A dad needs help: My son's first build

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Virtual_Abies_6552@reddit

I built this exact same rig for my 16 year old and then 4 of his friends! They love them! First one was a challenge but I did the last one in under an hour lol!

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Nice, that's awesome! I feel good with the hardware after this post but I'm sure in a month or so I will have a similar questions on the software side. I'm just learning about bios and how to set these things up, I fear I'm building an expensive brick.

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Virtual_Abies_6552@reddit

Nahh, you’ll be good! Just be careful putting the processor in, the rest is just time consuming.

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Proud-Act2811@reddit

Pretty nice build, but firstly, you don’t need to spend 100 dollars on windows, there are sits you can buy it for like 15 dollars. Secondly, get a 6750 or 6650 if you’re trying for 1080p. Get the ram to cl30, and lastly, if you want to save money, get a 5600x cpu and MSi pro b550m wifi, also ddr4 ram. It’s am4, meaning there’s not really much of an upgrade path for it, b it if you’re content with staying at 1080p for a while then I recommend it

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Chicago_Fireballs@reddit

How legit are the sites with cheap Windows keys though? I've seen them on G2A but they're known for being shady and I'd hate for the key to get revoked or something if that's even possible.

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deleted_by_reddit@reddit

[removed]

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Proud-Act2811@reddit

There’s one ztt recommends for 15 dollars that’s trustworthy, also plenty of others. I’m not the most knowledgeable on it so I’d ask others, but you should be fine as long as you don’t try to download ram online

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Natural_March_2845@reddit

He made a good list, just change out the ram to cl30 instead of cl36, and the gpu to a 6750xt and he’s good to go

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ChickenVest@reddit (OP)

Thanks! He has spent countless hours reviewing this. He will love the feedback

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Keilanm@reddit

You have a really gifted child if he's making pc build lists at 9 years old.

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ohthedarside@reddit

Please also spend more on the psu get a atx 3 one

This eill alow you to use the 40 seris connector if you ever seitch to say a 50 series whe there released

Also if its alot cheaper switch to a normal 7600 and just enable pbo in bios

Dont forget to enable expo in bios aswell dotn want your ram running below speed

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ChickenVest@reddit (OP)

I can't even describe how far over my head this was but I'm sure my son will know what you are talking about. We will do some research this weekend. Thanks!

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ohthedarside@reddit

I got my first pc at 10 qnd build my new one at 14

Its like really expensive lego everything just clips in or a few screws

If it doesnt turn on make sure the power suply is flicked on

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Cynyr36@reddit

Ddr5 training takes forever the first time (minutes). If the fans spun up just keep waiting.

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PM_ME_GRAPHICS_CARDS@reddit

same, first build at 14. not sure if i could have handled it at 10, i don’t remember how apt i was

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HankThrill69420@reddit

That is going to be necessary especially since he will be using a system with good future upgradability. There are two kinds of ATX 3.0, you need to make sure that it includes a 12VHPWR cable and has the dedicated port for it rather than adapters that are basically equivalent to the 12VHPWR adapters that come with the cards. Just google 12VHPWR Melting and you'll see the other reason why this suggestion is being made.

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Grey_Wolf1@reddit

How do you check that your PSU is ATX 3.0? I have an Asus Strix 1000G.

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HankThrill69420@reddit

It's a certification that should be on the box, but you'll want to do a bit of extra research to be extra sure, because you might get an adapter like I described above.

There are some variants to your PSU. This one has a dedicated 12VHPWR cable. This variant doesn't. You can also just look at the PSU, if you have this plug on your PSU then you're set.

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Grey_Wolf1@reddit

Thanks! Looks the the 12VHPWR version doesn't have a dedicated plug on the psu sadly. But I don't need to worry about that right now anyway.

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HankThrill69420@reddit

lol, I was wrong but that sorta actually proves my point. The marketing language for this is incredibly decpetive, almost like manufacturers are trying to sell off old units bundled with adapter cables. if you need one, there's a PSU that I 100% know has the correct cable and it's the MSI MPG A850G/A1000G. I'll be honest that I'm a bit apprehensive about using an MSI PSU but so far, so good.

