It's been just over 5 years since I built my current small form factor (HTPC) computer in 2014. In light of the random black out (suspect power supply issue) and the end of support for Windows 7, I am researching components for another desktop computer build. This time I want to have a proper decent GPU instead of relying on the integrated graphics processor in an APU, and I want to have the option of doing water cooling. I also want to have USB-C port for possible interfacing with VR head sets such as the Oculus Quest. Given these thoughts, I am settling towards these components:
Case - Fractal Design Define S2 Vision RGB - $238.99
CPU - AMD Ryzen 2600 - $119.00
MB - Gigabyte X470 AORUS Gaming 7 WiFi - $239.99
GPU - Sapphire Radeon RX 5700 XT - $399.99
MEM - G.Skill TridentZ RGB 2x16 GB 3200 C16 - $159.99
PSU - Seasonic Prime Ultra 850 Titanium 850W ATX - $219.99
SSD - Adata XPG SX8200 Pro 1TB - $149.99
Total cost estimate: 1527.94 + tax $122.24 = $1650.17
Case:
Fractal Design Define S2 Vision RGB - $238.99
The Fractal Design R4/5/6 and S2 series of cases seem to be quite popular, and there are many examples and youtube videos of water cooling applications in these mid-tower cases. The S2 series are designed for low noise, and people have reported good results with using additional sound damping materials on the inside. The Vision RGB version seems to have improved front fan mounting design for a cleaner look, and I am drawn to the addressable RGB LED setup; never had a setup like that before; I want to give it a try.
A cheaper alternative is the Define S2 White for $139.99.
CPU:
AMD Ryzen 2600 - $119.00
I still prefer the AMD CPUs for their better cost/performance value. Especially after they released the Ryzen series of CPUs, people say AMD redeemed themselves and are back into the mainstream to compete with Intel chips. AMD just recently released their 3rd generation Ryzen CPUs the 3000 series using 7nm technology. After much research I am going for the Ryzen 2600 because it is relatively cheap and it should be overclockable with good cooling setup. The 2700 or 2700x has 2 more compute cores but for most tasks that don't use multiple threads, it won't make a difference. The 2600X comes with a better stock cooler and has higher pre-programmed clock speed, but otherwise should be the same chip as the 2600.
I plan to use the stock CPU cooler to start. If there is a problem with temperature, then I would buy a better cooler, or wait until I get water cooling in the future.
Motherboard:
Gigabyte X470 AORUS Gaming 7 WiFi - $239.99
Selecting the motherboard starts with selecting the CPU chipset. Looking at the feature lists, I was deciding between the B450 and the X470. Then looking at motherboard features, it looks like I am preferring the higher-end version. This particular board has the 10+2 phase digital voltage regulators for CPU power supply, which is better than the other boards with 4+4+3 phases. This board has a few more PWM fan/water pump headers and temperature sensor inputs than the other boards. This board has higher-end audio chips, and built-in WiFi. It also have USB-C header to connect to the port on the front panel of the case. The B450 boards do not have USB-C header on the board; only on the back panel.
A cheaper alternative is the X470 AORUS Ultra Gaming for $139.99 without WiFi, the better voltage regulation, the better audio chips, additional cooling headers, and less RGB lighting.
GPU:
Sapphire Radeon RX 5700 XT - $399.99
The RX 5700 and 5700 XT are the newest GPUs from AMD using 7nm technology. The die size is smaller than the previous Vega 56 and Vega 64 chips, and they have fewer compute units, but reading the actual performance reviews it seems they perform about the same or better, and consumes less power. The cost is also not much more, so I would go for the newer version. It is hard to decide between the 5700 and 5700 XT, because the 5700 XT is $50 more but does give a significant performance benefit, and it has a nicer looking package with lighted logo. I am going for the reference design with the single blower fan boards so it would be compatible with water cooling blocks in the future.
Memory:
G.Skill TridentZ RGB 2x16 GB 3200 C16 - $159.99
Going for the RGB setup, just picking a popular memory stick at a mid-high performance range with good cost/performance ratio. There are higher speed memory specs but they are much more expensive. The 3200 or 3600 clock rates with C15 or C16 are fairly common and seems achievable.
