Assembling a gaming computer 2020. Budget and optimal option

There will be a ton of major releases this fall, which means it's time to build a powerful computer to evaluate and try it all. And, of course, not every gamer can go to an online store, throw the right components into his cart, and then assemble all this into his dream computer. It is for this reason that I decided to help with this problem by putting together three assemblies - an affordable one for those who want to play modern games in Full HD, an optimal one with all the necessary components, and a top-end one for those who want both 4K and high settings , and 60 FPS without dropouts. Choose the budget that suits you and you can safely order.

Telegram channel of the creator of Trashbox about technology

• Topic: The best keyboards in 2020 - models for office and gaming for any budget

Features of PC performance tests

A PC performance test (or benchmark) is a set of tasks that allows you to check the speed and stability of the hardware and software components of your computer. It includes tests of the central processor, graphics card, memory, monitor, Internet speed (online), sound card and other test options.

The objectives of such a test are as follows:

• Counting PC performance units. The obtained result allows you to compare different processors with each other in terms of their performance levels. The test clearly demonstrates where our system lags behind analogues, and where replacement of outdated components is necessary;
• Stress test of PC components. This test allows you to load the computer or its individual components to the maximum to check the stability of their operation under maximum load.

Most of the benchmarks available to us are implemented as stationary programs. Network tests, which allow you to perform online testing of PC performance, have a number of inconveniences. In particular, such checks are performed through a browser, which does not always work stably under maximum system load, and sometimes simply crashes.

Therefore, most developers of such tools create tests in the form of programs installed on the system. Running such software with administrator rights makes it possible to conduct an extensive system check and obtain detailed final results.

However, there are several online tools to check your computer's performance. Let's look at them in order.

This is interesting: How to test a video card online.

Optimal assembly - 80,500 rubles

For the basis of this computer, I propose to take the rather interesting Intel Core i5-10400F , which was initially underestimated by many, but is now a very desirable acquisition for gamers. The fact is that for money that is quite reasonable by today’s standards, the user receives six computing cores, twelve threads, a stock clock frequency of 2.9 GHz with the ability to “overclock” to 4.3 GHz in Turbo Boost mode and, most importantly, a TDP of 65 W. That is, this is a fairly productive model with low heat generation, which means the user will not need to spend a lot of money on purchasing an expensive cooling system.

• Topic: Which processor to buy in 2020 - the best models for any budget

Yes, it’s worth clarifying that the Intel Core i5-10400F processor does not have integrated graphics, so you won’t be able to use the computer without a discrete graphics card. On the other hand, if we’re talking about a gaming PC, then we still can’t do without a discrete video card.

Due to the fact that this processor has a fairly low level of heat generation, and there is also no overclocking function, the user can buy a completely affordable cooling system. For example, I recommend purchasing the Deepcool GAMMAXX 400 , which is capable of dissipating up to 130 W of heat. This is exactly twice the TDP of the processor, so the fan will operate at approximately half of maximum speed - the noise will be almost inaudible. In addition, this tower boasts backlighting, low cost and a fairly high-quality hydrodynamic bearing that will not fail for a long time.

ASRock B460M PRO4 motherboard , which at a fairly reasonable price has all the features a gamer needs. There are four slots for RAM, decent-sized heatsinks on the power supply circuits and a slot for an M.2 drive, a chic set of ports for connecting peripherals and, importantly, there is a neat backlight. It is also worth praising the manufacturer for installing a special panel that, when the computer boots, displays which system components are generating errors - a very useful thing.

RAM in this assembly is also represented by a set of two 8 GB sticks - this is the most effective use case, plus the user will have the opportunity to add one or two memory sticks in the future. In this case, I give preference to the HyperX Fury HX432C16FB3K2/16 , which differs from the version from the previous assembly by a higher memory frequency - 3200 MHz versus 2666 MHz. This will have a positive effect on system performance. Separately, I would like to clarify that I refused RAM with radiator illumination in the optimal assembly - the overpayment is not worth it.

Now it's time to talk about storage devices. In an optimal assembly there are always two of them - the main one is Samsung MZ-V7S250BW . This is an M.2 drive that runs on the PCI-E 3.0 x4 interface. Thanks to this, the read and write speed of the SSD is very high - 3500 MB/sec and 2300 MB/sec, respectively. It is for this reason that the drive is the main one, because the operating system and various programs will launch literally instantly. The recommended volume in this case is 256 GB, but if your budget allows, then, of course, you can take more - it obviously won’t hurt your system.

