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ScoutSpecs

Build a PC

A budget and a purpose. Every part is chosen for the job, checked against every other part for fit, and explained. Prices are typical, not live: the Amazon page decides.

Start from a build people pick

Live from the catalogue
  1. Office & everyday for $1,000AMD Ryzen 5 5500Radeon RX 6600$993 all in, 8 parts, fit 53 of 10053fitOpen this build
  2. Gaming for $1,500Intel Core i5-14600KFRadeon RX 7700 XT$1,498 all in, 8 parts, fit 62 of 10062fitOpen this build
  3. Content creation for $3,000Intel Core Ultra 7 270K PlusGeForce RTX 5070 Ti$2,989 all in, 8 parts, fit 82 of 10082fitOpen this build

Every row is worked out from today's catalogue. Open one, then change anything.

  1. 1Pick a budget from the rail, in steps of $500
  2. 2Say how it should look: black or white, with RGB or without
  3. 3Say what the PC is for; a processor or graphics brand is optional
  4. 4A whole PC appears, the case with its fans; open the swaps or buy each part

A demonstration with example parts. Hover to pause.

Budget, in US dollars

Steps of $500. $3,000 is the least that buys every part an AI & local models PC needs; past $9,500 the catalogue has nothing faster to add. A screen, keyboard and mouse come on top.

How it should look

Every part that can light up does, in whatever colour it comes. The case, the cooler, the board, the card, the supply and the memory follow the colour; the case's fans, the cooler, the board and the memory follow the lighting. A drive has no colour and a supply does not glow, so neither is asked to match. A look costs money, so the budget rail moves with it.

What the PC is for
69Fit for the job

Sweet spot

$3,000 for AI & local models

Tuned for video memory first, then card speed, then system memory.

$2,945 for 8 parts, $55 under budget

The Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus has headroom to spare. The Radeon RX 9060 XT 16GB sets the frame rate at 1440p, so a faster card is the upgrade that shows.

Phanteks XT Pro UltraRX 9060 XT 16GB750 W

Build order

Eight steps, the way a builder works through the case. $2,945 all in.

  1. Gigabyte B860 Aorus Elite WiFi7 on the tray
  2. Core Ultra 7 270K Plus in the socket
  3. Thermalright Frozen Notte 360 on top
  4. 2 sticks of memory
  5. Lexar NM790 2TB on the board
  6. RX 9060 XT 16GB in the x16 slot
  7. 750 W supply in the basement
  8. Panel on, power on
PartScore for the jobTypical priceBuy
ProcessorIntel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus

Highest AI & local models score the budget allows next to this card: 24 cores, boosts to 5.5 GHz.

4 swaps that still fit
97
$324
Buy on Amazon
MotherboardGigabyte B860 Aorus Elite WiFi7

B860 board for the LGA1851 socket, DDR5, 3 M.2 slots, Wi-Fi.

2 swaps that still fit
76
$170
Buy on Amazon
MemoryG.Skill Trident Z5 RGB 64GB (2x32GB) DDR5-6000 CL30

64 GB DDR5 at 6000 MT/s CL30; 64 GB or more is the floor for AI & local models.

1 swap that still fit
90
$1,400
Buy on Amazon
Graphics cardRadeon RX 9060 XT 16GB

16 GB of video memory, index 40 at 1440p; tuned for video memory first, then card speed, then system memory.

2 swaps that still fit
40
$530
Buy on Amazon
CPU coolerThermalright Frozen Notte 360

Rated 300 W for a chip that turbos to 250 W, with lit fans.

2 swaps that still fit
78
$55
Buy on Amazon
Power supplybe quiet! Pure Power 12 M 750W

750 W, 80 Plus gold; this build draws about 550 W at full tilt, native 12V-2x6 cable.

4 swaps that still fit
82
$80
Buy on Amazon
CasePhanteks XT Pro Ultra

4 fans in the box, 4 of them lit, 3 is the least 410 W of parts needs behind a mesh front. Takes EATX/ATX/MATX/ITX boards and cards up to 415 mm.

2 swaps that still fit
78
$86
Buy on Amazon
StorageLexar NM790 2TB

2 TB PCIe 4.0 NVMe, 7,400 MB/s reads.

2 swaps that still fit
76
$300
Buy on Amazon
Total, typical prices8 parts$2,945

Is another $500 worth it?

Same job, same brand choices, only the budget moves one step. These are the parts that change.

+$500$3,498 all in, fit 78 +9
  • MotherboardASUS ROG Strix Z890-A Gaming WiFi instead of Gigabyte B860 Aorus Elite WiFi7
  • Graphics cardRadeon RX 7900 XT instead of Radeon RX 9060 XT 16GB
  • CaseMontech King 95 Pro instead of Phanteks XT Pro Ultra
  • StorageSamsung 9100 Pro 2TB instead of Lexar NM790 2TB
See what the step up buys
Already own some of these?Take this build's processor and board into the matcher and fill only the gaps.Upgrading instead of starting over?Check the PC you have first; the one part holding it back may be the only one worth buying.