Gaming PCs Thread...time for a sticky / running thread?

[MissChief]

FourWheelDrift said:

Or it's not working. So either your chipset's overheating, or they were never needed in the first place, hence the S models

Well it is hiding behind my vertical mount Graphics card so even if it did come on I’d never see it!

[emicen]

After some 1st gaming computer advice.

I want a system to run Zwift, iRacing and as a handy by product maybe speed up editing videos for YouTube. I'm not tech savvy in the slightest, so not looking to try and custom build something myself, just looking to buy off the shelf. The minimum & recommended system requirements for iRacing are the main spec driver over Zwift.

I've heard of Novatech previously, so checked them out, I get a discount with Dell on some things from my work Perks package, also checked out PC World whilst I was at it. Out of the machines below, is there any that stands out as way better or way less value than the others? Is there something better suited from elsewhere?

Criteria	Zwift Min.	Zwift Pref.	iRacing Min.	iRacing Pref.	Novatech @ £1199	Alienware @ £1499 (-15%)	ASUS @ £1099
OS	Microsoft Windows 7 64bit or higher	Current versions of Microsoft Windows 64bit	Windows 8.1 64-Bit	Windows 10 64-Bit	Windows 11	Windows 11 Home	Windows 10
CPU	Intel Core i3 or AMD Athlon	Intel Core i7 or AMD Ryzen	Min. 4 Core: AMD FX-6300, Intel Core i5-4430, Intel Core i5-2320, AMD Ryzen 3 1200	Recommended 6 Core: Intel Core i7-8700K @3.70 GHz, AMD Ryzen 7 3700X or AMD Ryzen 5 3600 or better	AMD Ryzen 5 3600 (6 core)	AMD Ryzen 7 5800X (8 core)	AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
RAM	8GB	8GB	16GB	16GB	16GB Corsair Vengeance	16GB (2x 8GB 3200MHz)	16GB (3200MHz)
GPU	1GB dedicated GPU, or embedded Intel HD 4000 or AMD R5	2GB Radeon R9 290 series, or NVIDIA GeForce™ GTX 970	2GB Dedicated vRAM: Nvidia GeForce GTX 660 @ 2 GB / GTX 1050 or ATI Radeon HD 7850 @ 2GB / AMD RX 550 or better	6GB Dedicated vRAM: GeForce GTX 1060 with 6GB or AMD RX 580 or better	Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060	AMD Radeon RX 6600XT 8GB	Nvidia GeForce GTX1660 Ti
Hard Drive	4GB of free space	4GB of free space	25GB	50GB	250GB SSD / 1TB HDD	512GB SSD / (+1TB HHD £40)	512GB SSD / 1TB HDD
Bluetooth	Version 4.0 or greater	Version 4.0 or greater				Bluetooth 5.0	Bluetooth 5.0
DirectX			Minimum: DX11	Minimum: DX11

Costco have a surprisingly broad selection but the feedback in the reviews makes me wary when people are talking about having to reload BIOS etc which is way beyond my knowledge base.

Edit, links might be useful:

Novatech Reign Scout Elite MKII
https://www.novatech.co.uk/pc/range/reignscoutelit...

Alienware Aurora Ryzen Edition
https://www.dell.com/en-uk/shop/desktops-and-all-i...

ASUS ROG Strix G15
https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/gaming/pc-gaming/gam...

Edited by emicen on Tuesday 23 November 15:24

[HRL]

Before you go any further, what display do you intend on using this with?

[techguyone]

Guess the GPU shortage is still a real thing, coming up to a month now on PC Specialist 'pre-production' status.

I've ordered numerous PC' from them before, and generally it's significantly less than that, aww well it'll be worth the wait.

GPU is only a RTX 3060Ti too.

[emicen]

HRL said:

Before you go any further, what display do you intend on using this with?

Open to suggestions, that’s scope creep which will fly under the wife’s radar

In all seriousness, this will be replacing my laptop for Zwift activities and running along side a PS4 for ProjectCars/GT5, both of which currently HDMIs in to a circa 2008 32in LCD TV.

Likely replacement will be a 34in ultrawide @ 1440p

[FourWheelDrift]

techguyone said:

Guess the GPU shortage is still a real thing, coming up to a month now on PC Specialist 'pre-production' status.

I've ordered numerous PC' from them before, and generally it's significantly less than that, aww well it'll be worth the wait.

