New PC Build Advice

monkeycid · 27 Mar 2025 at 00:11

Hey!

So, my PC is about 6 years old now and recently started showing its age after extensive use on a near daily basis. I've started CTDing in modded Skyrim recently and during character creation in Baldur's Gate 3. The PC I have wasn't cheap but I feel like I've gotten my use out of it and ready to buy a new one.

Case: Fractal Design North XL
CPU: AMD Ryzen™ 9 9950X3D
Motherboard: ASUS ROG CROSSHAIR X870E HERO
Cooler: Noctua NH-U12A chromax.black
Memory: Corsair Vengeance Grey 64GB 6000MHz DDR5
GPU: 32GB NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090
PSU: Corsair HX1000i, 80PLUS PLATINUM
SSD: 4TB Corsair MP700 PRO

My current PC is lit up like a Christmas tree so I really want to shy away from RGB in this build. I really like the sleek look of the Noctua as well and I think it would look pretty cool in this particular case.

All in all, this build is sitting at around £5,000 give or take.

monkeycid · 27 Mar 2025 at 00:30

Gaming, pure and simple. I play for long periods of time and modded games such as Skyrim and Cyberpunk can push it to its limits. I spent £4,000 on my current PC which has a 2080 Ti but it's showing its age now and I'm ready for an upgrade.

monkeycid · 27 Mar 2025 at 00:41

i9-9900K
ROG CROSSHAIR VII HERO
Hydro X Series XD3
32GB RAM
Corsair RM1000
2x500GB SSD

monkeycid · 27 Mar 2025 at 01:19

I've not had a Radeon GPU since my very first PC over 25 years ago. Everyone seems to be raving about Nvidia's DLSS technology these days which is why I chose the 5090. I could save £1,000 going with an RX 7900 XTX, however.

monkeycid · 30 Mar 2025 at 19:55

I appreciate all the advice but my OCD has got the better of me these past few days and I've been going back and forth between cases, CPU coolers and everything in-between.

Once I know what I really want, I'll be back. I think looking at the builds on ************ doesn't help and makes things more complicated after you see all the pretty PC setups.

monkeycid · 2 Apr 2025 at 13:27

I'm back again.

I do apologize for wasting anyone's time. It's so hard to build a PC these days with all the different combinations and aesthetic choices. I don't typically like to upgrade parts and opt instead to build a PC that can withstand 6+ years of gaming before replacing so that in itself makes choosing parts even harder.

Here's my new build idea:

My basket at OcUK:

1 x Lian Li O11 Vision Compact Black (SKU: CAS-LIA-02812) = £109.99
1 x AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Eight Core 5.20GHz (Socket AM5) Processor - Retail (SKU: PRO-AMD-03517) = £449.99
1 x Sapphire Radeon RX 7900 XTX Nitro+ Vapor-X 24GB GDDR6 PCI-Express Graphics Card (SKU: GX-3A4-SP) = £899.99
1 x AMD Radeon - Monster Hunter Wilds Game Bundle (SKU: DIG-AMD-04649) = £0.00
1 x G.Skill Trident Z5 Neo EXPO RGB 64GB (2x32GB) DDR5 PC5-48000C30 6000MHz Dual Channel Kit (SKU: MEM-GSK-01357) = £229.99
1 x Lian Li Edge Gold 1000W Black (with USB HUB) Power Supply (SKU: POW-LIA-03762) = £129.95
1 x UK Mains Plug with 13A Fuse to IEC C13 Socket Lead, 10A, 2m (SKU: ACC-OCS-01709) = £0.00

Total: £1,831.90 (includes delivery: £11.98)

I'm undecided on cooler, storage and motherboard but those other parts seem pretty much set in stone.

Storage: I was thinking about either Samsung 990 Pro or WD Black SN850X. Both seem very popular with good ratings. Normally I would opt for one smaller SSD for Windows and a second SSD for games but that's when we only had 500GB has an option. Now with these bigger drives, it seems one big SSD (2TB+) is enough for everything?

Motherboard: I have no idea. Asrock X870E Taichi or Asus ROG Strix X870E-E GAMING, maybe?

CPU Cooler: At first I wanted to use a dual-tower air cooler but I think an AIO would suit this particular case more. I'd like one which has matching fans I can buy separately so everything matches inside the case because I'm OCD.

monkeycid · 2 Apr 2025 at 15:22

Thanks for the feedback, Gray and Tetras. I'll switch out the GPU for a 9070XT. I chose Lian Li PSU simply based on the idea that it would fit the case seamlessly but reading about those reviews is troubling. I had problems with my current PC when I first bought it. Multiple fans, SSD and GPU had to be replaced within the first year of purchase. Luckily they were covered by warranty and no labour charge but it's a pain when you have to take the PC to the retailer and sit around for 2-4 weeks waiting for it to be fixed.

I'll look around some more and update my build.