PC Components credit to AirSeller for their input, looking for more opinions / suggestions.
Hopefully the below helps and feedback would be grateful for the PC parts too
1. What will you be doing with this PC?
- Looking to emulate games mainly Dreamcast, GameCube, N64, Wii, Wii U, PS2, PS3 and Nintendo Switch. Where possible for the emulators to be able to run at minimum 60 FPS - I'm aware it's easy on some games, but say Skate 3 on the PS3 or BOTW on the Wii U can be difficult and or costly, otherwise 30 FPS smoothly.
Also generic use i.e. Web Browsing, emails, streaming up to 4k using YouTube, Netflix, Disney Plus etc... where possible, will be connected to a Samsung 4K TV that can handle at least 1440p at 120hz.
2. What is your maximum budget before rebates/shipping/taxes?
< £600
- I would like something as cheap as possible, example Xbox Series S is £250 and can do most of the above, but from what I know there are no emulators for the Wii U, Switch and PS3 where using RetroArch via Xbox.
3. When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
- If possible within 2 weeks time dependant on my budget ask / requirements
4. What, exactly, do you need included in the budget?
- Something in size similar to Xbox Series X, dependant if the budget allows.
- Windows OS
- Keyboard and Mouse, nothing fancy as will use an Xbox controller for gaming
5. Which country (and state/province) will you be purchasing the parts in?
- UK
6. If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing?
- I have nothing, starting from scratch.
7. Will you be overclocking?
- No, I'm assuming my tasks are not that demanding.
8. Are there any specific features or items you want/need in the build?
- 256GB SSD, 1TB HDD, 16GB RAM, HDMI Port, USB Type C, USB 3.xx, Ethernet Port, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth
9. Do you have any specific case preferences (Size like ITX/microATX/mid-tower/full-tower, styles, colors, window or not, LED lighting, etc), or a particular color theme preference for the components?
- Colour Black, a minimalistic look and just something cheap and functional.
10. Do you need a copy of Windows included in the budget? If you do need one included, do you have a preference?
- I'll just go with Windows Inactivated then work from there on what I want.
Many thanks.
Hopefully the below helps and feedback would be grateful for the PC parts too
1. What will you be doing with this PC?
- Looking to emulate games mainly Dreamcast, GameCube, N64, Wii, Wii U, PS2, PS3 and Nintendo Switch. Where possible for the emulators to be able to run at minimum 60 FPS - I'm aware it's easy on some games, but say Skate 3 on the PS3 or BOTW on the Wii U can be difficult and or costly, otherwise 30 FPS smoothly.
Also generic use i.e. Web Browsing, emails, streaming up to 4k using YouTube, Netflix, Disney Plus etc... where possible, will be connected to a Samsung 4K TV that can handle at least 1440p at 120hz.
2. What is your maximum budget before rebates/shipping/taxes?
< £600
- I would like something as cheap as possible, example Xbox Series S is £250 and can do most of the above, but from what I know there are no emulators for the Wii U, Switch and PS3 where using RetroArch via Xbox.
3. When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
- If possible within 2 weeks time dependant on my budget ask / requirements
4. What, exactly, do you need included in the budget?
- Something in size similar to Xbox Series X, dependant if the budget allows.
- Windows OS
- Keyboard and Mouse, nothing fancy as will use an Xbox controller for gaming
5. Which country (and state/province) will you be purchasing the parts in?
- UK
6. If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing?
- I have nothing, starting from scratch.
7. Will you be overclocking?
- No, I'm assuming my tasks are not that demanding.
8. Are there any specific features or items you want/need in the build?
- 256GB SSD, 1TB HDD, 16GB RAM, HDMI Port, USB Type C, USB 3.xx, Ethernet Port, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth
9. Do you have any specific case preferences (Size like ITX/microATX/mid-tower/full-tower, styles, colors, window or not, LED lighting, etc), or a particular color theme preference for the components?
- Colour Black, a minimalistic look and just something cheap and functional.
10. Do you need a copy of Windows included in the budget? If you do need one included, do you have a preference?
- I'll just go with Windows Inactivated then work from there on what I want.
Many thanks.
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38 Comments
sorted byrather then go into it:
have a look into 5600G / 5600X so u understand what the G is.
and then compare the losses vs the fight of 5600x vs 11400f
when using a higher card.
uk.pcpartpicker.com/pro…ifi
This would save you £50 + Wifi cost.
Complete agree with James on both parts so that would cover them statements.
