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Recommendations for a Pre-Built Desktop PC

E

Executioner

Older Than FrgMstr
Joined
Apr 22, 2015
Messages
1,037
I've had my old Asus motherboard now going on 10 years that I built myself. Now I'm in the market to replace it with a pre-built desktop. I've been looking at these Legion Tower 5i Gen: https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/p/desk...-tower-5i-gen-10-intel/len102g0009#tech_specs

Anyone have any experience with Legion or is there something better? My budget is $2500 or less. I'm not a heavy gamer and I don't plan on replacing my 36" LG Ultragear with NVIDIA G-Sync 1920-1080 monitor. I want to be able to run Windows 11, have 32 GB of ram, 500 GB boot drive and a 2 TB additional drive are my basic requirements.
 
Last edited:
The most sane option is have Microcenter build it for you. That way you can pick the components (especially the PSU) and don't get any weird-shaped things in there that you can't replace.
 
Executioner said:
I've had my old Asus motherboard now going on 10 years that I built myself. Now I'm in the market to replace it with a pre-built desktop. I've been looking at these Legion Tower 5i Gen: https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/p/desk...-tower-5i-gen-10-intel/len102g0009#tech_specs

Anyone have any experience with Legion or is there something better? My budget is $2500 or less. I'm not a heavy gamer and I don't plan on replacing my 36" LG Ultragear with NVIDIA G-Sync 1920-1080 monitor. I want to be able to run Windows 11, have 32 GB of ram, 500 GB boot drive and a 2 TB additional drive are my basic requirements.
Click to expand...
As others stated either Microcenter for the ability to customize or Costco for their amazing warranty and after sales support. For $2500 you should be able to get something like:
-670 mobo
-x3d cpu
-5080 GPU
-2tb boot
-32gb ram
-aio cooler
-nice case
-full win 11 key

Although personally would rather save ~500 and go with a 5070 ti right now then wait for when the 5080 super comes out. 5070 ti overclocked will perform at around 3-4% below 5080 stock and have lower power draw. And 5080 ti are still selling st about 30% above FE prices, the same as 5090 but much lower overall performance and still dumb 16gb vram for such a high priced card.
 
Depending on your game you play and that 1080p refresh rate... $2500 is good money to drive it, "reasonable" gpu like a 4070tisuper/9070 can drive 1080p quite well.

Has a non-heavy gamer and do a lot of non-gaming task on your computer, non X3D cpu can be better option for the price
 
LukeTbk said:
Depending on your game you play and that 1080p refresh rate... $2500 is good money to drive it, "reasonable" gpu like a 4070tisuper/9070 can drive 1080p quite well.

Has a non-heavy gamer and do a lot of non-gaming task on your computer, non X3D cpu can be better option for the price
Click to expand...
Exactly, for 1080p only the OP could easily do a build around $1400 that’ll have basically zero bottlenecking. The biggest gaming performance issues regard full path trackng where event the 5090 has issues at native.
 
I do have a Costco only 2 miles away, and a Best Buy. I know I could easily build it myself, but I don't want to deal with the build anymore. At 70 years of age, I rather op for something already build and ready to go.
 
Executioner said:
I do have a Costco only 2 miles away, and a Best Buy. I know I could easily build it myself, but I don't want to deal with the build anymore. At 70 years of age, I rather op for something already build and ready to go.
Click to expand...
If you were near me I’d just build it for you, it’s absurdly easy nowadays with how nice cases are, how fast all components post and all the online tutorials / vids. My last build even in a small 20L case took less than 2 hours from unboxing to downloading steam.

But for peace of mind think Costco is the way to go.
 
Executioner said:
I want to be able to run Windows 11, have 32 GB of ram, 500 GB boot drive and a 2 TB additional drive are my basic requirements.
Click to expand...

These are some very basic requirements for 2025. By "not a heavy gamer," do you mean that you're still a casual gamer (playing modern, demanding games), or that you don't really play modern games at all?