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Grey_Wolf1@reddit

No worries! I don't have a 40 series card at the moment so I'm in no rush to get an ATX 3.0 psu. Asus sells an RGB version of their 1000 watt psu that does have a dedicated 12VHPWR port on it, so I'll keep an eye on that if I ever plan to upgrade.

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Sky7677@reddit

Please dont get anything on that list besides maybe the CPU cooler

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duchuy613@reddit

I wouldn’t change the 3060 to a 6750 XT. As someone who used both Nvidia and AMD, Nvidia GPU are way more new user friendly. They don’t have much issue. The 6750XT have better performance but it got a few driver issues that requires a bit more experienced PC user to troubleshoot.

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LukeLikesReddit@reddit

I mean if that's what you think then okay but AMD Adrenaline is far easier to use that Nvidia Geforce lol. I own both as well and find AMD so much easier on that front and don't experience the issues you mention. However if I want to play a game with ray tracing or it requires DLSS to get a good FPS I'll use my nvidia rig.

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duchuy613@reddit

Adrenalin looks nicer, but that’s about it. The overclock options is nice, but they reset so often every time you shut down your PC wrong, you’re better off with Afterburner tbh.

As for driver, AMD’s most stable driver so far is still 24.5.1, which is like 4 months ago. If you updated to 24.6.1, which was the worst of the recent drivers, you’d have to DDU and do a clean install. And for some reason DDU remove your chipset drivers too so you’d have to install that again. Not the type of troubleshooting I’d expect from a 10 years old. Same thing happened to 24.8.1. And the recent 24.7.1 and 24.8.1 both got issues with frame drop in CoD it’s not even a secret.

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Antenoralol@reddit

AMD’s most stable driver so far is still 24.5.1, which is like 4 months ago. If you updated to 24.6.1, which was the worst of the recent drivers, you’d have to D

idk chief, 3 rigs with AMD GPU's all running 24.8.1 and gaming fine here.

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duchuy613@reddit

24.8.1 as it currently is is fine. But when it was first released they had to pull the driver offline after a few hours because it crashed Wukong and only released it again after \~10 days. If you hadnt noticed, 24.8.1 was only made available to download at the end of August. For people who like tinkering with their GPUs like I am, I downloaded it immediately when it was first released on the 15th and had to DDU it to play Wukong.

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LukeLikesReddit@reddit

whatever man no point trying to have a rational conversation when nvidia fan boys are just going to downvote me so cool

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NoStructure5034@reddit

I'd also look into dropping that SSD to a slower one. The gaming performance won't be affected, but you'll save a decent chunk of cash. 990s are expensive and don't improve FPS.

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MetaSemaphore@reddit

Yeah, you could likely get a 2Tb of a cheaper drive for not much more and never notice the loss of speed (but with games getting bigger and bigger, you'll be happy to have the extra space).

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sadisticmercury@reddit

definitely, the Crucial P3 is a pretty affordable alternative

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CravaCrav@reddit

Awesome. I started my sons build for Christmas a few years ago when he was 8. I got some items knowing we would replace. But I wanted him to go through experience of knowing what each component does and how upgrading impacts the build. Started with future proof case and good motherboard. He's 11 now and rocking a 4070 super playing games at 1440p. He loves chatting with his friends while gaming, "I'm on pc" lol.

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ChickenVest@reddit (OP)

Nice! We walk the dog together and I will get a 30 minute lecture on the Intel CPU issues, how he doesn't want to "bottleneck" anything and how he plans to "future proof" it. It's been a great project for him, it's a little humbling to have my 9 year old know so much more than me about it though! If he's into it, I'm into it.

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Mrcod1997@reddit

Tell him not to worry about bottleneck calculators. It's not that bottlenecks don't exist, but they are fluid, depending on the application, and how it is stressing the system. He choose a good set of components really.