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Yup PSU is crazy money but its the cheapest current SFX on PCPP.
ebay has a seasonic 300W for £55 and then a BQ SFX for £57 (one id get out the three)
sadly small PC's like this u pay the price.
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As for the ram 3600mhz is the key, so type on here 3600mhz and take a look whats on offer at any given period, us users hunt ram down faster then fox hunters, so compare 16gb to 32gb cos 32gb are really good price at not much extra atm so its a consideration of 35 at times.
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Because ur going down the route of Small foam, there isnt much to jump off in suggestion then what james has covered, unless u happy to nip to MATX for a bigger build then u can certainly save or use the extra funds for a card as james says. (edited)
If you really must build from scratch any PC build using this years hardware will be more than up for the task, £600 is plenty, the screen & GPU are probably the main parts to spend the most on!
If a Micro ATX can fit within my TV unit then it doesn't need to be console size.
From bottom shelf to middle shelf or middle shelf to draw it's 20 cm in height.
Depth on the shelf 40 cm
Width 50 cm end of shelf to Xbox for example
Example pic below;
I'd look at it the other way around - it's buying the original hardware that's a waste, because while you'll never get the 100% authentic experience and you'll always get the odd little quirk and bug with emulation, unless you're looking for that authentic purist experience, you're actually better wtih the UX that emulation provides.
With emulation, you can:
- Run whatever res you want. Wii games at 4K look so, so much better than at basic 480p, for example.
- Run CRT emulation to restore the visual fidelity lost with 90s games and LCD technology.
- Load games from SSD. No more disc or cart switching, no slow data loads, etc. You've got instant access to your titles.
- Save on software costs. ROMs for the 90s consoles are freely available online. ISOs of newer times are also freely available, from alternative sources.
- Use additional tweaks to further enhance the experience. You can overclock CPUs and additional processors, set games designed to run at 30Hz to run at 60Hz+, add texture filtering, AA, state-save savepoints, cheat codes, all sorts. You can totally open the whole experience up to modification and enhancements in a way that you just can't with old stock hardware.
This is why I'm wanting a PC to do this, as I don't have the space for multiple consoles either.
One thing need to think about is ventilation. This applies to consoles too. PCs normally draw air from the front and exhale it via the back or sometimes top. You can get different shape cases but you will want to make sure has fans able to get fresh air in and out for best performance. Though the 5600g is quite light on that regard thankfully.
Meh, also just because the games are old does mean they are free - not all ROMs are in the public domain. A lot of games & consoles relied on CRTs to forgive the graphic shortcomings which will show up on modern LCDs & 4K screens.
The older console emulation can be done quite well on any PC capable of running Windows 10. It's the Wii U, Switch & PS3 that need the extra grunt. None of those ROMs are freely available and the emulation is still not perfect even if you throw £2000 at the PC. I do own a lot of games and way to many examples of hardware (I even 2, yes 2 Vectrex units!). So perhaps I am a little bias towards emulation and I understand the desire for instant (or at least quicker than the original) load times.
Ryzen 5 3600. My version of YuZu is possibly out of date, my daughter got most of the way through Mario Odyssey on it but there were a few moments along the way where it was unplayable.
We’ve still got a Wii U so didn’t feel much incentive to get a Switch just for one Mario game (feels a recurring story since the GameCube).
Hi. Would this computer fit for you in your space? Sarden has posted an excellent deal hrere:
hotukdeals.com/dea…182
Otherwise in terms of case.. any micro atx will do
Cases are determined by motherboard size (ITX smallest, micro atx next, full-size atx next)
If you have a particularly beefy graphics card then some smaller micro atx cards won't fit, but don't think will be a problem for you.
Going on the rspc3 site
rpcs3.net/qui…art
then as you suggest a ryzen 5 3600 is recommended
I have the previous gen ryzen 7 2700 and haven't tested RSPC3
my experience of emulators is that they're not GPU intensive - just CPU intensive
so as it says, any 900 nvidia card would work.
