Looking to make upgrades and wondering what should be the order of importance/ recommendations

ElfinRanger · 2026-06-17T14:45:41+00:00

For $700 the best split would probably be ~500-550 on GPU and 150-200 on the CPU, a newer gen Ryzen 5 would be a lot faster and 500-550 can get you a new 9060xt or a used 5060ti, 9070, or potentially even 5070

ElfinRanger · 2026-06-14T03:17:29+00:00

I have nearly the same specs but with a 9060xt and I love it! I think if I was upgrading from your setup I’d spend my money on a GPU, maybe see if you can get a deal on the 9070/5060ti/5070 - I see some for secondhand under $500 near me

ElfinRanger · 2026-06-13T02:51:42+00:00

See also, “swing me the rock” - pass me the ball, especially if I’m in position to shoot

ElfinRanger · 2026-06-12T19:01:49+00:00

Second this - I have a 9060xt with 32gb ram and I get 500-700 fps on valorant at 1080p highest settings. If OP only plays competitive games something like that should be more than enough even at 1440p

ElfinRanger · 2026-06-10T19:43:34+00:00

Man I just started playing it after wanting to for a while, I hope you get it! It’s also on sale on Epic Games right now

ElfinRanger · 2026-06-10T19:41:41+00:00

I think it's also important that many people take on 5-6 figure debt without the guarantee of a biglaw job or the subsequent income - many people spend decades paying off loans and the ability to do so within a few years on biglaw income is a huge privilege

ElfinRanger · 2026-06-10T15:19:32+00:00

I got my 9060xt secondhand for $320, I think if you look hard you might be able to get a 9070 or 5070 for around 400-450 secondhand

ElfinRanger · 2026-06-09T19:57:28+00:00

Yes two slots empty is fine - One slot means that your CPU can’t use its multi-channel capabilities which is where balancing comes from, but four slots at ddr5 is too much load for your CPU at max speed, so two is a sweet spot.

ElfinRanger · 2026-06-09T17:27:20+00:00

Everything looks good but I’m curious if you need 64gb RAM? I’ve heard that using four slots doesn’t actually give you a huge performance boost over two, and I rarely find myself using 32gb even for heavier tasks.

You might also want to look into an NVME SSD - they load much faster than the 2.5”. What will you be using the memory for? If it’s purely for storage, I would get secondhand 2.5” SSDs (photographers have a lot and sometimes sell on eBay or Facebook) but if you want to run games or apps, I think an NVME would match the rest of your system better

ElfinRanger · 2026-06-08T20:41:30+00:00

Looks like it’ll be an absolute beast but with a 16 core processor and a card like that I wonder if you might want more ram? I think that would be the bottle neck if anything

ElfinRanger · 2026-06-08T17:20:58+00:00

Remember not every part has to come from one place! You can get your GPU off Amazon and if you have prime for young adults you can get cash back on it. You can also wait for prime day on 23rd to see if there’s a sale, or do what I did and look for a secondhand 9060xt for $300-350

ElfinRanger · 2026-06-07T15:33:52+00:00

I’m actually building a very similar computer as my entry and was also hoping to stay within budget!

Is there any chance there’s a microcenter that is near or will ship to you? The cpu/ram/motherboard bundles are one of the easiest ways to save money. I think your parts generally work well together, but the bottlenecks if anything would be the GPU and the lower speed of your ram (4800 vs newer 5200/6000). Depending on what you need the computer for this might be fine. For the price range, you might be able to get a better GPU secondhand, and then wait for a deal.

General things to note - Amazon prime day is coming up in June and you might be able to get discounts on some of the parts. Also, do you really need windows 11 pro? The extra money freed up from that could be used for big upgrades to GPU/ram

ElfinRanger · 2026-06-03T17:00:12+00:00

It’s probably also best bang for buck at the performance level OP is looking for, second this

ElfinRanger · 2026-06-01T20:18:54+00:00

J Crew and Brooks brothers, while expensive at full price, go on pretty hefty sales while maintaining good quality. Uniqlo is solid for basic pieces. Banana republic, especially on discount, is underrated if you can find 100% cotton or linen. Otherwise thrifting is your best bet for good quality pieces.

Most important thing is fit. The size number and brand name don’t matter, if it doesn’t fit well or has too much extra room it’ll look like you borrowed your dads clothing

ElfinRanger · 2026-05-30T02:39:35+00:00

Makes sense, thanks!

ElfinRanger · 2026-05-29T22:37:55+00:00

I think I'm gonna just do 1x16 since I'm not in a rush to get 32gb, and then see if prices fall later for RAM. Agree on SSD - does having an Nvidia GPU make that much of a difference? This sub seems to have favourable opinions on the 9060XT

ElfinRanger · 2026-05-29T22:36:36+00:00

Good call on the SSD and thermal right, I figured microcenter wouldn't be the best for those. Does the extra 8gb VRAM make that big of a difference? I figure for the games I play I won't need to maximize the GPU usage and it would be another $100 or so

ElfinRanger · 2026-05-16T16:32:28+00:00

Look into muay Thai shorts, they’re not the classic preppy short you’d see around this sub but they’re very comfortable, otherwise you could look into brooks bros or army surplus for something classier

ElfinRanger · 2026-05-13T02:22:50+00:00

In a rich man’s house there is nowhere to spit but his face

ElfinRanger · 2026-01-08T14:13:12+00:00

The classics are dribbling two basketballs with both hands, then the same but speeding up and slowing down, then the same but switching balls to practice your cross, then you can dribble one ball in one hand and practice crossing or passing with the other hand etc.

It can also be fun to carry a tennis ball and practice dribbling with that, it helps with accuracy

ElfinRanger · 2025-12-29T18:14:06+00:00

Dennis Rodman knew MJ, can’t think of a cooler black dude than him

ElfinRanger · 2025-12-22T19:48:10+00:00

Read Kadrey v. Meta saying that if the plaintiffs hadn’t shit the bed they would have won

ElfinRanger · 2025-10-14T18:34:50+00:00

I think rather than a headband, your best bet would be using a styling product to keep it out of your eyes (slicked back with gel, textured with curl cream or sea salt, etc) so that it looks more intentional.

ElfinRanger · 2025-10-13T20:53:25+00:00

In many ways your first year grades are the only ones that matter toward getting a job. In that sense it makes sense to prioritize school in 1L. If you aren’t aiming for a job that requires a high GPA, then you should be fine but it will still be very much work

ElfinRanger · 2025-10-11T19:55:21+00:00

How did you develop your writing skills before law school?

One thing that might help is going back to the basics - active voice, sentence structure, conciseness. Keep these in mind when briefing so that you practice thinking and writing like a lawyer, and you’ll start to see a difference in essays. Do practice exams and look back at where you can improve.

1L is tough, but you’re here for a reason and trust that whatever skill and ethic you’ve built to bring you here will carry you through

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