GPU
Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080
Founders Edition
£649 inc VAT
nvidia.com
While AMD’s RX 6800-series cards are
compelling and recent driver tweaks
have resulted in sizeable performance
improvements, Nvidia’s RTX 3000-series is
still hard to beat for an all-round frame rate-
fest that includes the latest ray-traced titles.
With the benefit of DLSS, Nvidia has an edge
here, but none of this matters.
Stock levels continue to be dire with plenty
of scalping going on at some retailers and
especially at auction websites, which are
currently best avoided. Nvidia has generally
had slightly better stock levels for the past few
weeks, but we’re still talking stock that’s gone
in a flash. Again, we’re hoping this will improve
and if it does, our pick for a build such as this
would be the RTX 3080.
There are plenty of models from which to
choose, but if you’re water-cooling it, which
we are, there are usually plenty of options for
Founders Edition models and the RTX 3080
is no exception. EK has at least two blocks
available for this model in a range of colours
and most waterblock manufacturers have
models for it available or in the works too. The
trouble, as usual, is getting hold of it, especially
as the RTX 3080 Founders Edition is one of
the cheaper models out there. Alternatively,
there are waterblocks available for other
models too, so be sure to check the
compatibility tables from the likes
of Corsair, EK and Alphacool
before you splash out on a
card you find in stock.
Alternatives
Sadly, stock levels are poor across the
spectrum right now, but if ray tracing and
high-resolution gaming are your thing
then Nvidia is the one to go for with its RTX
3000-series. The RTX 3070 is a worthy
alternative if your budget is tighter. It will still
provide ample performance for gaming at up
to 1440p, with the addition of DLSS, and it can
handle plenty of titles at 4K too.
The Radeon RX 6800 XT doesn’t have
quite as well-rounded a feature set and
performance range compared with the
RTX 3080, but recent driver updates have
improved performance and at the moment,
it certainly pays to keep your options open if
you happen to find one in the wild.
If you need the ultimate performance and
game predominantly at 4K or above, then the
RTX 3090 is the clear option. It’s an absolute
monster for performance, but sadly for your
wallet, it has a monster price tag too.MEMORY
32GB Corsair Dominator
Platinum RGB White
3600MHz
£273 inc VAT
scan.co.uk
As we’re splashing out with this build, a four-
module kit was in order and for a couple ofreasons. Firstly, when it comes to RGB lighting,
filling all available slots simply looks better. It’s
one reason why companies such as Corsair
make dummy modules, allowing you to just
buy two expensive real modules, but fill the
vacant slots with much cheaper dummy
sticks. If you can afford it, though, simply going
with a four-module kit will mean you won’t
need to worry about upgrading in future and
there are other benefits too.
The second reason is that, due to the design
of AMD’s Zen 3 Ryzen CPUs, they actually
perform better when they have access to four
modules as opposed to two, with all other
factors being equal. As a result, if you’re keen
on maximising the performance of your PC,
opting for a four-module kit as opposed to two
modules is another way to eke out a little more
performance. It not always worth spending the
extra money, as investing the cash in a better
GPU will have more benefit, but as the next
step up is a hugely more expensive RTX 3090
card, we decided to grab a four-DIMM kit.
Our chosen kit is Corsair’s 32GB Dominator
Platinum RGB in white, with a rated speed
of 3600MHz. This is maybe a tad overkill in
terms of capacity, but if you’re mixing content
creation with gaming and leave software
open as you switch between tasks, you’ll be
thankful for a little extra breathing room as
well as the extra performance having four
sticks brings.the cheaper models out there. Alternatively,
thereare waterblocks availablefor other
models too, so be sure to check the
compatibility tables from the likes
of Corsair, EK and Alphacool
before you splash out on a
cardyou find in stock.
FEATURE / CUSTOMISATION