New to PC

[JoeTompkins]

Alex,

What a wonderful website. You really created a most helpful clear website that has inspired me to build my own computer. Thanks, well done.

I'm a graphic artist and I have been doing digital art for many years. I have now entered into the world of video, slideshows, and motion art. The following is my best estimate of my average workflow.

25% Photoshop and like
35% after effects
20% premiere Pro
20% email and administration

I have looked through your website, and I have configured many different computers. Though I think the following is what will best serve my needs, I am wondering if you have any further recommendations, and if you can help me with some questions.

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CPU:​	AMD Ryzen 9 3900X 3.8GHz 12-Core Processor​	​	​	-$429.00​
CPU Cooler:​	be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4​	​	​	-$74.21​
Motherboard:​	MSI X570 Unify ATX AM4​	​	​	-$459.88​
GPU:​	AMD Radeon RX 5700XT - Gigabyte Gaming OC​	​	​	-$409.99​
Memory:​	32GB (2 x 16GB) Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4-3200 C16​	​	​	-$114.99​
Storage PCIe-SSD:​	Sabrent Rocket 1TB NVMe Gen4 M.2 Solid State Drive​	​	​	-$199.98​
Storage SSD:​	Samsung 860 EVO 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive​	​	​	-$129.00​
Storage HDD:​	Seagate BarraCuda Compute 8TB, 3.5"​	​	​	-$149.99​
Power Supply:​	EVGA 650 B5 80 Plus Bronze 650W Power Supply​	​	​	-$129.00​
Case:​	Corsair Carbide Series Air 540​	​	​	-$165.52​
Monitor:​	LG 32UD60-B 4K UHD Monitor with AMD FreeSync, Black​	​	​	-$355.44​
Monitor Cable:​	What do you recommend​	​	​	​
Card reader:​	What do you recommend​	​	​	​
Sound Card:​	What do you recommend​	​	​	​
Total:​	​	​	​	-$2,096.04​

One of the builds for the Ruzen 9 3900 used this motherboard so is this a viable substitute?

Motherboard:​

Gigabyte B550 Aorus Pro AC ATX AM4​

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-$189.99​

This Case is only a few dollars more and seems to offer more space. Any comments…

Case​

Corsair CC-9011059-WW Graphite Series 780T Full Tower PC Case​

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189.99​

I am presently working on an Apple iMac 16 GB i7 2009 processor. It has served me well, but I'm ready to move away from the Macintosh platform into Windows. It would also be appreciated if you have suggestions as to what type of Windows license I should buy, and where I might acquire an inexpensive one.

Thanks again for a well-done website. This has really helped me a lot, and I really look forward to creating a new more effective workstation. I look forward to hearing from you, as I am ready to buy now.

Best regards,

Joe Tompkins

 

[Alex Glawion]

Looks like a solid Build to me!
You can easily get the B550 Motherboard if you don't plan on having multiple GPUs in your build. That way you can save some money.

One thing that might be good though, is to change the 5700XT GPU to a Nvidia GPU such as the RTX 2060 Super. Reason is, that many Adobe Apps do tend to run a bit faster on Nvidias GPUs, as many Effects can make use of some hardware acceleration from Nvidia. Premiere for example just now added encoding/decoding support to nvidia GPUs, which speeds up those tasks considerably.

The Corsair Graphite Series 780T is a huge case that you don't really need. It comes down to your taste really, but that one is a monster. If you don't like the square cases you can get something like the Corsair 200r or 275q or Fractal Design Define R5 Black ATX Mid Tower Case.

I am no expert on card readers, you'll have to do read some reviews on e.g. amazon for that. The Motherboard has an in-built SoundCard which is fine for most tasks unless you do some heavy audio editing.

As for the Monitor, take a look at some of the following monitors:
BenQ PD 2700q
Dell UltraSharp UP2716D, 27″
Eizo ColorEdge CG2420, 24″
Philips 276E8VJSB
ASUS ProArt PA329Q

Depending on your budget of course.

 

[JoeT]

Looks like a solid Build to me!
You can easily get the B550 Motherboard if you don't plan on having multiple GPUs in your build. That way you can save some money.

One thing that might be good though, is to change the 5700XT GPU to a Nvidia GPU such as the RTX 2060 Super. Reason is, that many Adobe Apps do tend to run a bit faster on Nvidias GPUs, as many Effects can make use of some hardware acceleration from Nvidia. Premiere for example just now added encoding/decoding support to nvidia GPUs, which speeds up those tasks considerably.

The Corsair Graphite Series 780T is a huge case that you don't really need. It comes down to your taste really, but that one is a monster. If you don't like the square cases you can get something like the Corsair 200r or 275q or Fractal Design Define R5 Black ATX Mid Tower Case.

I am no expert on card readers, you'll have to do read some reviews on e.g. amazon for that. The Motherboard has an in-built SoundCard which is fine for most tasks unless you do some heavy audio editing.

As for the Monitor, take a look at some of the following monitors:
BenQ PD 2700q
Dell UltraSharp UP2716D, 27″
Eizo ColorEdge CG2420, 24″
Philips 276E8VJSB
ASUS ProArt PA329Q

Depending on your budget of course.

Thanks Alex your input is really appreciated...good luck.

 

[JoeT]

Thanks Alex your input is really appreciated...good luck.