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colonelwaffle77@reddit

You should already get 32gb of ram, it's only $10 more.

Make sure the sticks don't have any tall heatspreders, otherwise it's gonna collide with the front fan of the dual tower CPU cooler. You can move the fan a bit higher but it might look a bit goofy.

https://pcpartpicker.com/product/PxTZxr/klevv-bolt-v-32-gb-2-x-16-gb-ddr5-6000-cl30-memory-kd5agua80-60a300h

https://pcpartpicker.com/product/H9CZxr/teamgroup-t-create-expert-32-gb-2-x-16-gb-ddr5-6000-cl30-memory-ctced532g6000hc30dc01

https://pcpartpicker.com/product/LBstt6/gskill-flare-x5-32-gb-2-x-16-gb-ddr5-6000-cl30-memory-f5-6000j3038f16gx2-fx5

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ChickenVest@reddit (OP)

Thanks! We were thinking of starting at 16 and then he could upgrade later but at such a small cost difference that does seem like a no brainer

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colonelwaffle77@reddit

Unfortunately adding more ram would be very problematic because DDR5 really doesn't like to work using 4 sicks. Luckily having to spend only $10 more for 32GB kit really is a no brainer like you said.

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toomanyattempts@reddit

Loosely off-topic but what's the story on "DDR5 really doesn't like to work using 4 sticks"? I'm looking at upgrading soon after being out of the loop for a while and have seen a couple of comments alluding to that and it seems new+odd compared to DDR3 just chuck it together and it's happy at the lowest common denominator clocks/timings

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Mrcod1997@reddit

You often cannot get them to run as fast. You are almost always better off with 2 sticks.

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colonelwaffle77@reddit

You can just google "DDR5 4 sticks on Ryzen".

That's just how it is, you will have a very hard time getting 4 sticks to work at 6000, but some expensive boards sometimes can do it. The higher the capacity the worse it gets. Some people using 4x32GB have to lower speed to 3600 to be stable.

Official supported speeds for 2 sticks is 5200 and for 4 sticks it's 3600.

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toomanyattempts@reddit

It's looking like I'll be going mITX which limits me to 2 slots anyway, was just curious - does seem we've managed to move backwards a touch lol

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ExquisiteCactus@reddit

DDR5 is really fast so timing problems are really easy to run into. Even if you add 4 factory binned sticks of DDR5, small changes in mobo layout or really small timing differences can be enough to mess with it and cause instability. This isn't a DDR5 exclusive problem though since high clock DDR4 will also run into the same issue if you try to enable XMP on 4 sticks. I ran into that when I tried to upgrade from 2x4=>4x4 kit and XMP wouldn't work so I needed to get a new 2x8 kit. I just upgraded from that same 2x8 to a 4x8 kit though so it's not guaranteed to be a problem (this is all DDR4 tho. I have no experience personally with DDR5).

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ChickenVest@reddit (OP)

Thanks. Now that you say that I think I recall him telling me the same thing. I'm sure when I show him this I will get a "I told you dad" moment.

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o0baloo@reddit

I have nothing to add besides this post made me really happy. Fucking GO DAD! <3

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Imahich69@reddit

If you built a pc before much hasn't changed other than it's easier

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cheeseypoofs85@reddit

i would look for second hand 5800x3d and 3060ti

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NightGojiProductions@reddit

Very good list, but a few changes can be made :)

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/H9Ctwg

1. Just the 7600X but it runs cooler with a minimal performance decrease. A simple OC could easily make up the difference
2x16GB 6000 CL30 memory for $10 more
MP44L 2TB for $10 more. Samsung drives are rather overpriced and won’t be used near enough in the average game to justify the cost
RX-6800, which rivals the 3080 in performance
Cheaper and still good quality PSU

Your kid is amazing dude, I was making worse build lists when I was 13. He’s got a bright future in computers should he continue pursuit. You should be very proud

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MetalsXBT@reddit

Just wanted to say you seem like an awesome dad. I wish mine was supportive of my hobbies.

