Build a PC / gaming & streaming
$8,500 streaming PC, part by part
An AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 with the GeForce RTX 5090, and the 6 parts around them that fit it: $8,660 all in.
1440p gameplay with a live encode running beside it. Every part here was checked against every other for fit, and picked for frame rates with headroom for the encoder and the chat. A price marked Amazon US is ScoutPrices' reading of the listing its button opens, dated; the rest are typical prices. Not a checkout total: no operating system, shipping, tax, screen, keyboard or mouse.
The AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 and the GeForce RTX 5090 are well matched at 1440p.
Flagship
$8,660 of $8,500
Highest gaming & streaming score the budget allows next to this card: 16 cores, boosts to 5.6 GHz.
2 swaps that still fit
- AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D-$199, -11 ptsBuy on Amazon
- AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D-$265, -1 ptsBuy on Amazon
X870E board for the AM5 socket, DDR5, 5 M.2 slots, Wi-Fi.
3 swaps that still fit
- ASUS ROG Strix B850-I Gaming WiFi-$75, -18 ptsBuy on Amazon
- MSI MPG X870E Carbon WiFi-$10, -4 ptsBuy on Amazon
- Gigabyte X870E Aorus Master+$89, -1 ptsBuy on Amazon
32 GB DDR5 at 6400 MT/s CL32; 32 GB or more is the floor for gaming & streaming.
4 swaps that still fit
- TeamGroup T-Force Delta RGB 32GB (2x16GB) DDR5-6000 CL30-$95, -5 ptsBuy on Amazon
- G.Skill Trident Z5 RGB 32GB (2x16GB) DDR5-6400 CL32 White+$50, same scoreBuy on Amazon
- G.Skill Flare X5 32GB (2x16GB) DDR5-6000 CL30-$10, -5 ptsBuy on Amazon
- G.Skill Trident Z5 Neo RGB 32GB (2x16GB) DDR5-6000 CL30+$10, -3 ptsBuy on Amazon
32 GB of video memory, index 100 at 1440p; tuned for frame rates with headroom for the encoder and the chat.
Buying it opens Gigabyte AORUS GeForce RTX 5090 Xtreme WATERFORCE 32G, one of the boards built on this chip.
2 swaps that still fit
- MSI GeForce RTX 5080 16G Gaming Trio OC-$2,344, -24 ptsBuy on Amazon
- ASUS ROG Astral GeForce RTX 5080 16GB White OC-$2,680, -24 ptsBuy on Amazon
Rated 330 W for a chip that turbos to 270 W.
4 swaps that still fit
- Thermalright Frozen Notte 360 White-$16, -18 ptsBuy on Amazon
- Thermalright Frozen Notte 360-$23, -18 ptsBuy on Amazon
- Corsair Nautilus 360 RS+$39, -12 ptsBuy on Amazon
- Corsair iCUE Link Titan 360 RX+$129, same scoreBuy on Amazon
1500 W, 80 Plus platinum; this build draws about 1100 W at full tilt, native 12V-2x6 cable.
1 swap that still fit
- Thermaltake Toughpower GF3 1200W-$123, -6 ptsBuy on Amazon
7 fans in the box, 7 of them lit, 5 is the least 845 W of parts needs behind a closed front. Takes EATX/ATX/MATX/ITX boards and cards up to 422 mm.
4 swaps that still fit
- Lian Li Lancool 207-$169, -5 ptsBuy on Amazon
- Montech King 95 Pro White-$125, -5 ptsBuy on Amazon
- Lian Li O11 Dynamic Evo RGB White-$122, same scoreBuy on Amazon
- Fractal Design Torrent-$65, -1 ptsBuy on Amazon
2 TB PCIe 5.0 NVMe, 14,700 MB/s reads, with cache.
4 swaps that still fit
- Crucial T705 2TB-$18, -1 ptsBuy on Amazon
- WD Black SN8100 2TB+$74, same scoreBuy on Amazon
- Samsung 870 EVO 2TB+$94, -57 ptsBuy on Amazon
- Crucial T705 4TB+$228, +1 ptsBuy on Amazon
4 TB for games, footage or models; the budget had room once every other slot was at its best.
The same list, more or less money
$8,500 spent on a different job
The same money buys a different machine when the work changes.