The Best Gaming PC Build Guide: Build on a Budget

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This gaming PC build guide will give you the tools needed to build your own PC based on your budget. Building your own PC is a great way to control how much you spend based on the performance you need. This will give you the experience and confidence you need to upgrade your system over time or swap out components as needed. 

I am excited to have Justin over at Rocket Johnny Gaming talk about building your own gaming PC. He will discuss how to build your own PC based on your performance needs and budget!

Building a Gaming PC

As an electrical engineer, working in the semiconductor industry, I put a lot of thought into the components I chose for the build I discuss in this guide. Additionally, I received some insight into component selection from an engineer friend of mine who works at AMD. 

In this gaming PC build guide, I discuss exactly how I determined what components were needed. My approach is based on performance and budget. Let’s walk through the build!

Step One: Performance Evaluation

The first step in your gaming PC build is to determine what level of performance you need.

While working through this first step, consider what types of applications you want to be able to run on your computer. 

To determine a set of minimum requirements, look at the recommended hardware requirements specified for the software applications you want to run.

Include in your list of desired applications both work related and recreational software.

For this PC, I wanted to be able to run the latest PC games while also streaming. Finally, I wanted to be able to run applications like video editing software and audio recording software.

Step Two: Determine Your Budget

The second step in building your own PC is to determine your budget.

I purposely note this is the second step and not first, because I think of a PC as a long term investment.

You don’t want to only consider your immediate needs and build to those minimum requirements. Taking that approach would result in a PC that is quickly obsolete. It is better to  make smart choices in components that fit within your budget and will meet your needs for years to come.

In the next step, you will take the amount you want to spend and work backwards from there.

Selecting components based on your total budget allows you to get everything you want at the price you can afford.

Step Three: Determine Your Components

The third step in building your own PC is to determine your component list. Base this on meeting your performance needs and making every dollar of your budget count! This is where you have to make strategic decisions.

Make sure you meet your performance needs and design a system that will be relevant for a significant amount of time. This will provide you the ability to upgrade and expand as needed for future requirements.

Step Four: Determine Your Components

The final step in gaming PC build is to build the darn thing!

Now I will walk you through my thought process in selecting the specific components for this build.

Included are videos that show unboxing key components while detailing the build.

You can use the full list of components at the end of this post for your build. Follow along with the videos to build this specific PC for yourself, or use the tips to apply to a custom PC of your own design. Let’s get started!

Step by Step Gaming PC Build Guide

This PC was designed to be high performing, cost-effective, expandable, and easily upgraded to maintain high performance for years to come.

It is perfect for high end gaming and simultaneous live streaming, video editing, audio recording, and running any other CPU/GPU intensive applications. 

The aesthetics were inspired by Discovery One, the fictional spacecraft featured in 2001: A Space Odyssey. It is an all AMD build featuring the Ryzen 7 3700X CPU and RX 5700 XT GPU. The CPU was selected to be powerful enough to support simultaneous gaming and live-streaming from a single PC without issue.

GPU Selection

The high end AMD GPU was chosen because it is hard to beat AMD’s price-performance ratio, especially when you consider the cost of monitors compatible with AMD’s FreeSync technology vs. Nvidia’s G-Sync technology.

The Sapphire graphics card was selected for its high performance, great aesthetics, and because it features three fans, providing better thermal performance.

Another benefit, is that it runs more quietly than cards with a single blower fan. Check out the GPU unboxing video with more details about its selection here:

Motherboard Selection

The MSI MEG X570 ACE motherboard was chosen due to its many great features, excellent aesthetics, and ability to support future technologies. It supports current technologies, such as Wi-Fi 6 and Gen 4 PCI-E, and supports expansion.

This motherboard is based on the AMD X570 chipset, making it more compatible with current 2nd and 3rd GEN AMD Ryzen CPUs. The motherboard will also support upcoming 4th GEN AMD CPUs. 

The motherboard is a component I did not hold back on in terms of cost, knowing that it will allow this PC to be upgraded and maintain high performance for years to come.

Check out the unboxing video and additional details about its selection here:

Memory Card and Other Component Selection

The Crucial Ballistix memory was selected based on an engineering insider tip regarding optimal stability with the AMD chipsets.

In addition to looking nice, 16GB is an adequate amount of memory based on the system recommendations for many of today’s higher end games and other applications. 

The Samsung 970 Evo 500 GB M.2 was selected as the primary drive and intended only to store the operating system and other applications critical to PC operation.

The Crucial P1 1TB M.2 drive was selected as the secondary drive and is still plenty fast for games and any other “fun” applications.

Check out this video in which I populate the motherboard with these components and prepare it to be installed in the case:

Cooling Component Selection

To cool the CPU and prevent thermal issues I decided on using an all-in-one (AIO) liquid cooler. The Deepcool Castle 240EX (white) was selected due to its excellent thermal performance, great aesthetics, and patented anti-leak technology.

You can check out a video in which I unbox and modify this cooler and provide additional details about its selection here:

Power Supply Selection

The power supply was sized based on the electrical engineering rule of thumb to not exceed 80% power supply loading.

Based on the estimated power consumption of 499W this power supply is loaded at approximately 77%, which provides enough margin to operate safely and allow for some future expansion.

You can check out a video where I unbox this and discuss additional details about its selection here:

Selecting the Case

The Fractal Design Meshify C case was chosen because it is not too large, while still providing good airflow, and has excellent cable management features.

In this next video I install the motherboard, AIO cooler, and power supply into the case:

Cable Management in the Case

In the final video detailing the PC build I touch on the importance of cable management and all the steps needed to finalize the hardware portion of the build:

Gaming PC Build Guide: Final Thoughts

I hope you enjoyed the details of this gaming PC build guide. I know it will help you to complete your own DIY PC project!

If you have any questions or comments please share them in the comments section below. 

Subscribe to my Youtube channel so that you won’t miss out on future videos about this PC build and results of its performance.

Check out other budgeting tips here!

Consolidated Parts List

Motherboard:

► MSI MEG X570 ACE – https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1489701-REG/msi_meg_x570_ace_am4.html

Also check out this comparable board at a bit lower price point:

► MSI MPG X570 GAMING PRO CARBON WIFI – https://amzn.to/3gAn8lo

CPU:

► AMD Ryzen 7 3700X 3.6 GHz 8-Core – https://amzn.to/2TKkL5n

GPU:

► Sapphire Radeon RX 5700 XT NITRO+ SE GPU – https://amzn.to/3gookrT

Memory:

► Crucial 16GB Ballistix RGB DDR4 3200 MHz – https://amzn.to/3ewD2vf

Primary Drive:

► Samsung 970 Evo 500 GB M.2-2280 NVMe- https://amzn.to/2AcSrBR

Secondary Drive:

► Crucial P1 1 TB M.2-2280 NVMe- https://amzn.to/2ZLDXUe

Power supply:

► EVGA SuperNOVA P2 650 W Power Supply – https://amzn.to/2zAbvtK

AIO Cooler:

► Deepcool Castle 240EX White – https://amzn.to/3c9SCLm

Case:

► Fractal Design Meshify C ATX Mid Tower Case – https://amzn.to/2X5Texr

Case Fans:

► Deepcool CFL120 Case Fan – https://amzn.to/3gw5NKj

► Silverstone Slim Profile RGB Fan – https://amzn.to/3gwafZd

► In Win Sirius Loop ASL120 (3-Pack) – https://amzn.to/3c9H8YD

Operating System:

► Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit – https://amzn.to/2M3MAS5

Check out this PC in action by following the Rocket Johnny Gaming stream here.