A 1650 sarden posted would work as would the 1060 you suggested
an older 970 would work too
it recommends 8gb of dual channel ram ie 2x4 gb sticks not 1x8gb stick
but my experience suggests you need 16gb as otherwise windows will use your hard drive for memory and slow things down
it doesn't recommend a speed. I have 3200mhz ram I think 3600mhz is more common now. As per hardware unboxed on youtube, just get the best price performance. eg if was £55 for 3200 and £60 for 3600 and £80 for 4000 then you might go for 3600 speed as only a small extra cost.
it is advisable to have an SSD and a hard drive combination. one for windows, one for games
I don't have an nvme myself, just old fashioned SATA SSD and SATA HDD but that is the way to go as you suggest
In terms of a PSU... I would recommend a branded 500 or 550w PSU to allow you to expand in the future
let me have a quick look on amazon which is where I tend to buy my stuff
at the cheaper end these W1 EVGA get grief from purists wanting to run high powered stuff but for your needs would be great
amazon.co.uk/EVG…8-8
if you wanted something approved by others
amazon.co.uk/Cor…h=1
is more expensive but would later on be able to power a 3070 easily
cases are up to you
amazon.co.uk/s?k…s_2
is all micro atx cases search on amazon
i did look for horizontal ones
but i am not 100% on your measurements as i skipped that - i'm more into the chips and software side of things
what I do know is that small form factor pcs will require special half-height graphics cards
and so IF the PC that Sarden posted fits for you I would just get that
hope this helps somewhat!
I know it can be nervous - Sarden helped me a long time ago.
ETA Prime I had a feeling it would be him... I have been checking out his stuff lately, but not seen that one yet...
Thanks for the reply
if Going Ryzen:
5600G + B550M isnt bad and isnt to far off and also check any b550 deals what might come.
as for the B450 then look into this MSI VDH
Cit flash is a budget case which is nice, but for self builders its gone up in price and if ur paying that u can do so much better on other lines. - have a check whats on hotukdeals but also have a peak at Aerocool Aero One Mini
if ur going intel id go MSI B560 VDH
500Gb nvme here
16gb 3200mhz ram here
Corsair 650W mod
so afew corrections
so afew corrections on the first reply.
1) the next one id be more looking in the used market then the buying a 1650 for £220.
2) long terms performance a 11400 will dominate the cpu performance of a 5600G long term but u are paying for it more upfront on the total package even though the cpu is cheaper, it will be flipped.
and u also got to consider what n how u wanna game now and also future.
11th gen + used gpu = best way id say.
pre user -> 5600G way.
and then boost into a 3060Ti down the lines. (edited)
Cheers will take a look at some point, think my dilemma is the GPU costs as a quick look on eBay for the GTX 1650 Used is not far off New costs where looking at Buy Now prices.
Cheers for the reply, think I'll wait it out and consider the Intel CPU + GPU PC combo
refurb cards for like £65-85!!!!
and every 1600AF for £75 lol.. now u got me started (edited)
I would just look for and see his cheapest Apu and discrete GPU builds. He often has 500w PSU with room to grow eg can get a 1660 or 2060 GPU down the line.
Thanks Sarden. Yes...op you need to think how much you want the small form factor as that is affecting things. If you were to go to a nice micro ATX case then things are cheaper. But if you want a console size of then it is more expensive..
Can see the dilemma!
All depends if MATX will fit in my TV unit hence the SFF that I was initially looking at, if so then I'm open for the change.
See pic / details further up to James (edited)
Many thanks, really appreciate it
1st idea:
Cit Flash.
384 mm dep,
397 mm height
195 mm width.
u turn it on its side remove the legs.
cclonline.com/pro…40/ (edited)
This. I ran HTPCs for many a year and they always struggled with heat when kept within a TV unit.
Intrigued as to how you get on with the Switch stuff, my RTX2060 seems to struggle with slowdowns and frame drops. (edited)
As per my pic above my TV unit is open front side and back which I hope would be of some use.
Xbox One X has not had issues although this may be comparing apples to oranges
Can't tell from the pic, it looks like it's backed up against a curtain? You'll probably be OK given the side to side ventilation but just bear in mind, if you got mini-ITX (and particularly with inbuilt graphics) you're generating a fair amount of heat in a confined space. (edited)
What CPU do you have? My son runs on a gtx 970 and and ryzen 5 2600. Yuzu has gotten much better over the past year for multi core and supporting vulkan as well as opengl which helps with AMD (though your 2060 should do very well). Ryujinx is worse for some games and better for others. But I find upscaling kills some games on ryujinx so native is best. It takes time to build shader cache but that is faster now.
Can someone summarise what I need for a PC build that can emulate smoothly (understand emulation is not perfect) PS3, Wii U and Switch games even if it exceeds £600 please?
- Preferably at 60fps and at 1080p on the emulated games, again I understand emulation can be different from game to game.
- Does not need to be SFF, Micro ATX should be fine.
For example listed like the below, but with a Case PSU etc...
- R5 3600
- 16gb DDR4 3200 mhz RAM
- NVidia GTX 1060
- 256gb nvme m.2 ssd + 1 TB hdd
I'm very sceptical with AliExpress / Banggood PC builds that claim to play PS3, Wi U titles etc...
