Build a PC superior to PS5 for 650 euros is possible: guide 2023

Assembling a PC superior to PS5 for less than €1,000 was something that until about a year ago. seemed like an impossible mission, and the truth is that unless we found specific offers it was very complicated because of the high cost of the graphics cards, and most of the mid-range models already cost the same as the Sony console.

Fortunately the situation has changed. The prices of many key components have come down considerably, and the arrival on the refurbished market of a large number of graphics cards has meant that what seemed impossible today not only ceases to be so, but we can also go further and build a PC superior to PS5. for only 650 euros.

I know what you are thinking, that €650 is more than what a PS5 costs, and yes, this is true, but we must take into account that the difference is only €100, and that we are talking about a PC that will be much more powerful. than Sony’s console, and one that will also have a longer lifespan and stand the test of time better.

To the above we must add, in addition, that with a computer we can do things that are impossible on said console, we will not have to pay to play onlinewe will have access to the promotions of free games which are periodically released by the main digital distribution platforms and we will be able to save a lot of money by buying games at lower prices.

The PS5 APU under the microscope. We can see its Zen 2 CPU and Radeon GPU.

Component guide to configure a PC superior to PS5 for 650 euros.

Before getting into the subject it is important to make a few things clear. The first is that, in order to keep the price below 650 euros and maximize the performance of the equipment, it is a good idea to resort to refurbished products. These have a warranty of between one and two years, they are checked and tested by professionals to validate that they work without problems and their prices are very good.

On the other hand, keep in mind that the prices we are going to see. may change over timeand that the availability of refurbished products may also vary. Therefore, I am going to leave you with alternative options on one key component that is undoubtedly the one that could change the most in the short term, the graphics card. However, the main option is the one recommended for the value it offers in price-performance ratio.

Processor

The processor is important, but it is not the component to which we should devote most of the budget. because, in the end, the graphics card is the one that makes the big difference in games. This will be the component to which we will allocate almost half of the budget we have, but to better contextualize our choice let’s go into technical details.

PS5 has a Zen 2 CPU with a heavily trimmed CPU (it only has 8 MB of L3 cache) with a floating point unit much lower than a PC Zen 2 CPU, it only reaches a peak frequency of 3.5 GHz and on top of that it only has 6.5 cores free for gaming. This means that with a Zen 2 processor with 6 cores and 12 threads at 4 GHz or more would already be above the CPU of this console, and that to assemble a PC superior to PS5 we do not need a Ryzen 7 5700X.

With all this clear, our choice is the Ryzen 5 5500a processor based on the Zen 2 architecture that has 6 cores and 12 threads at 3.5 GHz-4.2 GHz, normal and turbo mode, has 16 MB of L3 cache and comes with a fan included, so we will not have to spend extra money to cool it. Its price is 107 euros, a very affordable figure considering what it offers, and on top of that it comes with the free Company of Heroes 3 game.

Motherboard

We don’t need a high-end motherboard, nor do we need a particularly advanced model, a solution that offers an acceptable level of quality and is reliable and cost-effective is enough for us. The GIGABYTE B450M S2H is undoubtedly the best option we can find at the time of writing this article, as it is priced at only €60.75 (+€3.95 shipping and handling), has everything we will need and offers a build quality above what we are used to seeing in its price range.

This motherboard uses the B450M chipset (micro-ATX form factor), has. passive cooling on the VRM, has an M.2 slot for mounting a PCIe Gen3 x4 SSD and supports memory DDR4 RAM at up to 3600 MHzThis is enough frequency for us to take advantage of the Ryzen 5 5500 that we have chosen as processor. A very complete motherboard for the price it has, well built and able to more than cover our needs.

As far as sound is concerned, this motherboard comes with a fairly competent integrated solution as it includes the chip. Realtek ALC887so we won’t have to add anything else. This chip offers 7.1 sound and has jack connectors on the back. It also has six USB Type-A connectors, so we will have no problem using a large number of peripherals.

RAM

RAM memory plays a very important role for the Ryzen 5 5500 to develop its full potential, so we must choose it wisely. To be able to play with all the guarantees we need to count with 16 GB of RAMand from 3,200 MHz with CL16 latencies we are already moving at the optimal level so that such a processor does not suffer any bottleneck caused by speed or memory access times, so we have the decision fully outlined.

We have opted for the kit Kingston FURY Beast 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) 3,200 MHz CL16 because it meets all the requirements we have said, because it allows us to activate the dual channel and because it also has a very economical price and good build quality. We can buy it for 51.99 euros.

It is not necessary to mount more than 16 GB of RAM because it will be an investment that we are not going to make profitable even in the long term. Remember that PS5 uses a unified memory architecture that adds up to 16 GB of GDDR6, and that this is used interchangeably for data and graphics elements, as there is no physical separation as in a PC. Of those 16 GB you have between 13.5 GB and 14 GB free for games, so with 16 GB of RAM we have more than enough.

Graphics card

We come to the critical point of this configuration. We have just over 430 euros left of the budget, so we have to try to buy the most powerful graphics card we can find but leaving room for the rest of the components (power supply, chassis and SSD). We have it complicated, so it is essential to resort to the refurbished market.