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deleted_by_reddit@reddit

[removed]

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buildapc-ModTeam@reddit

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No piracy or so-called "grey-market" software keys. This is includes suggesting, hinting, or in any way implying to someone that piracy or the use of these licenses is an option. If a key is abnormally cheap (think $10-30), it is probably one of these, and is forbidden on /r/buildapc.

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justa-Possibility@reddit

Why pay $110 for a Windows key. Make a bootable windows install disk on a USB drive and go to jayztwocents on YouTube and buy a key for $15. He has a website to go to and a huge discount on Windows keys.

Also, maybe consider 2x16 Ram instead of 2x8. Plus, an RX6750XT GPU would be better. I got an AMD Radeon Asrock RX6750XT Challenger Pro 12Gig and love it. There is still plenty of room for later upgrading when needed.

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Sky7677@reddit

terrible idea

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justa-Possibility@reddit

What's rule 3.

Anyone can make a bootable Windows installation file from Microsoft own website. Anyone can install Windows from Microsoft website and make a USB installation media.

I referred him to a YouTube site, a legit one. They have discounted keys that are very inexpensive. And are fully licensed legitimate keys. And only $15

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jts5039@reddit

Reported for rule 3

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Biggman23@reddit

This is actually a decent list. The only thing I'd change is the GPU. People already recommended a good one. I think, at the moment, the 4070super has the best performance -to-cost ratio while still getting Nvidia AI generation stuff. NVIDIA's AI frame generation is a lot better than AMDs. The issue is the price point

So check out the gpu's people are recommending. I definitely wouldn't get a 3060. That's the lower end GPU from a generation and a half ago.

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Sky7677@reddit

Hey, im going to preface this with saying i dont mean any offense if it comes across. Theres a few pretty huge issues,
16gb DDR5 is pretty buns
SSD is overpriced as hell
GPU is pretty bad (id get a 6750xt or 6800)
A850GL or C750

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Eugr@reddit

Well, strictly speaking, 4060 has the best performance for dollar at $300. 4070S is $600, but it doesn’t double the performance. Having said that, 4070S is a much better card, but 4060 is ok for 1080p.

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Biggman23@reddit

From performance reviews I've seen, with DLSS 3 turned on, there is a big performance jump with the 4070 super. With it turned off the performance was not as significant.

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whomad1215@reddit

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/dVXJjH

your 9 year old made a better list than 90% of the ones I see

gpu change as others have already said, 6700xt/6750xt is just a better gpu at that price point

ram, change it to 2x16gb 6000mhz cl30 or similar. It's a small (~$10-15) price increase and you'll get a performance increase + not need to replace the ram in the future

ssd: 990pro is a great ssd, but you don't need an absolutely top end ssd for a gaming pc. $100 is nearing 2tb territory for a good ssd like an sn770

cheaper psu that's same quality, saves $10

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ChickenVest@reddit (OP)

Thanks! I appreciate the feedback and I can't tell you how happy he will be to read that you like his list!

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Sky7677@reddit

Get this instead of the top comment, its far far better

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whomad1215@reddit

some sites that have easy to look at info if you want to see why people are recommending what they are

gpu performance: http://tomshardware.com/reviews/gpu-hierarchy,4388.html

for the ssd, there's a ton of them out there. /r/NewMaxx has far too much info, here is their spreadsheet. https://ssd.borecraft.com/SSD_Buying_Guide.png

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Lnknprkfn@reddit

My opinion might clash with others, but maybe go with the AM4/DDR4 platform, get your windows key from Groupon or somewhere for around $20 and use the stock cooler for now to use the money saved to double the storage capacity and maybe a slight bump on graphics. So that way, assuming you have fun assembling it together, you can start saving to have a bigger budget for the next system build. As I personally can't see myself upgrading components here and there, leaving the old spare part to just collect dust..

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rory888@reddit

If you can afford it, grab a 4070 or 4070s. It’s obviously a higher price class, but substantially better card.

