With the shortage of graphics cards, which are currently selling at several times their MSRP, fifty-fifty gamers who know how to build their own computers are looking for dissimilar means to get capable gaming machines.

We recently compared a list of recommended build specs to what you can buy pre-built from the likes of HP, Dell, Lenovo and other big OEMs. Our determination was that edifice your own PC even so makes sense with a mid-range graphics card, but pre-congenital systems are far more reasonable in the high end. For instance, if y'all're buying an RTX 3070 or above, pre-builts definitely have something going for them right now.

Granted, buying a pre-built PC from an OEM has its drawbacks, including upgradability and not knowing exactly what's within of the machine. The solution to that seems obvious: boutique PC builders like CyberPowerPC, Origin PC, iBuyPower, and many others who gather systems out of well-known retail parts that can be easily upgraded.

Now, boutique stores usually do come at a premium that larger manufacturers are able to kickoff. If all you desire is the cheapest PC that tin run modernistic games adequately, you should gather a $500 rig yourself and add a GeForce GTX 1660 Super, or merely purchase a standard pre-built.

Another problem with boutiques is shipping times, which are currently measured in weeks, and if you desire ane of the well-nigh sought-after graphics cards they can exist even longer. So, does patience pay off when ownership a gaming PC?

Amongst the stores nosotros checked out for putting together this article were: Origin PC, Maingear, iBuyPower, Falcon Northwest, Puget Systems, Digital Storm, AVADirect, XoticPC, CyberPowerPC, Xidax and even NZXT'due south BLD.

While all of them looked like legitimate options, nosotros picked the 3 stores that offered the best combination of part selection, value and shipping times at the time of writing. Depending on when yous are reading this article, each of those stores may offer the all-time bargain for yous, but our goal was to compare boutique builders in general to other means of getting a gaming PC.

DIY value gaming build vs. boutique builders

The first table below compares our DIY Value Gaming Rig, which is a decent value compared to pre-builts fifty-fifty with current graphics bill of fare prices, to the best-value offerings we could find at iBuyPower, CyberPowerPC and XoticPC.

Word of advice: alongside their computers, boutique builders offer many peripherals and accessories. If you want some of those, make sure you lot check whether you can get them for less elsewhere.

Component DIY Gaming Value iBuyPower CyberPowerPC XoticPC
Processor Ryzen v
3600X		 Ryzen 5
5600X		 Ryzen 5
3600		 Ryzen 5
3600
CPU Cooler Wraith Spire Asetek 550LC A71C Air
Motherboard B550 Tomahawk B550 Tomahawk B550 Gaming Edge WiFi B550 Bazooka
Memory two x 16GB DDR4-3600 CL18 ii x 8GB DDR4-3200 2 x 8GB DDR4-3200 2 10 8GB DDR4-3200 Vengeance Pro
Storage 1TB Sabrent Rocket 4.0 1TB SN750 1TB SN750 1TB 970 Evo Plus
Graphics 1660 Super RTX 2060 RTX 2060 RTX 3060
PSU SuperNova GA 650 Thermaltake 600W Gold Thermaltake 600W Aureate 600W 80 Plus
Case 400D Airflow Versa 27 400D Airflow 400D Airflow
Toll $1545 (electric current)
$1,125 (MSRP)		 $1,656 $one,699 $one,854

iBuyPower

Buying a PC from iBuyPower looks elementary: y'all choose a configurator and get a default system that yous can customize every bit yous wish. It's of import to choose the configurator whose default organisation is the closest to what you are looking for, though, as the default system is discounted in a way that doesn't apply to the changes y'all make. We don't recommend using the site'due south Easy Builder, as it will only testify you a small number of options, and non always the best ones.

When nosotros chose the 3rd-gen Ryzen R5 configurator, the default (and cheapest possible) CPU was the 4th-gen R5 5600X, which is technically better than the R5 3600X in our DIY system, although you lot won't see the departure in about gaming scenarios with the electric current system. Asetek'southward 550LC 120mm liquid CPU cooler was one of the cheapest options, but should be enough for that efficient processor.

MSI's B550 Tomahawk is the motherboard we'd recommend for most people in this price range. We chose a two x 8GB memory kit with a 3200MHz speed from a "certified major brand." Choosing a specific make would add $30 or $45 to the price, a 3600MHz kit is $60 more expensive, and going with a 32GB kit would increase the toll by $150 – about the cost of a 32GB kit.

Western Digital's WD_Black SN750 is ane of the all-time PCIe 3.0 SSDs. Every PCIe iv.0 SSD on offering was much more expensive, and no other PCIe 3.0 1 was much cheaper. iBuyPower does offering the GTX 1660 Super from our DIY organization, but the stronger RTX 2060 was merely $52 more, so we couldn't ignore that. We opted to pay $12 for knowing where the 600W, 80 Plus Gilt PSU came from (Thermaltake).

Thermaltake also makes the case that nosotros chose – the Versa 27. Amazingly, information technology was i of the cheapest cases offered.

