Custom PC - UK (2019-12)

CPU

AMD Ryzen 9 3900X

£531 inc VAT

scan.co.uk

We’re basing our mini-ITX PC on the mighty

AMD Ryzen 9 3900X. It has 12 cores that

can process up to 24 threads at a time, so

it can rip through multi-threaded tasks. Its

boost clock of 4.6GHz also makes it AMD’s

quickest new CPU in games and other lightly

threaded tasks. It can also reach an all-core

boost of a little over 4GHz. Its TDP is 105W,

though, so you’ll need a decent cooler.

Alternatives

The Ryzen 9 3950X lands in November and

could be worth the wait, depending on

your needs. It has 16 cores, allowing

it to process 32 threads, and has

a peak boost frequency of

4.7GHz. Early results

show it performing

similarly to Intel’s Core

i9-9980XE, which costs

more than twice as much. If

you lean more towards gaming

than content creation and want to save

some cash, the Ryzen 7 3700X costs around

£200 less, but still sports eight cores and 16

threads, which is plenty for most people.

Motherboard

Gigabyte X570-I Aorus

Pro WiFi

£227 inc VAT

overclockers.co.uk

Gigabyte’s excellent X570-I Aorus Pro

WiFi (see p24) costs £227 inc VAT, looks

great and includes two M.2 ports, which are

particularly handy for cutting cable clutter.

Alternatives

ASRock’s X570 Phantom Gaming ITX/

TB3 might be a better bet if you want to

get the Ryzen 9 3950X later, as its actively

cooled VRMs might mean cooler operating

temperatures, especially if you plan on

overclocking. It also has three fan headers

compared to the paltry two on the Gigabyte

board, so it can handle a lavish cooling

setup without loads of fan splitter cables.

If you’re not fussed about PCI-E 4 support,

there are plenty of X470 and B450 options

too. The Asus ROG Strix B450-I Gaming

is practically identical to the X470 version

and can handle the Ryzen 9 3900X.

Memory

16GB Corsair Vengeance

RGB Pro 3466MHz DDR4

£136 inc VAT

scan.co.uk

Memory speed makes a big difference to

the performance of AMD’s latest CPUs,

especially with Zen 2’s improved

memory controller. It can handle

faster speeds than 2nd-gen

Ryzen CPUs and run at up

to 3600MHz in sync with

Infinity Fabric, but prices rise

steeply above the 3466MHz mark.

We’ve opted for that speed, courtesy

of Corsair’s 16GB CAS16 kit, which has

low timings and fantastic RGB lighting too.

Alternatives

If you’re not fussed by RGB lighting, Corsair’s

16GB Vengeance LPX kit with the same

speed and timings costs just £117 inc VAT.

The 32GB version of the Vengeance RGB

Pro will set you back £238 inc VAT, but it’s

only worth it if you’re a heavy-duty content

creator or if you run lots of virtual machines

• it will make no difference to games.

Graphics card

Nvidia GeForce RTX

2070 Super

£489 inc VAT

nvidia.com

Nvidia’s RTX 2070 Super provides smooth

frame rates at 2,560 x 1,440 (and it can even

handle 4K), while supporting Nvidia’s RTX-

enabledfeaturessuchasraytracingandDLSS.

Its raw performance means it’sfasterthan any

current AMD GPU too. It’s ideal for ultrawide

and 2,560 x a,440 monitors, or for 1080p

gaming at high refresh rates. Nvidia’s excellent

cooler means it’s reasonably quiet as well.

Alternatives

If you’re happy with 1080p or 2,560 x

1,440 gaming at reasonable frame rates

then Nvidia’s RTX 2060 Super is an

excellent buy. It’s a slightly better option

than AMD’s Radeon RX 5700 XT and will

shave around £90 off the price of the

RTX 2070 Super. For the extra outlay, the

RTX 2080 Super isn’t particularly good

value – the best option for 4K gaming at

high frame rates is the RTX 2080 Ti.

Case

Metallic Gear Neo Mini

£60 inc VAT

amazon.co.uk

The case is the most important choice for

your mini-ITX PC, and you need to strike

a balance between compactness and

capability that matches your needs.

Cooling is crucial, especially with top-

end hardware. Mini-ITX cases usually have

less airflow than their ATX counterparts,

as there are fewer fans and less space.

Consider adding fans if there are any spare

fan mounts. All-in-one liquid coolers and

water cooling are great for mini builds

too, because they can get rid of heat very

effectively and prevent it building up, which

can happen quickly in a small case.

We’ve chosen Metallic Gear’s Neo Mini,

as it has plenty of scope for expanding

cooling, with two locations for 240mm

radiators. It has reasonable cable-stowing

options and it’s attractive too. It’s not the

smallest case, but it does have space for

a 240mm AIO liquid cooler. It's essentially

a miniature tower case, with all the space

and ease of access you’d expect, just

with some interesting design tweaks.

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