We continue the traditional heading “PC of the month”. This time we’re looking at Multimedia, Progressive, and the updated Budget+ category. We decided to expand the range and increase the variety. In the October issue, we will compile balanced system blocks for work and games – for different tastes and budgets.

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Multimedia computer $225 to $230

The vast majority of people don’t need much from a PC. It is enough for the system unit to work with documents at lightning speed, play media and quickly process web pages. “Multimedia” October PC will be in a compact and thin body. We will not add a discrete graphics card to this category, so go ahead to find good CPUs with integrated graphics. There is an Intel Celeron G6900 with very powerful dual cores and an Intel UHD Graphics 710. AMD Athlon 3000G will be an alternative. We do not recommend the A6, A8, A10, A12 processor series. They are the heirs of the FM2 + socket and are unproductive and unprofitable against the background of modern Athlon GGE.

A320 chipset motherboards are cheap compared to H610 competitors, which makes up for the difference in processor prices. We are looking for inexpensive Micro ATX motherboards to fit everything into a small case. We choose a simple RAM, with two sticks as a priority. Let it be a cheap PC, but still we will not regret it and install 16GB. We will spend a maximum of 50-55 dollars on the RAM .

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An integrated Intel UHD or AMD Vega 3 graphics card will allow you to easily play streaming 4K video, cope with multimedia content of any quality. Good performance per processor core and hardware support allow even such cheap dual-core systems to process data with ease.

Be sure to use an SSD drive. Use the HDD in a computer only when you need to save a large amount of data. For a multimedia assembly, we recommend a simple SATA SSD with a capacity of 240-256GB, which is enough for the system, programs, personal files and a few simple games.

You don’t have to spend a lot on a body. We choose a compact case with a 200-400W power supply. There are ready-made options with a complete PSU. These PCs use very little power. At peak load, you can count on 70-100 W / h.

Even a tiny piece of aluminum can cool these processors. In order not to spend extra money, we take the cooler that comes with the kit – boxed.

So, we get an inexpensive “Multimedia” PC based on Intel for $230, and based on AMD $225.

Budget computer $685 to $800

“Budget+” PCs will include fairly current, but not too recent processors. The LGA 1200 platform is still a good choice for the next few years. The flagships of Rocket Lake somewhat disappointed the public, but the middle peasants became the perfect continuation of the successful Comet Lake generation. The 11th generation is the i5 generation.

A six-core Intel Core i5-11400f against the same six-core AMD Ryzen 5 5600 . The difference in price is small, so is the performance. A perfect example of proper competition in the market. The system unit “Budget +” will have a good perspective in upgrading the graphics adapter with such processors. In the future, you can easily “throw” a more productive video card to it.

We will not save on the motherboard, but we will not become luxurious in the budget collection. Therefore, we choose mid-range chipsets. The Rocket Lake LGA 1200 has a lot of good boards for the B560 chipset. We take a model with adequate power and radiators. The B550 for AMD also comes with a lot of great modifications. A fairly decent fee can be found for 3000-3500 UAH.

DDR4 3200+MHz RAM will do. Latency CL16-18. It is quite realistic to meet the 65-70 greens, if you follow the prices of stores. If you wish, add $20 and choose faster RAM – relevant for eSports fans.

The Nvidia GTX 1660 graphics adapter is included in the basic package of the Budget+ PC. The analogue will be the Radeon RX 6500XT. These graphics adapters are very close in performance when using PCI-E 4.0. We recommend that you install the Radeon 6500XT only on systems that support the new interface. The processors used in the assembly support PCI-E 4.0. The difference in the price of the video card is offset by a large amount of memory (+2GB), and in general, these adapters can be roughly considered competitive. We also suggest paying attention to the Nvidia GTX 1660 Ti. Sometimes the cost difference between the regular version is very small. Radeon 6500XT consumes 2.5-3 times less power and generates almost no heat, which is important for compact assemblies.

The “Video card +” option will slightly increase the budget of the entire PC. We recommend choosing Nvidia RTX 3050 or AMD Radeon RX6600 . Together with good processors, such an assembly can handle any modern game. In esports disciplines, we get perfect smoothness. It is no longer cheap, but the difference in power between the basic configuration is quite significant.

For data storage, a 512GB disk will suffice. Select M2 NvME drives. Some M2 SSDs use SATA and are limited in speed, so we carefully choose a fast solid state.

You can fit all this into a simple and inexpensive case. Still, this is a “Budget +” assembly, so we’ll save on appearance. We use the bulk of the funds for the power supply. A computer with such spare parts is not too demanding on the PSU, a 450-500W unit with an 80+ certificate will be enough.

A boxed cooler can cope, but the high fan speed will always remind you of the saved thousand hryvnias. A simple130-180W tower is enough. We get quiet operation and adequate temperature.

The “Optimal” PC of September can be built for $685 on Intel or $700 on AMD. By adding the “Video card +” option, the price will rise to $785 or $800 respectively.

Progressive computer from 1925 to 2050 dollars

This month we are returning to the section “Progressive” DC. This part of the article is dedicated to the category of people who want to get a powerful config for a reasonable cost.

We choose a productive and rational option Inte Core i7-12 7 0 0K . A powerful processor will easily give odds to the i9 LGA 1200 flagships. You can choose a version without the “K” index if you really want to save money. From AMD, the competitor in this release will be the all-new Ryzen 5 7600X . The new generation of CPUs from AMD is still high priced, but delivers better performance than the average Intel Core i5 ^12th Gen. Therefore, the comparison of CPU data (i7 vs r5) will be as objective as possible in terms of price and processing power.

For the stable operation of the entire progressive PC system, medium chipset motherboards are suitable, but for the Intel Core i7-12700 K, we choose the much better Z690 with powerful power supply, modern interfaces and cooling radiators. You can easily find the best option for a little more than 240-300 dollars. Such a “board” will withstand the Core i7-12700k without any problems and will not let its owner down. For AMD X670, you will have to pay almost twice as much. It’s a top-of-the-line board that gives you a huge upgrade headroom for the future. Unfortunately, cheaper chipsets for AMD are not yet available.

We take good DDR5 RAM . The 5200MHz frequency will squeeze the most power out of every system. If the modules can be overclocked, this will be a nice bonus. These motherboards support overclocking RAM. We take two modules of 16GB.

The powerful RTX 3070 Ti graphics cards from Nvidia and the RX 680 0 Xt from AMD are great additions to a Progressive PC. These graphics adapters are very similar in price and performance. Nvidia has the advantage of DLSS and well implemented ray tracing. But that doesn’t stop Radeon’s alternative model from competing locally in the market thanks to its powerful chip. Video cards compete well with each other.

The drive will be M2 PCI-E 4.0 with a high write speed. Enough volume 2TB. A “progressive” computer is an expensive but not wasteful build, so one drive of this size will be enough to store additional media content. It will satisfy the needs of finicky gamers or video enthusiasts.

You can store this constructor in any case, but we will not save too much, so we are looking at the medium-high class. A spacious Full/Midi Tower with a classic design will do. It is important that it be with a well thought out ventilation system. We also add a 600-700W 80 Plus power supply here. A good PSU will never be superfluous and will remain relevant for a long time, we do not save on it.

Water cooling for such processors does not make sense. We will manage with classic towers in the price range of 50-70 dollars. Quiet fan operation and good temperature performance are provided.

The Progressive PC configuration as of October 2022 will cost the buyer $1925, provided that he chooses a build based on Intel 12 generation. For those who decide to get acquainted with the new AM5 platform, you will have to spend $ 2050 on such a promising system.