Also, Does anyone know whether 9800x3d iGPU can run windows at 60 or 120hz at 1440p?
I can't for some reason find any info on the integrated graphics. (intel Ark has info on their iGPUs and the resolutions and refresh rates they support)
Afaik, it uses the same IGP as the 7000 series CPUs, which is mini-RDNA2, but the motherboard specs are important to check because they don't always implement what they're actually capable of.
Meanwhile on the display controller side of matters, this is the block that’s enabling Ryzen 7000 CPUs to drive up to 4 4K@60Hz displays. The iGPU display controllers can drive HDMI 2.1 up to its maximum 48Gbps data rate, or it can drive a DisplayPort 2.0 output at up to the UHBR10 data rate (a feature not even found on NVIDIA’s forthcoming RTX 40 series cards). And as mentioned previously when talking about motherboards and chipsets, motherboard vendors will have the option of exposing these DP outputs either via USB-C alt mode, or by implementing fixed DisplayPorts. All of which, in turn, can be used as active display outputs even if a discrete video card is installed, via AMD’s new hybrid graphics mode.
 
Update:
So I settled on the following after agonizing over it for over a month:

My basket at OcUK:

I will put off the GPU until some weeks/months after 9060 release.
I also would have chosen the mesh version of the case but I have a lot of dust so I am worried about it going inside.

In conclusion, I am quite close to ordering but the MB choice is killing me. (as seen with the 3 in basket)
The whole dead 9800X3Ds with asrock is off putting (I really don't like the headache), there is the ASUS bad customer service history, the whole Excel sheet about the MBs. I am really getting choice burnout. If if it was not for the dead cpu thing, I would just go with Asrock no problem (it checks all the boxes)
So I am stuck with these three choices (or a similar gigabyte), Please help.
 
In conclusion, I am quite close to ordering but the MB choice is killing me. (as seen with the 3 in basket)
The whole dead 9800X3Ds with asrock is off putting (I really don't like the headache), there is the ASUS bad customer service history, the whole Excel sheet about the MBs. I am really getting choice burnout. If if it was not for the dead cpu thing, I would just go with Asrock no problem (it checks all the boxes)
So I am stuck with these three choices (or a similar gigabyte), Please help.
Can you restate what features you need from the board again please?

From a quick look at the rear, the MSI prioritised USB Type-C, whereas the TUF goes with USB 3x Type-A. The ASRock is in the middle.

TUF has 1x less M.2 slot, but more audio jacks on the rear. The MSI has 5Gb LAN.
 
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Can you restate what features you need from the board again please?

I am mainly concerned with the quality of the board (Like good VRM and phase, PCB layers, etc. I'm sorry, my knowledge in electronics is not very high so I can only understand 14 phase better than 12 and 80A better than 50A) and perhaps a good customer service in case it goes dud, especially with all the stuff going on right now.

I just need 2 (ideally 3) Nvme slots without messing with the main pcie16 lane.

Minimum 2 SATA ports/cables.

I removed almost all of the RGB, so I don't really need anything related to that.

USBs don't really matter. (I will use 3/4 at most, which all boards seem to have on the minimum)

WIFI 7 is nice but not essential.
 
I am mainly concerned with the quality of the board (Like good VRM and phase, PCB layers, etc. I'm sorry, my knowledge in electronics is not very high so I can only understand 14 phase better than 12 and 80A better than 50A) and perhaps a good customer service in case it goes dud, especially with all the stuff going on right now.
The most learned among us (community nerds, I mean) was of the conclusion long ago that AM5 boards are hilariously overbuilt. That hasn't changed with the latest gen, they're still way overbuilt for the CPUs we're putting in them. Sooo, what I'm getting at is, any of those three will be more than fine.

The only boards likely to throttle 9800X3D are real bargain bin stuff, like less than £100 and even then, they won't throttle in most workloads.

I can't comment on customer support between the three.

I just need 2 (ideally 3) Nvme slots without messing with the main pcie16 lane.

Minimum 2 SATA ports/cables.

I removed almost all of the RGB, so I don't really need anything related to that.

USBs don't really matter. (I will use 3/4 at most, which all boards seem to have on the minimum)

WIFI 7 is nice but not essential.
Any full-size B850 board should meet that, I think, so long as you check the specs before purchase.
 
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msi b850 tomahawk max is where my vote goes (obviously)

do you need the mish-mash of nvme ssds? i would've thought a single 4tb main drive would be a more sensible choice

you could save £30 with the phanteks platinum gh, for £160 this is 1200w as well, the only downside is that the warranty period is 8 years vs 10 on the antec. both are "A" rated on the PSU tier list, so power output/price/warranty is the determining factor
 
msi b850 tomahawk max is where my vote goes (obviously)

do you need the mish-mash of nvme ssds? i would've thought a single 4tb main drive would be a more sensible choice

you could save £30 with the phanteks platinum gh, for £160 this is 1200w as well, the only downside is that the warranty period is 8 years vs 10 on the antec. both are "A" rated on the PSU tier list, so power output/price/warranty is the determining factor

Any particular reason for going with MSI?

for the ssd mix, I will put the OS on the 1 tb one. It will be linux mint and since I am new to it, I just prefer that separation from my main ssd until I get more comfortable with it. (They will be partitioned ofc)

Would 1200W have any benefit, as in the efficiency curve thingy were it is most efficient at around 60% load?(is that still a thing?) (According to ************, my load will be around 670W with a 9070xt)
 
Any particular reason for going with MSI?

basically (one of) the best VRM setups outside of halo-tier boards
nice blend of price to features
and also avoids the asrock boards that make the 9800x3d chips go boom :cry:

as in the efficiency curve thingy were it is most efficient at around 60% load?
that is correct. all i'm demonstrating is that you can get more for cheaper.
(1.2kw psu will stand in good stead, if you ever want to get a 5090 lol)
 
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to be future proof, HOPEFULLY, 7 years plus.