GPU is only a RTX 3060Ti too.

Fly over to California and visit their new Microcenter, shop till you drop, build it in the store then disguise it as carry on luggage to bring it back.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGHE8n6Vi4k

Still be cheaper than buying here and waiting.


And in the UK we Currys PC World which is the IT equivalent to Steptoe and Sons yard.

[HRL]

emicen said:

Open to suggestions, that’s scope creep which will fly under the wife’s radar

In all seriousness, this will be replacing my laptop for Zwift activities and running along side a PS4 for ProjectCars/GT5, both of which currently HDMIs in to a circa 2008 32in LCD TV.

Likely replacement will be a 34in ultrawide @ 1440p

Personally, I’d go for at least a 3070 or a 6700XT, for longevity. 32Gb RAM rather than the 16Gb, and the CPU with the most cores that you can afford within your budget. The 5800X is a good CPU, I’ve got the 5950X but it’s generally overkill.

The only problem with the Alienware box that I can see, aside from it being way more pricey than the other two, is that like the parent company Dell, they have a habit of using proprietary connections and minimum spec components which could potentially limit any upgrades you might want to do further down the line.

My last two barebones PC’s have been supplied by PC Specialist, I’ve installed my own RAM and GPU’s in both.

[MissChief]

Avoid the Alienware, all show with often poor quality or bespoke components which make upgrading an issue in the future. TBH I’d be looking at upping the budget by £200-300 if you can, you’ll get far more performance and longevity than buying at around £1,000. At this price there’s always something that is cheaped on. An older graphics card, weaker CPU or potentially both.

I’d be looking at a 3060ti as an absolute minimum, especially if you want to add a 34” ultrawide at a later date. A 3070 would be better, a 3080 better again.

I’d be looking for a PC with 3060ti, AMD Ryzen 5600x, 512Gb NVME SSD and 16GB 3200MHz RAM or better. A quality PSU of 650W or more also, ideally Gold rated.

Edited by MissChief on Wednesday 24th November 12:09

[westtra]

techguyone said:

Guess the GPU shortage is still a real thing, coming up to a month now on PC Specialist 'pre-production' status.

I've ordered numerous PC' from them before, and generally it's significantly less than that, aww well it'll be worth the wait.

GPU is only a RTX 3060Ti too.

If you don’t mind installing the gpu yourself I would change to no gpu order and set up some alerts to get it yourself. How I did my sons last year when they were hard to get.

I used @partalert on twitter to get 2 gpu’s for my build and sons. You may even get it at RRP if you are able to catch a FE card from scan

[RobDickinson]

Absolutely avoid alienware under any circumstance, utter garbage.

https://youtu.be/8ulhFi5N2hc

[techguyone]

RobDickinson said:

Absolutely avoid alienware under any circumstance, utter garbage.

https://youtu.be/8ulhFi5N2hc

Gamers Nexus are spot on the money, great channel.

[ten200]

I put together a basic sim racing setup earlier this year. It started off with an Xbox Series S as I was put off by the cost of a gaming pc, but as it's been getting quite a lot of use I'm ready to upgrade to a pc.

I'm currently using a Philips 50" 4k Ultra HD tv. The monitor stand could support 3 smaller monitors instead if I wanted to upgrade in future.

I haven't decided what games, but I'll be trying the big games such as iracing and project cars amongst others. The recommended (not high end) spec for iracing is AMD Ryzen 7 3700X, 16GB, GeForce GTX 1060. The recommended spec for Project Cars is AMD Ryzen 7 2700X, 16GB, RTX 2080. Those both seem like a good processor is important, and a GTX 3070 is better than recommended. Looking at sites like Scan and Punch Technology, it looks like I'll need to spend around £1,800. Does a system like this look like a sensible starting point? https://www.punchtechnology.co.uk/product/titanium...

[MissChief]

ten200 said:

I put together a basic sim racing setup earlier this year. It started off with an Xbox Series S as I was put off by the cost of a gaming pc, but as it's been getting quite a lot of use I'm ready to upgrade to a pc.

I'm currently using a Philips 50" 4k Ultra HD tv. The monitor stand could support 3 smaller monitors instead if I wanted to upgrade in future.

