In the fall of 2023, Intel released a new generation of central processors, and a bit later, NVIDIA introduced the updated 40th series of graphics cards with the Super suffix. Considering these new products, it's the perfect time to discuss how to choose a computer for gaming in 2024. We will tell you what exactly to pay attention to and explain which components have the most significant impact on the frame rate in games.
It's worth mentioning Intel Core 14th generation processors separately, as they are refreshes, meaning they are the same processors as the previous generation but with increased frequencies. There are no changes in the number of cores or architecture in the new products. Only Intel Core i7-14700 received an addition of 4 energy-efficient cores. All other new products are almost not different in power from their old analogs. Therefore, you can safely consider gaming computers with 12th and 13th generation Intel processors for purchase.
Number of Cores
The number of cores directly affects the power of processors, however, it is wrong to think that the more, the better. Modern video games are optimized for 4, 6, and 8 productive cores. It's not worth buying top processors like AMD Ryzen 9 7950X or Intel Xeon Gold 5411N with a huge number of cores. Using these CPUs, FPS in games will remain at the same level as processors with 8 productive cores.
Processors with 4 Productive Cores
Buying PCs with 4-core processors, such as Intel Core i3-12100, 13100, and 14100, is only worth it if your budget is very limited. Although these CPUs cope with modern games, their power is just enough. In 2-3 years, they will no longer pull video games as well, so it's better to consider comps with 6-core central processors. They cost slightly more, but their power is significantly higher.
Processors with 6 Productive Cores
Processors with 6 productive cores are considered the most optimal in terms of price and power. They are relatively inexpensive, while their power is sufficient for any video games on ultra graphics settings.
Current Intel Core i5 processors with 6 productive cores:
- i5-12400;
- i5-13400;
- i5-13500;
- i5-13600;
- i5-14400;
- i5-14500;
- i5-14600.
Current AMD Ryzen 5 processors with 6 cores:
- Ryzen 5600;
- Ryzen 7500F;
- Ryzen 7600X.
It is worth mentioning Intel Core i5-13600 and 14600 processors separately. Although these CPUs are considered mid-budget, they are very powerful, and their performance is enough not to be bottlenecked even for such top-end graphics cards as AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090.
Processors with 8 Productive Cores
Processors with 8 productive cores provide the maximum FPS in video games. They are chosen if you want to buy the most powerful gaming computer in the world or when you need a system unit for many years to come.
Current Intel Core processors with 8 productive cores:
- i7-13700;
- i7-14700;
- i9-13900;
- i9-14900.
Current AMD Ryzen 7 processors with 8 cores:
- Ryzen 7700;
- Ryzen 7800X3D.
Intel Core processors with 8 productive cores are very hot. They require liquid cooling systems. Ordinary tower coolers simply cannot cope with the heat dissipation of these CPUs.
Current NVIDIA GeForce RTX graphics cards for Full HD:
- GeForce RTX 4060;
- GeForce RTX 4060 Ti;
Current AMD Radeon RX graphics cards for FullHD:
- Radeon 7600;
- Radeon 7600 XT;
Graphics Cards for 2K Gaming
Graphics cards for 2K gaming are mid-budget graphics accelerators. They provide 60 and more FPS in almost all modern games, even with ray tracing technology enabled. Also, these graphics cards are suitable for owners of Full HD monitors with a high refresh rate.
Current NVIDIA GeForce RTX graphics cards for 2K:
- GeForce RTX 4070;
- GeForce RTX 4070 Super;
- GeForce RTX 4070 Ti.
Current AMD Radeon RX graphics cards for 2K:
- Radeon 7700 XT;
- Radeon 7800 XT;
Graphics Cards for 4K Gaming
This category includes the most powerful graphics accelerators. They handle any graphics settings and provide the maximum possible FPS.
Current top NVIDIA GeForce RTX graphics cards for 4K:
- GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super;
- GeForce RTX 4080;
- GeForce RTX 4080 Super;
- GeForce RTX 4090.
Current top AMD Radeon RX graphics cards for 4K:
- Radeon 7900 XT;
- Radeon 7900 XTX;
DDR4 RAM was released in 2011 but still works great with modern processors and provides good performance. However, in 2023, many new games were released that work better with DDR5 RAM.
Depending on the project, you can get 10-30% more FPS from using DDR5 modules. So, buying computers with DDR4 RAM is only worth it if your budget is very limited.
Modularity of Design
To make assembling the system unit easier, MSI engineers implemented a fully modular design of the case. For example, you can easily remove the top panel so nothing interferes during the installation of the motherboard, or detach part of the power supply unit cover to easily route cables to the components.
Memory Capacity
In 2024, you need at least 16 GB of RAM for stable operation of video games. This amount is enough for most modern projects, however, today there are games that require more RAM. For example, Forspoken, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, and Hogwarts Legacy already today require 32 GB of memory. On system units with less RAM, these games freeze and hang. In the future, there will be more and more such projects. Therefore, it's better to immediately buy a powerful gaming computer with 32 GB of RAM.
Memory Frequency
The frequency of DDR4 memory should be no less than 3200 MHz. Otherwise, the bandwidth will be low, which will significantly worsen the processor's performance. This is important for both Intel and AMD CPUs. For the latter, it's especially important as their power greatly depends on the RAM frequency.
With DDR5 memory, everything is much simpler. Modern processors work great even with the minimum DDR5 RAM frequency of 4800 MHz. So, it's not worth overpaying for a high-end PC with high-frequency memory.
Number of RAM Modules
Unscrupulous sellers may install a single stick of RAM in a gaming computer. In fact, this is unacceptable. Using one module instead of two reduces the bandwidth by 1.5-2 times. This significantly worsens the central processor's performance. A good gaming PC should have two or four sticks of RAM.
Solid State Drive
We are used to thinking that storage does not affect performance in games, but now this is not the case. In 2023, many video games were released that performed very poorly on outdated hard drives. Levels took a long time to load, freezes appeared, and objects switched from low quality to higher quality right in front of the player's camera.
Therefore, in 2024, having an SSD in a gaming PC is not desirable, but strictly mandatory. At the same time, there is no need to buy computers with the fastest solid-state drives, for example, with a PCI-E 5.0 connection interface. Modern games work great even on inexpensive SSDs with a SATA 3 interface.
The main thing is that the drive itself is of high quality. This can be determined by its manufacturer. For example, the highest quality SSDs are made by companies like Samsung and Western Digital. If the PC has drives from these manufacturers, you can not worry about the reliability and durability of the storage.
It is worth avoiding those computers in which SSD drives from little-known Chinese brands are installed. Such drives fail very quickly and have a low write speed after filling the SLC-cache.
How to Choose a Gaming Computer in 2024: Conclusions
A gaming computer in 2024 should have the following characteristics:
- Processors from Intel's 12th, 13th, or 14th generation, as well as AMD's 5th or 7th;
- NVIDIA GeForce RTX 40 series or AMD Radeon RX 7 series graphics cards;
- DDR4 or DDR5 RAM with a minimum capacity of 16 GB;
- A high-speed solid-state drive;
- A case with good airflow.
HYPERPC Gaming Computers in 2024
HYPERPC computers meet all the requirements of modern video games. We constantly update and improve our systems to provide maximum performance in any project.
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