How much does a good gaming computer cost? The cost can be simply cosmic. But we have created a couple of builds based on components that are optimal for today in terms of value for money.

 

It would seem that not so long ago we couldn't imagine a gaming PC without a discrete graphics card. But the appearance of AMD hybrid processors with integrated Vega graphics and a sharp rise in prices for graphics cards involuntarily made us reconsider our attitude to a gaming PC. And in today's article there are actually two configurations. One of them is designed for users with a very limited budget, and the other - for those who have an opportunity to overpay a bit, but make their PC much faster.

It would seem that not so long ago we couldn't imagine a gaming PC without a discrete graphics card. But the appearance of AMD hybrid processors with integrated Vega graphics and a sharp rise in prices for graphics cards involuntarily made us reconsider our attitude to a gaming PC. And in today's article there are actually two configurations. One of them is designed for users with a very limited budget, and the other - for those who have an opportunity to overpay a bit, but make their PC much faster.

Choose a processor

• #Intel Core i5-11400F - $110
• #AMD Ryzen 5 3400G - $105

Intel processors have always been strong with their single-threaded performance, while AMD excelled in multi-threaded operations. And that's why many gamers often opted for Intel, while professionals preferred to use AMD processors. But recently this choice is no longer so obvious.

Now we are rather guided by the option of using integrated or discrete graphics. If you have the option of buying a graphics card, we recommend taking a closer look at the Intel Core i5-11400F - in our opinion, the best mid-range gaming processor.

If a graphics card is too expensive, then the AMD Ryzen 5 3400G comes to the rescue. This processor costs about the same amount as Core i5-11400F, but it is equipped with a fast enough integrated graphics capable of pulling even extremely "heavy" AAA-titles. It also has the possibility of overclocking, which ****Core i5-11400F lacks.

Core i5-11400F can become an alternative to Intel Core i5-11400F. This processor differs from the model with the "F" letter only in the presence of integrated graphics and a slightly higher price tag. But the processor's iGPU loses to Ryzen 5 3400G graphics by all accounts and can hardly be considered as a full-fledged replacement for a discrete graphics card.

Choosing a motherboard

• GIGABYTE B560M AORUS ELITE $115
• ASUS ROG STRIX B550-A GAMING $170

Your choice of motherboard depends directly on which processor you decide to use. If you're going for the Intel Core i5-11400F, we recommend the GIGABYTE B560M AORUS ELITE motherboard based on the B560 chipset.

In the case of the AMD Ryzen 5 3400G, it's worth looking at the more expensive ASUS ROG STRIX B550-A GAMING.

Intel Core i5-11400F has no overclocking capabilities, so it is absolutely senseless to overpay for this option when buying a motherboard. It's not worth it to buy a motherboard with a weak power supply. The GIGABYTE B560M AORUS ELITE motherboard strikes the right balance between price and features. The low-cost motherboard features a 12+1 phase power supply with high-quality chokes, a high-speed USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C port, four [RAM] slots and the ability to install two M.2 SSDs, including a fast PCIe 4.0 drive.

As for the ASUS ROG STRIX B550-A GAMING, it has excellent overclocking potential for memory and CPU, a slot for M.2 SSD PCIe 4.0, ports for six SATA 6Gbps drives, four RAM slots, and a massive heatsink on the power elements.

Choosing RAM

• XPG Gammix D10 (8GB x 2 pcs.) DDR4-3600 AX4U36008G18I-DB10 $40

When buying any RAM, always try to opt for RAM kits that are guaranteed to be able to operate in 2-channel mode. This is especially important when it comes to integrated graphics. In our case we recommend using XPG Gammix D10 16 GB (8 GB x 2 pcs.) DDR4 3600 MHz AX4U36008G18I-DB10 RAM.

On the one hand, it's a compromise solution - many games may not need 16 GB of RAM. But don't forget that your motherboard has four RAM slots, and you can at least double the RAM capacity in the future. As for the set we offer, it works at the standard frequency of 3600 MHz. This is quite enough for our build, and the price of the kit is quite democratic - only about $40.

Choosing a case for your computer

• #Zalman S2 Black - $40.

Computer cases have long ago ceased to be boring metal boxes for storing components. Now you can find multifunctional solutions with interesting design at an affordable price. One of them is the Zalman S2 Black case, which has gathered a lot of positive reviews.

