Gaming PC Recommendation & Advice in Mar 2019 - $2,000 Budget

lawyerz on 04/03/2019 - 13:54

I've searched the forums and read heaps of forum topics, but some of them are a bit older and I'm not too sure if those recommendations and advice are still current. I've also seen the deals on the graphics cards e.g. RTX 2070s but it seems the jury are still out if they're worth it?

I'd definitely like to reach out for some help in making a decision. I've got a Dell XPS 8500 Desktop from 2012. Main specs are i7 3440, 12gb 1667 ram, gtx 960 2gb, 450w psu. The computer has been struggling with AC Odyssey at the lowest possible settings recently and I'm thinking of upgrading.

1) Should I upgrade the whole PC or just the graphics card? I've done this once already but the GTX 960 was a tight fit and I'm fairly sure it won't fit anything bigger, or that the PSU can handle it either. I'm also not 100% clear on compatibility with the 2012 mobo.

2) If I were to upgrade to a whole new system, is there a best bang of the buck build for around $2000? I do not need a monitor, keyboard, or mouse. I've got an U271D Dell, which I know isn't gaming monitors, but seems to work well enough for now. I've probably got enough experience to put it together even if they're just separate parts.

I've seen the builds from Scorptec, pccasegear etc and it seems like I can get a RTX2070 around the 2k price range? I've also heard something about the rumoured GTX 1180 which some people are saying wait for that?

Ultimately I'm looking for the best bang for the buck and some future proofing, it can be less than 2k, but preferably not more, unless a bit more $ gets you a lot more. I've only ever bought computers from the likes of Dell and the last time I've done so was in 2012, so it's quite new to me.

Thanks in advance for any help or advice you could provide!

Computing Computer Desktop Computer

Comments

  • dumbmillenial on 04/03/2019 - 15:19
    +5

    Quick question before we go down this path - can you wait and how long are you prepared to wait for? I'm in the process of building a computer but happy to wait until December to source all my parts at decent prices. My budget is pretty unrestricted at the moment but if you're ready to cash in $2,000 on a spec'd machine right now then so be it - let's do it:

    • CPU: Intel - Core i7-8700 3.2 GHz 6-Core Processor ($489.00 @ Mighty Ape)
    • CPU Cooler: be quiet! - Pure Rock Slim 35.14 CFM CPU Cooler ($39.00 @ PCCaseGear)
    • Motherboard: MSI - Z370-A PRO ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($157.00 @ Austin Computers)
    • Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($373.21 @ Newegg Australia)
    • Storage: Samsung - 860 Evo 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($118.00 @ Shopping Express)
    • Video Card: Gigabyte - GeForce RTX 2070 8 GB WINDFORCE Video Card ($787.38 @ Amazon Australia)
    • Case: Deepcool - TESSERACT SW ATX Mid Tower Case ($55.00 @ Mwave Australia)
    • Power Supply: Corsair - CXM 550 W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($93.50 @ Newegg Australia)

    Total: $2112.09

    So, you can probably save about 10%-20% on some of the above if you can wait for sales on eBay etc. You might even be able to transfer your current PSU over, any SSD/HDDs and your OS. I assume you don't need other peripherals so they weren't captured in the above.

    • jiberz on 04/03/2019 - 15:37
      +1

      Don't need 32gig of ram.
      Why get a Z series motherboard with non K cpu?
      For this build probably better to go with team red and get a ryzen cpu like ryzen 7 2700 or ryzen 5 2600 to save some dollars.

      • dumbmillenial on 04/03/2019 - 16:02

        32gb of RAM is slowly starting to become standard. It was 8. Now it is well and truly 16. 32gb is only the natural step forward. (He said futureproof)
        That's my bad, you have a good point. I would suggest swapping out the CPU to a K but it's up to the OP where he wants to save a few $.
        I asked myself that as well, probably a good idea considering R3 coming out in a few months.

        • lawyerz on 04/03/2019 - 16:19

          hey! Huge thanks for this build, even with prices and where to buy them! I'm eager to get the ball rolling within the next few months.

          I'm not familiar with AMD CPUs at all, having only used Intel all my life. team red = AMD? CPU K? R3?? haha sorry.

          32gb of memory sounds fantastic, i'm happy to keep that. I do some work with Lightroom and large-ish raw photos and i'm sure those will come in handy.

          I think I spy a secondary hard disk missing from the build for storage, or maybe its even optional as I have a 5tb external drive mm..

          lastly, what's this about everyone talking about waiting for the rumoured 11 series GTX?

