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CPU
CPU Cooler
Motherboard
Memory
Storage
Video Card
Case
Power Supply
Operating System
Case Fan
Case Fan
Case Fan
Case Fan
Monitor
Keyboard
Mouse
Headphones
Total:
+ Total (United States):
I built this computer for my wife for her birthday. She's been wanting a gaming pc ever since I built mine late last year.
I had originally planned to build with the 8600k and the Z370-E board but this motherboard has dropped off the face of the earth so I decided to run 9th gen and take a look at ASUS's new offerings. These new boards are really nice. The all black design makes it fit into any design easily. The included VRM fan was a nice bonus and the new integrated IO shield is an improvement over the 8th gen integrated shield. The m.2 heatsink uses the same screw and standoff as the m.2 drive and it was a little difficult to align all three to screw down the heatsink and make sure the drive was snug. Another issue with the m.2 drive and this board was the ‘auto’ recognition feature between NVME and SATA. Out of the box this board would not recognize the m.2 drive and I had to manually set the condition to SATA before it would read the drive. Since there have been no issues and the MX500 seems to be a rock-solid drive delivering fast performance. The 9600k seems more than capable of handling itself and overclocks easily to 4.6 on all cores. I didn’t really want to push the system as it’s not mine and I wanted reliable performance with minimal heat/noise increase. The Dark Rock 4 cooler seems to be handling the heat generated just fine with temps under load peaking to 68°C.
The Vengeance Pro ram looks really nice. Clock really easily with the XMP profile to their specified 3200mhz. The only downside is that they’re not compatible with aura sync but the corsair software is easy to use and once you set it there’s no need to mess with it again.
The PRIME Ultra Gold PSU is fantastic. The build quality is top notch and the packaging is great. The 12-year warranty is great peace of mind. It’s the perfect fit for this build.
The be quiet! SilentWings 3 fans are so quiet. It’s unbelievable how silent the rig is even under load. It makes me want to switch out the fans in my machine. I can see the different in build quality and performance when you make the jump to $25+ fans.
The PG248QR is a great 1080p 144hz refresh rate monitor. I got it on sale at microcenter and after a little color tweaking it looks great. A nice budget friendly high refresh rate monitor.
I didn't get to take a lot of build pictures, I was trying to hurry and finish before she got home from work
A great CPU for general use and gaming. A worthy successor to the 8600k.
A HSF that lives up to its name. be quiet! is indeed very quiet and performs very well keeping this 9600k cool under pressure. The fan was a little difficult to get into the fins of the heat sink and the mounting plate could use a little more refinement, I still feel like you need three hands to mount the thing.
Beautiful board. The integrated IO shield is really nice and fits much easier into the case than their 8th gen IO shields. The included VRM fan is a nice touch and the RGB is nice and not over the top.
I did have some issues with the m.2 SATA drive. The Z390-E is supposed to auto detect which type of m.2 you have installed and it wasn't doing that. I had to manually set it to SATA in the bios before the drive would recognize.
Looks great and clocks to 3200 with ease. Only downside is it's not aura sync compatible.
Great little guy. It's amazing how small these things are. It booted up just fine and is running great. A nice upgrade and helps keep the build nice and neat without the need for extra cables.
Beautiful card. EVGA makes great cards and their 'auto oc' software is great. The overclock is running stable and the temps are fine under load. Only downside is no RGB, so you're stuck with white.
This is one classy power supply. I love everything about it and with the 12-year warranty I shouldn't have to worry about anything for a long while. The crushed velvet bag that comes with it was a nice touch. :)
You need it. The usb works great. Wish it was around $50
The be quiet! SilentWings 3 fans are so quiet. It’s unbelievable how silent the rig is even under load. It makes me want to switch out the fans in my own machine. I can see the different in build quality and performance when you make the jump to $25+ fans.
Sennheiser has always delivered quality headsets and headphones. This are great. The included cables allow us to switch between the PS4 and PC with ease. The open design and comfortable ear cups allow for extended wear without fatigue.