How to build a cheap gaming PC that doesn't suck

Date:
Mon, 08 Nov 2021 16:40:00 +0000

Description:
If you want to try PC gaming but don't want to sell a kidney, we can help you build a cheap gaming PC that doesn't suck.

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If youre trying to learn how to build a cheap gaming PC that doesnt suck,
then youve come to the right place. After all, while most of the best gaming PCs seem to cost an arm and a leg, you dont have to empty your bank account for a solid gaming computer. Building PCs is about more than just spending as much as possible for your parts.

Were going to help build a cheap gaming PC thats actually pretty good. You will have some limitations with your build as you probably wont be booting up Control in 4K resolution with ray tracing on. But, youll be able to play it
in 1080p with some pretty high settings. Though parts have been tough to come by the past year, there are a lot of reasonably priced processors and
graphics cards out there that come with a surprising amount of power.

If youre building a gaming PC out of completely new parts, getting an Xbox
One X will probably either be cheaper or more powerful. And, dont expect to
do any 4K gaming with a budget build. Though you might be able to soup up
your rig with used parts, we wouldnt recommend that since theres the
potential that your PC components spontaneously combust.

But, the other benefits that a gaming PC can offer more than make up for the higher price tag. And, even if PC gaming has a higher entry price, youll
still save a ton of money over time on PC games . If youre putting together a cheap gaming PC right now, you can save even more if you take advantage of
all the Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals that are out there.

Let us guide you through how to build a cheap gaming PC that doesnt suck. Whether youre simply looking to save a lot of cash on a great performing gaming machine or you really dont need a setup with a lot of power in the first place, youve come to the right place. What you'll need

Despite what you may have thought, you dont need too much in the way of tools to build a cheap gaming PC. A phillips head screwdriver is the only
absolutely necessary tool. However, there are a couple things that can help you out. Because youll be dealing with a lot of screws, having a parts tray helps a lot. If you dont have one of those lying around (who can blame you), you can just use a couple bowls to keep things sorted.

Also, you have to be on the lookout for static electricity. An anti-static wristband is a godsend if you have one, but if you dont, just make sure youre not standing on carpet when building, and discharge any latent static electricity by touching some metal, like your power supply or PC case.

Most importantly, however, you need a clean space to build. If you can clear off the dining room table for a couple hours, thats perfect. You just need enough space to hold all of your PC components. The parts

There are so many PC components out there these days that you could theoretically build dozens of PCs without having the same parts list.
Luckily, we follow PC components literally every day, so we used our
expertise to pick out the best bang-for-your-buck PC components for this
cheap gaming PC, and why those parts are the best choices for a budget PC build in 2019. And, once youve gathered up all the best PC components that dont suck well show you how to build a PC . (Image credit: AMD) Processor:
AMD Ryzen 3 3200G

Getting a quad-core for cheap Affordable Includes on-board graphics No multi-threading

This AMD Ryzen processor (CPU) is the holy grail of budget PC components. Its a quad-core chip with a boost clock of 4.0GHz, which would be enough to get some PC gaming done on its own. Where this chip really gains its budget bragging rights, however, is in the on-board Radeon Vega 8 graphics. This integrated graphics processor (GPU) isnt powerful enough to play top-end games, but it should be enough to try some of the best indie games while saving up for a beefy graphics.

Intel alternative : wed suggest the Pentium G4560. Its only a dual-core
chip, but with high clock speeds and hyper-threading it can keep up with the latest PC games. (Image credit: ASRock) Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty B450 Gaming

You shouldn't have to break open the piggy bank Looks good for budget Affodable No overclocking

When youre picking out a motherboard, you dont want to skimp too much. Its
one of those components where if something goes wrong, you have to rebuild
the entire PC. The ASRock Fatal1ty B450 Gaming will get the job done, while saving you plenty of cash. Its not the most feature-rich motherboard out there, but youre just looking for a dependable board.Just keep in mind that you'll have to update the BIOS to at least version P3.20 to use the Ryzen 3 3200G. But, if you're not comfortable with that, you can always pick up the Ryzen 3 2200G instead you won't lose much performance.

Intel alternative : if youre going with Team Blue, you can save quite a bit on the motherboard by going with the ASRock B250M-HDV motherboard. Its an older chipset, so you can find a bargain. (Image credit: G.Skill) Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V

Some reasonable RAM Affordable Neat red shroud Only 2,400MHz

For budget gamers, sticking with 8GB of memory (RAM) is reasonable. There are some heavy duty games that will really start to push past that limit, but those are few and far between especially at 1080p. So, we recommend picking up an 8GB kit of G.Skill Ripjaws V DDR4. Its not the fastest or the
flashiest, but it gets the job done. (Image credit: Adata) SSD: Adata
Ultimate SU800 128GB

An affordable boot drive Super affordable Easy to install Not the fastest SSD on the block

A 128GB SSD may sound small to you, and it is, but when youre just trying to get an affordable PC build done, its perfect. The Adata Ultimate SU800 128GB is big enough to fit your operating system on, which means your computer will be nice and fast, and more importantly, its dirt-cheap. This drive is just $20, and you should be able to find it for even cheaper during seasonal sales like Black Friday . (Image credit: Western Digital) Hard drive: WD Caviar
Blue 1TB

This is where your games go Power efficient Lots of space Not as fast as an SSD

Unfortunately, SSDs are so much more expensive than the best hard drives when it comes to mass storage thats just a fact of life. Thats why picking up a 1TB hard drive, like the WD Caviar Blue, just makes sense for a cheap gaming PC. Youll install your OS and maybe like one game on your SSD, and everything else can just go on your hard drive. (Image credit: AMD) Graphics card: AMD Radeon RX 570 8GB

A great 1080p card Great 1080p performance Doesn't hog too much power Won't move to 1440p well

When youre shopping for the best graphics card for your build, the most important advice we can give you is to consider what youre going for. A lot
of people will tell you that the Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Ti is the best graphics card out there, but not everyone has $1,200/1,200to throw at a GPU. Thats why the AMD Radeon RX 570 8GB is such a gem. Its extremely affordable, and should be good enough to handle most games at 1080p at high settings.

Nvidia alternative: If youre looking for an affordable Nvidia card that trades blows with the AMD Radeon RX 570, youll want to take a look at the GeForce GTX 1650. Its not super powerful, but it will get you through your 1080p gaming. (Image credit: Corsair) PC case: Corsair Carbide 100R

A big black box Expandability Decent airflow Kind of ugly

With a PC case, you really dont need the most badass tower to get the job done. And, the Corsair 100R s a perfect example of a cheap PC case that
doesnt suck. It doesnt have all the RGB lights and tempered glass panels that a more expensive case might, but what matters is that theres plenty of room for case fans, and more than enough space for full length graphics cards if you want to upgrade later. (Image credit: Corsair) PC power supply: Corsair VS550

Desperate times ... Won't set your house on fire Affordable Not modular

When youre setting out to build a cheap gaming PC that doesnt suck, it's easy to find the cheapest power supply and toss it into your PC. But, because that could literally present a fire hazard, you should at least find something
like the Corsair VS550K. This budget power supply just has an 80+ efficiency rating, rather than the Gold, Silver or Bronze efficiencies of more expensive PSUs, but it should still be good enough to get the job done. Just keep in mind that this power supply isnt modular, so you might have to find some creative ways to hide the extra cables.



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/news/how-to-build-a-cheap-gaming-pc-that-doesnt-suck /


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