Hello, can you sanity check my build? The case and the video card are already bought.

I am going to mostly use it for TV and VR gaming.

Any concerns here? I am slightly worried about the AIO 280mm fitting in the case.

Thanks!

The Framework Desktop is a deep disappointment to me. Framework, the company that got into the business with an explicit purpose of building modular and repairable computers, went into a space where that was the norm (desktops), and introduced a PC that was none of those things, at an exorbitant price. When they debuted it, it was marketed specifically as a gaming machine. As much as I want to support them, I cannot reward them for this specific product, as it abandons their fundamental tenets.

Here's the build. You can see similar builds featured on many YT channels at this point with the new NV10 case and 5060 LP GPU.

Here's one from ETA Prime

And another from "MRGUI on PC"

This build: ~$1100

Comparable Framework build: ~$1700

I will concede the Framework is still better at a few things:

• Efficiency (I'm not sure that this is to any degree that's worth being factored in)
• Being that it's more efficient, it's also quieter
• Local LLMs (which no one should care about or be using)
• A bit thinner due to not have a dGPU

I've been pricing out components for my first new build in 20 years. (I've bought many ebay servers and a few mini PCs in between).

The parts are around $2k. But then I look at the amd ai max+ 395 PCs that are out or coming out shortly and I think I might be buying an already obsolete platform. For the same price I'd get 16 cores and over 2x the memory bandwidth.

Hey all. I'm exploring the idea of building a desktop PC optimized for running LLMs locally. My two primary use cases are I'd like to be able to add local documents and then talk to my files; I'd also like to use it as a coding assistant. Lower priority use case but something I'm tangentially interested in is image generation using stable diffusion. I don't plan to do any model training, I'll leave that to the pros.

One of the decisions I'm currently working through is whether to create this as a desktop workstation (like a PC build) or as more of a homelab environment (like a "local cloud"). On one hand, I believe a desktop workstation would be easier for me to wrap my head around b/c I've built several gaming PCs, whereas I have no homelab or self hosting experience beyond running a local-only Jellyfin instance on an old laptop. On the other hand, I like the thought a separate, atomic AI hub as like a local cloud if you will, similar to how I think of the NAS as a separate thing. What I like about the separate local cloud thinking is In both cases, the AI hub and/or the NAS can be accessed from any device.

I would like to strike the right balance between budget, power efficiency, and speed. I don't need to set any land speed records, but I would also like to avoid waiting several minutes for responses. I can probably spend up to $2,000 on this project, and I'm located in the US.

My questions for those the community who've gone before me:

• Has anyone build built a desktop workstation and then wished they built it as a server?
• Is there actually much of a difference between a desktop workstation versus a homelab environment when it comes to hardware for AI tasks?
• What other questions I should be asking myself to decide which way to go?

Thanks!

I'm thinking of building a pc to play a few demanding games (e.g. PEAK, Satisfactory, Stellaris) at 1080p@60. It'd be under Proton/DXVK on Linux.

GPU prices in Australia are kinda fucked atm so that would probably have to be a used card, but would anyone have any advice on what I have so far?

https://au.pcpartpicker.com/list/rtGxzP

(Disclaimer, I realize I'm asking a question that everyone will have their own answer to and my answer is dependent on me and my situation, just curious to hear other's perspectives.)

I've been rocking my GTX 1080 since a few months after launch, and it's held up incredibly well at 1440p ultra wide. However I'm finally at the point where I have a decent number of games I'm waiting to play until I have hardware that can run it (Oblivion remaster, Borderlands 4 in a couple days, GTA VI in four years when it comes to PC). However I'm stuck on what card to get. The 9070XT would be my immediate choice, if the MSRP was not 600 and the cheapest available cards selling at 720+.

Now if the MSRP was 700 I'd feel more comfortable buying the card at that price, as even at the inflated price it seems to offer the best performance in that price range. However if people have been able to get their hands on it for 100 bucks cheaper by being vigilant and waiting, I can't really justify the scalp fee.

The 5070 is the only card available to purchase at the 550-600 range, and while I'm not strictly opposed to it, I'd rather an AMD card since I've been on Linux mostly these days.

I guess long story short, is holding out for an MSRP 9070XT even viable, or is it pretty much guaranteed not to happen before the next gen comes out in a year or two? And would you pay the extra price for the 9070XT over the 5070?

