How to Customise & Buy Your Next Gaming PC

Don't settle for close enough by getting ripped off by stores selling flashy lights slapped over sub-par PC assembled by the lowest bidders. Save money and get better quality hardware built with care by experts right here in Australia. Pick up or get it delivered nationwide, backed by first class warranty & support, optimised for performance, quality, & value. Zero bloatware, Zero Generics, Zero Refurbs. It is easier than you think! Just follow the steps below and you will know everything you need to build the perfect gaming PC just for you.

Firstly, please do not be put off by the length of this page: most of it is simple stuff which you can get through in no time - and it could save you a lot on your next PC. In the worst-case scenario, reading this confirms that you are already making the right decision, which is important peace of mind!

Select one of our base configurations

The Valkyrie houses Intel's 14th gen CPUs. Intel; introducing for the first time in consumer-grade PCs a 'big-little' architecture for optimal performance & efficiency. With the last-ever generation Core i3/i5/i7/i9 series CPUs, armed with DDR5 RAM and standard desktop form factors, it is aimed at customers who want to make sure they are on the bleeding edge for workloads that may favour Intel CPUs.

Valkyrie X showcases Intel's latest platform & CPUs in their Arrow Lake Ultra 200 series. In terms of gaming performance, it's counter-intuitively either the same as the 14th gen hardware, or in some cases perhaps worse. It somewhat makes up for this in improved power efficiency, but while 14th generation is still an option it should likely be avoided... plus there's AMD's Ryzen which holds the gaming crown.

The Wraith holds AMD's Ryzen 7000 & 9000 series CPUs, & marking the next major step for AMD CPUs. The Wraith with DDR5 RAM is the current reigning champion for practically all use cases; gaming or professional. Leave no stone unturned...

The important bits (performance)

There are three main contributing factors to performance when it comes to PCs.

CPU (Processor)

The CPU is the first option in the list when customising a new PC on our website. One of the core components that contribute to a system's overall performance, but often mistaken for the most important. When it comes to gaming PCs, if the CPU is not a bottleneck, the graphics card (GPU) is the most important component with a few exceptions.

Broadly speaking, any current-generation (what we offer via our website) i5/Ultra 5/R5 level CPU can adequately play any game, i7/Ultra 7/R7 CPUs could unlock more multi-tasking features such as running background applications while gaming which can be handy for streamers and recording gameplay sessions, and i9/Ultra 9/R9 CPUs help to squeeze out every last bit of performance both now and far into the future.

Along with allocating enough budget for an adequate amount of RAM, storage, cooling, etc, spending the maximum you can on the CPU is the way to go to have a long-lasting PC that will be capable of gaming, even if some upgrades to other components are needed along the way. Just above the CPU selection area you'll see our guide to CPU & GPU pairing. You can take some liberties here and still get great performance without bottlenecking in the majority of games, but staying within the ballpark of our recommendations is best if you're not 100% sure or haven't sought explicit advice from us. Additionally, just above the GPU selection area you'll see our recommendations regarding GPU selection for monitor resolution pairing.

What do the letters mean in CPU model names?

• Intel - e.g. 14700K
  • No letter - vanilla variant, no overclocking
  • F - no integrated/onboard graphics, typically not an issue if you plan to have a dedicated GPU always installed
  • K - higher out of the box clock speeds, is unlocked so can be overclocked when paired with a Z series motherboard
  • S - special edition (usually higher clock speeds)
  • KF and KS are valid mashups of the above
• AMD - e.g. 9700X
  • No letter - vanilla variant, though unlike Intel, still unlocked so overclocking is available
  • F - no integrated/onboard graphics, typically not an issue if you plan to have a dedicated GPU always installed
  • X - higher out-of-the-box clock speeds
  • X3D - processor with 3D V-Cache

RAM (Memory)

16GB-32GB is considered enough for most games & applications, with 48GB being plenty. 64GB is generally overkill for gaming and even the most memory-hungry applications, with anything above 64GB only recommended when you have specific use cases that demand huge amounts of RAM.

OC RAM options are RAM kits with high-frequencies - we generally like to play it safe so it is highly unlikely that our OC RAM kits would become unstable, but the OC options should be able to get you a little more performance/speed in whatever your tasks are, and it is only a small extra cost.