With current graphics card prices, this organization is well-nigh $100 more expensive than our DIY system. The price includes Windows x, then if y'all need to buy a license anyhow, you can consider that a tie. In current games, iBuyPower's organization will perform better, at least when zilch heavy is running in the background. It also comes with a 3-twelvemonth standard warranty.

Possible additions include premium case fans and thermal pastes, RGB strips, sound-damping cream, all kinds of internal cards, "professional person" cable wiring (does that mean that by default, their cable wiring isn't professional?), an advanced packaging system and (ironically, for the same price) one year of ground-shipping return coverage.

With the current configuration, the system is expected to ship within 4 weeks.

CyberPowerPC

CyberPowerPC possibly offers more options than any architect that we checked, which is why it'southward then annoying that if you effort to add together your selected system to your cart without enabling cookies first, your cart volition remain empty and you'll demand to first over.

The EZPC characteristic is better than iBuyPower'south Like shooting fish in a barrel Builder as it lets y'all customize your rig as you wish. We still don't recommend using it, as information technology gives too many options, many of which are not slap-up, with shockingly pocket-sized SSDs or quondam and inadequate processors.

Using the Ryzen 5 configurator, the default CPU is the R5 3600. That CPU may perform identically to the R5 3600X from our DIY build with the correct libation, so that'southward the CPU that we chose as the R5 5600X was $154 more. Libation Master'south A71C, the cheapest cooler offered, should be plenty for getting the most out of the R5 3600, but if you desire to be sure, meliorate coolers aren't much more expensive. MSI's B550 Tomahawk wasn't on offer, but the MSI B550 Gaming Edge WiFi has basically everything that the Tomahawk has, plus Wi-Fi.

As CyberPowerPC's memory pricing policy is identical to iBuyPower's, nosotros again chose 2 x 8GB of RAM from a "major make." For the sake of comparison nosotros chose a 3200MHz speed, even though in this case going down to 3000MHz would salve us $30. Our SSD of choice is once once again the WD_SN750.

CyberPowerPC doesn't take any GTX carte, simply information technology has the RTX 2060. If yous want the faster RTX 3060 instead that would add together 4 weeks of lead time, but the system volition actually be $10 cheaper, not to mention that the lead fourth dimension would automatically qualify the purchase for a 5% instant rebate if you enter the "NORUSH" code during checkout. At iBuyPower, the RTX 3060 would brand the system $82 more expensive, in improver to the aforementioned lead time increase.

In this example, we had to add $21 for knowing that our 600W, eighty Plus Aureate PSU comes from Thermaltake. CyberPowerPC doesn't have the Versa 27 instance, but it has the Cooler Chief 400D Airflow from our DIY system.

The price includes Windows 10 and simply one year of warranty, simply 3 years of service and lifetime technical support. CyberPowerPC offers basically all of the additions that iBuyPower does, plus laser engravings.

CyberPowerPC offers a similar buying experience to iBuyPower's, but in this specific case information technology generally falls short, every bit this system is more than expensive despite having a slower CPU and a shorter standard warranty. It tin can become slightly cheaper than iBuyPower's after rebate if yous enter the "NORUSH" code during checkout, but that would delay the aircraft in about a week.

If you stick with the RTX 2060 and don't employ the "NORUSH" code, the system will send in between iv and 5 weeks.

XoticPC

XoticPC's buying process is dissimilar from those of the other two stores. First you need to choose one out of 4 vaguely defined series, so a case, and then a platform. In the Advanced series, nosotros establish the 400D Airflow case.

We chose the R5 3600, fifty-fifty though the faster 5600X was just $70 more expensive. The air libation wasn't named, just with the processor's 65W TDP we didn't retrieve it would matter besides much. MSI'south Bazooka was the only B550 motherboard bachelor. Information technology's not as skilful as those in the other systems in terms of thermal performance, simply it still has 4 memory slots and 2 One thousand.2 storage slots.

In XoticPC, every RAM option over 8GB is from a specific brand, then we chose Corsair'due south Vengeance RGB Pro 2 x 8GB kit at 3,200MHz, as it'south just $20 more expensive than the 2,666MHz 16GB kits (with no RGB).

XoticPC didn't have the WD_BLACK SN750, merely it had Samsung's 970 Evo Plus, which is only as good and actually more expensive in the aftermarket, for just $twenty more the DRAM-less 980.

The main reason that we consider this system a decent value option is that you lot tin can get a GeForce RTX 3060 with no extra wait time, and for merely $150 more than than the vanilla GTX 1660. We'd need to add at to the lowest degree $69 for a specific ability supply, so we chose to stick with the "600W lxxx Plus" option.

The price includes an RGB kit, braided cables with 9 x ix color options, Windows 10, custom foam packaging, lifetime technical support and 5 years of part-replacement warranty.

The estimated shipping time is between 10 and 20 concern days. If you lot need your estimator in the next month and gaming performance is your acme priority, this organization is a good pick.

