Hi! I've been out of building computers for a good decade maybe more now and things have clearly moved on a lot. I'm looking again as my Daughter is at University studying 3D Modelling and Computer Game Design (not sure on the exact course title) and she tells me she needs a PC with a bit more grunt for things like animations in Blender. Back in the day there was a sweet spot for components that were still current, not bleeding edge but gave maybe 80% of the performance of the latest stuff for about 50% of the price. That's sort of where I'd like to be. Best bang for buck for GPU, CPU and so on. I've no idea where to start anymore. I always used to buy AMD CPUs as they were easy to overclock and cheaper than Intel but recent browsing suggests they are pretty much on par now. I don't know how much of the load the GPU does for these tasks and how much is still done by the CPU, similarly I don't know how much system RAM is worth buying and whether there is a point at which anymore is not getting used.
A bit about me - Mechanical Engineer, Test and Development, Aerospace/Defence. I love CNC based machines, 3D printers (Resin and FDM), CNC routers, Lasers, Snapmakers, stuff like that. I'm feeling pretty old these days, health has been better.
I'm basically hoping for some hand holding in specifying this machine for my daughter and then I'll probably fade away again. If you have any 3D printing related questions I consider myself very knowledgeable in that field for both FDM (filament) and MSLA (resin) printing.
For this PC the budget is around £2000 max but would like to be closer to £1300 - she likes the blingy LED stuff but I wouldn't spend a lot on it.
I figure we could maybe skimp on the RAM and Storage and add more later if needs be but getting the right CPU/Mobo and GPU as the core of the machine would be important to get right first.
Not wedded to Intel or AMD, nor am I wedded to Nvidia or Radeon. Gut feel is AMD and a Radeon though, not sure why.
CPU budget up to £400
RAM budget up to £300 (I'm assuming 2 x 16Gb but would go with 2x32Gb if there was a good reason)
Motherboard up to £350 if really necessary, it is one item I really want to get right
GPU up to £650 but I'm think this is one area where £300 might be almost as good at least for now
PSU up to £120 (genuinely took me by surprise to see GPUs needing 650W PSU, I'm sure mine were more like 50W way back then)
HDD up to £250, something very fast for whatever she is working on and a separate slower, larger back up drive, there will be additional external backup as well not included in the £250.
CPU cooling - seems the norm is some sort of watercooling interface all in one unit with a forced air radiator to cool the fluid down. I haven't included this in the budget.
GPU cooling - I'm assuming the fans on the cards are sufficient, I don't really want to mess about with the GPU, I have not included anything in the budget.
Monitors - I have spare monitors that can suffice for now, all that working from home malarkey.
Mouse/Keyboard - she said something about a mechanical keyboard, and seems to like Razer blingy stuff. I have no idea what the advantages of a mechanical keyboard are, is it one press per action or something? faster response?
Computer case, any ATX size case large enough to fit all that in with the GPU and CPU cooling arrangement and maybe some blingy LED stuff.
I'm looking for good bang for buck, I will spend more if it's worth it, we aren't overclocking, I'm not looking to make the build any more complicated than it needs to be. The prices in the budget are for components I've looked at that are as far as I will go (roughly).
She is a Gamer, but mostly on her Xbox (Series X, One and 360), her Wii-U and her Switch. She's never liked her Playstation or her PSP etc. It could be that this machine overtakes her Xbox gaming.
A bit about me - Mechanical Engineer, Test and Development, Aerospace/Defence. I love CNC based machines, 3D printers (Resin and FDM), CNC routers, Lasers, Snapmakers, stuff like that. I'm feeling pretty old these days, health has been better.
I'm basically hoping for some hand holding in specifying this machine for my daughter and then I'll probably fade away again. If you have any 3D printing related questions I consider myself very knowledgeable in that field for both FDM (filament) and MSLA (resin) printing.
For this PC the budget is around £2000 max but would like to be closer to £1300 - she likes the blingy LED stuff but I wouldn't spend a lot on it.
I figure we could maybe skimp on the RAM and Storage and add more later if needs be but getting the right CPU/Mobo and GPU as the core of the machine would be important to get right first.
Not wedded to Intel or AMD, nor am I wedded to Nvidia or Radeon. Gut feel is AMD and a Radeon though, not sure why.
CPU budget up to £400
RAM budget up to £300 (I'm assuming 2 x 16Gb but would go with 2x32Gb if there was a good reason)
Motherboard up to £350 if really necessary, it is one item I really want to get right
GPU up to £650 but I'm think this is one area where £300 might be almost as good at least for now
PSU up to £120 (genuinely took me by surprise to see GPUs needing 650W PSU, I'm sure mine were more like 50W way back then)
HDD up to £250, something very fast for whatever she is working on and a separate slower, larger back up drive, there will be additional external backup as well not included in the £250.
CPU cooling - seems the norm is some sort of watercooling interface all in one unit with a forced air radiator to cool the fluid down. I haven't included this in the budget.
GPU cooling - I'm assuming the fans on the cards are sufficient, I don't really want to mess about with the GPU, I have not included anything in the budget.
Monitors - I have spare monitors that can suffice for now, all that working from home malarkey.
Mouse/Keyboard - she said something about a mechanical keyboard, and seems to like Razer blingy stuff. I have no idea what the advantages of a mechanical keyboard are, is it one press per action or something? faster response?
Computer case, any ATX size case large enough to fit all that in with the GPU and CPU cooling arrangement and maybe some blingy LED stuff.
I'm looking for good bang for buck, I will spend more if it's worth it, we aren't overclocking, I'm not looking to make the build any more complicated than it needs to be. The prices in the budget are for components I've looked at that are as far as I will go (roughly).
She is a Gamer, but mostly on her Xbox (Series X, One and 360), her Wii-U and her Switch. She's never liked her Playstation or her PSP etc. It could be that this machine overtakes her Xbox gaming.