I haven't decided what games, but I'll be trying the big games such as iracing and project cars amongst others. The recommended (not high end) spec for iracing is AMD Ryzen 7 3700X, 16GB, GeForce GTX 1060. The recommended spec for Project Cars is AMD Ryzen 7 2700X, 16GB, RTX 2080. Those both seem like a good processor is important, and a GTX 3070 is better than recommended. Looking at sites like Scan and Punch Technology, it looks like I'll need to spend around £1,800. Does a system like this look like a sensible starting point? https://www.punchtechnology.co.uk/product/titanium...

That looks decent. Only thing I would ask is if they can change the PSU for something more reputable with a decent warranty. Corsair, Be Quiet, Superflower, Silverstone or EVGA are good brands.

[robbiekhan]

^^^ That PSU definitely has to be changed. The brands mentioned above are sound, I would also add Phanteks AMP to the list as they are high quality PSUs which are actually made by Seasonic and are competitive in price. Phanteks support is also excellent.

This past week has been a roller coaster!
I managed to grab at MSRP a 3080 Ti Founders Edition thanks to someone on Whatsapp giving status updates as soon as Scan/Nvidia have drops. They have as such helped multiple people in the group get Founders Edition cards over the last few months.

Anyway, sold my 2070 Super for £465 and bought the 3080 Ti FE for £1049. All math filed the overall outlay was around £584 for the new card which is under £100 more than what I paid for the 2070 Super brand new in 2020.




The performance increase is astronomical. Cyberpunk 2077 3440x1440 now runs at a minimum of 60fps with RTX enabled, Psycho RT lighting and Ultra settings. Looks so good too:

Edited by robbiekhan on Monday 20th December 19:44

[HM-2]

robbiekhan said:

^^^ That PSU definitely has to be changed.

Agreed, no name junk and probably a fire hazard. Literally the last place you want to skimp.

[FourWheelDrift]

MissChief said:

ten200 said:

I put together a basic sim racing setup earlier this year. It started off with an Xbox Series S as I was put off by the cost of a gaming pc, but as it's been getting quite a lot of use I'm ready to upgrade to a pc.

I'm currently using a Philips 50" 4k Ultra HD tv. The monitor stand could support 3 smaller monitors instead if I wanted to upgrade in future.

I haven't decided what games, but I'll be trying the big games such as iracing and project cars amongst others. The recommended (not high end) spec for iracing is AMD Ryzen 7 3700X, 16GB, GeForce GTX 1060. The recommended spec for Project Cars is AMD Ryzen 7 2700X, 16GB, RTX 2080. Those both seem like a good processor is important, and a GTX 3070 is better than recommended. Looking at sites like Scan and Punch Technology, it looks like I'll need to spend around £1,800. Does a system like this look like a sensible starting point? https://www.punchtechnology.co.uk/product/titanium...

That looks decent. Only thing I would ask is if they can change the PSU for something more reputable with a decent warranty. Corsair, Be Quiet, Superflower, Silverstone or EVGA are good brands.

Contour is a Punch own brand PSU made by Channel Well Technology (CWT) the largest desktop PSU manufacturer in the world and they make they PSUs for Thermaltake, Corsair (RM and RMx PSUs for example), Cooler Master, Antec and others.

[ten200]

Thanks, I've ordered the pc above. It was ordered before Punch's cut off date for Christmas delivery, but I don't think they've started building it yet so I'm not sure if it will be here by Friday.

[HM-2]

FourWheelDrift said:

Contour is a Punch own brand PSU made by Channel Well Technology (CWT) the largest desktop PSU manufacturer in the world and they make they PSUs for Thermaltake, Corsair (RM and RMx PSUs for example), Cooler Master, Antec and others.

Which fundamentally means very little, as most of the PSU OEMs make a range of products with qualities varying from utterly abysmal to outstanding. Just because it's made by the same OEM who make Corsair RMx doesn't mean it'll be of equivalent quality.

Though it'll doubtlessly be under at least a couple of years worth of RTB warranty should anything go wrong.

[robbiekhan]

The fact that Super Flower, Phanteks, EVGA and various other good brands actually give anywhere up to 10 years warranty on a PSU is reason enough to choose those PSUs. Will these unknown brands that are still made at the same OEM factory give the same? Certainly not, and there's a reason for that.

[ten200]

ten200 said:

Thanks, I've ordered the pc above. It was ordered before Punch's cut off date for Christmas delivery, but I don't think they've started building it yet so I'm not sure if it will be here by Friday.

The pc I ordered from Punch arrived today, it's set up and is happily maxing out my internet connection downloading a few games.