Hey guys, I’m relatively new to the pc world and I want to start my first pc build, I’m a very casual gamer and don’t really have a bunch of time to play. So I would like to put together a low end budget pc just to play Minecraft and be able to use light mods. My budget stands between 800-1000 dollars and i was wondering if someone could recommend some hardware, I’ve helped friends build pc’s in the past but have no clue how to start mine, I would prefer to run a ryzen core and Microsoft OS.
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Well start from there.
Find a motherboard you like the look of. Since you are extremely casual looks seems to be more important than features. Find a board you like the looks of, then find a memory kit you like the look of.
The find a case you like the look of. Or good cooling performance, or any preference really.
Grab an NVMe SSD for OS and software, grab a SATA SSD for games and bulk storage.
After that grab a power supply of about 600-650W at the very least bronze from a brand with good reviews.
Whatever you have left - line up a few GPUs for the price and check out performance reviews.
Aaaand you are done.
Not much has changed really.
We are up to new sockets for CPUs, faster GPU and RAM speeds, higher SSD speeds, but in general the basic rules are still the same.
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Building a PC? There is one place to go; https://pcpartpicker.com/
There you can concept out your PC Build, or, you can just copy some of the many posts of PC systems made. Here is a link of systems posted that are AM5 @ around $900; Completed Builds - PCPartPicker
Well, this is going to be tricky. You have not supplied two crucial details; What resolution are you aiming for (and do you already have a screen), and how long do you plan to run this PC for? Are you thinking about upgrades in a year or two?
I have two systems to recommend. One I would get if upgrades are basically off the table (RAM, Storage and GPU upgrades do not count). One I would get if upgrades are your jam.
The best gaming system you can get right now, bang for buck, in your price class:
| Type | Item | Price |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Core i5-14600KF | $279.99 |
| CPU Cooler | Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE | $33.90 |
| Motherboard | MSI PRO Z690-A WIFI | $145.99 |
| Memory | TEAMGROUP T-Force Vulcan 2x16 GB DDR5-6000 CL30 | $102.99 |
| Storage | Western Digital Black SN850X 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 | $84.99 |
| Video Card | PowerColor Fighter Radeon RX 6600 | $199.99 |
| Case | Cougar MX330-G | $53.99 |
| Power Supply | Thermaltake Toughpower GX3 850W 80+ Gold | $89.99 |
| Total | $991.83 |
The main weakness of this system is the RX 6600, which only sports 8 GB of VRAM. Sadly, there is not enough room in the budget to upgrade to the $339 PowerColor Radeon 7600 XT Hellhound. If you could hold off a month or two gathering the funds for that you would have a solid gaming rig that could do most 1440p@90Hz or 1080p@144Hz gaming on medium, often even high settings. If not, the 6600 is a decent 1080p@90 Hz card.
That said, most other stuff is decent in that build. Here, however, is my “Planned for upgrades” rig:
| Type | Item | Price |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | AMD Ryzen 5 7600 | $199.00 |
| Motherboard | MSI X670E GAMING PLUS WIFI | $229.00 |
| Memory | TEAMGROUP T-Force Vulcan 2x16 GB DDR5-6000 CL30 | $102.99 |
| Storage | Western Digital Black SN850X 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive | $84.99 |
| Video Card | PowerColor Fighter Radeon RX 6600 | $199.99 |
| Case | Corsair 3000D RGB AIRFLOW | $99.99 |
| Power Supply | Cooler Master MWE Gold V2 ATX3.0 1050 W 80+ Gold Fully Modular | $119.99 |
| Total | $1035.95 |
Now, i exceed your budget slightly here, and you would notice that your CPU is “only” a 7600. I changed to a much easier case to build in, a 1050W PSU and a nicer motherboard. Now why would I do that, because this motherboard will allow you to do upgrades pretty smoothly over the next 3 years. I would still like to upgrade to a 7600 XT, but again, budget constraints.
Of course we could cut the price more, but cutting more is not really going to help your case here. Those are two systems to get started on, but feel free to experiment and play around with parts yourself.