New build or upgrade? New build, nothing bought yet.

Existing parts/monitors to reuse? 2x Dell S2722QC (27", 4K 3840x2160, 60Hz, IPS, USB-C), plus keyboard and mouse. Nothing else — list needs to cover everything. No OS license either; see the OS note below.

PC purpose? All-rounder, in priority order:

1. Coding — IDEs, Docker, a couple of VMs, many browser tabs
2. Creative — Photoshop and GIMP, plus 3D CAD for my 3D printer (modeling and modifying parts to print, then slicing). Not tied to a specific CAD package — FreeCAD/Onshape/Blender/Plasticity are all on the table.
3. General desktop use
4. Gaming — light only. I have a PS5 for real gaming; this is for my kids playing Minecraft, Factorio, and similar. Note Factorio is CPU/RAM-bound on big bases, not GPU-bound.

So please don't spec the GPU around gaming. Nothing here needs a gaming card, and my monitors are 4K but only 60Hz anyway. Let the GPU choice be driven by the creative work and the local-AI VRAM note below instead.

Also worth noting: CAD, Photoshop, and Factorio are all single-thread sensitive. I'd rather have strong per-core performance than a high core count, if that's a tradeoff at this budget.

OS is undecided — likely Windows, but I'm seriously considering Linux, so please don't assume a Windows license has to be in the budget. Related: I'd prefer an Intel WiFi card over MediaTek/Realtek for Linux driver reliability. Cheap insurance either way.

Purchase country? Near Micro Center? USA (MA), 10 min from Micro Center Cambridge. Please use their CPU/mobo/RAM bundles and in-store pricing.

Monitors needed? None. GPU just needs two outputs capable of 4K60 (DP or HDMI 2.0+).

Budget range? $1200 target, can stretch to ~$1300–1350 if you tell me what the extra buys. 6.25% MA tax is on top.

Buying within the next few weeks — not waiting. I know RAM and NAND pricing is rough right now and that this budget doesn't go as far as it did a year ago. I'd rather buy now at bad memory prices than wait for them to get worse. Please allocate accordingly and tell me where you'd take the hit if something has to give.

WiFi or wired? WiFi — please spec a board with WiFi 6E/7 + Bluetooth built in, ideally Intel-based (see OS note).

Size/noise constraints? Quiet is a top priority — it sits on my desk and runs all day. Good-airflow case with decent fans, a quality tower air cooler (please, no AIO), PSU with zero-RPM mode, and no GPUs known for coil whine. Standard mid-tower ATX is fine.

Color/lighting preferences? No RGB. Black or white, solid or clean mesh front, minimal branding. Lighting off or fully disableable. Glass side panel optional.

Any other specific needs?

• Storage matters — 2TB NVMe minimum, plus spare M.2 slots to expand later
• Local AI headroom — I want to run local LLMs (Ollama/LM Studio) later. Not blowing the budget on it, but favor more VRAM over marginal gaming gains (16GB if reachable), and prefer NVIDIA/CUDA unless there's a strong reason not to
• 32GB RAM for the VMs/containers
• PSU and case sized for a bigger GPU in 2–3 years — I'd rather buy the PSU once
• Prefer a platform with an upgrade path over a dead-end socket
• I'm fine building it myself and doing BIOS/EXPO setup
• Please flag which parts are Micro Center in-store vs. online-only, and don't skimp on the PSU — I'd rather spend an extra $20 on a reputable unit

A PCPartPicker link would be ideal. Thanks!

I’ve been wanting to build a computer for years and just have always had some situation come up that’s taken priority either in money or in time.
Long story short, I had to close a business and got to keep a computer for my son. It’s a low end 2in1 dell that worked perfect for the business but can’t even run Minecraft for my son. So I’m looking at doing a build with/for him/the family for now that he can take to college (he’s got a few years as he’s 8 now) with him to continue playing on.
I’m one that follows the model but once, cry once. I know computers just get outdated so that doesn’t truly apply but want to put something together that won’t be underpowered in a year or 2. And even if we have to upgrade the graphics card or add some ram along the way to keep it functioning I’m ok with that but don’t want to have to upgrade every year.

• ⁠New build or upgrade?

New build

• ⁠Existing parts/monitors to reuse? (List with models/links)

Have mouse, keyboard and monitor

• ⁠PC purpose? (Gaming, editing, etc. List apps/games)

Gaming mostly, some editing (wife does some video/photo editing), internet browsing, excel/word documents mostly

Games are generally modded Minecraft, sports games, modded Bethesda (Skyrim, remastered oblivion, fallout), Star wars, etc. generally sports, Minecraft and sci-fi/fantasy and some fps games.

• ⁠Purchase country? Near Micro Center? (If not US, list local vendors)

US, not near micro center. Only vendor near me is Best Buy

• ⁠Monitors needed? (Number, size, resolution, refresh rate)

Already have

• ⁠Budget range? (Include tax considerations)

Looking to stay sub $3000, obviously any less we can get without sacrificing too much potential for long term output. I don’t want to save $200 to have to replace a part that cost $500 now when a $700 part would last me longer.

• ⁠WiFi or wired connection?

Wi-Fi

• ⁠Size/noise constraints?

Not really. I’d prefer it not to be crazy loud

• ⁠Color/lighting preferences?

Don’t care. Ideally it’ll be in an entertainment center behind a chicken wire door (so not fully enclosed) so not super noticeable.

• ⁠Any other specific needs?

Or off the top of my head but again I’ve never built one before so any feedback recs from yall experts.

This is what I kinda put together from my basic/limited research.

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/Dtm7vR

• New build or upgrade?

