Considering that the GAMMAXX AG500 is about $40 as of right now: https://www.amazon.com/DeepCool-GAMMAXX-Cooler-1850RPM-29-4dB/dp/B0BS6QJTZ9
What is your opinion of how it would compare against Thermlaright's ~$40 coolers?
Phantom Spirit 120 SE, $41: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BNH1W546?tag=pcpapi-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1
Peerless Assassin 120 SE, $36: https://www.amazon.com/Thermalright-Peerless-Assassin-Aluminium-Technology/dp/B09SD44SL1/
Frost Spirit 140, $39: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0982VZGMY?tag=pcpapi-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1
Monitor has built-in speakers.
You got a laundry list of requests, so we'll give you some tips that we give our clients.
It's basically best to build your own, but these rules work just as well for someone who is looking to buy a pre-built.
Regardless of the intent, there are some rules we lay out for our clients entertaining the thought of building/buying their first PC.
The first rule is to set a budget, regardless of funds. Even with deep pockets, laying out your spending reduces the likelihood of making tactical errors. If you're conscious about every item purchased, you'll have vested more time and thought into what you'll be using.
Second, choose a case. What you pick is what you'll be living with for time, so you do you. We advise our clients to go with something well ventilated, with horizontal motherboard installation (far easier to work on, less continuity problems). Here's an example:
Third, time to pick a graphics card. If you're not building around this single component, you're going to make mistakes in your build. It's team Nvidia and team AMD. Without getting into a lot of details, we profess AMD. Here's their best and what's most popular:
XFX Radeon RX 7900XT Gaming Graphics Card with 20GB GDDR6, AMD RDNA 3 RX-79TMBABF9
The fourth item on the list is a processor. Intel and AMD. Regardless of choice, we advise our clients to avoid the latest/greatest to avoid the new problems that come with it. Once again, AMD is our suggested go to:
AMD Ryzen™ 7 5800X3D 8-core, 16-Thread Desktop Processor with AMD 3D V-Cache™ Technology
AMD Ryzen 7 5800X 8-core, 16-Thread Unlocked Desktop Processor
AMD Ryzen 7 5700G 8-Core, 16-Thread Unlocked Desktop Processor with Radeon Graphics
AMD Ryzen™ 5 5500 6-Core, 12-Thread Unlocked Desktop Processor with Wraith Stealth Cooler
Now fifth, find a motherboard. Although your case will dictate the form factor, we advise Micro ATX. Unless you need all of those extra slots, a full ATX is asking for trouble. Motherboards are the single most complicated part of your PC, and it's best to only get the features you'll need. For our application so far:
Sixth: RAM and storage. When it comes to RAM there's a host of reasons to currently make 32GB the minimum. And with four slots you can always add two more matching sticks later. RAM is often the least investment in a build, but that lack can cause the most issues. The same goes for NVMe SSDs. They've come down in cost but builders will go with smaller name brands without research.
As a bonus, there's a simple and inexpensive fix to increase system performance while saving unnecessary wear-and-tear on your NVMe. Simply add a cached 128GB SATA SSD and use it exclusively for the Windows Page File system. Now PF has its individual pipeline to use without compromising the primary drive. Here are parts our clients commonly use:
PNY CS2140 2TB M.2 NVMe Gen4 x4 Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) - M280CS2140-2TB-RB
Seventh on list is power supply unit or PSU. Like RAM, more is better. But you best do research. Generally we have clients go with at least a 600W PSU, with these two being the most common:
And there you have it! Please let us know if you have any questions.
MaxProAndU Team