I do some gaming (never new releases), and just regular web browsing, watch youtube videos, tinkering in desktop environment etc.

I can't afford to spend over 600 on a GPU

RAM: I wanted to buy this:

I don't really like Corsair, so Do those timings matter that much?

Should I wait for them because of the CAS 26 timing?

Couple points,

1) I don't know what you're spending so much on RAM and so little on your GPU. It makes no sense given your use case.
2) Nothing is future proof and it's much better to spend less on your machine now and then upgrade down the line when new stuff comes out.
3) don't get the CL26 stuff, get cheaper RAM. The more expensive stuff doesn't add that much to performance.
4) RAM brand doesn't make any difference - all brands largely just share the same setup of PCB and RAM chips and then add RGB and a different heatsink to market it. Anything in the 6000CL30 range will be great.
5) spend as much as you can on a GPU and the 9070XT is a great buy.
6) Don't worry about the new PSU revision, it makes no difference.

GLHF
 
Any particular reason for going with MSI?

for the ssd mix, I will put the OS on the 1 tb one. It will be linux mint and since I am new to it, I just prefer that separation from my main ssd until I get more comfortable with it. (They will be partitioned ofc)

Would 1200W have any benefit, as in the efficiency curve thingy were it is most efficient at around 60% load?(is that still a thing?) (According to ************, my load will be around 670W with a 9070xt)
depends on the psu..my rm1000x (2021) hits peak efficiency at 30% load and then holds there tailing off very gradually
don't think I'd ever put a hhd in a build ever again..I was actually without a pc for a bit, just a laptop with a small hhd (which failed)..just before that i had a portable hhd 9meant to be drop proff), which as i was transferring my whole photo library onto it, my son ran past and caught the power lead....it flew across the room and smashed on the floor..lost everything..sent it off to have the platters rebuilt (a nice £1k potentially), but it was unrepareable...all our photo's of my wife and I before marriage, marriage photo's everything gone..can't believe at the time i didn't have another backup
anyway, every rust bucket i've had has failed..and they're slow...and ssd are cheap now...i don't get the point of getting one this day and age, unless you want to build a nas seperate to the pc, and populate it with a ton of high capacity hhd's with a raid config
 
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Hey Everyone,

First off, I wanted to thank everyone who helped me choose and refine parts, both in this thread and others, you are all truly wonderful.
So I thought to post an update on the build, which is now finished and functional.
(humble brag: I got it to post first time :D, after obviously realizing that I had to stick the hdmi into GPU and not MB (it has auto graphic card detection))

This is what I ended up buying and their cost:

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D 4.7 GHz 8-Core Processor (Purchased For £449.99)
CPU Cooler: ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III Pro 360 77 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler (Purchased For £83.94)
Motherboard: MSI MAG B850 TOMAHAWK MAX WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard (Purchased For £218.99)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory (Purchased For £179.99)
Storage: Crucial T500 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive (Purchased For £74.99)
Storage: Western Digital WD_Black SN850X w/Heatsink 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive (Purchased For £136.99)
Storage: Western Digital Red Pro 4 TB 3.5" 7200 RPM Internal Hard Drive (Purchased For £136.99)
Video Card: Sapphire PULSE Radeon RX 9070 16 GB Video Card (Purchased For £569.99)
Case: Lian Li LANCOOL 217 ATX Mid Tower Case (Purchased For £109.99)
Power Supply: Antec High Current Gamer PRO ATX3.1 1200 W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply (Purchased For £209.99)
Monitor: Dell AW2723DF 27.0" 2560 x 1440 240 Hz Monitor (Purchased For £345.00)
Total: £2516.85


I went straight to linux mint and no windows, had a bit of pain since it didn't support the wifi/ethernet stuff until a kernel update. The only things that I really miss in windows, and is annoying to me is that most bench marking and temperature monitor softwares are not available on linux; I only found unigine, gave 74 for gpu under load (4K optimized, game mode). Can't stress test though (it is not free)

In this warm whether with ambient around 25-27 in my room, the cpu temp sits at around 46-49, while case temp is around 35.

I wanted to post pics but can't upload directly. :(

So I need help with two more things please:

One is the WD HDD red pro, when it is mounted in linux, it makes a clicking/scratching sound every couple of seconds, when it is unmounted, it does it every minute or so. Is this normal for NAS HDDs? This thing was brand new. I only had 2.5" HDDs and they made no such noise. I bought it from OCUK, Should I get it replaced?

And the other thing is the fans, I have the 360mm AIO + 2x 120mm fans at the bottom and a 140mm at the back, all are exhaust. only intake is two 170mm at front. So should I change the 2x 120mm to intake for positive pressure?

Edit: I forgot to say I did fan optimizations as well, running on near silent.
 
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(humble brag: I got it to post first time :D, after obviously realizing that I had to stick the hdmi into GPU and not MB (it has auto graphic card detection))
Nice one!

And the other thing is the fans, I have the 360mm AIO + 2x 120mm fans at the bottom and a 140mm at the back, all are exhaust. only intake is two 170mm at front. So should I change the 2x 120mm to intake for positive pressure?
Bottom fans should normally be intakes, but 2x 170mm is enough.
 
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