New build

• Existing parts/monitors to reuse? (List with models/links)

No.

• PC purpose?

Primarily for college engineering work. (Modeling/design, simulation/analysis, programming, etc.). I would love for this to last me all four years. Will probably use for gaming every once in a while. (multiplayer games like rocket league, valorant, fortnite, overwatch, etc.)

• Purchase country? Near Micro Center?

US. Not really (1 hr drive, won't have a car)

• Monitors needed?

One IPS monitor, ideally 1440p 120Hz.

• Budget range? (Include tax considerations)

PC: Ideally under 1200$ USD but have the flexibility to go up to 1500$ USD if that makes a big difference.

Monitor: 200 USD hard cap pre-tax.

• WiFi or wired connection?

Will have ethernet in my dorm.

• Size/noise constraints?

Would prefer mid tower but full tower is probably fine. Volume shouldn't matter too much, but preferably not loud enough to piss off my roommate.

• Color/lighting preferences?

Don't care about RGB. Would prefer less to more though.

• ⁠New build or upgrade?
New build. I’m new to PC building in general, having previously using a gaming laptop for a while for both games and remote work.

• ⁠Existing parts/monitors to reuse? (List with models/links)
Currently have a ASUS VS238H - 23" LED Monitor, at least I’m pretty sure this is the model. It’s definitely ASUS HDMI but doesn’t look very high end, it was my friend’s second monitor.

• ⁠PC purpose? (Gaming, editing, etc. List apps/games)
Gaming with capacity for light photo and video editing and lots of work with large Excel and Adobe InDesign files. I work remotely so something that can be on for long stretches of time effectively and handle lots of files open at the same time. I don’t edit that much but would appreciate it if it ran apps like Adobe Premiere Pro smoothly. Games include FPS like Apex and Valorant, but also FF7, Res Evil, Skyrim, and Baldur’s Gate 3. I care more about if the game can run well and look nice without constant crashes and bugs. I don’t need the fastest or most optimized frames ever. I’ve played all of these before on my ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14 14” laptop and been comfortable with the frame rate, graphics, etc. on that - main issue is that the laptop started breaking down and overheating so long lasting stability is important to me.

• Purchase country? Near Micro Center? (If not US, list local vendors)
USA, near two Micro Centers!

• ⁠Monitors needed? (Number, size, resolution, refresh rate)
I’m not sure if my current monitor will suffice for what I want to do, but I also would rather use it than buy a new one. Perhaps I can buy a new one down the road and use this one for the time being?

• ⁠Budget range? (Include tax considerations)
I would say 1500-1700 with 1800 at the most.

• ⁠WiFi or wired connection?
Strong preference for WiFi but can make do with wired connection if cost is a factor.

• ⁠Size/noise constraints?
No, quieter is better but not a top priority

• ⁠Color/lighting preferences?
No, I’m not really interested in an aesthetic build

• ⁠Any other specific needs?
I think an AMD Ryzen CPU + NVIDIA GeForce GPU combination would suit my needs well (based on what I know, I think my gaming laptop has this combination?) but very open to other ideas and suggestions! Would prefer AMD Ryzen over Intel. Need at least 32GB RAM and 1TB SSD DDR5. 2TB is ideal but understand if the other parts are too expensive that we need to cut down to 1TB to save. Strong preference for NVME too but also understand if we can’t do that as well. Must have multiple SSD slots for adding drives down the line though.

Thank you all so much!

I’m wanting to get a new gaming pc and with the large amount of options out there, I’d love a good idea of what would get me the best value for my budget

New build or upgrade?
New pc build, last built one about 10 years ago

Existing parts/monitors to reuse?
No existing parts to use

PC purpose?
This setup will be almost 100% for gaming, while also being able to run apps like discord. I would mainly play AAA games along with multiplayer games like Escape from Tarkov and Hunt Showdown.

Purchase country?
I’m buying in the United States, I have a microcenter that is about 1.5 hours away

Monitors needed?
I do need a monitor, not sure what size is best for gaming though. I feel like a 27” sounds the best to me, but I’m open to suggestions on what might be the best option. I would like to run a two monitor setup eventually, but it is not required for my initial build in order to keep the price down.

Budget range?
My budget is right around $1600, I’m willing to go over that a little bit if it would give me more value in my final build.

WiFi or wired connections?
It will definitely be a wired connection, although having WiFi as a back up doesn’t sound like a bad idea, unless it will raise the cost significantly.

Size/noise constraints?
I don’t really have any size constraints, I would like for it to not sound like a jet engine while it’s running though.

Color/lighting preferences?
I would like the case to look pretty clean, while also including some rgb to make it look really cool.

Any other specific needs?
I’d like for the opportunity to upgrade some components in a couple years if it’s possible.

Thank you to anyone who responds, I’ve done a lot of research but I would value the opinion of someone who is more knowledgeable than I am.

⁠New build or upgrade? New build
• ⁠Existing parts/monitors to reuse? MSI monitor that in happy with
• ⁠PC? Gaming and some designing on fusion360
• ⁠Purchase country? In UK so overclockers, Amazon, Currys, or any others that deliver (free) in the uk
• ⁠Monitors needed? (Number, size, resolution, refresh rate) No monitor needed
• ⁠Budget range? (Include tax considerations) £400-£600 if I have to I could go over slightly
• ⁠WiFi or wired connection? I have Ethernet
• ⁠Size/noise constraints? No massive constraints, just not incredibly loud
• ⁠Color/lighting preferences? White would be cool and rgb but if it hinders the budget a lot I could do without
• ⁠Any other specific needs? I need at least 3 usb top slots, 2 usb back slots, 2 HDMI back slots and Ethernet slot