Power Supply:
Seasonic Prime Ultra 850 Titanium 850W ATX - $219.99
Getting enough power supply capacity is very important; not something to skimp on. I wanted to get at least 750W because the system right now will likely need 400W. Typically the power supply is the most efficient in the 50% load range. Getting the highest efficiency ration of Titanium means there will be less heat generated. Titanium rating requires 94% efficiency at 50% load, so at 400W, about 24W of heat is generated. If I go with Gold rating, at 90% efficiency, 40W of heat is generated. The Seasonic seems to be popular and highly rated. The higher end units have a 12 year warranty and the fan area looks better build quality.
A cheaper alternative is the Seasonic Focus Plus 850 Platinum $149.99.
Storage:
Adata XPG SX8200 Pro 1TB - $149.99
Long term data storage has evolved since I last looked at building a computer, when I used SSDs with SATA cable. Nowadays the SSDs are so fast that even SATA cannot keep up, so many motherboards have M.2 PCIe ports to install these drives. The PCIe lanes are connected to the CPU directly which should make boot times and file loading very fast. Interestingly, only one slot has the PCIe 3.0 x4 lanes to the CPU, and the other M.2 port has a slower PCIe 2.0 x4 to the chipset, and then goes through the shared PCIe lanes to the CPU, sharing bandwidth with other USB and PCIe peripherals.
The Adata device has excellent cost/performance ratio and has high data transfer rates according to some review articles. The other candidates are the Samsung 970 Evo, Evo Plus, and Evo Pro drives from $169.99 to $299.
If 1 TB is somehow not enough, I would add another SSD via SATA cable in the future.
Case - Fractal Design Define S2 Vision RGB - $238.99
CPU - AMD Ryzen 2600 - $119.00
MB - Gigabyte X470 AORUS Gaming 7 WiFi - $239.99
GPU - Sapphire Radeon RX 5700 XT - $399.99
MEM - G.Skill TridentZ RGB 2x16 GB 3200 C16 - $159.99
PSU - Seasonic Prime Ultra 850 Titanium 850W ATX - $219.99
SSD - Adata XPG SX8200 Pro 1TB - $149.99
Total cost estimate: 1527.94 + tax $122.24 = $1650.17
Case:
Fractal Design Define S2 Vision RGB - $238.99
A cheaper alternative is the Define S2 White for $139.99.
CPU:
AMD Ryzen 2600 - $119.00
I still prefer the AMD CPUs for their better cost/performance value. Especially after they released the Ryzen series of CPUs, people say AMD redeemed themselves and are back into the mainstream to compete with Intel chips. AMD just recently released their 3rd generation Ryzen CPUs the 3000 series using 7nm technology. After much research I am going for the Ryzen 2600 because it is relatively cheap and it should be overclockable with good cooling setup. The 2700 or 2700x has 2 more compute cores but for most tasks that don't use multiple threads, it won't make a difference. The 2600X comes with a better stock cooler and has higher pre-programmed clock speed, but otherwise should be the same chip as the 2600.
I plan to use the stock CPU cooler to start. If there is a problem with temperature, then I would buy a better cooler, or wait until I get water cooling in the future.
Motherboard:
Gigabyte X470 AORUS Gaming 7 WiFi - $239.99
A cheaper alternative is the X470 AORUS Ultra Gaming for $139.99 without WiFi, the better voltage regulation, the better audio chips, additional cooling headers, and less RGB lighting.
GPU:
Sapphire Radeon RX 5700 XT - $399.99
Memory:
G.Skill TridentZ RGB 2x16 GB 3200 C16 - $159.99
Power Supply:
Seasonic Prime Ultra 850 Titanium 850W ATX - $219.99
A cheaper alternative is the Seasonic Focus Plus 850 Platinum $149.99.
Storage:
Adata XPG SX8200 Pro 1TB - $149.99
The Adata device has excellent cost/performance ratio and has high data transfer rates according to some review articles. The other candidates are the Samsung 970 Evo, Evo Plus, and Evo Pro drives from $169.99 to $299.
If 1 TB is somehow not enough, I would add another SSD via SATA cable in the future.
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