If you don't need a remotely beefy graphics card, then you could just go with a mini PC of some sort - e.g., this Minisforum one: https://store.minisforum.com/products/minisforum-ai-x1
Or GMKtec has one with a Ryzen 395+ for a lot more: https://www.gmktec.com/products/amd-ryzen™-ai-max-395-evo-x2-ai-mini-pc
Just stick an extra 2TB m.2 SSD in there, and your requirements are met, and you save a lot of desk/floor space.
(PS: Both of the above mini-PC's are also on Amazon, and maybe Prime Day will have nice discounts.)

But otherwise, Costco is great.
 
Executioner said:
I do have a Costco only 2 miles away, and a Best Buy. I know I could easily build it myself, but I don't want to deal with the build anymore. At 70 years of age, I rather op for something already build and ready to go.
Click to expand...
In that case, Costco is quite nice and more and more has the market size decline, non-Dell (even some dell) oem desktop PC tend to be more and more made of standard regular part (not moving enough unit to be worth the R&D to make custom part to find some marginal saving) and upgrading/fixing it yourself is not everyone cup of tea (in such case that a non-issue)

Something like this:
https://www.costco.com/cyberpowerpc...---32gb-ram---2tb-ssd.product.4000285640.html

Will have a lot of part similar to what people making DIY choose, for some title it is a bit overkill at 1080p but GTA 6, Witcher 4, having too much power is usually not for long if that the case.
 
shleepy said:
These are some very basic requirements for 2025. By "not a heavy gamer," do you mean that you're still a casual gamer (playing modern, demanding games), or that you don't really play modern games at all?
Click to expand...
I'm currently playing Horizon Forbidden West on my laptop since it has a 8 core CPU, were my desktop is only a 4 core and only 16 GB of ram. On my desktop, I usually have to wait with the verbiage "Shader compilation" to complete. I play usually for 2 or 3 hours per day.

Forgot to mention that I prefer an Intel system not AMD.
 
Executioner said:
I'm currently playing Horizon Forbidden West on my laptop since it has a 8 core CPU, were my desktop is only a 4 core and only 16 GB of ram. On my desktop, I usually have to wait with the verbiage "Shader compilation" to complete. I play usually for 2 or 3 hours per day.

Forgot to mention that I prefer an Intel system not AMD.
Click to expand...

Sounds like that CyberPowerPC at Best Buy that pendragon1 linked would be a good option for you, then. I see that Costco has similar configurations, including with newer Intel processors. E.g.,
https://www.costco.com/cyberpowerpc...-rtx-5070--windows-11.product.4000356489.html
or https://www.costco.com/cyberpowerpc...---32gb-ram---2tb-ssd.product.4000285612.html
 
I asked my old gaming buddy "Flying Penguin" from PC Abusers on recommendations. He sent me to this site:
https://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system/AMD-Ryzen-5-5050-Configurator

So I selected my components:
  • Operating System: Windows 11 Pro
  • Gaming Chassis: CyberPowerPC AVENTUS 360V High Air-Flow Mid-Tower Gaming Case w/ Front Mesh + 4X 140mm ARGB Fans (White)
  • Extra Case Fans: Default case fans
  • CPU: AMD Ryzen™ 7 Processor 7800X3D 8-core/16-thread 4.2GHz [Turbo 5.0GHz] 104MB Cache AM5
  • CPU / Processor Cooling Fan: Cooler Master HYPER 212 SPECTRUM V3 High RGB Performance CPU Cooler with 4 Heat Pipes and PWM Fans
  • Video Card: GeForce RTX™ 5060 Ti 16GB GDDR7 Video Card (DLSS 4.0) [AI-Powered Graphics]
  • Power Supply: 750 Watts - Seasonic FOCUS v4 Series GX-750 80 PLUS Gold ATX 3.1 & PCIe 5.1 Full modular Power Supply
  • Motherboard: GIGABYTE B850 GAMING WIFI6 AM5 ATX W/ WI-FI 6, 1GBT LAN, (4) PCIE X16, (3 )M.2, (4)SATA CEC
  • RAM / System Memory: 32GB (16GBx2) DDR5/6000MHz Dual Channel Memory (GSKILL Ripjaws S5 [BLACK])
  • Primary Hard Drive: 1TB WD Blue SN580 Series (PCIe Gen4) NVMe M.2 SSD - Seq R/W: Up to 4150/4150 MB/s, Rnd R/W up to 600/750k (Single Drive)
  • Sound: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO
  • Keyboard: CyberPowerPC Multimedia USB Gaming Keyboard
  • Professional Wiring: Professional Wiring for All WIRING Inside The System Chassis - Minimize Cable Exposure, Maximize Airflow in Your System
  • Warranty: STANDARD WARRANTY: 2 Year Parts WARRANTY
  • Service: 3 Years FREE Service Plan (INCLUDES LABOR AND LIFETIME TECHNICAL SUPPORT)
$1975
 