The best option we can find, at the time of writing this article, is the. GeForce RTX 2070 Superwhich is priced in the range of 270 to 330 euros, depending on availability and the market we look at. On PcComponents we have it available for €273.78, although I have seen it for between €220 and €250 on the second hand market.

As we want to buy it with warranty, I have added the price of 273,78 euros to the budget, and not other lower ones that I have found in the second hand market. The Radeon RX 6700 would certainly be the best alternative to this one.as it performs a little better in rasterization and can be purchased new for 339 euros. It will obviously increase the cost of the equipment a bit, but in exchange we will have a newer model, with more graphics memory and higher performance in rasterization.

The GeForce RTX 2070 Super is superior to the PS5 GPU in games, both in rasterization and ray tracing, and also has the advantage of supporting DLSS 2, a rescaling and intelligent image reconstruction technology that improves performance without sacrifices in image quality whether we stay in quality mode or balanced mode.

DigitalFoundry has confirmed on numerous occasions that the PS5 GPU performs, depending on the game used, at the level of a GeForce RTX 2060 or even slightly below.and its ray tracing performance is well below what NVIDIA’s Turing architecture offers, something that has already become clear in many titles, such as Control and Watch Dogs Legion, to name a few. This was, in fact, one of the five PS5 secrets we told you about last year.

That’s why games like Dying Light 2 only work on PS5 with. 1080p resolution at 30 FPS and ray tracing limited to shadows and ambient occlusion.while with a GeForce RTX 2070 Super we could enable full ray tracing (applied to lighting and reflections) and maintain full fluidity (60 FPS stable) thanks to DLSS2.

Storage unit

We are left with €156.48 of the total budget, so. we have enough margin to finish the component selection in a pretty decent way. We won’t be able to build an SSD with the same speed as the PS5, which reaches 5.5 GB/s in sequential read, but we will compensate with a higher capacity and we will exceed the minimum value of 2.4 GB/s set by Xbox X Series and S Series.

For us to have no storage issues we need, at a minimum, an SSD that has a capacity of 1TB, and as we said we need to exceed that 2.4 GB/s minimum throughput. The Kingston NV2 meets all these requirements, as it has a storage capacity of 1TB, achieves a speed of 3.5 GB/s sequential read and above has a very affordable price, 62.99 euros.

PS5 SSD is faster, but sThe SSD only has a capacity of 825 GB, of which only about 667 GB is available to the user.so the difference in terms of capacity is substantial. It is not worth investing in a faster SSD because it will not make a significant difference either in games or in our overall usage experience.

Power supply

We haven’t chosen a very demanding graphics card, so we are satisfied with a decent power supply that has 550 watts of power. and that comes with an additional 6-pin power connector and an additional 8-pin power connector. Keep in mind that the power consumption of the rest of the components is also minimal, so we don’t need more power (the GeForce RTX 2070 Super with overclock will have an average gaming power consumption of 220 watts).

The power consumption of this configuration under load would be around 400 watts, so a source such as the. Thermaltake Litepower 550 watt with 38A on the 12V rail would be more than enough, and it comes with two 6+2 pin PCIe connectors. We can buy it for 41,47 €.. If you want to invest a little more of the budget you can do it and go for EVGA 600 W2 80 Plus White 600 watts, which costs 54,69 €. and will give you more room for future upgrades.

PC Chassis

We have €52.02 left in our budget, so we have enough to choose a more than acceptable chassis. This point is quite personal, since in the end not all of us have the same taste in terms of design, but keep in mind that if you get the GeForce RTX 2070 Super we have indicated. you will need a case that allows you to mount 30-centimeter graphics cards.as the GIGABYTE model has a length of 28.65 centimeters.

In this case the Mars Gaming MC-X2 FRGB would be a good choice because it fulfills everything we need in terms of internal space, and also because it has a rather nice aesthetic and comes with two 120mm fansone colo placed at the front to draw air in and one at the rear to draw hot air out. Its price is 52,10 euros.

Total cost and endnotes.

Dying Light 2 looks great on PC with ray tracing at max.

By 650.08 euros (+3.95 euros shipping costs for the motherboard) we have been able to assemble a very powerful PC that meets our main objective to clearly outperform a PS5, and that is also perfectly balanced and has a quite attractive aesthetic, since we have not even had to give up a chassis with a nice design and a more than acceptable cooling.

This equipment offers. a power that could be considered as a mid-range PC. In fact, its GeForce RTX 2070 Super outperforms the GeForce RTX 3060 without any problems, and with it we will be able to play with total fluidity in 1080p and 1440p even with ray tracing, as long as we activate DLSS 2 in quality or balanced mode, depending on the chosen resolution.

Also Would even be able to run 4K games smoothly. adjusting the graphics quality level, and if we resort to DLSS 2 in performance mode we will not have any problem in this regard. Undoubtedly a very economical configuration, but at the same time very versatile and full of possibilities.

Note: This guide contains some links from our affiliates, but none of the products included have been proposed or recommended by them or their manufacturers, but chosen at our own discretion.