First PC build - budget start and upgrade advice sought

[TWheston]

Hi folks
Looking to put together a PC.
For context, currently Xbox one (first gen) serves as our gaming and entertainment hub - no TV as such.
I'm currently hooked on Elite Dangerous which will keep me entertained for some time, love the total war games and fantasise about playing them on high-spec, and my wife has her eye on Assassin's Creed: Valhalla.
1080p is fine for time being, but 1440p would be nice when I can get a better monitor
What I'd want out of a PC is something quiet and unassuming visually - would rather not have loads of flashing colours!
I want start with something ideally around the £600 mark, but I would want it to be somewhat future-proof.
I'm wondering, is it better to start spending more on base components (Motherboard & processor) and upgrade the plug-in parts, or vice-versa?
Coming from Mac - viruses are a concern, so not sure about multiple storage...

I have pulled together a starting point - grateful for any feedback and advice.
- MSI 7C02-020R MSI B450 Tomahawk Max (AM4) £113
- RYZEN 5 3600 SIX CORE 4.2GHZ (SOCKET AM4) PROCESSOR £155
- PURE POWER 11 500W 80 PLUS GOLD POWER SUPPLY £64.99
- VENGEANCE LPX BLACK 16GB (2X8GB) 3200 MHZ AMD RYZEN TUNED DDR4 MEMORY DUAL KIT £79.99
- RADEON RX 5500 XT MECH OC 8192MB GDDR6 PCI-EXPRESS GRAPHICS CARD £199.00
- 970 EVO PLUS 500GB M.2 2280 PCI-E 3.0 X4 NVME SOLID STATE DRIVE £139.00
- PURE BASE 500 MIDI TOWER CASE - £74.99 ( I do like this case...)

I'd ideally like to shave £150 off this list. Ultimately, I want the option to upgrade in years to come, but to achieve something that will surpass current console capability.

 

[TWheston]

I'd consider going for a Ryzen 2600 or 1600AF if your budget is roughly £600, Also swap out the Samsung Storage, it's overpriced and you'll be able to save a few £££ and get a 1tb for £100ish

Good choice on case, Very highly recommended on here and reviews also have a lot of plus signs for it...

Thanks for that. I see you have a Ryzen 2600 - I take it you are happy enough with the performance for the time being? I gather the processor can be upgraded in future?

About the SSD - I was looking at the read/write speed of this which seemed pretty swift - how much attention should I be giving to read/write speeds on SSDs?

 

[TWheston]

My basket at Overclockers UK:

• 1 x Toshiba Kioxia RC500 Pro 500GB M.2 2280 PCI-e 3.0 x4 NVMe Solid State Drive= £68.99
• 1 x Kolink Inspire Series K5 RGB Midi Tower Case - Black Window= £24.95

Total: £105.64 (includes shipping: £11.70)
​

Here's £100 off already. £75 on a case for a £600 budget is madness

Appreciate the note on the SSD - seems this is a particular component I can save on.

Your note about the case did make me chuckle - I take your point entirely. However, I see the case and motherboard as core components around which everything else can change in future, so I reckon I'll stick with it.

Appreciate you taking the time.