Post #3484626

For $1k you could do quite better than the Steam Machine (though not mini-sized). Just spec’d out a build on Amazon with AM4 and you’ve got options: $55 - Thermaltake 700w PSU $90 - Corsair 4000D case (I have one of these, good airflow and easy build space). This is a place you could skimp to save a few bucks, e.g. - this case is $55 $130 - Cheap 1 TB SSD (went with Timetec, apparently Fikwot is okay too, seems to be a SSD parts manufacturer that started selling direct) $85 - B550 ATX mobo $130 - G.Skill 16 GB DDR4 3200 $175 - Ryzen 5 5600 XT OR Ryzen 7 5700 (5600 is faster but 6c/12t, 5700 lower core speed, but 8c/16t. I have a 5600x, no complaints) $279 or $290 - RX 7600 GPU, or RTX 5050 (up to preference. The 7600 is generally comparable or slightly better overall, but you will see much better with it on Linux. On Windows the 5050 might be the better choice) Total cost: About $950 (or $915 with the cheaper case), which leaves a bit of overhead to get a cheap cooler for the CPU (optional since it comes with one), and/or additional case fan(s). Edit - to be clear, you can probably do better than this. I just browsed prices and parts on Amazon, but you might be able to find parts cheaper on pcpartpicker.com or by purchasing used parts on eBay. For example, the Ryzen 5 5600x can be found for around $125 on Ebay, that’s $50 savings. And slower DDR4 RAM (2600 base speed) can be found for as low as $65 on Ebay, though I’m not sure if that’s a compromise I’d make, up for debate.