Executioner said:
I asked my old gaming buddy "Flying Penguin" from PC Abusers on recommendations. He sent me to this site:
https://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system/AMD-Ryzen-5-5050-Configurator

So I selected my components:
  • Operating System: Windows 11 Pro
  • Gaming Chassis: CyberPowerPC AVENTUS 360V High Air-Flow Mid-Tower Gaming Case w/ Front Mesh + 4X 140mm ARGB Fans (White)
  • Extra Case Fans: Default case fans
  • CPU: AMD Ryzen™ 7 Processor 7800X3D 8-core/16-thread 4.2GHz [Turbo 5.0GHz] 104MB Cache AM5
  • CPU / Processor Cooling Fan: Cooler Master HYPER 212 SPECTRUM V3 High RGB Performance CPU Cooler with 4 Heat Pipes and PWM Fans
  • Video Card: GeForce RTX™ 5060 Ti 16GB GDDR7 Video Card (DLSS 4.0) [AI-Powered Graphics]
  • Power Supply: 750 Watts - Seasonic FOCUS v4 Series GX-750 80 PLUS Gold ATX 3.1 & PCIe 5.1 Full modular Power Supply
  • Motherboard: GIGABYTE B850 GAMING WIFI6 AM5 ATX W/ WI-FI 6, 1GBT LAN, (4) PCIE X16, (3 )M.2, (4)SATA CEC
  • RAM / System Memory: 32GB (16GBx2) DDR5/6000MHz Dual Channel Memory (GSKILL Ripjaws S5 [BLACK])
  • Primary Hard Drive: 1TB WD Blue SN580 Series (PCIe Gen4) NVMe M.2 SSD - Seq R/W: Up to 4150/4150 MB/s, Rnd R/W up to 600/750k (Single Drive)
  • Sound: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO
  • Keyboard: CyberPowerPC Multimedia USB Gaming Keyboard
  • Professional Wiring: Professional Wiring for All WIRING Inside The System Chassis - Minimize Cable Exposure, Maximize Airflow in Your System
  • Warranty: STANDARD WARRANTY: 2 Year Parts WARRANTY
  • Service: 3 Years FREE Service Plan (INCLUDES LABOR AND LIFETIME TECHNICAL SUPPORT)
$1975
Click to expand...
Would never pay more than $1000 for a 5060ti system

Good rule of thumb for an ATX/mATX build is GPU should be roughly half your budget before add-ons like OS, Keyboard, Mouse, otherwise you're upspeccing components for no good reason.


Still think these systems are way better for around the same price:
https://www.newegg.com/p/3D5-0007-00J41?Item=9SIA4P0KG18147
https://www.newegg.com/msi-gaming-d...1611us/p/N82E16883151694?Item=N82E16883151694
 
Executioner said:
I asked my old gaming buddy "Flying Penguin" from PC Abusers on recommendations. He sent me to this site:
https://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system/AMD-Ryzen-5-5050-Configurator

