Hi! I haven't made a completed build in a while. The following is my most recent build and you can watch the series of videos I made around it at the following links, and if you like the content consider giving a subscribe to help the channel grow! Thank you all!

Thermaltake S200 TG RGB Case Review:

How to build a PC in 2023, Part 1: The Parts and Sticking to a Budget:

How to build a PC in 2023, Part 2: A Step-by-Step Guide:

How to build a PC in 2023, Part 3: Installing Windows, setting up the BIOS, & testing Games:

The goal for this PC build was simple: Be able to game at 1080p gaming on Medium to Max settings while reaching 60FPS and at a budget of $700 or less (before taxes). Based on performance, and the fact that the price came in at $674 (although prices have changed since I bought the bits), I was able to succeed on both fronts. To top it off, you can currently put this build together for even less than I did!

Changes I'd make: I'd swap out the 5600G for the 5600. I'd get a B550 motherboard. Doing so at current prices would still let me stay under budget. I'd also buy CL16 over CL18 RAM to improve 1% lows as current prices are really only about a $5 - 10 difference. If I wanted to splurge I'd also buy a PCIe 4.0 NVMe drive. Upgrading the GPU at some point is something to think about as the Power Supply I got has enough wattage to do so, and this was intentional. Based on current prices one could opt to go with an RX 6650XT right out the gate, which is around $80 more than the RX 6600. Having said that, you are only looking at around a 10-15fps uptick at 1440p according to an article I read, so again, not sure if this is worth the cost increase when I can get 2TB platter drive for 50 to increase overall storage.

Either way there's options for improving this build for not a lot of cash.

The PC definitely stayed cool under load with the CPU only reaching 86 degrees in a 10 minute Cinebench R23 run and this is with the stock cooler! The GPU never went above 69 degrees (nice) while gaming. The fans never became noticeably loud either. I did add an extra Arctic P12 fan at the rear, but I was glad to find a case that came with 3 ARGB fans (standard 3-pin too) for very cheap--$54 after rebate when I bought it.

Definitely check out How to build a PC in 2023, Part 3 to see the benchmark results in 1080p for this machine.