Here's the new build I'm considering, after poking around on this site and elsewhere for a few days, and doing some research. This is very much a first draft. I have some questions below, but also feel free to just steer me to better gear.
PCPartPicker part list
CPU: AMD - Ryzen 3 1300X 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($128.69 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: Scythe - Mugen 5 Rev. B 51.2 CFM CPU Cooler ($47.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI - B350 PC MATE ATX AM4 Motherboard ($65.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: *Team - Dark 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($169.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung - 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($139.99 @ B&H)
Video Card: Palit - GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB KalmX Video Card ($228.60 @ Amazon)
Case: Fractal Design - Define S ATX Mid Tower Case ($78.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: SeaSonic - FOCUS Plus Gold 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.59 @ SuperBiiz)
Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($89.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1029.71
Usage & Goals
I'm going to use this mostly for work, which is paying for it, but I need to stay around this budget. I'm a consultant and programmer. Everything I work with is cloud. Tons of browser tabs, frequent online meetings with screen-sharing and video, that kind of thing. Nothing super CPU intensive like video rendering.
Gaming-wise, I don't do much, and I lean toward strategy. Would like to be able to run the latest Civ. Others would mostly be less hardware-intensive than that.
Want it to be snappy for all of the above, doesn't have to be blazing fast. No interest in overclocking.
Sound-wise, doesn't have to be completely silent. I don't mind a little steady and low-level white noise. I work from home and have small kids, so a little whoosh maybe even helps. What drives me nuts is sharp or variable noise - rattles, fans spinning up and getting loud, sound levels rising and falling, etc. Want to avoid that.
Looking for ease of assembly. I've built 2 systems in my life, last was most of a decade ago. Don't want a steep learning curve. Don't want to be constantly micromanaging settings & fan speeds, although happy to do some tuning inintially. Once it's set up right, hoping to be able to forget about the hardware.
Couldn't care less about how the machine looks.
Questions
- CPU seem OK for the usage? Options are a little bewildering. Went w/ AMD for the price and b/c it seems like it might have less exposure to Meltdown/Spectre than Intel, or at least less slowdown from software/firmware fixes?
- How hard is the Mugen to install right? Do I need to buy thermal paste separately?
- Is this GPU overkill? Never had a desktop w/ a GPU, past 2 builds have been onboard graphics only. Shooting in the dark here.
- Am I likely to run into problems w/ the fanless Palit? Will it take a lot of tinkering with airflow & fans w/ this case? Best guess at alternate would be https://pcpartpicker.com/product/RDQRsY ... o4g-gaming
- Are the default case fans good enough w/ the Fractal? Or should I replace w/ better ones? And do I need more than the default?
- Is the mobo good enough for fan control in BIOS?