So I selected my components:
  • Operating System: Windows 11 Pro
  • Gaming Chassis: CyberPowerPC AVENTUS 360V High Air-Flow Mid-Tower Gaming Case w/ Front Mesh + 4X 140mm ARGB Fans (White)
  • Extra Case Fans: Default case fans
  • CPU: AMD Ryzen™ 7 Processor 7800X3D 8-core/16-thread 4.2GHz [Turbo 5.0GHz] 104MB Cache AM5
  • CPU / Processor Cooling Fan: Cooler Master HYPER 212 SPECTRUM V3 High RGB Performance CPU Cooler with 4 Heat Pipes and PWM Fans
  • Video Card: GeForce RTX™ 5060 Ti 16GB GDDR7 Video Card (DLSS 4.0) [AI-Powered Graphics]
  • Power Supply: 750 Watts - Seasonic FOCUS v4 Series GX-750 80 PLUS Gold ATX 3.1 & PCIe 5.1 Full modular Power Supply
  • Motherboard: GIGABYTE B850 GAMING WIFI6 AM5 ATX W/ WI-FI 6, 1GBT LAN, (4) PCIE X16, (3 )M.2, (4)SATA CEC
  • RAM / System Memory: 32GB (16GBx2) DDR5/6000MHz Dual Channel Memory (GSKILL Ripjaws S5 [BLACK])
  • Primary Hard Drive: 1TB WD Blue SN580 Series (PCIe Gen4) NVMe M.2 SSD - Seq R/W: Up to 4150/4150 MB/s, Rnd R/W up to 600/750k (Single Drive)
  • Sound: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO
  • Keyboard: CyberPowerPC Multimedia USB Gaming Keyboard
  • Professional Wiring: Professional Wiring for All WIRING Inside The System Chassis - Minimize Cable Exposure, Maximize Airflow in Your System
  • Warranty: STANDARD WARRANTY: 2 Year Parts WARRANTY
  • Service: 3 Years FREE Service Plan (INCLUDES LABOR AND LIFETIME TECHNICAL SUPPORT)
$1975
Click to expand...
why?
my buddies here already gave you better options.
so fucking annoying...
 
pendragon1 said:
why?
my buddies here already gave you better options.
so fucking annoying...
Click to expand...
Between this and the hdmi cable thread the vibes are full on “bashing head against the wall” due to the OPs seemingly deliberate counterintuitive responses.

Might need to go reverse psychology and give shitty advice so these OPs go the opposite direction and make the right decision.
 
Calm down guys? Jesus...It was another option from a guy that I know and have respect for with his IT background. I still haven't ordered anything, and it probably won't be for another month or so. Just getting all my options before I make the decision. When I do, I probably won't post it because some of you guys are getting your panties in a twist.
 
Executioner said:
I asked my old gaming buddy "Flying Penguin" from PC Abusers on recommendations. He sent me to this site:
https://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system/AMD-Ryzen-5-5050-Configurator

So I selected my components:
  • Operating System: Windows 11 Pro
  • Gaming Chassis: CyberPowerPC AVENTUS 360V High Air-Flow Mid-Tower Gaming Case w/ Front Mesh + 4X 140mm ARGB Fans (White)
  • Extra Case Fans: Default case fans
  • CPU: AMD Ryzen™ 7 Processor 7800X3D 8-core/16-thread 4.2GHz [Turbo 5.0GHz] 104MB Cache AM5
  • CPU / Processor Cooling Fan: Cooler Master HYPER 212 SPECTRUM V3 High RGB Performance CPU Cooler with 4 Heat Pipes and PWM Fans
  • Video Card: GeForce RTX™ 5060 Ti 16GB GDDR7 Video Card (DLSS 4.0) [AI-Powered Graphics]
  • Power Supply: 750 Watts - Seasonic FOCUS v4 Series GX-750 80 PLUS Gold ATX 3.1 & PCIe 5.1 Full modular Power Supply
  • Motherboard: GIGABYTE B850 GAMING WIFI6 AM5 ATX W/ WI-FI 6, 1GBT LAN, (4) PCIE X16, (3 )M.2, (4)SATA CEC
  • RAM / System Memory: 32GB (16GBx2) DDR5/6000MHz Dual Channel Memory (GSKILL Ripjaws S5 [BLACK])
  • Primary Hard Drive: 1TB WD Blue SN580 Series (PCIe Gen4) NVMe M.2 SSD - Seq R/W: Up to 4150/4150 MB/s, Rnd R/W up to 600/750k (Single Drive)
  • Sound: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO
  • Keyboard: CyberPowerPC Multimedia USB Gaming Keyboard
  • Professional Wiring: Professional Wiring for All WIRING Inside The System Chassis - Minimize Cable Exposure, Maximize Airflow in Your System
  • Warranty: STANDARD WARRANTY: 2 Year Parts WARRANTY
  • Service: 3 Years FREE Service Plan (INCLUDES LABOR AND LIFETIME TECHNICAL SUPPORT)
$1975
Click to expand...
Some small notes.

