SSD
Crucial BX500
120GB /$ 20
CASE
Corsair
SPEC-05
/$ 45
This is the cheapest SATA
SSD around right now.
It’s almost ridiculous how
affordable the 120GB
version of the BX500 is—a
mere $20 compared to
other similarly sized SSDs
from manufacturers such
as Samsung, Kingston, and
PNY. Sure, the performance
isn’t going to blow youaway, but it’s a SATA drive;
you shouldn’t expect it to.
Crucial’s SSDs are still
pretty competitive when it
comes to speed, though—it’s
no slouch compared to other
models. We’re using this
as our boot drive to install
Linux and core programs
only, with our chunkier HDD
for file storage.We stumbled across
this case somewhat by
accident, but it’s actually
quite difficult not to
recommend; for just $45,
this chassis is spacious,
straightforward, and
easy on the eye. We’re
just hoping it’ll be easy
to build in as well. It
comes with something
of an anomaly: a 120mm
Corsair fan made of clear
plastic, with a single
red LED mounted on the
frame. This produces
crimson lighting that
bleeds through the
curved slit in the front of
the case—a minimalist
effect achieved without
the need for additional
LED strips or RGB
lighting. The case does
have a window, so we
can show off the innards
of this build, too, but
sadly the panel is a
cheap acrylic rather than
tempered glass. Other
than that, though, it’s a
sturdy steel case.build a kick-ass PC
28 MAXIMUMPC aug 2019 maximumpc.com
STEP-By-STEP GuiDED