The gpu recommendations you were given will technically work, but if you can afford it, just get the higher tier and be better off. The performance to price both in minimum and relative terms is significantly better, especially when you consider the fact you’re doing a total system cost.

Others have already covered current ram and storage issues, so no need to retread there.

However, if you can get a 4070, its especially if you look around for used / open box sales, you absolutely should.

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deleted_by_reddit@reddit

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Eugr@reddit

I’ve just done a similar build for my kid. I went with RTX 4060 as it has DLSS3. It’s not a very fast card, but it’s a good entry level card and it is the newest gen from NVidia. Nothing wrong with AMD option too, but they don’t have anything like DLSS3 that doubles the performance for a very little visual difference. FSR is not there yet.

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Prrg88@reddit

Looking good! Indeed, a ram kit with cl30 would be nicer. But in general a nice build! What about the windows licence? In europe you can buy OEM licenses online for about 10euro. Don't you have something like that when shopping in a webshop where you live?

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KingDavid73@reddit

I built a very similar PC last year. I'd go with 32gb ram instead of 16. It shouldn't cost much more. I went with a 3070, but that GPU should be fine, for sure.

I bought some items on sale or used/refurbished and ended up spending around $800 total.

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0NiceMarmot@reddit

I’ve noticed the 7700x hitting $210 from Amazon briefly a couple times (direct, not shady resellers) recently. It could be possible to grab 2 more cores for not much more if you’re patient. But then again prices could just climb like the 7800x3d did while I waited for a low price.

If you live near a micro center it wouldn’t hurt to check their bundles before committing if you don’t have real specific build requirements.

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moguy1973@reddit

Personally I’d future proof it a bit with a better video card like a 7800xt for $100-150 more.

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moguy1973@reddit

Don't buy Window at retail price. There are sites you can get keys for a full version for a fraction of the cost. And then put that $119 towards a better video card https://pcpartpicker.com/list/6Z6NRK

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FaBoDe@reddit

As many already have said, he actually made a decent list for a first try. I lately build a gaming pc for a similar budget and noticed a few things.

I spend way too much time reading about cpu coolers, so I can tell that the peerless assassin is a nice cooler and last year it would have been the best option. This year it got a successor in the phantom spirit, which also has an argb version.

On a side note, rgb and argb (two distinct things) have to be supported by the motherboard. I got it on my mobo by chance, but if you want it, check for it in the specs. I chose a microatx (asrock rs pro wifi) over a full atx for budgetary reasons, since I did not need the extra slots, but I can't fill in your needs.

16gb is okay for a handdown, but 32gb is already possible for 30€ more and futureproofs it a lot. A 2tb ssd would also be my recommendation, nm710 or nm790 are much recommended where I live, whichever is cheaper since they are fast enough.

Nice case btw. Of coarse check the internet for how the airflow is, otherwise a cpu cooler can't release its heat. And I assume the rgb fans must work, so again check if the mobo supports it.

There is also a tier list for powersupplies on the ltt forum, so check that out. The psu should keep all the other parts save from electrical spikes. 750w is a good size in my opinion.

And maybe get a usbstick to make a windows installer instead of a dvd, but good that he has thought of an os.

Also think about the monitor. Pc parts are fun, but in the end he will be looking at the screen. 1080p works until 24 inch, 27 inch just needs 1440p. Lately many new models have pushed prices down. So where I live, 1080p 100hz 24inch could be 130€, and 1440p 165hz 27 inch 230€. Preferably get one with adjustable height and tilt.

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TheFondler@reddit

Lots of good suggestions here, but I want to reinforce the comments suggesting changing the SSD. Your son will get far more utility from a 2TB SSD than they would from a high performance SSD. You can get a 2TB P3 Plus for a few bucks more for double the storage and a performance difference you would only see in a storage benchmark, not with your own perception.

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Brilliant_Common5967@reddit

Your son made a great list! As other people said get a 6750, also that ssd is way too much for what he needs, look at a lexar nm790 or sn770

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DiggingNoMore@reddit

that ssd is way too much for what he needs

In terms of speed, sure. But its capacity is only 1TB, which seems so very low.

