New components:
- CPU: Intel i7-13700KF
- Motherboard: Gigabyte Z790 Eagle AX
- RAM: Corsair Vengeance DDR5-6000
- GPU: Nvidia RTX 4070ti
- Cooler: NZXT Kraken Z63 AIO
This works great for my needs, but there are some compromises that others may not find acceptable. The mobo is kind of budget level and only has a single 16x pcie slot. The CPU doesn’t include onboard graphics. The radiator is 280mm, as that was what would fit in my case. There’s no RGB except the cooler.
Motherboards are tough to recommend because it really depends what you need from your system. My approach was to choose a CPU first then I could start looking at boards supporting the socket. I wanted ATX, nothing smaller. Memory support, just DDR5 and room to expand (it turns out most boards will handle like 192GB these days lol). I wanted the ability to change CPU frequency, that eliminated boards with a B-series chipsets. Next SSD support (at least 3x m.2) and USB ports (minimum 6x USB 3.0). Finally price, I didn’t want to exceed $250.
When all that was dialed in, I was left with like 8 options, from there it was manageable to read reviews for the nuance between them.