During the pandemic, I rebuilt my computer but with GPU prices being insanely inflated, I decided to limp along with my old GPU (a GeForce GTX 760). The issue is that I have a 4k monitor and my current card can barely handle my desktop, never mind a game.

I have heard that prices are coming back down to a sane level, so I am looking for part suggestions. I am not looking to play new games or ultra high settings, but I would want to at least be able to handle older/indie games, on medium settings, at a steady 30 FPS.

Current parts: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/DhFPy4

I'm working on 3D printing the Kubic case, but would like some guidance on hardware to buy for it.

I currently have an old laptop running some Docker containers, including the .arr stack and Plex, plus Immich for photo backups, and a few other odds and ends. Don't want to break the bank, but I'm looking for something to at least handle transcoding video for Plex.

Needs:

• ITX Motherboard
• Discreet GPU (Max 210mm long, 2 slots thick (max 41mm))
• SFX Power Supply
• 140mm chassis fan (Max 30mm thick)

Thanks in advance!

It's my first time building a computer. I also haven't really done much PC gaming in the past 15 years, except on my Steam Deck. Actually, it is the Steam Deck that has convinced me to invest in a desktop PC with some more power. I like the Linux experience on Steam Deck and would like to stick with that if possible. I haven't used Windows in 15 years either, as I tend to use Mac OS and a bit of Linux for personal and work. Windows seems to just get worse and worse and I'd like to avoid it if possible.

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/zr2ZVW

In any case, I went with an AMD CPU because I've heard about Intel's recent corrosion issues. And, chose an NVidia GPU since I'd like to take advantage of ray tracing. I've heard the driver support can be a bit mixed on Linux, but I'm open to trying to make it work unless folks think it really is terrible. Any feedback is helpful.

Mobo is MSI Pro Z790-P

Cooler is Aorus Waterforce X360

Tried orienting the radiator so the tubes go toward the front vs back of the case - both orientations land that tube joint right in the path of the closest RAM slot. The lines are too stiff to enable much wiggle room in either direction.

Never used a liquid cooler before... I've got 4 brand new RAM sticks, so I'd hate to drop one, but I don't see any options other than just flipping the radiator around, and neither position does the trick.

Any tips?

*trying to upload a pic, but it won't let me... Will try later.

Win 11 IoT Enterprise LTSC, 10.0.26100, AMD Ryzen 9 7900X3D processor, 64gb RAM, ASUS ProArt X670E-Creator mboard, AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT graphics card.

All other drivers except the graphics card driver be up-to-date and working correctly; they have been updated directly from the manufacturer sites.

Every time I try to install the most recent graphics drivers (amd-software-adrenalin-edition-24.7.1-minimalsetup-240718_web), I get about 48% of the way through the installation, and then get a BSOD, with the stop code KERNEL_SECURITY_CHECK_FAILURE. I've already tried using the AMD removal tool, rebooting in a clean environment and safe mode to reinstall, and had the same issue. Their driver installation tool gives me the option of installing PRO 24.Q2 (which appears to be for their PRO W and PRO WX series of graphics cards, rather than the RX 7000 series; it's listed as a downgrade), but gives me a 195 error when I try. I've just sent the DxDiag.txt and MSinfo32.nfo to AMD tech support.

Since I'm not running games yet, this isn't impeding much of anything. However, I am having issues with my Meta Quest 3--specifically the link software--but I don't believe that those are directly related; I think that's a problem with my home network. The software is telling me that my system doesn't meet minimum spec though, which is not good.

Any ideas?

My PC constantly freezes if I'm not playing a game or have a game running.

✅ If I'm playing a game, it's fine.

✅ If I have a game running in the background while doing other stuff, it's fine.

❌ If I leave my PC while playing a game and the lock screen pops up, it will freeze.

❌ If I do anything other than gaming, such as browsing the web or digital art, PC will freeze.

❌ If PC goes to sleep overnight, it will freeze.

The frozen PC will typically show no error code and display will show "no input" until I hard reset.

If I hard reset, it often won't successfully turn back on unless I move the mouse while it's resetting, otherwise it will freeze again on the windows loading screen.

Sometimes I will actually get a blue screen with the error code of DPC_Watchdog_Error or something like that.

Anyone know where I should look first to try and fix this? It's been happening for weeks now and it's driving me crazy. I can't figure it out.

Here are some things I plan to keep from my current build:

• Corsair Vengeance C70 case
• EVGA SupaNOVA NEX650G 650W 80+ Gold Certified power supply
• 4 HDD + 2 NVME + 1 SSD

Here are some things I plan to get new:

• AMD Ryzen 7800X3D 4.2GHz 8-core processor
• be quiet! Pure Rock Slim 2 CPU cooler
• 32 GB (2*16GB) Corsair Vengeance DDR5-7200 RAM
• Asus TUF Gaming OC Radeon 7800 XT graphics card

Should I consider anything else?

Everything seems to work out in PCPartPicker with two exceptions.

It seems like most motherboards will need to be updated to support the CPU. I don't know if it's possible to do this without a CPU or how likely I am to get a board with an older BIOS version.

It also says the RAM requires 1.45V more than the recommended maximum voltage of the CPU (1.35V).

I plan to upgrade the RAM, cooler, and CPU first and do the GPU later when there are more sales. I don't think this should be an issue. I was thinking about upgrading the RAM later but my computer currently has DDR4 and I think the CPU only supports DDR5.

I recently built a computer for someone. It was just for general use, not gaming or anything, so I went with fairly simple specs. Because they wanted an insanely quiet computer, I went with an NHD15S. The problem is that cooler causes flexing in the motherboard that makes the CPU not make contact with the socket. Is there a not overly janky way that I could fix that without getting a smaller cooler? I know flexing is the issue because it works for a while with the big cooler, but eventually won't boot after being shut down, or crashes in weird ways and then won't boot, and the mobo lights always show a CPU and dram light. The box cooler has no issues, but is louder under load.

Edit: it does boot with the large cooler if the system is on it's side. I followed the mounting instructions carefully.

Edit 2: Solved. I was overtightening.

I'm currently using an AMD 5950x and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 LHR, pushing video to a Dell U4021QW, which is a 40" monitor running 5120x2160@60hz. A few of the games I play are pretty challenged at that resolution, so I'm thinking of upgrading at least the video card. Is there any reason to build a new system with a newer CPU as well?

For my Ryzen 9 7950X3D, should I get a 360 AIO liquid cooler or a Noctua air cooler?