- Really doubt you need windows pro from the messages, but that $31, so not that much if it bring peace in anyway, that would be the price to go from a WD blue to a WD black SN850x (which is a limited upgrade but not a bad one for the price imo).
- I guess you really want an Nvidia gpu for the older G-sync monitor (no freesync) ? Otherwise the cheaper 9060xt 16GB would be a nice option (or bitting the bullet and going for the 9070/9070xt, for $100/$165, 5060ti is a nice capable 1080p card, but at an high price tag)

It can be interesting to compare with current pcpartpicker price list for those kinds of things:

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor ($369.97 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Spectrum V3 71.93 CFM CPU Cooler ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte B850 GAMING WIFI6 ATX AM5 Motherboard ($179.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws S5 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($104.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Blue SN580 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($64.98 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte WINDFORCE OC GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16 GB PCIe x8 Video Card ($449.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic Focus GX V4 ATX 3 (2024) 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($129.90 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 11 Pro OEM - DVD 64-bit ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1456.80
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-07-02 12:15 EDT-0400


Add $200 for a nice case, fans, keyboard (if you want it) and you are a bit over $1655, time for assembly, support, warranty, 3 years service plan for $320 which is far or not depending on the competition and how one value those.
 
Thanks for that. I'm also thinking that I may go with the Radeon RX 9070 XT instead of the NVIDIA since its comparable to the 5070 in performance but for less money. Not sure yet.
 
Executioner said:
Thanks for that. I'm also thinking that I may go with the Radeon RX 9070 XT instead of the NVIDIA since its comparable to the 5070 in performance but for less money. Not sure yet.
Click to expand...
As stated above the 9070 xt is a direct 5070 ti competitor, and while it's "less money" that's at the "launch price" which was a fake MSRP. Since there was no "reference" or "founder" card for the 9070 XT AMD gave their AIB partners rebates directly, so the $600 launch price (which is long gone) for the lowest-end models was more like $660-700, and now there's a limited stock so most retailers have been selling them at $730+. Microcenter has the $700 Steel Legend in stock every once in a while, but it stopped carrying the $660 Gaming model.

You can stop overthinking this: set a hard budget then dedicate 40-50% of that towards the GPU. Bestbuy has the PNY 5070 ti in stock off and on for $750, otherwise the next best price/performance 5070 ti model is the Asus Prime at $830. 9070 xt Steel Legend at $700 is also great, but anything above $800 for a 9070 xt shouldn't really be considered IMO. If you want to set a lower budget the 5070 FE is a good but know that 12gb means this is most likely a single-generation card, or you'll have to sell then upgrade to the 18gb 5070 Super when it's released later this year/early 2026.

5080 is starting to fall to about $1250 right now but IMO it's a terrible price/performance. You can get close to the stock 5080 performance by undervolting/overclocking a 5070 ti for $500 less.
 
What sort of games do you like to play? It makes a huge difference.

I favor single player RPGs and strategy games, and I like blingy graphics. I am not into super fast paced PvP stuff. My 48" 4k OLED tops out at 138Hz. The result is that I heavily favor GPU performance over CPU. I am not concerned with getting 200fps, but I want to run path tracing at 4k with decent fps... alas, not native 4k. I'd like to, but even a 5090 isn't strong enough to do that.

Others like super fast paced competitive PvP games. Those demand a high refresh screen, a fast CPU, and enough GPU to keep up with the CPU at "competitive" settings. That is not me, and really is more or less the other end of the gaming spectrum, but we need to know your priorities to give you good advice.

And then there's a lot in the middle too.

So what do you play? What are your priorities?
 
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