Chicago
by Venkat R Posted on: 2/23/2023
Build Description
Moving to Chicago and starting a new job, I decided to finally splurge on a decent gaming PC that would hopefully be a little bit future proof. Unfortunately current gen GPUs seem to just be more expensive, beefier versions of last gen, so I went for an older GPU that I got a great deal on at MC. I plan on playing a variety of AAA games: Elden Ring, Spider-Man, Skyrim, the Witcher 3, as well as things that are intensive like Minecraft w/ fancy shaders. I also will use this for everyday stuff like watching videos, web browsing, coding (not super intensive compilation).
Favorite Feature
Honestly I love that I got such crazy deals at Micro Center. Basically every component was my first choice, and the only thing I didn't find at MC was my CPU cooler.
Intel Core i5-13600K Raptor Lake 3.5GHz Fourteen-Core LGA 1700 Boxed Processor - Heatsink Not Included
Qty: 1
$224.99
at 249.99, this is an absolutely insane deal. I used the new customer CPU coupon to get it for 25 more off.
Gigabyte B660M DS3H DDR4 Intel LGA 1700 microATX Motherboard
Qty: 1
$109.99
Bundled with the above cpu to get 20$ off.
PowerColor AMD Radeon 6800 XT Red Devil Overclocked Triple-Fan 16GB GDDR6 PCIe 4.0 Graphics Card
Qty: 1
$497.99
At 512, this was a great deal. A friend used the 15$ off for new customers to get me it for $498. It's last gen, but should still be suitable for non-RT games for a few years at least. However, if you want ray tracing at >1080p 60hz, look at Nvidia GPUs or a higher end AMD GPU.
TeamGroup T-FORCE VULCAN Z 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 PC4-25600 CL16 Dual Channel Desktop Memory Kit TLZGD416G3200H - Gray
Qty: 1
$41.99
Cheap DDR4
Montech Air 100 ARGB
Qty: 1
$65.00
Seems to be out of stock now, but is a fantastic value. 65$ for a good-looking case with a TG side panel and 4 ARGB fans and a hub included? Actually unheard of for basically every other case under $100.
Thermaltake Toughpower Grand RGB 750 Watt 80 Plus Gold ATX Fully Modular Power Supply
Qty: 1
$114.99
I got a price match on this for a little above $100, but $115 isn't bad. This is a good power supply according to the tier list. I don't use its RGB, but it has a good efficiency rating. One slightly annoying thing is that the PCIe cable has a red plug, which is the only visible red thing in my case, which makes it stick out.
thermaltake peerless assassin
Qty: 1
$35.00
The best budget CPU cooler is unfortunately not available at micro center. Great value cooler though, and not super hard to set up. It also looks good.
Solidigm P41 Plus 2TB
Qty: 1
$120.00
I wanted 2TB of storage because my current laptop has 1TB that is slowly getting close to full. I feel like it will take me years to fill 2TB, and even longer to fill it with stuff I actually need. Also, it's a fast NVME M.2 drive.