Many thanks. (edited)
and i have an older 8 core 16 thread cpu (2700) vs newer 6 core 12 thread where the single thread is better (3600)
so youtube is your friend
BUT I would recommend only looking at recent youtube videos as the emulators get better every month
that said - this guy is one of my fave youtubers and has a LOW PROFILE 1650+3600 set up and has RSPC3 at the end
a year old but i love this guys channel
Any issues you could help point out on the below 2 PC setups please?
I'm leaning towards AMD as I know it is a very capable CPU + iGPU for my needs with emulation and the price is under the £600 I stated, plus if I decide to add a GPU later when prices return to normal then I have that choice too.
AMD PC
- CPU + iGPU - £230 Ryzen 5600G
- Case - £49.99 CiT Flash ARGB PC Gaming Case, M-ATX
- MoBo (AMD) - £59.99 Asus Prime B450M-A II Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard
- BT Adapter - £10
- RAM - £65 approx 16GB DDR4 3200Mhz
- PSU - £39.99 Evga 600 W1, 80+ White 600W, Power Supply 100-W1-0600-K3
- SSD - £30 for 256GB SSD
- HDD - £45 for 2TB 2.5" HDD WD Blue
- OS - Will use Windows Inactivated temporarily
Total for the above £529.97
Intel PC
- CPU - £149.99 i7-11400F
- Case - £49.99 CiT Flash ARGB PC Gaming Case, M-ATX
- MoBo - £104.59 (for Intel CPU) Asus PRIME B560M-A Micro ATX LGA1200 Motherboard
- BT Adapter - £10
- GPU - £229.99 Palit | GeForce GTX 1650 4GB
- PSU - £39.99 Evga 600 W1, 80+ White 600W, Power Supply 100-W1-0600-K3
- RAM - £65 approx 3200mhz
- SSD - £30 for 256GB SSD
- HDD - £45 for 2TB 2.5" HDD WD Blue
- OS - Will use Windows Inactivated temporarily
Total for the above £714.55
Hmmm tough one.. at face value it is 200 for the GPU difference
If you want to game AAA at 1080p then the 1650 is a must. For emulation less so.
Certainly Google Xenia and rspc3 and 5600g but I am pretty sure yuzu on vulkan is fine now.
Ryujinx is still more opengl I think and Nvidia
Question is 200 worth it for a 1650?
Today's market yes
But you might be able to get a 3060 for 300 or so next spring once supply picks up
Maybe the amd 5600?
So for emulators I would suggest holding off on the GPU and play what you can until later.
Oh.... Just remembered you wanted the small form factor... So don't have much room for a big GPU anyhow? In which case 1650 makes sense
I am at work now
So I would want to check your PSU can cope with another GPU later on and the case size so you can get a better GPU
If you have gone for small case and weak PSU then the 1650 would be good
Edit so the case sounds like a standard size one so you are not limited to a 1650 from that
And the OSU 600w basic evga will be able to get you a GPU upgrade fine too. Maybe a 3070
Personally I would save the money and get a better GPU later given you have not gone for a small form factor build that can only fit a 1650.
Then go on the discord servers and wait for a good you deal
I got a 3070 founders for £470 from discord servers and scan drop
Check your local gumtree too
Alas crypto prices back up. need another leg down there (edited)
Many thanks for this feedback, really appreciate it.
I'm highly likely going to use the PC for emulation mainly as opposed to AAA gaming as I use the Xbox (I have 2) for me and the Wife to play on.
Many thanks for the reply and pointers....
What do you mean by long term performance in point 2 please?
- i.e. as the years go on the Intel will still be performing well as if it was new or some other terminology?
The CiT Flash case you originally recommended was due to my Width max capacity being 200mm (have to have PC on it's side as per pic above) and it has been a right slog to find one that is either that size or slightly smaller.
Also what do you mean by pre user -> 5600G way? (edited)
Basically the 5600g is a combined CPU and GPU and so isn't as powerful as a pure CPU. So if you were looking to get a discrete GPU down the line a pure CPU would be better
The problem we all have is time machines... The 1650 is as powerful as an Rx 470. I bought one of them new for £150.many years ago and bought a few second hand after crypto crash for £60. In a normal market they should be around £100 new... So vastly overpriced but there is massive demand for chips and crypto distorts GPU market worse
So us value investors prefer to just be patient and get the right price.
The return on a RRP 3060TI extra 100 or 150 pounds is phenomenal but the market is screwed right now
have a look for 970 980. (edited)