Enough fooling around, we're dialing up graphics settings and ready to start having our rig push some big-boy resolutions, which means it's time to take another look at our gaming PC build guide. Getting the ball rolling with a rig of this caliber is gonna take some decent capital to get things started, around $1,000. Expanding our budget obviously gives us more options, so before we get started, you may want to check out our guides to the best AMD motherboards and the best CPUs for gaming to point yourself in the right direction.
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Want to buy a prebuilt instead of building your own PC? Check out our guide to the best gaming PCs and the best gaming laptops.
For this particular project, we'd like to end up with a rig that can push 60 fps at 1080p with the graphics settings pushed to their limit. The catch is we'd like to stay within the realm of about $1,000 on all of our components. Our mid-tier gaming build has flipped to team red and has some solid headroom for upgrades with compatibility for 3rd generation Ryzen processors and a modular PSU with wattage to spare. A fun little bonus we get from an AMD processor is the ability to try our hand at overclocking our system for some added performance.
Just like our other build guides, our budget doesn't account for added peripherals like the best gaming monitor or a Windows license, important things to consider if you're building a setup from scratch. You can get around some of these costs if you're upgrading by migrating an instance of windows from a previous build, but it's always a smart idea to set aside a little extra cash for fun accessories and peripherals.
PC components are excellent fodder for the best Black Friday deals, so if you've been thinking about a new build, it might be wise to hold off until next month when we're likely to see some massive drops in price. View Deal
Best gaming monitor | Best gaming mouse | Best gaming keyboard
Best gaming headset | Best gaming router | Best gaming chair
Besides waiting around for some red-hot deals, you can always save a bit of cash by re-using components from a previous build. You can always scale back slightly on your components if you find your budget to be stretched a bit thin. We'd recommend starting with your SSD or RAM if you're looking for some places to trim the fat without sacrificing too much in terms of performance. Just make sure you aren't compromising too much and end up building something that gives you buyers remorse. Building a PC can be immensely rewarding, and should be a project that you're ultimately proud of.
CPU
AMD Ryzen 5 3600
A reliable mid-range CPU
Cores: 6 | Threads: 12 | Base Clock: 3.6GHz | Turbo Clock: 4.2GHz | Overclocking: Yes, 4.2GHz typical | L3 Cache: 32MB | TDP: 65W | PCIe 4.0 lanes: 16
AMD's 3rd generation Ryzen CPUs are here and the Ryzen 5 3600 is an excellent candidate for mid-range gaming. It outclasses our previous pick for this build, the Intel i5-8400 and offers superior performance, along with overclocking and a slick-looking stock cooler all around the same price point.
Alternatively, you could go with the previous generation Ryzen 5 2600 for a small drop in price, and while it may not be quite as fast as the 3600, it still has all the same features and matches the i5-8400 almost pound for pound. If you're looking for a little more juice though, the Ryzen 5 3600X can give it to you for about $40 more.
Ultimately we went with the 3600 because it gave us the best bang for our buck and some additional room to expand into more powerful 3rd gen AMD CPUs down the line. Also, the overclock potential is not to be underestimated.
If you're looking for a little extra power in your next build, check out our guide to the best CPU for gaming in 2019.
Motherboard
MSI B450 Gaming Plus
A good all rounder with Ryzen 3rd gen compatibility
Chipset: B450 | Memory: (4) DIMM, 64GB, DDR4-3466 | PCIe slots: (1) x16, (1) x16 (x4), (4) x1 | USB ports: (6) rear IO, (6) internal | Storage: (1) M.2, (6) SATA | Network: Ethernet | Lighting: Full RGB
The MSI Performance B450 Gaming Plus is a solid motherboard that will deliver everything needed to run the Ryzen 5 3600. It may not necessarily be pretty or pack in a ton of extras, but it gets the job done.
The B450 supports memory speeds up to DDR4-3466 and includes an M.2 slot for a fast SSD or Optane Memory. And while this setup would need a little TLC to support it, this motherboard could potentially handle SLI or crossfire if need be.
Motherboard compatibility for Ryzen's 3rd gen processors is pretty prolific, but make sure to check the compatibility on the manufacturer's site if you're committing to something with more options. But if you're after something better than this MSI board, you're probably also looking at a higher-end build, which we cover in our high-end gaming PC build.
Here's our guide to the best gaming motherboards in 2019.
GPU
AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT
An excellent AMD alternative to Nvidia's supers
GPU Cores: 2,560 | Base Clock: 1,605MHz | Boost Clock: 1,905MHz | GFLOPS: 9,754 | Memory: 8GB GDDR6 | Memory Clock: 14 GT/s | Memory Bandwidth: 448GB/s
It may look like a piece of modern art, but the 5700 XT was a relatively easy pick for this level of build and a solid replacement for the Nvidia 2060 Super. Our build is mostly looking to push 60fps at 1080p, which is where this particular GPU excels, and at a lower price point than the 2060 Super, the choice was clear.
The 5700 XT does lack dedicated hardware for ray tracing and DLSS, but in terms of actual in-game performance, it just edges out the 2060 Super. Additionally, these extra features only tend to matter once you start reaching the edge of the performance envelope. For that I recommend you check out our extreme gaming PC build guide.
For our mid-range build, the 5700 XT really hit that sweet spot of cost versus performance and is suitable so long as you aren't trying to push 4K resolutions (and don't mind it's funky looking dent).