The secondary drive, on which the gamer will store games and entertainment content, will be the WD Blue with a capacity of 500 GB. I note that this drive already operates via the SATA3 interface, so its read and write speeds are noticeably lower (545 MB/sec and 525 MB/sec, respectively), but it is still many times faster than an outdated HDD. The recommended volume is quite enough for several major releases, the necessary software, and even several films in good quality. Naturally, if funds allow, then no one bothers you to take a 1 TB option, for example, or several such drives.

Of course, the most important component of a gaming computer is the graphics card - in our case, the MSI GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER VENTUS OC . The model boasts 8 GB of video memory, a fairly high graphics core frequency (1785 MHz right out of the box), quality and an excellent cooling system. The manufacturer equipped the video card with a large aluminum radiator and two fans with proprietary blade shapes, so there should be no problems with noise or overheating. And, of course, the graphics processor can still be overclocked - there are both manual overclocking and automatic modes.

• Topic: Which video card to buy in 2020 - the best models for any budget

According to online calculators, which usually lie only a little, this build consumes approximately 360 watts of power. Next, we use the golden rule for selecting a power supply - you need to load the power supply approximately 50-60%, then wear will be minimal, and you will hardly hear any noise. In this case, a 600 W power supply was needed, and the Cooler Master MWE Bronze . From the name you can understand that there is an 80 PLUS Bronze certificate, the cooling system is standard for ATX variants, and the components are of high quality. The downside, again, is that this power supply does not have a backlight, but I can safely close my eyes to this.

• Topic: How to choose a power supply for a computer - what to look for

The final touch of the assembly is the body - I saved as much as possible on it, so don’t be surprised. Ginzzu C200 model is perfect for all the components described above, because the tower, video card, and motherboard fit here. At the same time, you can buy additional case fans to implement a more efficient cooling system in the future. There is no particular point in taking something more expensive, since the extra money can be safely spent on storage devices - it will be more useful than a beautiful case with glass.

WEB 3.0 BASEMARK – software for checking PC online

Finnish testing products are known to users all over the world. In addition to well-known stationary solutions, the company offers its users performance tests. The latter is called “WEB 3.0 BASEMARK” and is very popular on the Internet. At the same time, the company notes that the test is unofficial, so you shouldn’t rely too much on its results.

Do the following:

1. Go to basemark.com;
2. Close all other browser tabs, leaving only the current one;
3. Click on the round “Start” button in the center to start testing;
4. Wait for the test to finish (it will take about 10 minutes);
5. Review your results.

   Online test WEB 3.0 BASEMARK

Available assembly - 46,500 rubles

I decided to take the Intel Core i3-10100 , since at the moment this is the optimal solution in terms of price to performance ratio. The processor boasts 4 cores with 8 threads, the clock frequency in normal mode is 3.6 GHz, but there is, of course, a Turbo Boost mode, when activated, the frequency rises to 4.3 GHz. It is also worth noting that this processor has an integrated Intel UHD 630 graphics core, so you can use the computer even without a discrete graphics card.

• Topic: Which processor to buy in 2020 - the best models for any budget

I consider the heat dissipation level to be a separate advantage of this model - only 65 W. Thanks to this, it’s not worth spending a lot of personal money on purchasing a powerful cooling system, because such a cold processor can be equipped with a completely affordable solution like Deepcool GAMMAXX 200T . This is one of the most affordable cooling systems on the market, which can handle 100 W, and the Intel Core i3-10100 has almost half the heat output. And, of course, I again recommend buying exclusively the OEM version of the processor, that is, without a cooler in the box, since such a package is cheaper, and with the money saved you can just buy this tower.

GIGABYTE B460M DS3H motherboard . I’ll say right away that the choice of available boards for the LGA 1200 socket is still not very large, so this board was included in the article due to its low cost and the availability of everything you need. There are four slots for RAM (most budget motherboards on this socket have only two), manufacturer quality, a sufficient set of ports for connecting peripherals, and even a BIOS convenient for configuring system components. This is quite enough.

System performance will be supported by HyperX Fury HX426C16FB3K2/16 , which, as many have already guessed from the name, will delight the potential buyer with 16 GB of RAM. Of course, I recommend taking the memory in a set that consists of two 8 GB sticks, since in this case, if installed correctly, the sticks will operate in dual-channel mode. At the same time, the memory frequency is 2666 MHz, and there are radiators on the case, although they serve a more decorative function. An excellent memory kit from a reliable manufacturer - 16 GB is quite enough for modern video games.

The main and only drive in this assembly is an SSD called WD Green with a capacity of 480 GB. The choice fell on this model solely because of its good speeds and 36-month warranty - this is a guarantee that the drive will work properly for at least three years. It is worth noting that when assembling a gaming computer, you should completely abandon the HDD, since even the most modern models are much inferior in speed to even the most affordable solid-state drives. Because of this, problems occur with loading levels, loading textures, and so on. Some game developers even list SSDs in the system requirements.

