The Ultimate Machine
My goal was to build a high-end gaming rig at a reasonable price. All prices are in USD
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CPU+
AMD Ryzen 5 3600X 3.8 GHz 6-Core Processor
I opted for an AMD chip because they typically provide better multi-threaded performance. While Intel does offer good chips, AMD offers the same specs at a much lower price. The processor has an above-average clock speed of 3.8GHz and is even overclockable up to 4.4GHz, although I will not be overclocking it since I don't have sufficient cooling. The processor has 6 cores, which means that the computer will be much better at multitasking and running concurrent tasks . It has 32MB of L3 cache. The CPU cache is similar to RAM, except it's much smaller but also much faster. The CPU fits into the AM4 socket on the motherboard, and has DDR4 support for the RAM
Wraith Spire
AMD calls the CPU's thermal solution 'Wraith Spire', which is a premium line of coolers for AM4 socket processors. AMD boasts that their cooling solution enables high thermal performance on processors while keeping the fans quiet. Along with Wraith Spire, their lineup includes Wraith Stealth, Wraith Max, and Wraith Prism.
Buy for $238.90
Motherboard+
MSI MPG X570 GAMING EDGE WIFI
The MSI motherboard comes in an ATX form factor and has sufficient slots to fit all the other components in. It has an AM4 socket for the CPU, 4 RAM slots that support DDR4 memory, and even 3 M.2 slots. However, I will only be using 2 of the RAM slots and 1 M.2 slot. The motherboard also has onboard WiFi so I will not need a separate WiFi card.
CrossFire
The motherboard is CrossFire Capable, which means it supports multiple graphics cards and is capable of outputting higher-performance graphics. Although the motherboard supports Crossfire, my PC won't be able to take advantage of it because it only has a single GPU, and even then it's an NVIDIA graphics card. Crossfire only works with AMD GPUs.
Buy for $199.89
RAM+
G.Skill Trident Z RGB DDR4 Memory
The two 8GB RAM sticks will give a total of 16GB of DDR4 memory clocked at 3600MHz, which should be sufficient for heavy multitasking. The RAM sticks will fit into the DIMM sockets on the motherboard (the motherboard supports DDR4-3600).
XMP 2.0
The RAM comes with Intel XMP 2.0 support, which enhances the RAM. XMP stands for Extreme Memory Profile, and works by overclocking the RAM through a specific system tuning application. Although this is a cool feature, I will not be able to use it in my system because XMP only works with Intel processors, and I have an AMD.
Buy for $99.99
Storage+
Samsung 970 Evo 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME SSD
The SSD will provide 500GB of storage, which should be sufficient. I opted to get an SSD because solid state drives are much faster than hard drives. Booting the PC and opening applications will be much faster. Data transfer speeds will also be much faster compared to hard drives. The SSD will fit into one of the three M.2 slots on the motherboard.
M.2
M.2 is a new industry standard slot for SSDs. Instead of the slow 6 Gb/s SATA 3 port, the M.2 PCIE 4.0 on new motherboards are roughly capable of 16 Gb/s transferate. M.2 SSDs have the advantage of directly sticking in the slot, which eliminates the need for cables and makes cable management easier as well.
Buy for $89.99
Graphics Card+
Asus GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER 8 GB
The graphics card is responsible for rendering video and graphics. The GPU will be cooled by 2 fans. It has 8GB of GDDR6 VRAM, which will help render videos and games quickly. The card will fit into the PCI-E x16 slot on the motherboard.
NVIDIA Turing
The card utilizes NVIDIA's Turing, which is their latest architecture. The newest NVIDIA GPUs use Turing, which is an upgrade from their old Pascal architecture. There's a lot of new technology in the new architecture, including ray tracing hardware. Ray tracing is a way to render graphics by tracing the path of light
Buy for $529.99
Case+
NZHT H500 ATX Mid Tower Case
This case is made of steel and has a clean matte finish. It supports Mini-ITX, MicroATX, and ATX motherboards. It also offers other features, like an easy cable management system, a tempered glass display to show off the inside, as well as 2 fans.
Water Cooling
The manufacturer of the case advertises 'simplified water-cooling installation'. Many components get hot and need cooling. For my system, the CPU comes with a fan, the GPU comes with 2 fans, and the case comes with 2 fans to make a total of 5 fans. This should be a sufficient thermal solution for my system, especially since I'm choosing not to overclock any components. However, for systems with even more high-end components/overclocked components, just using fans isn't an adequate solution. This is what water-cooling is for. Cold water runs in a loop through the components to cool them. This works because water has the ability to move heat away from the components and into a heat exchanger faster than air. The heat exchanger is a radiator which dissipates the heat to the surrounding air.
Buy for $74.99
Power Supply+
EVGA SuperNOVA G3 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply
The power supply provides 750 watts, which should be sufficient considering that the entire setup uses 404 watts in total. I chose to get a higher wattage power supply than I need because it is recommended to only use 50-60% of a power supply's capacity. My setup will be using 53% of the PSU's capacity.
PSU Efficieny
Some PSUs are more efficient than others. This PSU has an efficieny rating of 80+ which means that it is guaranteed to use 80% of its energy while only losing 20% as heat.
Buy for $126.98
Monitor+
Alienware AW2518HF 24.5
The monitor has a standard resolution of 1920x1080 in a 16:9 aspect ratio. However, it's refresh rate is well above average at 240 hertz. The refresh rate is how quickly a monitor can display a frame of a video. 240Hz means that it can go display 240 frames per second. A high refresh rate monitor like this one will display silky-smooth videos and games. I chose to get this monitor because it doesn't make sense to get high end components if they aren't going to be used to their full potential.
AMD Freesync
The monitor comes with AMD Freesync, which communicates with the GPU to maximize efficiency. It does this by capping frames at what the monitor is capable of (in this case 240fps) so that the GPU doesn't work harder than it has to.
Buy for $299.99
Keyboard+
Cooler Master MK730 Wired Gaming Keyboard
The main reason I chose this keyboard is because it has Cherry MX Blue keys, which are very clicky and make a lot of noise. The keyboard also has RGB backlight, which is an added bonus.
Cherry key switches
Cherry is a company that manufactures keyboard switches. Their most popular key switches are called Cherry MX, and they offer various types of Cherry MX keys. This keyboard comes with Cherry MX Blue key switches, which are extremely clicky and make a lot of noise. Cherry also makes MX Reds - which are very light and easy to press, MX Browns - which are tactile but don't make a lot of noise, and MX Blacks - which are very stiff and hard to press.
Buy for $99.99
Mouse+
Logitech G502 HERO Wired Optical Mouse
The mouse is wired and has 5 programmable buttons. Its maximum DPI is 16000, which means that it can detect 16,000 dots per inch. The higher the DPI is, the more accurate a mouse is.
Polling Rate
Polling rate (or report rate) measures how frequently a mouse sends data to the computer and is measured in hertz. An average mouse's polling rate typically ranges between 100Hz - 250Hz, which means the cursor can be updated every 4-10 milliseconds. The polling rate on this mouse is 1000Hz, which lets the cursor update every millisecond. A higher polling rate ensures that the mouse doesn't skip around and is quicker to respond to movement.
Buy for $53.87