          • dumbmillenial on 04/03/2019 - 16:23

            @lawyerz: No problem. I would personally wait a few months but it depends on your needs/wants.

            K versions are OC CPUs so the board I recommended initially is designed for that but without a K version CPU it is rendered useless (well not optimal, I like the board but you can definitely save a few $$ if you go for another).

            500gb SSD + your 5tb external is not a bad get up for your needs. You might want to throw in a HDD. They're pretty cheap these days.

            R3 = Ryzen 3, next gen Ryzen which is supposed to be announced/released in a few months time. This should drive R2 series prices down by a heft margin.

            11 series is an inbetween card. They were rumoured to come out late last year and then the other week the 1160 was dropped. I believe the 1160 is comparable to a 1070 numbers wise. I haven't given much thought to them as I would probably go for a 2070/2080.

            • lawyerz on 04/03/2019 - 16:29

              @dumbmillenial: thanks again!

              I've never OC a CPU before, was told pretty early on it's not exactly the best thing to do re:heat and power consumption. Does the CPU comes OC or you'd have to push it up yourself? is the K version more expensive or cheaper?

              R3 = I'm assuming its like a line of new chips, similar to Intel's i3, i5, i7 lines as opposed to a specific chip? or does it direcly compares with a specific intel line up? https://www.amd.com/en/ryzen-3 I can see this on AMD's website. I;m confused with R3 - https://www.extremetech.com/computing/253213-ryzen-rest-us-a… this was from 2017 and says its competes with the i3 line?

              what's really the difference between the GTX 10XX and the RTX 20XX lineup? Benchmark websites say the the 10XX series are superceded by the 20XX lineup, in which case wouldn't it be better to buy the 20XX series?

              Also, does intel and AMD chips uses the same sockets on the same mobo or do you have to get specific mobo?

        • jiberz on 04/03/2019 - 18:39

          Nope I am going to strongly disagree. Whilst he has stated he works on large media files so had a valid reason. For the average or even high end gamer 32gb is huge waste and unnecessary. Stacked with the ridiculously excessive prices at the moment, absolutely no bang for the buck there.

  • lawyerz on 04/03/2019 - 16:22

    are dedicated sound cards still a thing? <—- showing how long I've not been computer shopping

    • dumbmillenial on 04/03/2019 - 16:23

      They are. High end boards have them inbuilt these days.

      • lawyerz on 04/03/2019 - 16:30

        ah. cools. its basically integrated then.

  • lawyerz on 05/03/2019 - 11:07

    can I ask, whats the difference between different versions of the same graphics card e.g. Gigabyte vs Asus vs MSI etc?

    • Sunshines bright on 05/03/2019 - 20:41

      This seems to be a good place to compare graphics card versions.

      https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-RTX-2060-6GB-vs…

      • lawyerz on 05/03/2019 - 20:47

        Nah I meant between asus rtx 2070 vs gigabyte rtx 2070 etc. Same card. Different brands, look, and price points. Seems like same specs.

        • Sunshines bright on 05/03/2019 - 20:59

          I could be wrong but I believe the rtx 2070 is manufactured by Nvidia. Asis and gigabyte are motherboards not graphics. So the 2070 is the same in both.

          And according to the web site I sent the 2070 alone is valued about $741.00

          • AL008 on 06/03/2019 - 08:42

            @Sunshines bright: Nvidia make the GPU chip that goes into the graphics cards.

            Nvidia also make a founders edition graphics card they release themselves for the RTX2070.

            Nvidia sells their GPU chip to all different manufacturers, MSI, ASUS, Gigabyte.

            Those manufacturers then put them into their own custom PCB boards and create their own graphics cards.

            Only differences lie in the following:
            - Cooling (ie. how many fans are on board, how big is the heatsinks)
            - Overclock (there are different models for each manufacturer, refer to MHz ratings)
            - Aesthetics (RGB, size, colour)

            From all the reviews I’ve seen, the best cooling solutions come from Asus Strix, MSI gaming Z cards, but also come at a premium to the other brands.

  • clouder on 07/03/2019 - 03:35

    The build dumbmillenial suggested is perfect for your budget and will last long enough. Though I'm curious why he went with 32GB ram, you cant really feel the difference between 16 and 32gigg.

    • lawyerz on 07/03/2019 - 11:00

      thaanks! i'm already looking at sourcing the parts!

  • lawyerz on 07/03/2019 - 17:00

    i7 8700 or i5 9600k?

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