Help Please

[rachylou]

I have absolutely no idea what I need... All I know is my son is 11 years old, wants a Gaming PC.... He currently mainly plays the likes of Fortnite, Roblox, Minecraft - has a Switch, iPad Pro and a laptop (it was about £300 a few years ago) and complains that he buffers a lot... Would also really need it for school work too I guess! I have tried to read the guides but I must confess a lot of it is going right over my head. I'm guessing we're looking at an entry level Gaming PC? We'd need a monitor too (which I've included) so advice on that welcome. Our budget wouldn't be much more than £1,000, maybe £1,200 as a push.

Case
PCS 6003B BLACK CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 3600 Six Core CPU (3.6GHz-4.2GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
GIGABYTE GA-A320M-S2H: Micro-ATX, AM4, USB 3.1, 6GB/s
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2400MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
4GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1050 Ti - DVI, HDMI, DP
1st Storage Drive
1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
256GB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (1900 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 450W CV SERIES™ CV-450 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT
Wireless Network Card
WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 2,400Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Capture/Streaming Cards
AVerMedia Live Gamer HD 2 - PCIe Card
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KK3-00027]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Google Chrome™
Monitor
IIYAMA PROLITE XU2294HSU-B1 21.5'' Full HD Monitor
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 14 to 17 working days
Price: £982.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-home-office/WNSpRkrtaa/

 

[sck451]

Unfortunately you're looking at buying a PC at a time when prices are very high and getting good value is virtually impossible: "entry level" for a good gaming system today is around £1400, not including a monitor. These are dark times!

The system you have specced isn't really going to be a good plan: it's an old CPU now, with compromises on memory, storage and power that are quite limiting, and a graphics card that isn't even that amazing. However, your demands don't seem that high. All those games are relatively light ones, especially if your son is happy playing at relatively low settings. (If he's on a £300 laptop, we can definitely do a massive upgrade on that! I presume by "buffering" you mean the problem is low frame rates?)

What I'd suggest in your situation is actually the integrated graphics approach, which means not spending money on the graphics card, the part that's the worst value for money right now. If we spec it right, there will be capacity for adding one in the future, which will make it a really strong gaming machine. If we get the fundamentals right now, it could have a lifespan of 5-7 years, maybe even more.

Let's say you buy something like the MSI Optix G241 for £150ish. We could then look at a build like this one. It would probably have slightly worse performance than the one you posted in most gaming scenarios, but it is much stronger for the longer term.

Case
CORSAIR 4000D AIRFLOW TEMPERED GLASS GAMING CASE - good case with lots of airflow
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 5600G Six Core CPU with Radeon™ Graphics (3.9GHz-4.4GHz/19MB CACHE/AM4) - the best integrated graphics option there is
Motherboard
ASUS® PRIME B550-PLUS (DDR4, USB 3.2, 6Gb/s) - ARGB Ready! - perfectly adequate for this CPU
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB) - faster RAM is really important
Graphics Card
INTEGRATED GRAPHICS ACCELERATOR (GPU)
1st Storage Drive
1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB INTEL® 670p M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 3000MB/sR | 1600MB/sW) - much faster SSD for the operating system, some games
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W TXm SERIES™ SEMI-MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET - loads of headroom to allow for future upgrades
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT
Wireless Network Card
WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 2,400Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD + BT 5.0 - the right choice for speedy WiFi
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00003]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE - a free trial of Bullguard isn't a good plan: just use Windows Defender and teach your son safe browsing habits
Browser
Firefox™
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 14 to 17 working days
Price: £837.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/z5EEtQ4rCf/

 

[JUNI0R]

The world of PC gaming can be a confusing place, so don't worry if it's gone over your head! Sadly with the silicone shortage going on right now (the thing also affecting new car manufacturing) the cost of entry to PC gaming is at an all time high- Demand is way and supply is way down which drives up prices, but if you're able to push to the top end of your budget, we should just about be able to get you there!

Monitor wise, I'd personally recommend picking up an inexpensive used one for now just to get you going (I believe CEX sells used monitors for about £40-50 for a LED 24 inch screen) then upgrading as soon as you can. Something like the AOC 24G2U will pair very nicely with this build once you have the cash.

Of course, any questions, feel free to ask!

Case
LIAN LI LANCOOL 215 GAMING CASE Much better case than the one you had, it'll keep PC parts cooler along with having a better build quality than the one you picked. It also has RGB which is generally to an 11 year olds tatse
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 3600 Six Core CPU (3.6GHz-4.2GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4) This is now the previous generation but will still give a perfectly good experience for an entry level gaming PC
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B550-PLUS (DDR4, USB 3.2, 6Gb/s) - ARGB Ready! A better quality motherboard (the part that everything connects to) that will better support the CPU and allow for more upgrades in the future
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB) AMD loves fast RAM so I've gone for a faster 3200mhz kit (instead of the original 2400mhz you had)
Graphics Card (GPU)
6GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1660 SUPER - HDMI, DP - GeForce GTX VR Ready! A better GPU that will give a smoother and more enjoyable experience
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB INTEL® 670p M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 3000MB/sR | 1600MB/sW) I've gone for a single storage drive here, it's much faster than the one you had selected but it's less storage overall. It should fit the games your son is looking to play on it, but may find it needs an upgrade or adding to down the road
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W TXm SERIES™ SEMI-MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET A better quality power supply that will run quieter and allow for more upgrades in the future
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT
Wireless Network Card
WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 2,400Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KK3-00002] I'd stick to Windows 10 for now while they get all the bugs out of Windows 11
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE The standard Anti-Virus that comes on Windows will be just fine
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) Well worth the extra £5
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 14 to 17 working days
Price: £1,121.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/rB2SAqX72E

 

[rachylou]

Thank you so much for your help! I definitely like the idea of getting the basics right and being able to build on it and anything that’s better than what he has (and causes less frustration) now is a good starting point.