Accidental dup of: https://sh.itjust.works/post/45493802 .. or cross post? idk.

Link: https://www.walmart.com/ip/XPG-CYBERCORE-ATX-Modular-PSU-1000W-80-Plus-Platinum-26-Connectors-Intex-ATX-12V/724286138

PC Part Picker Link: https://pcpartpicker.com/product/rtD7YJ/adata-xpg-cybercore-1000-w-80-platinum-certified-fully-modular-atx-power-supply-cybercore1000-bkcus

.. why is this PSU so cheap? It's on at least one tier list as being A+ rated. It's 80+ Platinum. No idea if it has the latest connector for Nvidia, but I don't really personally need or care about that.

Sold and shipped by walmart.com, so should be a legit seller. Has a 10 year warranty. Returnable in store. What am I missing? lol

(I acknowledge there are some bad reviews.. but still sold and shipped by walmart. Maybe a bad batch?.. but come on that price still)

Why is this so cheap?

I currently am using a wired Corsair iron claw, but it's rubber sides are starting to become bald from wear, and Corsair doesn't sell replacement parts. I love a mouse with side buttons, a wing, and a DPI toggle. But finding mice that are big enough to be comfortable is pretty rare. I've loved the Logitech g602 and Ironclaw so far.

Anything similar to the above, just without rubber? I prefer wired mice.

Trying to max out a pc I inherited to give to another family member but having problems trying to confirm what memory I should purchase and trying to work my way through it but just need some clarifications or maybe I'm missing something. (trying to make this purchase and "finish" this pc to it's max capabilities before prices start to spike)

The pc in question is the HP 280 G3 Microtower. Originally I got the tag FX-ISL-4 off of the MoBo but couldn't find specs so with CPU-X it pulled up a HP 8350 (1) MoBo that I could get specs from (am I missing the 8350 on the board or is cpu-x style programs the only way to get the info?). H110 intel chipset LPC/eSPI controller.

Has an Intel Core i3-7100 (2) with integrated Intel Mesa HD Graphics 630.

Currently it's running 2 - 4GB ddr4-2400Mhz. This all started with trying to figure out the right CAS latency to get as a site listed different ones and I wanted to make sure the more-expensive/low-latency one would even be worth it or would be reduced and ineffective to get the better one. All of the sites also suggest a 32GB kit with 2 - 16GB ddr4-2400/2666/3200 (newegg,kingston,crucial) with the CAS Latency all over the place (I know it's a formula, gonna have to go back and refresh my mind on that I think).

When I ran into the Mobo datasheet (1) it states "Supports up to PC4-21300 (DDR4 2666), Supports 4 GB and 8 GB DDR4 UDIMMs" (making only 16gb total possible). The cpu (2) says ddr4 with "Rated Speed: 2400 MT/s" making all of the other ram recommendations overpowered.

I know from a previous Mac Book pro upgrade the manufacturer specified only 8gb but you could actually install 16gb with updates and changes. I can't find any documentation or articles but the memory sites are very adamant I can install 32GB worth on the HP and I'm very tempted to pull the trigger on that with the lowest CL I can find.

Any suggestions or steps I'm doing wrong? Really want to be confident with identifying my parts, understanding the specs and interactions, and being able to be confident that the parts are compatible. I have a bunch of others I've been staring at to work on similarly but I always hesitate, helps when it's not going to be your computer to actually do the thing.

Hi everybody, I got a used laptop for cheap but the former owner kept the SSD. So I'm searching for a new drive.
I don't have any specific requirements otherwise since the device is just for office/browsing/streaming/etc

Edit: I'm currently looking into Gigabyte Gen4 4000E, Acer FA100 or Intenso MI500.

As a 1080p 21' monitor user, when I got my first Mac laptop seeing it's HiDPI sharp text I was instantly hooked. Thing is, I still need to do my work on a PC. So I started my search for a higher resolution than usual monitor.

Recently, Dell dropped s2725qs which is a steal at 300 euros. It's 4k 27 inch 120hz and 99% SRGB. I set it at 150% scale on KDE Plasma. It works well. Compared to Cinnamon where text was a bit fuzzy at 150% (fractional scaling duh...). Optimal scenario would be 5k so you can use 200%, hence no fractional scaling, but you can't complain at this budget. My eyes are really happy now. I love it. Speakers are surprisingly decent. 120hz is very nice addition, actions like scrolling or playing a game make it so enjoyable.