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ChickenVest@reddit (OP)

I honestly would have gone straight to 2 TB but I want him to have to do an upgrade in the future to learn about saving and how to work on the pc.

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ChickenVest@reddit (OP)

Interesting on the SSD, thanks for the feedback. We will take a look this weekend

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crazybull02@reddit

I see it often but not really talked about but you have the OS as a dvd but no optical drive

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ChickenVest@reddit (OP)

Yep, you are correct, thanks. I will need to change that. I don't even know if my son has used a cd before

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--TaCo--@reddit

Random thing that may or may not be an issue, but the windows 11 item says it's a DVD? I assume it'll have the code on the product so you'll just need to make a bootable drive if you don't have a DVD drive. Cool list and I hope you enjoy building this with your son!

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ChickenVest@reddit (OP)

Haha thanks, good catch. I will have to look at that one a bit more. To be honest I'm more terrified of all of the drivers and software components than the hardware. It's been a lot of fun so far, I'm just trying to keep up!

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cyberfrog777@reddit

Overall, looks good - good suggestions in comments. I'll add if you have a microcenter near you, check them out for any bundle deals (usually provide cpu, mobo, and ram). Even if they don't have exactly what you want, in store, they usually let you swap out parts and pay the bundle difference.

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kovu11@reddit

Looks great, you could go for cheaper SSD (WD blue) and 6700 XT. Saved money could be used dor another 16GB of RAM. Best to buy 2x16GB.

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FrustratedPCBuild@reddit

Good start, and enjoy! I would suggest a beefier PSU and more storage (SSD) modern games are massively bloated and that 1TB won’t go far (speaking from experience in a similar situation), but in fairness you can always add another later on.

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ChickenVest@reddit (OP)

Thanks. We definitely plan on adding on extra storage in the future, more so he has something to work towards. Especially now that I think we are going to jump straight to 32GB ram.

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tonallyawkword@reddit

As others have mentioned, I'd probably go with slightly faster RAM over the 990 Pro (980Pro is still plenty fast for lots of ppl doing heavy video-editing). May not even know what you're missing (maybe nothing) if you start with a gen3 NVME.

It may be overkill for 1080p and idk if you just gotta have Nvidia, but a 6800xt for $430 seems like pretty great value. Speed comparable to a 3080. More VRAM than a 7700xt, too. 6700xt or 3060 may be the best options, just throwing that out there since I was surprised to see one at that price.

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Sempuu@reddit

The list can still be improved here and there, but that's honestly a well thought out list. Tons better than what we see here everyday. As others already pointed out, you can save on the SSD (try Crucial P3 plus), 6000 Mhz CL30 RAM kit, and an AMD GPU (6700/50 XT) for that price range. Try looking at Sapphire if you'll opt for an AMD GPU.

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ChickenVest@reddit (OP)

Great, thanks!

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Ripe-Avocado-12@reddit

Moving to a 6750xt would give a lot more raw horsepower for about the same price. I also fixed the ram to the recommended spec (6000 c30) https://pcpartpicker.com/list/NQ92pB

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ChickenVest@reddit (OP)

Interesting, thanks! What is the advantage of the c30? I will have him do some research on it

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Ripe-Avocado-12@reddit

As speed on memory goes up, latency goes up with it. Ideally you want as high speed as possible, while keeping the latency down. 6000c30 is the sweet spot for ryzen 7000 as from what I'm seeing all boards/cpus seem to hit it no problem. Going above that, or lowering timings more seems to be hit or miss. I should have taken a better look, but you can also find kits with double the capacity for only $20 more, and that would mean not needing to throw more ram in later (which can sometimes be an issue). Here's a link to a 32gb kit but you could always just use pcpp to filter on 6000 then lower the timing to 30 to get the same list I was looking at.

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ChickenVest@reddit (OP)

Link to build: LINK