Now let's move on to the most delicious part - the video card. After looking at the current offerings, I decided that the GIGABYTE GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER WINDFORCE OC would fit perfectly. This video card has 4 GB of GDDR6 video memory, the frequency of the graphics processor out of the box is 1755 MHz, and the cooling system is equipped with a decent-sized aluminum radiator and two fans with proprietary blade shapes. For an affordable computer, this is the best solution at the moment, because for this money a gamer gets the opportunity to play absolutely all modern releases in Full HD resolution at high graphics settings.

• Topic: Which video card to buy in 2020 - the best models for any budget

Quite often, if not always, gamers save on buying a power supply, since it does not affect FPS in games, so no one wants to spend money on it. But don’t forget that the power supply is the conditional engine of the computer; without it, you won’t be able to conquer virtual worlds either. Chieftec GPE-500S with 500 W and 80 PLUS Bronze certification is ideal The computer will load the power supply at approximately 45-50%, so the component will live for a long time and will not make excessive noise even under load, which is also important.

• Topic: How to choose a power supply for a computer - what to look for

The final touch of the assembly is the Winard Benco 3067C - it was chosen solely on the basis of price, availability of space for a processor cooler and quality. You can put any other option in its place, the main thing is that the tower and video card must fit. Of course, you can easily find a more attractive option, but why spend money on it if this money can be invested in a larger SSD or some more efficient components. This is not a build where it’s worth spending three to four thousand rubles on a stylish case with backlighting and a transparent window.

Speed-battle.com – online computer speed testing

The speed-battle.com resource offers its users a quick test of the system online. To work with it, just follow the link above, and in just a few seconds the computer will estimate the speed of your PC.

The results obtained can be compared with the indicators below “Average” (average), “Best” (best), “Poorest” (lowest).

Speed ​​battle test scores

Scratch.mit.edu – online computer CPU performance test

The scratch.mit.edu resource is a project of the Lifelong Kindergarten group at the MIT Media Lab, a laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the United States.

Among the various capabilities of the resource, there is also an online CPU speed test, which we will use:

1. Go to scratch.mit.edu;
2. From the list of two available tests (“Online flash” or “Online Java”), choose the one you like;
3. View the results as shown by the arrow on the watch face.

   CPU test at scratch.mit.edu

System Performance Test for Mac

In addition to the selection of programs for Windows OS, we also recommend several programs to test your Mac:

• Geekbench 4 is the most popular Mac testing tool. The free version uploads your results to its online database, where you can compare it with the results of other users. Has separate CPU and GPU tests;

  Geekbench 4 test results

• Blender Benchmark is an application for testing graphics rendering and animation. It has two options – “Quick Benchmark” and “Complete Benchmark”;
• “Intel Power Gadget” is a utility from Intel designed to test processor performance;
• Cinabench R15 is another 3D graphics rendering utility for Mac.

  Cinabench program for Mac

What you need to know:

• Case and power supply . Very often it comes in one set. This option is suitable for assembling budget solutions. If you are assembling a productive workstation or gaming computer, then it is better to take a larger case and buy a power supply separately. The kit includes a set of screws and other fasteners for installing components.

• Motherboard . You need to choose a motherboard specifically for the processor that you are going to install in your computer. That is, if you have a processor for Socket AM4, then the board must support these processors.

Specified in the specification. If the processor is planned to be powerful, then don’t skimp on the board either. A weak chipset, which is found on budget motherboards, will not allow you to reveal all the capabilities of the processor. The kit must include a driver disc and instructions.

• Processor and cooling system . They often come in one set. And this arrangement is called “Box” (because it comes in a neat, beautiful box). As in the case of the case, it is suitable for inexpensive options if you have a Celeron processor from Intel, or a budget “A” or “E” series line from AMD. If something is average or powerful, then it is better to choose decent cooling separately.

• RAM . When choosing RAM, as with a processor, look at what type of memory your motherboard supports. If DDR4, then the memory must be DDR4. They have neither forward nor backward compatibility. There are boards that support two types of memory, but these are usually cheap transitional versions, and they do not shine with quality.

• Video card. Required if the motherboard or processor does not have integrated graphics.

• Winchester . This is either a hard drive (HDD) or a solid state drive (SSD). And I will not tire of repeating and recommending SSDs, because the increase in speed is very large. And then, after working on computers equipped with this type of drive, switching to a computer with a regular hard drive is very painfully difficult. Everything will seem slow and sluggish.

This is a list of “items” from which you will assemble a working system unit.