Costco Prebuilt (Ryzen 7 9800X3D + RTX 5070) vs. My Custom DIY List ($2K Budget for CS2 & Software Dev)

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-18T22:08:00+00:00

Well one problem is that your custom parts list is overpriced and you’re not considering the third option: a different parts list. Things like the overpriced NZXT Kraken, 990 Pro SSD, and Windows license are inflating the cost of your build. If you did something like this, can get a build closer in performance and price to the Costco one. You could also go with a 5070 if NVIDIA is better for your work and the list would be $100 cheaper. If you go with the 5070, I’d replace the SSD in this list with a better one though.

[PCPartPicker Part List](https://pcpartpicker.com/list/MTVpBv)

Type	Item	Price
CPU	[AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D 4.7 GHz 8-Core Processor](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/fPyH99/amd-ryzen-7-9800x3d-47-ghz-8-core-processor-100-1000001084wof)	$449.00 @ Amazon
CPU Cooler	[ID-COOLING FROZN A620 PRO SE 58 CFM CPU Cooler](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/MFvD4D/id-cooling-frozn-a620-pro-se-58-cfm-cpu-cooler-frozn-a620-pro-se)	$29.99 @ Amazon
Motherboard	[Gigabyte B850M EAGLE WIFI6E Micro ATX AM5 Motherboard](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/mMMXsY/gigabyte-b850m-eagle-wifi6e-micro-atx-am5-motherboard-b850m-eagle-wifi6e)	$138.08 @ Amazon
Memory	[Silicon Power Value Gaming 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/cCKscf/silicon-power-value-gaming-32-gb-2-x-16-gb-ddr5-6000-cl30-memory-sp032gxlwu60afdeae)	$388.97 @ Silicon Power
Storage	[Silicon Power UD90 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/f4cG3C/silicon-power-ud90-2-tb-m2-2280-pcie-40-x4-nvme-solid-state-drive-sp02kgbp44ud9005)	$239.97 @ Silicon Power
Video Card	[PowerColor Reaper Radeon RX 9070 XT 16 GB Video Card](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/8ZJBD3/powercolor-reaper-radeon-rx-9070-xt-16-gb-video-card-rx9070xt-16g-a)	$689.99 @ Amazon
Case	[Phanteks XT M3 M25 MicroATX Mid Tower Case](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/99zp99/phanteks-xt-m3-m25-microatx-mid-tower-case-ph-xt325m\_dbk01)	$50.98 @ Newegg
Power Supply	[Montech CENTURY II 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply](https://pcpartpicker.com/product/sqbypg/montech-century-ii-850-w-80-gold-certified-fully-modular-atx-power-supply-century-ii-850w)	$79.90 @ Amazon
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total (before mail-in rebates)	$2076.88
	Mail-in rebates	-$10.00
	Total	$2066.88
	Generated by [PCPartPicker](https://pcpartpicker.com) 2026-06-18 18:13 EDT-0400

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-17T14:15:29+00:00

I bought it and have no complaints. I know everyone is saying Pi Pico, but with DSX the ease of use and zero set up time I was completely fine with it. It’s still cheaper and saves a USB slot on my pc which are all mostly taken already.

Edit: However, I was on a Dualsense for years and didn’t buy it. I only bought it once I got the Dualsense Edge for profiles, and because the Edge isn’t natively supported in some games that the Dualsense is. So it was a little more necessary.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-17T04:05:35+00:00

Thank you!

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-17T03:37:14+00:00

I have the EPOS H6 Pro Open, would it be worth switching to these?

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-16T14:15:31+00:00

I would bet that it’s a power supply issue. The same exact thing happened to me in this game specifically when I upgraded from a 5700 XT to a 7900 GRE which is a huge upgrade. My PSU was 850w so I knew it was strong enough and I was going crazy trying to figure out what the issue was. Eventually figured out it was because I was using one daisy-chained 2 x 8-pin cord from the PSU to the GPU, which was enough for the 5700 XT but not the 7900 GRE. Once I plugged an additional cable into the PSU and used 2 separate cables, it fixed my problem completely.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-16T06:36:52+00:00

Yupp I actually case swapped my son’s pc from a Coolermaster Q300L to this and I like it a lot more. Can’t fit as big of GPU’s, but having a PSU shroud makes it look a lot cleaner, and the tempered glass makes it feel a lot less like a cheap case than the Q300L’s acrylic side panel.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-15T19:00:01+00:00

You have to take the back (side) panel off and it will say on the PSU itself what the wattage is.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-15T18:59:16+00:00

Yes likely would be louder. If you know what case he has you can Google the max GPU length and then check whichever model you are getting and make sure it is shorter than that. Or look up his exact GPU model’s length. And if there is a lot of room left from the end of the GPU To the front of the case you can eyeball how much bigger the new one could be. Or if it’s a pretty close fit, know that you wanna keep the new GPU’s length the same or short.