 

The great demand for this model is due to its amazing features. It is a spacious case that allows you to install a CPU cooler up to 156 mm high and a video card up to 330 mm long. There is a standard fan on the back wall of the case, and 5 additional seats for spinners. The case has a bottom mount for power supply, and 5 storage media will fit inside. Decent performance for the price.

Choosing a power supply

Even a 400W PSU will be enough for our assembly, but we prefer to take everything with a small reserve. We don't know how we will want to upgrade the computer in the future, and this way we will have plenty of room for choice. That's why we decided on a 600W unit. This will be enough even if you switch to a video card and a processor from the premium segment.

 

Cougar has a long-established reputation in the market, because they make good units. For $40 we get a full 600 watts and 80 PLUS Bronze certification. There are also all sorts of overload and short circuit protections. The 6 15-pin SATA connectors will power all the drives that the above case can hold.

Drive Selection

• XPG SX8200 Pro 256GB $40 - Western Digital WD10EZEX 1TB - $40

Any modern computer requires a solid state drive for the system partition and a hard disk drive for storing information that is not speed sensitive. Of course, that's assuming you don't want to spend money on a giant SSD.

 

As a system SSD, we recommend using the fairly inexpensive but very capable XPG SX8200 Pro 256GBt. At $30 for a 256GB drive, it offers impressive sequential access speeds of up to 3350 MB/s. That's enough to keep your PC booting in seconds and your operating system flying.

SSD is great. It's fast and convenient. But every gamer faces the challenge of storing hundreds of gigabytes of games. Using an SSD for this purpose is too wasteful, and pointless - you won't get much advantage in game speed. That's why you can hardly do without HDD. We didn't experiment with the HDD choice, so we offer a time-proven 1Tbyte model Western Digital WD10EZEX for about $45. This disk has a high spindle speed, which means that its read and write operations will be faster than the standard 5400 rpm.

Choose a graphics card

• ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce GTX 1650 OC 4 GB $180

The graphics card has become the most painful choice when building a gaming computer. The popularity of mining has led to a sharp rise in the cost of graphics cards, and although recently the market has stabilized a bit, their cost is still very far from adequate.

 

That's why one of our proposed builds allows you to use an APU with fast enough integrated graphics. If you have made a choice in favor of Intel Core i5-11400F, then you can't do without a graphics card. There are simply no ray-traced graphics cards in our chosen price range, and the most adequate of the available options looks like the ASUS TUF GeForce GTX 1650 GAMING OC 4GB model costing about $180.

It is she, in our opinion has the best price / features ratio in this price range.

Total: the cost of building a gaming PC

Despite the fact that the cost of graphics cards did fall, discrete graphics is still not affordable for many users. That's why we decided to offer you two PC builds at once. One of them is focused on HD gaming and will cost you about $480, and the other is optimal for playing in Full HD resolution with medium graphics settings. The difference in their capabilities is primarily due to the discrete graphics card.

Although to be fair, it is worth noting the third option of PC assembly for people who expect to upgrade their PC soon. Such users should install an Intel Core i5-11400 processor in the computer. The potential of its built-in graphics is not enough for full-fledged gaming, but it will be enough for the role of a plug "until better times", or rather until you decide to buy a full-fledged discrete graphics card.

Build #1 (discrete graphics card)

• Intel Core i5-11400F processor - $110
• GIGABYTE B560M AORUS ELITE motherboard - $115
• XPG Gammix D10 (8GB x2) DDR4-3600 AX4U36008G18I-DB10 RAM - $40
• Western Digital WD10EZEX 1TB hard drive - $40
• XPG SX8200 Pro 256GB SSD drive - $30
• Zalman S2 Black Case - $40
• ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce GTX 1650 OC 4 GB graphics card - $180
• Power Supply COUGAR VTE600 600W - $55.

Total: $610

#Build #2 (Integrated Graphics)

• AMD Ryzen 5 3400G processor - $105
• ASUS ROG STRIX B550-A GAMING motherboard - $170
• XPG Gammix D10 (8GB x2) DDR4-3600 AX4U36008G18I-DB10 RAM - $40
• Western Digital WD10EZEX 1TB hard drive - $40
• XPG SX8200 Pro 256GB SSD drive - $30
• Zalman S2 Black Case - $40
• COUGAR VTE600 600W power supply - $55

Total: $480

No arguments, you can't build a gaming computer for pennies. By the way, maybe you have your own recommendations? Write about them in the comments.