The $600 Parts List

ComponentPickPrice
CPU
AMD Ryzen 5 7600
6-core / 12-thread, 5.1GHz boost — best budget gaming CPU, pairs well with AM5 platform for future upgrades
 ~$175
Motherboard
ASRock B650M Pro RS
AM5 platform, DDR5 support, solid VRMs for the 7600, M.2 slot, PCIe 4.0 for GPU
 ~$110
GPU
RX 7600 XT (or RTX 4060)
1080p/1440p capable. RX 7600 XT has more VRAM (16GB) for the same price; RTX 4060 wins on ray tracing and DLSS
 ~$260
RAM
16GB DDR5-5600 (2×8GB)
Minimum for modern gaming. DDR5 on AM5 is worth it — prices have normalized significantly since 2023
 ~$55
Storage
1TB WD SN580 NVMe SSD
PCIe 4.0 NVMe, ~4700MB/s read — fast enough for DirectStorage games, reliable drive at a budget price
 ~$65
PSU
EVGA SuperNOVA 650 G6
650W 80+ Gold, fully modular — right-sized for this build, headroom for a future GPU upgrade
 ~$80
Case
Fractal Design Focus 2
Mid-tower with good airflow, clean aesthetic, tool-less installation, 2 included fans — best case build quality at budget
 ~$80
Cooler
AMD Wraith Stealth (Included)
The Ryzen 5 7600 includes a boxed cooler adequate for stock clocks. Save the cooler budget.
 Included
Total Build
~$625

Expected Performance at 1080p

Cyberpunk 2077
55–70 FPS
High / RT Off
Elden Ring
60+ FPS
High Settings
Valorant
200+ FPS
Medium / Low
Baldur's Gate 3
60–80 FPS
Ultra / FSR
Apex Legends
120+ FPS
High Settings
Diablo 4
80–100 FPS
High / Ultra

Upgrade Path

The AM5 platform supports Ryzen 7000 and 9000 series CPUs — this build has a multi-generation CPU upgrade path without changing the motherboard. The GPU slot is PCIe 5.0 (via PCIe 4.0 lane) compatible with next-generation cards.

First Upgrade (~6-12 months)
32GB RAM
Adding a second 16GB kit (or replacing with 2×16GB) improves performance in RAM-hungry titles and enables light video editing / streaming alongside gaming.
Second Upgrade (~1-2 years)
Mid-Range GPU
Swapping the RX 7600 XT for an RX 8700 or RTX 5060 Ti (when available) pushes 1440p/60fps on demanding titles. The 650W PSU handles up to ~200W TDP cards.
Optional Add-on
Second SSD
Modern games can easily fill 1TB. Adding a 2TB drive as a secondary storage keeps load times fast and the main drive from filling up.
Long-term (~2-3 years)
Ryzen 9000 CPU
AM5 platform longevity means a Ryzen 9 9900X or similar can drop in via BIOS update. CPU upgrade potential without motherboard replacement is a key advantage of this platform choice.

What's Not Included

This build covers the PC tower only. Monitor (~$130 for 1080p/144Hz), keyboard, mouse, Windows 11 license (~$100 retail or free if upgrading), and OS storage (the SSD covers this) are additional costs. Budget an extra $300–400 for peripherals if starting from scratch.

Operating system note: Windows 11 Home can be activated with a retail key, but the OS can also be installed and run without activation — you'll have a watermark and limited personalization options, which is acceptable while you save for a key. Linux (Ubuntu/Pop!_OS) is completely free and supports the majority of Steam's PC game library via Proton.