Want to pay for freight ?
I have up for sale - https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/624537430597492

would do a deal for a GZ member 

GoranZ:

 

Want to pay for freight ?
I have up for sale - https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/624537430597492

 

would do a deal for a GZ member 

 

Thanks, but I'm looking at something with a bit higher specs. 

Budget would give good idea as well.

Also advise if you need peripherals, screen etc as well. 

Apologies for not giving enough information!

I'm looking for something similar to a mid-range build from PCMR, currently their two mid range builds have RTX5070 12GB and a  RX 9060 XT 16 GB.
Those builds are new about NZD$2300-2800.

No need for screens, I'll be connecting it to a TV.
I'd need a wireless keyboard+mouse but I can buy that myself separately.

A nice looking case would be preferable as it will sit in the living room.

Budget up to approx $1500.

Having very recently (bought last week) gone through a similar process with my son I think your $1500 budget is tight. Thats very much entry level/budget tier for a gaming PC.

Here's what we ended up buying: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/193L_2pSheSztR3aWswq5c2yQF1GSPinr5-0Hl4ryDYU/edit?usp=sharing

That came in at ~$2000 (just over). But doesnt include OS or peripherals (none a concern for us) but you may want to consider.

I have to say I am super happy and impressed with the build in the end (as is my son). Smashes 1080p and should do 1440p fine (when my son decides to upgrade the monitor at some point). The 9060 XT is really good! You could go a 7000 series processor and save some money. There's plenty of future upgrade options too.

Obviously this is new... so you may get something second hand for your $1500 but likely older generations.

@nzkc Yeah I'm looking at something second hand to lower the price. Thanks for the insights, that build you have bought seems great.

boland:

 

I'm looking for something similar to a mid-range build from PCMR, currently their two mid range builds have RTX5070 12GB and a  RX 9060 XT 16 GB.

 

The issue with the mid-range build from PCMR is that it features the latest generation mid-range components.
This means that if you’re looking for a similar performance profile on the second-hand market, you’ll likely looking for high-end parts from previous generations instead.

The two GPUs you listed offer a solid generational performance uplift.

For example, here’s an older high-end build (not mine) priced between $1300 and $1600 in Wellington:

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/marketplace/computers/desktops/no-monitor/listing/5556241457

This was a high-end system for its time but is now several generations old.
The GPU, a 3080, was top-tier back then, while the newer 5070 offers roughly a 20% increase in raw performance, with even greater improvements in ray tracing and DLSS.
Similarly, the 3700X CPU was high-end, but the 9600X now delivers about a 30% performance boost.

Good luck!

Realistically I think the upper bounds for that budget is probably something more along the lines of:

AMD 5600x or 5800x

16GB RAM

NVIDIA 4060 or AMD 7600, or maybe 3070.

Given a new machines with the above better specs are listed at $1400-1700 on PBtech, I suspect it will be challenging to aim 2 generations newer and a tier or two higher at that same price.

Remember a 4070 was a $1000 GPU 12 months ago and is still a better than the 9060XT which is currently a $7-800 GPU. While the 5070 is a $1100 GPU new at the moment.

It really depends. Nowadays anything short of a 13/14th gen Intel or a 7000/9000 cpu or x3d variant is not cutting the mustard for modern UE5 games.

e.g. The R7 3700x suffers a lot due to it’s split CCX design. You wouldn’t want to get it if you have other options.

GPU side almost everything is relying on upscaling. Nvidia charges a premium for it as DLSS is still objectively better. Only the 9000 series with FSR4 competes in performance for quality.

My plan is to indeed buy a 2nd hand system that was high-end ~5 years ago, and is comparable with a new mid range build now, for less than $1500, if possible.

Or is my plan flawed as I'll miss out on new features like DLSS?

I've been out of PC gaming for more than a decade, so it's all relatively new to me. 

https://www.pyronic.al/

boland:

 

My plan is to indeed buy a 2nd hand system that was high-end ~5 years ago, and is comparable with a new mid range build now, for less than $1500, if possible.

 

Or is my plan flawed as I'll miss out on new features like DLSS?

 

I've been out of PC gaming for more than a decade, so it's all relatively new to me. 

 

High-end 5 years ago is something along the lines of:

AMD 5800X, 5800X3D or 5700X3D

16-32GB DDR3200

NVIDIA 3070 TI/3080 or AMD 6800XT/6900XT

Or one generation newer GPU NVIDIA 4070 or AMD 7700XT or 7800XT, 7900 GRE

The other problem is at the moment most of the older high-end GPUs with 12-24GB of VRAM are in high demand on the second hand market for AI use. Combine that with the much higher GPU prices being driven by Bitcoin/COVID/AI and a lot of the old high end cards are still rather expensive.

Also features wise the modern cards tend of offer a fair bit more the recent AMD 90x0 series offers much better ray tracing and upscaling than the 7xxx and 6xxx series. The NVIDIA 40xx and 50xx again offer better ray tracing and upscaling compared to the 30xx series.

Instead of buying used, old systems at a lower price, I would rather buy new systems and use them (without upgrades) until they fall apart.

If you buy an old system for NZD 1,500 to use for another three years, you might as well buy a new, up-to-date system for NZD 3,000 to use for six years. The annual acquisition costs are the same, but the purchase price is double.

It’s more that games nowadays are a lot more heavy on CPU and memory. In the past people would recommend a lesser CPU and a better GPU because that mattered more for games. Nowadays those kind of systems get hit with modern UE5 features (lumen/nanite) and raytracing and are not doing so well, meanwhile the GPU’s get by with lesser load via AI upscaling.