I know this is technically not a HiDPI monitor, since they start usually at 200+dpi. This Dell is 161dpi, but works for me.

If you have any questions, let me know!

Update: Bad news, I redid the thermal paste on GPU and CPU and still having the crashes.

Good news, I got my tax refund and the OK from my partner to up the budget so I have put together another proposed build with a few comments from my post last week in mind as well as a higher budget.

I like ASUS and it has done me well so I changed the MoBo to another ASUS and changed the GPU and CPU to ones suggested in the comments.

[https://ca.pcpartpicker.com/list/6J2Tcx](higher budget build)

Please let me know what you think of this new proposed build. I figured I would just start fresh with everything new as I really don't know why the system is crashing. It already crashed once just while making this post. I'll only put in my old hard drives for access to all my media files.

Before anyone says it, I already have Fedora in another drive (which I will remove to install windows, dont worry) so no need to suggest linux.

Basically the last time I tried 24H2 was earlier this year from a forced update and it sucked balls, major performance issues in most games. I heard that a fresh install could fix this but I really couldnt be bothered so I reverted and blocked updates. But now thanks to my shitty chinese NVME that died with 30TBW with 2 years of use, I have an opportunity to install windows fresh. Should I even try 24H2 again? Better to install 23H2 offline and block feature updates again?

Hello,

I’ve recently assembled a new PC with the parts listed below and I am having problems with the initial install of Windows 11 Pro.

• MSI B850 Tomahawk Max WiFi
• AMD Ryzen 9 7900
• Corsair Vengeance RGB DDR5 64GB
• MSI GEFORCE RTX 5070ti
• NZXT Kraken 360
• Samsung 990 Pro 4TB
• HYTE Y70 Touch Infinite case

I’ve downloaded the .iso and burned it to an USB stick and after booting, I get a window titled “Windows 11 Pro Install Driver to Show Hardware” and the option to browse for the needed driver. At the bottom of this window, it reads “A media driver your computer needs is missing. This could be a DVD, USB, or Hard Disk Driver.”

I’ve downloaded and flashed the BIOS to the version 7C91v29 dated 2025-07-04. It’s been a while since I’ve built a PC and it seems like most of the hardware now comes from the manufacturer’s website with its own exe that would be run to install the driver. This is my only Windows computer so I’m not sure how I can get the drivers installed. Any help or pointers would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Looking to build a new desktop as my current one is nearly 10 years, and hasn't been upgraded (outside of adding more storage) since the original build.

Looking to do an all AMD build, mostly for gaming while running a Linux OS. My knowledge of hardware isn't what it used to be, and I've had a coworker give some recommendations and reviewed a few other builds on a couple building sites for reference.

Was hoping to maybe be capable of 1440 gaming, while also future-proofing myself.

Any recommendations or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

PCPartPicker Part List: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/n6Pkt3

• CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 9700X 3.8 GHz 8-Core Processor
• CPU Cooler: Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 SE 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler
• Motherboard: MSI MAG B850 TOMAHAWK MAX WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard
• Memory: G.Skill Flare X5 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL36 Memory
• Storage: Crucial BX500 240 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
• Storage: Samsung 990 EVO Plus 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 5.0 X2 NVME Solid State Drive
• Video Card: Sapphire PULSE Radeon RX 9070 16 GB Video Card
• Case: Montech AIR 903 MAX ATX Mid Tower Case
• Power Supply: Super Flower LEADEX VII Platinum PRO 1000 W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply
• Case Fan: Noctua F12 PWM 54.97 CFM 120 mm Fan
• Case Fan: Noctua F12 PWM 54.97 CFM 120 mm Fan

Update from https://reddthat.com/post/42659843/19517206

Parts list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/2GWhpK

First computer built from the ground up. I need to replace my Windows 10 laptop that couldn't be upgraded to Windows 11. Purpose: Watch 4K UHD BluRays and local LLM training.

Goals

• Reuse old chassis in the house. Which means it would be a sleeper build.

• Buy used, if available and in good condition

• Watch 4K UHD BluRay

• Train LLMs locally

• Use a Linux OS (Ubuntu 24.04 LTS)

Notes

Since I'm not good at drilling, the biggest challenge is ensuring good airflow from the stock chassis. The CPU Cooler is meant to be a Noctua NH-D15. Learned too late that the radiator wouldn't fit; the PSU is in the way. Fortunately, the included NF-A15s could be repurposed as chassis fans, thanks to some cable ties that come with the PSU. One is placed in the side, the other in the front near where the original speaker used to be. These are intake fans.

