CPU.NewsThree hardware picks for each of four scenarios: gaming desktop, productivity, thin & light, gaming laptop.
Four budget tiers. Rules of thumb: GPU takes 35–45% of the budget, the CPU only needs to keep up; 30% PSU headroom; at least 1TB SSD.
Esports and 1080p AAA at medium-high.
1440p high refresh, RT usable.
Gaming first, streaming and editing too.
No dGPU. Office, 4K media, light photo work; add a GPU later.
Size first: ITX board + SFX PSU + dual-slot GPU; watch cooler height and GPU length.
The Intel take on the same tier: Core Ultra 7 + B860 with Thunderbolt 4 on board.
No compromise. The 5090 needs a 1000W+ ATX 3.1 PSU and a large case.
Productivity is about cores, memory capacity and VRAM, not gaming scores.
Cores + big VRAM + a scratch drive with fast post-cache writes. Intel iGPU QSV helps H.264/HEVC timelines.
More threads is better; start at 64GB.
VRAM size decides model size: 8GB → 7B Q4, 16GB → 14B Q4, 24GB → 32B Q4, 128GB unified memory → 70B.
Pick the form factor first: the same CPU/GPU can differ 30%+ between models. Check TGP, power limits and MUX switch.
Efficiency and iGPU matter, not the desktop chart.
Standard-voltage CPU + mid-TGP dGPU, still portable.
Always check TGP: 140–175W full power vs 80–100W differs 20–40%.
Find the bottleneck first: 1080p high refresh → CPU, 1440p/4K → GPU, stutter → memory and storage.
Swap the CPU, keep the board: flash B450/B550 and drop in a 5700X3D — far cheaper than a new platform.
Z690/B660 take 14th gen with a BIOS update; mind microcode 0x12B on 13th/14th-gen K parts.
If you are still on DDR3 / PCIe 2.0 (Haswell or older), any new CPU means new board + memory — go straight to the mainstream 1440p build.
The tables you look up most while building: platforms, PSU sizing, coolers, case dimensions and memory configs.
| Socket | CPU | Memory | Chipset ladder | PCIe | Upgrade room |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AM5 | Ryzen 7000 / 8000 / 9000 | DDR5, sweet spot 6000 CL30 | X870E > X870 ≈ B850 > B650E > B650 > B840 / A620 | 5.0 ×16 + ×4 | Supported through 2027+ |
| LGA1851 | Core Ultra 200S | DDR5, 7200–8000+, CUDIMM | Z890 > B860 > H810 | 5.0 ×16 + ×4, TB4 | One generation, little room |
| AM4 | Ryzen 1000–5000 | DDR4, 3600 CL16 | X570 > B550 > B450 > A520 | 4.0 (X570 / B550) | Ends at 5700X3D |
| LGA1700 | 12th–14th Gen Core | DDR4 or DDR5 (board) | Z790 > B760 > H610 | 5.0 ×16 + 4.0 ×4 | Ends at 14th Gen |
| GPU | GPU power | With a 65–120 W CPU | With a 170–250 W CPU | Connector |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RTX 5060 / RX 9060 XT | 145–180 W | 550–650 W | 650–750 W | 1× 8-pin |
| RTX 5070 / RX 9070 | 220–250 W | 650–750 W | 750–850 W | 12V-2x6 or 2× 8-pin |
| RTX 5070 Ti / RX 9070 XT | 300–340 W | 750–850 W | 850–1000 W | 12V-2x6 or 3× 8-pin |
| RTX 5080 / 4090 | 360–450 W | 850–1000 W | 1000–1200 W | Native 12V-2x6 |
| RTX 5090 | 575 W | 1000–1200 W | 1200–1600 W | Native 12V-2x6, ATX 3.1 |
| CPU power | Typical CPUs | Recommended cooler | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| ≤ 65 W | 7500F / 9600X / 14400 / 8600G | Stock or entry single tower | AM5 stock cooler is fine |
| 105–125 W | 9700X / 9800X3D / 7800X3D / 14600K | High-end single or dual tower | X3D is heat-sensitive: do not skimp |
| 170–200 W | 9950X / 9950X3D / 265K | Dual tower or 280 / 360 AIO | Air throttles; AIO gives 5–8% more multi-core |
| 250 W+ | 285K / 14900K unlocked | 360 / 420 AIO | Add a contact frame on LGA1700 |
| Board | Size | Case | GPU length | Cooler height | PSU |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| E-ATX | 305 × 277 mm | Full / large mid-tower | ≤ 400 mm | ≤ 185 mm | ATX |
| ATX | 305 × 244 mm | Mid-tower | ≤ 330–380 mm | ≤ 165–175 mm | ATX |
| mATX | 244 × 244 mm | Compact mid / mATX | ≤ 300–350 mm | ≤ 155–165 mm | ATX / SFX |
| Mini-ITX | 170 × 170 mm | ITX ≤ 20 L | ≤ 300–330 mm, dual slot | ≤ 55–75 mm or 240 AIO | SFX / SFX-L |
| Platform | Recommended | Sticks | One-click OC | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AM5 (Zen 4 / 5) | DDR5-6000 CL30 | 2 × 16 / 2 × 32 | EXPO | Above 6400 the divider kicks in; 4 sticks downclock |
| LGA1851 | DDR5-7200 to 8000 | 2 × 16 / 2 × 24 | XMP 3.0 | CUDIMM reaches 8800+ |
| LGA1700 DDR5 | DDR5-6400 to 7200 | 2 × 16 | XMP 3.0 | XMP works on B760 too |
| AM4 / LGA1700 DDR4 | DDR4-3600 CL16 | 2 × 16 | XMP / DOCP | AM4: keep FCLK 1800 in sync |
Go through every line; most build failures come from these.
Three tables to check before buying.
| Target | VRAM | GPU class | PSU | Memory |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1080p 60 fps | 8GB | RX 6600 / RTX 4060 | 550W Bronze+ | 16GB |
| 1080p 144 fps | 8–12GB | RTX 5060 Ti / RX 9060 XT | 650W Gold | 32GB |
| 1440p 144 fps | 12–16GB | RTX 5070 Ti / RX 9070 XT | 750–850W Gold ATX 3.1 | 32GB |
| 4K 120 fps | 16–24GB | RTX 5080 / 4090 | 850–1000W ATX 3.1 | 32–64GB |
| 4K full RT | 24–32GB | RTX 5090 | 1000W+ ATX 3.1 | 64GB |
Widely repeated on forums, not supported by data.