Building PC with son. Advice on his components list needed
Posted by pjw10310@reddit | buildapc | View on Reddit | 31 comments
My 13m son has been wanting a gaming pc for a couple months now and I recently agreed to build one with him. I have built a pc before, but it was along time ago, and I want him to drive.
We don’t have a huge budget, so I am looking for places we can pinch some Pennie’s- maybe sub in better components later on. Here is his wish list:
(Planning to run windows)
https://www.newegg.com/corsair-vengeance-rgb-16gb-ddr5-5200-cas-latency-cl40-desktop-memory-black/p/N82E16820982196?tpk=1&item=N82E16820982196
https://www.newegg.com/team-group-1tb-t-force-vulcan-z-sata/p/N82E16820331833?tpk=1&item=N82E16820331833
https://www.newegg.com/super-flower-leadex-iii-atx-3-1-atx-3-1-compatible-1300-w-cybenetics-platinum-power-supplies/p/1HU-024C-00079?tpk=1&item=1HU-024C-00079
https://www.newegg.com/asus-prime-rtx5060-8g-geforce-rtx-5060-8gb-graphics-card-triple-fans/p/N82E16814126802?tpk=1&item=N82E16814126802
https://www.newegg.com/gigabyte-atx-motherboards-amd-x870-am5/p/N82E16813145522?tpk=1&item=N82E16813145522
https://www.newegg.com/diypc-atx-tower-steel-tempered-glass-computer-case-black-idx3-atx-argb/p/N82E16811353294?tpk=1&item=N82E16811353294
https://www.newegg.com/amd-ryzen-7-7700x-ryzen-7-7000-series-raphael-zen-4-socket-am5/p/N82E16819113768?tpk=1&item=N82E16819113768
https://www.newegg.com/cooler-master-hyper-212-pro-120mm-amd-socket-am4-amd-socket-am5-intel-lga-1150-intel-lga-1151-intel-lga-1155-intel-lga-1156-intel-lga-1200-intel-lga-1700-intel-lga-1851/p/N82E16835103370?Item=9SIA2W0KFK9350&tpk=1
https://www.newegg.com/noctua-nt-h2-10g/p/2MB-0026-00006?Item=9SIA4REJYR9755&tpk=1
Much-Performer1190@reddit
Pcpartpicker.com is your friend. I have no specific advice on your components list but I will say make sure you get a high quality motherboard, enthusiast or gamer quality, and personal I believe overspec'ing on the power supply is a good thing. You don't have to max out everything, but by building a good foundation you can have a system that you can upgrade over time to faster / more components.
I am not a gamer I guess I'm an enthusiast of sorts, but I tend to think if I can make a system last for 10 years by upgrading the CPU and RAM then I've done exactly what I needed to do.
boss_qe@reddit
Pretty much no to everything. Do you live near a microcenter?
prestigiouspopcorn10@reddit
What’s wrong with their stuff? It’s not an awful build. I have the CPU, GPU, and RAM (32GB version) in mine and they are all great. Yes their build can have improvements like the motherboard and even swapping out some components for cheaper alternatives. But I wouldn’t say no to all
Qwark28@reddit
...Are you serious?
1) 1300W PSU for a 5060.
2) X870 Mobo over a b650, for no reason at all, while pinching pennies.
3) A 7700x when a far cheaper 7500f or even 7/9-600x will do fine.
4) An 8GB 5060, when games that require more than 8gb were popping up left and right from last year already.
prestigiouspopcorn10@reddit
Did you even read the second half of my comment. I said there were a lot of cheaper alternatives. I didn’t want to expand on that because I assumed the comment I was replying to would agree with that statement. If you’re on a budget I think a 8gb gpu is fine, especially with prices these days. I was trying to be kind when the original comment just said no to all and didn’t provide insight, so I was asking why. You were just rude.
boss_qe@reddit
They don’t need that cpu for gaming, the cheaper 9600x will do great. The gpu only has 8gb vram. And the ram is expensive for being as slow as it is (5200 40).
RumbleTheCassette@reddit
And the PSU is insane overkill.
boss_qe@reddit
If you don’t live near a microcenter here is a build that just needs you to pick out a case for.
PCPartPicker Part List
Neebie7@reddit
This is a good list. If OP is even a few hours from a microcenter he and his son should thug it out, look how much value you can squeeze out of $1300 then.
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/WKQjyF
$350 combo from https://www.microcenter.com/site/content/bundle-and-save.aspx
With these savings you can squeeze in a 9070 xt, this one on newegg is $700 with the special discount and comes with a free 750 watt power supply. Idk how long the special discount will last. https://www.newegg.com/sapphire-tech-pulse-11348-03-20g-radeon-rx-9070-xt-16gb-graphics-card-triple-fans/p/N82E16814202450
If not available, microcenter has a $690 9070xt in store and can buy a PSU separately.
Try to steer your son in the right direction before dropping the answer key by showing him the microcenter website and the bundles page. He should look up gaming benchmarks for these CPU’s and gravitate toward the x3d chips.
Research if 16gb ddr5 ram is useable, if it’s worth spending more for a bundle with 32gb. Consider whether it’s better to allocate budget towards getting 32gb now, versus buying more ram in the future and allocating those hundreds of dollars elsewhere (like the gpu!)