Outtake fans are two blowers that fit in PCI expansion slots. Some slots are effectively blocked by the M2 slot heat sinks.

The built-in WiFi board has no Linux driver. A USB dongle had to be used instead.

Motherboard is chosen to eventually accommodate an RTX5090, if needed.

These parts are bought used

• CPU

• GPU

• Monitor

• SSD

• RAM

• PSU

• Motherboard

Gallery

My main question first: Is my setup incorrect or are the dimming zone based monitors really annoying in day-to-day productivity? For one, the brightness of elements on the screen change too much. I.e. the task bar and cursor brightness change drastically depending on the background, even on low settings. On the medium/high settings of backlight dimming you can clearly see the square backlight behind the cursor. Is this normal and I'm just sensitive to this?

Also general HDR question: SDR white content like documents and websites are insanely bright. Is this also normal or should I play around more with the settings? But I assume I should switch them back when I actually want to consume HDR content?

Would love to hear from someone with some experience with HDR monitors especially LCD with dimming zones.

Backstory

I'm currently upgrading my two ancient 1080p 60Hz monitors. Nowadays I do mostly productivity stuff with my monitors, especially a full-time work from home job. But I do play games occasionally, so I wanted to get something for that aspect too.

I got myself the AOC G27G3XMN because it was recommended by Monitors Unboxed as a good entry level true HDR monitor. I wouldn't mind spending more on a monitor, but OLEDs for productivity don't feel worth it to me.

My 10 year old custom built computer is crashing a lot. I would like to use parts of it so I'm not blowing tons replacing everything.

The link for pc part picker has my current case, power supply, and CPU cooler which should all still be good to reuse. The other parts in that build are just ones I picked at random so are totally up for change.

Any suggestions would be appreciated. I would prefer to keep it under 1000 CAD. If you want to see my actual current build I will put it in a comment.

Edit: I am running Linux Mint Cinnamon as of now. The PSU was replaced in 2021

I have a Dell XPS with a GTX 1080 in it and it's getting a bit dated. I would love to build a machine. I was thinking possibly amd, as it seems better value. I figured I'll keep my 4tb nvme drive and maybe the ram but I should probably buy everything else new.

Any recommendations or should I just mess around on pcpartpicker?

So I've got this 1 liter PC I would like to mount under my desk. I got the compatible vesa kit from lenovo, and would rather use the standard bolts that are provided.

How do I fix them to my particle board desk? Simple holes will not hold the tight thread of the bolts, and I didn't find 'hollow' screws that would hold these, I'm not even sure they exist.

What would be the solution here? Just skip the bolts and put some regular screws? I fear the result won't be very clean...

Thanks

When the postie comes, I'll be building a PC for the first time in years. What are the do's, don'ts and tips nowadays?

Obviously classics like RTFM, plan ahead and retrieve any dropped screws are evergreen.

Things I believe are true: tighten your CPU cooler screws evenly (like putting on a car tyre), all screws should be no more than finger tight, build in a dust-free environment.

What about grounding yourself? I remember reading that the danger of this was way overstated and e.g. anti-static wrist straps were a waste of money. Is building in a case that's plugged in (but powered off) enough?

I've seen recommendations to build outside of the case first to test components - is this good advice?

Anything else?

I've been slow to make an upgrade, and figure what better time to switch to linux?

Did what I could to try to research that the parts were all fairly linux friendly, with a warning about the motherboard's wifi7 maybe not yet supported yet by the kernel.

Looking for a mid-high range build without going crazy on the cost. Build actually came in a bit cheaper than I expected, so feel like maybe I'm missing something here.

My monitor, which I'm planning to keep, does have G-Sync, but I don't know that I'll miss it.

PS: I know i can get more life out of my old hardware, but I want to turn that into a NAS.

EDIT: Fixed link.

Hi, its my 3rd pc build so i'd like to see if there is some kink that I'm unaware of or something else that doesn't really fit.

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/fQrGFZ

I mainly used it for gaming in 1440 or maybe at 4k and it will be on linux.

thank you for your time

I think I'm sort of overspending on the CPU and the monitor. Could anybody offer some advice?