Loftier-terminate pre-built vs bazaar builders

Next we'll compare offerings from the same iii bazaar PC stores to the MSI Aegis ZS series as we configured it to friction match our high-finish PC build recommendation. The MSI seems to offer the best combination of upgradability and value in the loftier-end pre-built market, so how does the boutique do in comparison?

Component MSI iBuyPower CyberPowerPC XoticPC
Processor Ryzen 7
5800X		 Ryzen 9
5900X		 Ryzen 9
5900X		 Ryzen 5
5600X
CPU Cooler Dragon 120mm Castle 240X Castle 240X Air
Motherboard B550 B550 Tomahawk B550 Gaming Edge WiFi B550 Bazooka
Retentiveness 2 ten 8GB 2 x 8GB DDR4-3200 2 x 8GB DDR4-3200 2 x 8GB DDR4-3200 Vengeance Pro
Storage 1TB SATA 1TB SN750 1TB SN750 1TB 970 Evo Plus
Graphics RTX 3080 RTX 3070 RTX 3070 RTX 3080
PSU 650W Gilt 650W Gold 800W Gilded

760W Ion+ Platinum
Case ATX Versa 27 400D Airflow 400D Airflow
Price $2,500 $2,293 $two,404
($2,284 afterward rebate)		 $2,633

iBuyPower

Stepping up to the R7 5800X processor from the R5 5600X makes the organisation $138 more than expensive (when using the "Ryzen" configurator), and requires you to choose a 240mm liquid cooler. At that point information technology makes more than sense to add together another $ninety for the R9 5900X, which performs similarly in modern games but up to 50% better in other tasks, including live streaming and recorded video editing. Our 240mm libation of choice is DeepCool'south Castle 240EX.

We chose the RTX 3070 graphics bill of fare over the RTX 3080 because the deviation in price is $463, and we don't like the combination of paying more and waiting longer for the aforementioned gaming performance every bit the Aegis ZS. The RTX 3060 is some other $281 less, but that's non a loftier-cease GPU.

Since MSI doesn't mention the brand of its 650W, 80 Plus Gold power supply, nosotros don't feel obligated to pay more than for a specific make. The configurator does make sure that we choose at to the lowest degree 650W with the RTX 3070, though.

All in all, this is a solid alternative to the Aegis ZS at nearly $200 less. It has a slower GPU but a much faster CPU (with a better cooler), a retail motherboard, better SSD and case, and three years of warranty compared to MSI's one year. With the RTX 3070, the system volition ship in near 8 weeks.

CyberPowerPC

At CyberPowerPC, the R9 5900X is over again a ameliorate value than the R7 5800X at $100 extra using the "Ryzen 9X" configurator. We chose the Castle 240EX libation over again, even though the configurator didn't tell u.s. to upgrade the cooler.

At $500 less, the RTX 3070 was an obvious choice over the RTX 3080. For another $135 less, the RTX 3060 Ti is a practiced culling. Although CyberPowerPC would let the states get by with 600W, we wanted to at least friction match the other systems' 650W. The cheapest manner to do that was to pace up to an 800W, 80 Plus Gold unit from no specific brand.

With its 5% instant rebates for systems with the RTX 3070, CyberPowerPC matches the iBuyPower pricing, despite including a more expensive motherboard and a better PSU (presumably). Your choice could come downward to your case preference (including laser engravings), and to how much iBuyPower's longer standard warranty means to you.

The aircraft time for this system is between eight and nine weeks.

XoticPC

With XoticPC we once again chose to salvage on the CPU and go with the R5 5600X and an air cooler. An R7 5800X would make the system $240 more expensive (including a mandatory 240mm liquid cooler), and an R9 5900X would add another $120 to that.

By the time you are reading this, you may already be able to get an RTX 3080 with no actress wait time. Every bit an alternative, the RTX 3070 is $330 cheaper, and already in stock at the time of writing.

The RTX 3080 requires at to the lowest degree a 750W power supply with XoticPC'due south configurator. We chose Fractal Pattern's 760W, 80 Plus Platinum-rated Ion+ model for but $ten more than an unnamed Gigabyte 750W, 80 Plus Gold model.

Compared to MSI's pre-built, this system will cost more and perform similarly in realistic gaming scenarios, only has a retail motherboard, ameliorate parts (SSD, power supply and case), premium looks and a longer warranty. Assuming that the graphics card that you lot choose is in stock, the system volition ship in betwixt 10 and 20 business concern days.

A 3-way summary

Tin you still get decent value for your coin with a new gaming PC?

Yeah, but not with $600 like you could in the contempo by. If your budget is anywhere almost that, perhaps you should try to get a console (please, don't shoot the messenger!).

For $1,200 you lot tin find several decent options in both the pre-congenital and DIY markets. The price point effectually $1,700 has great DIY and bazaar-store options. For about $2,500 you tin can get a top-performing PC, either pre-built or from a boutique builder.