Add up the wattage of each individual part and ask if 1300 watts is really necessary.
Research the two form factors of ssd’s, and if he is only buying one, whether the m.2 NVME or the sata is the better option.
Is there much of a thermal difference using the thermal paste that comes with the cooler vs $20 noctua paste?
Look up gaming benchmarks for the 5060/70/ti and 9060/70xt then look up the prices for these on Newegg/microcenter. Is it possible to squeeze a higher end card into your budget? Is an nvidia 5070 ti worth spending hundreds more over an amd 9070xt?
That case looks cool and has 4 rgb fans included, that’s about all that matters I suppose
Have fun with it, enjoy being the cool dad 😎
KristusYunasun@reddit
i dont know about the motherboard, bro, i never trust gigabyte in anything
liggieep@reddit
i just retired a basic bitch gigabyte mobo i uses for a literal decade, thing was a trooper
Intraflexed@reddit
Nice sounds like a good build and a good time to teach skills.
My 11 year old son and I built a decent budget build for Christmas for him with my old 7800x3d and 4070fe. It runs everything he wants to pretty good
gruffyhalc@reddit
"we don't have a huge budget"
proceeds to list parts for a fairly high-end PC that's WAY overspecced for what most 13 year olds will need it for, better than whatever the average non-enthusiast spends with their adult money 😭
10/10 W dad
FailsatFailing@reddit
Fairly High end PC, 5060? 7700x? 16GB RAM? Uhmmm, what are you talking about?
This is almost bottom of the barrel for a modern pc. You can't go much lower. The components are outrageously priced, don't get me wrong, but that doesn't change the fact that it's basically the minimum entry price
gruffyhalc@reddit
Hence comparing 'non-enthusiast'. People here need to realise the people chasing AAA titles in 4k are not representative of mass market....
SilentBobVG@reddit
For an enthusiast, yes its middle of the road, for a 13 year old it's basically a dream build
TheReturnOfAirSnape@reddit
Thats a lot of psu for that build. And a lot of motherboard for that cpu. Follow the advice from the other commenters here, OP.
FaithlessnessOwn2182@reddit
I would personally go for this one. You chose so many things that aren't needed nor are they logical. These choices are just wrong:1300 W PSU(your system would need 850W at most), 2x 8 GB ddr5-5200 with 40 CAS-latency for 250$ instead of 1x 16 GB ddr 5-6000 with 30 CAS-latency for 200$, X870 MB (for a 7700x???), and a 7700x with a RTX 5060 — your CPU is too much for that GPU.
Here is what I suggest: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/82MP3R
I would also suggest you to buy a RTX 5070 instead of AMD 9060xt if you have the extra 200$.
YourfriendAnxiety@reddit
For that GPU and CPU combo you do not need such a high wattage power supply nor do you need an X870 motherboard. Settle with a good affordable 650W power supply that is backed up by good reviews (or if you wanna do a slightly deeper dive, search up "SPL PSU tier list" and choose from there.) A B650 motherboard is significantly cheaper and will offer identical performance. The case I use is a Lian Li Vector V100R which IMO was the most bang for your buck case I could find (It has PWM ARGB fans, is easy to wire and comes with a GPU support bracket.)
For reference I am running a Ryzen 7 7800X3D, an RTX 5070, Gigabyte B650 Eagle AX. Despite my combo being more powerful it runs on a 750W supply and still doesn't go beyond 600-650W.
prestigiouspopcorn10@reddit
For your components that power supply is a bit overpowered. You can save some money by going down to 750W. The processor is good, the ram is good enough since you’re on a budget and prices are through the roof, can always upgrade that in the future
prestigiouspopcorn10@reddit
The CPU cooler is fine, but you can find a cheaper one, the brand thermalight sells good ones for half the price. I would use pcpartpicker to check that all your components are compatible
Paliknight@reddit
Why even buy a cooler? The cpu comes with a free 240 AIO
Paliknight@reddit
https://www.reddit.com/r/hardwareswap/s/TLfqFyW80F
KristusYunasun@reddit
windows x lite, will save you a lot of headache
ElMinxk@reddit
Much better LTSC: guarantee that it has not been modified by third parties.
tooquick911@reddit
I ran that on my brothers mini pc and had tons of issues.
RogueStatusXx@reddit
Damn your 13m old son has good taste
Full_Engineering3734@reddit
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/4MTvn2
use neweggs combo/bundle builder for the cpu, motherboard and ram. you’ll also get a free cpu cooler as a gift with the cpu. id recommend going with the lian li vector v100r or montech XR if he wants a $80 fishtank case, both will likely be better quality than the diypc and are cheaper
shashunolte@reddit
16gb DDR5 RAM with RGB? in todays economy?
really?
O.o
bakakuni@reddit
Just get a hp or dell tower workstation xeon x99 64gb ddr4 256gb sata ssd for os and apps nvme m.2 drives for games and a Intel b580 850$ or so for the whole thing with a screen kn mouse headset. Use eBay or local used marketplace or ali express to source things for a build
gamblodar@reddit
What's your budget?