Memory
Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4-3000
The best value RAM you can get
Capacity: 2x8GB | Speed: 2400MT/s | Timings: 15-17-17-35 | Voltage: 1.35V
Memory is pretty straightforward these days, as you really just want a solid choice that will get the job done, though if the price isn't much higher you can improve performance slightly with faster RAM. DDR4 prices are have thankfully galvanized somewhat, with typical prices for 16GB falling below $100. Buy from a reliable memory manufacturer and you should be fine, and there are many options to choose from: Adata, Ballistix, Corsair, Crucial, G.Skill, GeIL, Gigabyte, Hynix, HyperX, Micron, Mushkin, Patriot, PNY, Samsung, Team, and XPG are all good brands as far as we're concerned.
Our main goal for gaming memory is DDR4-3000 or higher, with as low a CAS latency as possible, but at a good price. It doesn't make a lot of sense to buy extreme memory with a Ryzen 5 3600, but with DDR4-3200 only costing $10 more than basic DDR4 kits, it's worth buying nicer memory on AMD builds.
For more information, check out our guide to the best gaming RAM options in 2019.
Primary Storage
Crucial P1 1TB NVMe
Great performance, price, and capacity
Capacity: 1TB | Interface: M.2 PCIe 3x4 | Sequential IO: 2000/1700MB/s read/write | Random IO: 170K/240K IOPS read/write
The Crucial P1 is currently our top pick for gaming SSDs. It's fast read/write speeds and low price point make it an easy pick, especially considering it's cheaper than most SATA drives. And for what it's worth, I've always found installing M.2 drives easier anyway.
The one drawback is that the speeds don't always hold up under load or if the drive is mostly full. Still, the P1 is great for gaming it will outpace most SATA drives, and there's little reason not to make this a part of our build.
The Crucial P1 has a low price point and has enough space and reliability to hold you over until you invest in some bulk storage, which is relatively easy to slot into you build after the fact.
Additional Storage
WD Black 1TB (Optional)
The quickest regular HDD, offering storage on a budget
Capacity: 1TB | HDD speed: 7200RPM | Cache: 32GB | Connectivity: SATA 6Gb/s | Warranty: 5 years
Given the install sizes of most modern PC games, it's probably a good idea to get yourself an additional drive for your gaming PC. While SATA SSDs are almost cheap enough to recommend as secondary storage (what a world we're living in), you'll probably need to get a regular HDD to keep the cost down.
We recommend the WD Black drive because it's a 7200RPM drive with a respectable 32GB cache, which offers 1TB of storage for about $70 or less. While you could easily get a WD Blue or Seagate Barracuda for less, the WD Black offers speed over capacity. Realistically, you'll appreciate that speed if you're planning to keep your HDD inside a gaming PC for more than a couple of years, as we're already seeing load times creep up for the biggest games of 2019.
PSU
Corsair TX650M 650W
Highly reliable and efficient power without going overkill
Output: 650W | Efficiency: 80 Plus Gold | Connectors: (1) 24-Pin ATX, (1) 8-Pin (4+4) EPS12V, (4) 8-Pin (6+2) PCIe, (6) SATA, (4) Molex, (1) Floppy | Modular: Partial
Power supplies are one of the least sexy parts of any build. After all, it can be hard to tell them apart in terms of features. Even so, you don't want to skimp on your PSU. Corsair has an excellent and well-deserved reputation for its power supplies, and the TX650M comes at a reasonable price and delivers 80 Plus Gold efficiency.
Most power supplies from the bigger names are generally good, but we wouldn’t recommend that you put your money in anything with a warranty of less than five years or an efficiency rating below 80 Plus Gold (maybe Bronze in a pinch). The $10 or $20 saved just isn't worth the risk.
We also tend to go with modular PSUs where possible. It means less cable mess inside the case, since you don’t have to stash unused cables somewhere. Instead, the unused cables have to find a home in your closet.
Here's our guide to the best power supplies for PC gaming.
Case
NZXT H510
Clean design and great cable management
Type: ATX mid-tower | Motherboard Compatibility: ATX, Micro-ATX, Mini-ITX | Drive Bays: (Up to 7) 3.5/2.5-inch internal (2 included), (2) 2.5-inch SSD | Front Ports: (1) USB-C (1) USB 3.0, Headphone, Mic | Fan Options: Front: (2) 120mm or (2) 140mm, Top: (1) 120mm (included) or (1) 140mm, Rear: (1) 120mm (included) | Max GPU Length: 381mm | Dimensions: 460x210x428mm (HxWxD) | Weight: 6.6 kgs.
Cases can be as sexy or boring as you want. We're going to go for the former rather than the latter, with the NZXT H510, a slick, tempered glass case available in white or black. The NZXT H510 is also reasonably priced, which is always a bonus.
If you want other options, check our guide to the best mid-tower cases. The Phanteks Eclipse P400 was our previous pick, and it's still highly recommended. The clean look goes well on any desk and doesn't obnoxiously stand out like many so-called 'gaming cases'. There's also the pricier H510i that integrates some smart features if you like the look of the H510 but want a few more bells and whistles.
Picking a case can be a quite personal choice, so for more options here are the best PC cases you can buy right now.
CPU Cooler
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo (Optional)
Better cooling and less noise than the stock Intel cooler, at a great price
Size: 120mm | Fan speed: 600-2,000rpm | Noise level: 9-36 dB(A) | Dimensions: 120x159x51mm | Socket support: LGA115x/1366/2011/2066, FM1/2, AM2/3, AM4
The Ryzen 5 3600 includes a cooler, and it will be more than sufficient. But in case you're looking at really pushing the limits, or you want something quieter, we felt it would be worth mentioning our old standby cooler, the Hyper 212 Evo. It's something to always keep as an option with system builds.
If you're willing to spend a bit more, a nice AIO liquid cooler is another option worth considering, especially if you're planning on doing home heavy overclocking. The NZXT Kraken X62 would be a solid option, but is substantially more expensive.
Here's our guide to the best CPU coolers in 2019, liquid and air.