Spec for gaming desktop PC on a budget

Nicko McB

Nicko McB

Nicko McB

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Joined
20 Mar 2020
Posts
5
Hi,

Now we're on lockdown and my kids have been sent home from school I need a computer for my son to do his homework on. But he is also desperate to get a gaming PC.

Is it possible to get a gaming PC setup worth having for under £500? It has to include a monitor (either new or refurbished)? And what are the essentials/minimum spec for CPU, memory, graphics?

From browsing these forums I'm starting to think it's impossible to get anything that can handle 'proper gaming' within my budget.

I know nothing about computers and I don't play computer games. The amount of possible options is overwhelming.

Any advice gratefully received.

Basically I'm torn between spending a small amount of money and just getting a PC that does internet and MS Word to get us through this virus crisis, or spending a lot and getting a gaming PC that my son will use for years. But I don't want to end up with the worst of both worlds and spend hundreds on something that's as useful as a cough on a tube train.

Thanks,

Nicko
 
Welcome Nicko.

You can get a basic browsing/Word PC for under £500. But if he wants a gaming PC as well you'd spend more in the long run when you find out the basic PC isn't very upgradable. Best option imo is to be a little flexible past £500* and get a PC you can upgrade for better performance, on his birthdays etc.

* Especially if monitor is required. No chance at all of connecting to a TV for now? Does he need keyboard, mouse, headset too? How about wifi, or will the PC be close to the router for wired?

Given the current situation it's a great time to take your time and build a PC at home. Lots of video resources out there showing how to do it. Fun thing if your son can take part. And save £100 there.

If you can provide feedback on the above it will help with suggestions/specs.
 
Many thanks for replying. It's as I suspected then... Likely to cost in excess of 500 to even get started. Good idea about trying to build one.
Unfortunately I don't have a screen we can use... our TV is one we bought second hand 6 years ago and according to my son it is terrible and has too many pixels which makes forza horizon almost unplayable on his xbox. Looks great to me... But I am comparing it to when I last played computer games in about 1993
Thanks again for your advice.
 
And yes he needs pretty much the whole lot keyboard, headphones etc.
It will be WiFi although there is a phone point in his bedroom I think which if I get another router could allow connection via ethernet cable.
 
My basket at Overclockers UK:
Total: £215.68 (includes shipping: £11.70)
​


Power Supply: Corsair CX 450W Bronze (from an indian food) £46

Memory: Crucial Ballistix 2x8GB DDR4-3200MHz BL2K8G32C16U4B (from manufacturer) £73

SSD: Crucial BX500 480GB CT480BX500SSD1 (from manufacturer) £55

CPU: Ryzen 5 2600X £114

Monitor: LG 22MK430H £82 https://www.lg.com/uk/monitors/lg-22MK430H

Keyboard & Mouse: G-LAB Combo KRYPTON £17 https://the-g-lab.tech/en/produit/combo-krypton-2/

WiFi: Gigabyte GC-WB1733D-I PCIe expansion card £24 https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/GC-WB1733D-I-rev-10#ov

Headset: Onikuma K8 £17

TOTAL: about £645


Unless otherwise stated, you'll find the items from a certain rainforest.

Case is cheap yet has plenty airflow potential to cope with future hotter components, just slap in more fans. No tempered glass but the smoked acrylic looks decent so any lighting added in future should look nice, and takes up to 160mm tall CPU coolers of which there are a good selection.

Motherboard can take more powerful 8 or 12 core CPUs. AMD will release new Ryzen 4000 series that will be compatible with it. It should come with a Sata data cable in the box for the SSD. The rest of the cables will be included with the case and PSU. So all you need is a screwdriver (Phillips #2).

RX 570 GPU and the 1080p IPS 75Hz Freesync monitor make a good pairing. The Freesync feature will make things smooth despite not being a really high refresh rate. Monitor is supposed to come with HDMI cable in the box.

Power supply is decent for the price with 5 year warranty and typically great Corsair support. It'll handle faster GPUs including most mid-range ones these days.

SSD is the storage drive (Solid State Drive). You start with one because having the operating system on a mechanical drive feels stone-age now. And you handle the 480GB of storage wisely (uninstalling games to install new ones if space needed) till you can add another drive (SSD or mechanical).

The WiFi is very decent for that price. Intel card, nice speed and features.

The headset might just have the best sounding mic for such a cheap pair. Sounds better in youtube mic tests than more expensive Corsair H35 or HyperX Cloud Stinger, to my ears. Plus a braided cable to provide a bit of reassurance that it won't be the first point of failure as usually happens with cheap headsets. There's a black/red version (£17) and a Camouflage version (£20).

Think the only thing missing is a mouse mat... could throw one in if you want. As well as Windows 10 but we can deal with that at the end.

How does that budget look for everything?
 
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Wow. Thanks for taking the time to put all that together. Much appreciated. Unfortunately it is outside the budget for now. I think I will have to go for a basic word processor for now and save up until I can get something powerful enough to handle games.
Thanks again
 
You're welcome. Then you can keep everything and just take out the Ryzen 2600X and RX 570, and replace with a Ryzen 3200G or 3400G:

My basket at Overclockers UK:
Total: £238.68 (includes shipping: £8.70)
​

These have integrated graphics in them unlike the others, so you don't need a GPU.

You're looking at just £522 if you go with 3200G, and it's still an upgradable PC for gaming.
 
My basket at Overclockers UK:
Total: £501.80 (includes shipping: £0.00)​
​

If you want to get everything from one outlet this spec is highly upgradeable, you could switch out the CPU to a 2600 or better and a graphics card down the line so you can game on it. It'd function fine in the meantime for office and general tasks.

The monitor and peripherals suggested by @Danny75 are better, but you would need to shop around for components.

If you do go for the Asrock Pro 4 motherboard I'd contact OCUK prior and ask if it's been updated to work with Ryzen 3000 CPU's.
 
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Many thanks guys - all food for thought. I'm having to review the money situation at the moment, for obvious reasons.

How many people do you have to assist on here before you can stop being Fredo? LOL
 
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