Hey guys, where do you guys normally go when you are getting ready to buy, to see what is the best current hardware?
I know of Tom’s, and I know our own Enos Tech, but wondering if there are other good places?
I also know of the places like pcgamer, ign, pcworld, etc, but not sure if some of those are biased.
I’m thinking of building a new rig from scratch, and I’ve got a pretty good idea of what I want, but just trying to get all the info I can, on each piece.
I generally just stay up to date naturally by watching tech tubers. Linus Tech Tips, Jays Two Cents, Gamer’s Nexus, etc… Best current would be Ryzen 7000 series + RTX 4000 series, + nvme ssd + ddr5 ram.
Hey! I’m actually thinking of building a new custom watercooled rig from scratch myself.
I can highly recommend watching JayTwoCents, since he explains everything to everyone in detail. Very noob friendly channel.
Second would be Linus. While most of his content is just trolling around, there are times where he reviews latest tech in detail which can help you decide if it’s worth it to go for, for example, higher tier CPUs or not.
Hardware Unboxed and Gamer’s Nexus are channels for the super nerds. Their reviews are honest and very detailed. To the point where it’s almost confusing because of the amount of data slapped across the screen.
What do build do you have in mind?
So far, this is what I have, tentatively-
Sounds solid.
Make sure the ssd is nvme and has ~7gb/sec sequential.
Keep in mind, since you are going with DDR5 memory, do NOT go more than 2 RAM sticks or with different brands (which usually have different timings). The memory controller on the motherboard gets pushed to the limits when it retrains the modules with the PC reboot because of the extremely high frequencies the modules are running. Only a handful of really expensive motherboards can handle 4 DDR5 RAM modules…and even these retrain memory about 20 times before the PC actually starts to boot normally.
So when you build your PC, if it restarts a bunch of times and takes a while to boot, don’t worry. That’s normal with DDR5 boards and modules.
Everything else on your list looks solid. I would go with AMD though since it’s cooler. 
For the cpu he means, stick with nvidia for the gpu.
Oh, stick with Windows 10 until either A tech tubers agree that Windows 11 runs games the same or better regardless of cpu/gpu brands, or B end of support at some point in 2025.
Idk, I have Win11 ever since it launched and never had issues with it. I turned off all the gaming jank windows usually has on like xbox bar, gaming services etc.
I like looking at what people put together on PCPartPicker
+1,000,000
I’ve pretty much always been team Intel. Just personal preference I guess. I’ve had some AMD stuff before, nothing wrong with it, I just usually stay with an intel/nvidia combo.
Right now I’m at the point of picking a good motherboard to pair with either that chip or the 13400. I tend to buy cpus with motherboards together and never upgrade the cpu, so I’m not that worried about the chipset changing. The main upgrade I do every couple years would be the GPU.
Trying to future proof as best I can though, thats why I am leaning towards DDR5 and that PCIe 5.0. Do you guys think that is wise, or should I just stay with DDR 4 and PCIe 4?
As for Wiindows 10 vs 11, I had figured on going with 11, simply because I hate to upgrade my OS. I just figured I’d go ahead and do at the beginning.
Go with 5.
Definitely 5
For doing the final build, I use PC Part Picker for ensuring things work together and for pricing.
that pc part picker website is pretty cool!
I had heard of it but had never used it before.
Here is what I have currently if it comes through correctly.
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/9ZDDY9
Still up in the air on the mobo, everything I pick that I like is way more expensive that I think its gonna be. And the GPU is debatable too, I just liked that one, but its expensive, may drop it to one of the others, but will stay a 4070TI
The only thing I would change from the build is the PSU. Personally, I would go for a platinum rated PSU since they are the most efficient.
And I would remove the Windows thing and buy the key via cdkeys or mmoga for 10 bucks.
You did pick up the most expensive 4070Ti but it’s also the fastest 4070Ti since it has a higher base clock than other 4070Tis. It’s also the prettiest
The cheapest Z790 I could find here in Germany was the ASUS TUF GAMING Z790-PLUS D4. And the
Asus Prime one as being the second cheapest. I’d go for the Asus motherboard since you plan on getting the Asus GPU. If the motherboard and GPU dies on you, at least you won’t have to deal with several RMA processes 
I’ve been looking at this motherboard-
I do like it, but in looking a little deeper, I see this one-
It looks like the same motherboard, but without the post code thing and start button, less USBs, and one less PCI x 16. And its $200 less than the E model.
Edit: I also notice 18 stage power vs 16 stage power… how important is that?
Also loose an M.2 5.0.
What do you guys think? Do you guys see any other differences I should be looking for? The enthusiast features are very nice, but I’ll admit, I’m not an overclocker or tinkerer. I read that the Strix models are built better than the TUF or Prime models.
Got about 90% of my parts yesterday.
Son and a friend went down to Micro Center in Atlanta, so took advantage and just had them pick up things for me, rather than deal with shippers.
I’d rather deal with Micro Center anyway, over no name internet stores that I can’t physically go to!
Anyway, the build process will start soon, will update as it goes.
Parts list is pretty close to what I had here, with minor changes, and what I am lacking is a lot of cosmetic stuff- call me crazy, but I wanted to see the case/GPU/cooling before deciding for sure on the fans/lighting/cosmetics.
Got the case out though, man this thing is gonna be a beast, and the Lian Li LanCool III is even better in real life than I expected!
Let the fun begin!