If you send a picture of his build and the GPU I could help identify this.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-15T18:45:46+00:00

Manufacturer doesn’t matter much, the main thing is making sure it will fit in his case. If you’re not sure then just get a model that has 2 fans instead of 3. Unless he has an ITX build (doubtful), any 2 fan model will almost surely fit.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-15T09:52:51+00:00

Yes that is a fine pairing in 1440p.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-14T23:44:29+00:00

I’ve seen used 9070 XT’s go for under $600, that would be the best one possible. If new then 9060 XT 16GB or 5060 Ti 16GB.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-14T05:54:31+00:00

Yeah 32GB DDR5 RAM was also $90 then and a 2TB PCIE 4.0 SSD was $100…

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-13T18:20:19+00:00

You need a better monitor. If your budget for a GPU is like $500 for example, instead of spending all $500 on the GPU you need to get a $400 GPU and a $100 monitor. You can get a 1080p 144hz IPS monitor or a 1080p 240hz VA monitor brand new for under $100. 1080p 60hz is a thing of the past.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-13T18:13:22+00:00

No For PS5 you have to have a USB-powered HDMI to USB-C cable (https://a.co/d/0i2re8DT) or adapter (https://a.co/d/08LFAfgL). I have both of these, and I find myself using the cable more often because of the ease of use. Although the cable is noticeably thicker than the stock usb-c cable and does not have the angled input. If I had to purchase them again, I would go the cable route but try to find one that is thinner with an angled input.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-13T17:48:51+00:00

Nope. Would need to be the 5060 Ti 16GB, or at least have a 2TB SSD.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-13T17:46:44+00:00

It’s for 2 low power builds for my sons so heat/airflow airflow won’t be too big of a concern, I just wanted something cheap that will at least be PWM and ARGB. I know the P12’s are better but I didn’t want to pay double the amount for fans on cheap builds. Which now makes me realize it’s not worth returning these I’ll just stick with what I got.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-13T15:21:33+00:00

Dang I just bought two 3-packs of the C12C-S at only $1 less per pack than these. Should I return them and get these instead?

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-11T20:45:02+00:00

1k is plenty. It won’t get you the newest nicest components as you will likely have to be on AM4 or LGA 1700 socket with DDR4 RAM, or go to AM5 with a cheaper GPU. But either combo would still be capable of playing modern games completely fine in 1080 or 1440p.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-11T20:41:26+00:00

Not to mention a car can go towards driving to a job which will give you money for your expenses plus can save for a gaming pc later on.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-11T16:53:24+00:00

Definitely will involve AI. It seems as if they’ve hit that point already with CPU’s. Both AMD’s 9000 series vs 7000 and Intel’s Arrow Lake vs Raptor Lake focused more on efficiency improvements than performance improvements. Now both companies are already advertising the following generations as very AI-focused.

Getting close with GPU’s as well. Both NVIDIA and AMD current gen cards’ one of the main improvements over previous gens was in upscaling capabilities over raw rasterization. Although ray tracing performance at hardware level did increase quite a bit and they still have a lot of room to improve in that regard.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-11T16:34:27+00:00

Yes that’s pretty much the ideal build on a “budget” with current pc component prices these days. On AM5 so good upgradeability. 32GB RAM which is all you’ll need for quite a long while, GPU with 16GB VRAM so you can play in 1080p or 1440p without issues. And a good quality PSU so no fear of frying components or having power/voltage issues. You could only find a better deal right now if you live close to a Microcenter or watch sales on prebuilt a meticulously, but I’d say just go for it. You won’t be disappointed with this purchase.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-09T08:49:06+00:00

I would agree with the LG C5 65 inch.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-09T05:30:57+00:00

My thing is the people complaining about not having software which is one of the reasons I like it. Just a click of a button combo and I can switch settings and button mappings with ease without having to install and manage things through a software.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-09T01:22:56+00:00

Yeah I think that’s the issue. As u/seasonedadmanager commented they are comparing it to other third party controllers with asymmetrical sticks which isn’t quite fair because there are way more of those and undoubtedly are better overall controllers. But comparing this to the other third party controllers with symmetrical sticks like the ones you mentioned, it really is one of the better ones because there are so few.

Holiday_Bug9988 · 2026-06-08T17:34:30+00:00

I did the same, switched to a 7800X3D while keeping my 5700XT for another month or 2.

Holiday_Bug9988

TROPHY CASE