Budget Gaming Beast - $2,205

Why This Build

Built this as a “junkyard” setup using mostly secondhand components, except for the PSU and case. Was about to upgrade the RTX 3090 when I stumbled on a YouTube video from DIYPAPI showing dual-GPU lossless scaling. His setup was similar to mine, and I was amazed how adding a cheap Radeon GPU could drastically improve performance. Bought the app, got great results, then found a used RX 6600 XT for €140 on the secondhand marketplace. This setup has prolonged my system’s lifespan by at least 3-4 years and delivers performance close to an RTX 5080 in Cyberpunk.

Component Choices

CPU & Motherboard: The 5800X3D is still an absolute beast for gaming, especially in RPGs and single-player titles. The Gigabyte Aorus Pro X570 has solid PCIe lane distribution for dual GPUs and supports the X3D chip well.

GPUs: RTX 3090 handles everything I throw at it - running Cyberpunk in 4K @ 55 FPS base (110 FPS with fixed 2x) on RTX Ultra DLSS Performance with pathtracing off. Without ray tracing I get a stable 60 FPS base that saturates my 120Hz display perfectly in 2x mode. The RX 6600 XT was a cheap find at €140 and handles frame gen duty in fixed 2x mode flawlessly - connected to a 75” Philips OLED running at 120Hz with zero noticeable dips.

RAM & Storage: 64GB DDR4 is great for heavily modded Skyrim and multitasking. The 990 EVO Plus keeps load times snappy across all the RPGs I play.

Cooling & Case: ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III Pro 240 keeps the 5800X3D cool, and dual GPUs run hot so proper cooling is essential - undervolt both cards to maintain boost clocks more stable. Fractal Design Meshify 2 has excellent airflow for this heat-generating dual-GPU setup.

PSU: Seasonic Prime 1300W is overkill but necessary for the 3090’s power spikes plus the RX 6600 XT. Dual GPU setups need the headroom.

Performance Notes

Running Cyberpunk 2077 in 4K @ 110 FPS with RTX Ultra, DLSS Performance, pathtracing off, using LSFG Fixed 2x. This is essentially raw RTX 5080 performance from a junkyard build. The Witcher III, Skyrim modded, and FF7 Remake/Rebirth all run maxed out with ease. I don’t generate too many frames - 60 FPS x2 or 40 FPS x3 is my sweet spot for these single-player RPGs.

CRITICAL SETUP NOTE: When I first installed the RX 6600 XT, the whole system crashed after installing AMD Adrenaline. DO NOT INSTALL NVIDIA APP AND AMD ADRENALINE AT THE SAME TIME. I had to format the M.2 NVMe, reinstall Windows, and only install the latest drivers. Follow this guide for secondary GPU setup: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/17MIWgCOcvIbezflIzTVX0yfMiPA_nQtHroeXB1eXEfI/edit?usp=drivesdk

Frame cap your FPS in-game to half your screen refresh rate (60 or 72 depending on display), set lossless scaling to Fixed x2, and enjoy.

Upgrade Path

Honestly, this setup works so well there’s no urgent need to upgrade. If you wanted more performance, swapping the RTX 3090 for a used 4080 or 4090 would boost base frames significantly, but you’d need to ensure your PSU can handle it. The RX 6600 XT is perfect for 2x scaling - if you wanted to push 3x or 4x consistently, upgrading to an RX 7600 would help (lower power draw, less heat, only needs 1x PCIe 8-pin).

The 5800X3D should last another few years easily for gaming. More storage would be useful since modded Skyrim and these AAA titles take up tons of space. If you’re not on a 4K high refresh display, that’s where your money should go - this build is designed for 4K 120Hz gaming and shines best on that hardware.

Source