How to save money on building a gaming PC in 2022

Some strange trend is observed in 2022 in the computer components market. Logically, new technology should replace obsolete ones. But all new items receive + 30-40% in the price list. Accordingly, you will have to buy a gaming computer not for $2000-3000, but for 4-5 thousand US dollars. Let's talk about how to save money on building a gaming PC in 2022. In fact, it's real. And not at the expense of performance. We just need to turn off all these marketing tricks that the manufacturer stuffs us with.

How to save money on building a gaming PC in 2022

 

Let's not argue about the platforms of Intel, AMD and nVidia. The buyer defines a pair of "video card-processor" himself. It is quite realistic to opt for the classics - GeForce RTX 3080 Ti paired with the flagship Intel Core i7 on socket 1700. We will save on the rest:

 

• RAM. All store sellers, as one, assure that games need at least 32 GB of RAM. Lies. Maybe before the advent of SSD, this was true. Not now. Virtual memory does a great job with CACHE. It is enough to take 16 GB of RAM. Preferably with two slats 8 + 8 so that they work in DUAL mode. In the future, you can buy the same pair (it is desirable to have 4 DDR5 slots on the motherboard). You don't have to chase timings. And the memory frequency should match the processor - 4800 MHz.
• Motherboard. It is better to trust trusted brands and take from them a board with a minimum price tag that is compatible with other components. AsRock, ASUS, MSI, Gigabyte - there are plenty to choose from.

• Drives (ROM). To store information, it is better to buy more durable HDDs (2-8 TB). For the system and games use - SSD (480-960 GB). Cool NVMe with crazy speeds increase game loading speed by 10%. And then, their efficiency is equal to a regular SSD.
• Expensive cases can also not be bought. Take a regular ATX with a lower PSU bay.
• Don't skimp on power supplies. A well-known brand (with a 3-5 year warranty) and a Bronze certificate, at least. Better - 80 PLUS GOLD. We recommend brand products - Seasonic (for 10 years it will definitely be enough).
• CPU cooling. Noctua is undeniably cool. But the same Core i7 BOX comes with a chic cooler. Savings immediately $400.

 

We save on peripherals and a monitor - this is minus $ 500 for sure

 

FullHD monitors are half the price of 4K monitors. But the gamer firmly believes that in 4K he will get a more detailed picture. No. Firstly, the picture is more dependent on the color depth - 16.7 million or 1 billion shades. Secondly, for 4K games, you need not one top-end video card, but two. And that's without ray tracing. It is much more convenient to buy a FullHD monitor with a large color coverage. It will be fast and beautiful.

A gaming mouse, keyboard, and headphones will easily cost $1000 if you look at the cool brands. But you can moderate your ardor and take budget solutions from the same manufacturers. Let the design be not “fire”, but the savings are very noticeable. Later, this small thing can be updated when extra money appears. And many gamers already have all this in stock for a long time.