Remember: Adding more RAM than the PC needs will not give you extra performance, but not having enough RAM will create a bottleneck.

GPU (Graphics card)

This does the majority of the heavily lifting in a gaming PC and, if the CPU and RAM do not bottleneck it, is responsible for producing the frame rate in games. The more money invested here, the better the in-game performance will be, particularly at higher resolutions and graphics settings.

Along with allocating enough budget for an adequate amount of RAM, storage, cooling, etc, spending the maximum you can on the GPU is the way to go to have a long-lasting PC that will be capable of gaming. Just above the CPU selection area you'll see our guide to CPU & GPU pairing. You can take some liberties here and still get great performance without bottlenecking in the majority of games, but staying within the ballpark of our recommendations is best if you're not 100% sure or haven't sought explicit advice from us. Additionally, just above the GPU selection area you'll see our recommendations regarding GPU selection for monitor resolution pairing.

Motherboard, Power Supply, Storage, Chassis, & Cooling

All this helps to contribute performance to your PC, but are more "supporting actors" than the leading stars we have already covered above.

Motherboard

Each of our base configurations have different options to choose from, but they all follow the same progression. As the name suggests, the motherboard connects all the other components of your system and comes with integrated USB, Ethernet network, and audio solutions. Generally, the higher end motherboards offer more ports and more premium Ethernet and audio solutions. They also come with more premium power delivery circuitry and cooling to help you squeeze the maximum performance out of your CPU & RAM.

Intel or AMD B series motherboards should only be paired with up to high-end i5/R5 CPUs to avoid leaving CPU performance on the table, meaning Intel's Z series & AMD's X series motherboards should be selected for i7/R7 and above CPU selections. Of course, selecting a Z/X series board with an i5/R5 CPU isn't discouraged either, but it's less of a recommendation and more of a nice-to-have if your budget allows.

If your budget is enough for an i9/R9 CPU, you should be considering more than just an entry-level (Core) motherboard option, with the Pro, Gaming, Elite, and Extreme options also on offer (varying by Intel/AMD configurations).

PSU (Power Supply)

This is something that we see customers getting wrong a lot of the time. Opting for a 1000w PSU will not unlock any extra performance if your PC can only draw a maximum of 580w; in this instance, just choose the 700w which will be more than enough!

Just above the list of PSU options our custom PC builder will tell you how much power your system is capable of drawing at max. Our recommendation is to leave the PSU selection to last and then select a unit with about 100-150w buffer on top of the system's max power draw just to be safe, and to give you some flexibility should you seek an upgrade during the PC's lifetime!

You will also notice that there are White, Bronze, Silver, Gold, & Platinum options to choose from. These indicate the units' power efficiency rating. From the wall socket to your PC, the power supply converts AC to DC and the energy lost in the conversion process becomes heat. Higher rated power supplies will save a little on your power bill over time and slightly reduce the overall heat output of the system.

Storage drives

These come in a few variations: SATA Hard Disk Drives (HDDs), SATA Solid State Drives (SATA SSDs) [removed July 2024, we recommend customers opt for the superior M.2 SSDs instead!] and M.2 NVMe Solid State Drives (M.2 NVMe SSDs). The max speeds of each drive are indicated in the drive's name in MB/s and the main takeaway, apart from the storage capacity itself: is the drive's speed! If your budget allows for it, having a high-speed SSD as the primary storage drive is a must have. The operating system (Windows) gets installed to the primary drive so having that on fast storage means all the operating system tasks can be done without unnecessary hesitation. Games and applications installed onto an SSD will load faster than being installed on a HDD, and while in the past the performance benefits end there: new games are increasingly requiring being installed onto an SSD for decent performance, and professional applications have long strived from having SSDs available both for the application itself and the project files. SATA HDDs are by far the slowest, but they still have their place due to offering large storage capacity (larger than SSDs can go) and being cost effective compared to SSDs. For example: a 1TB SSD as primary + a 4TB HDD/SSD for secondary would generally be considered ample space for most customers, however you will need to consider your specific needs & habits to make the right decision for you.

Chassis / Case

Most customers select a chassis based on aesthetics, but there are practical considerations also. Heat plays an important role in how well the core components of your PC will perform. The two main performance contributing components are the CPU and Graphics Card (GPU). Both automatically adjust their fan speeds based on their temperatures. Keeping their environment as cool as possible however means your PC will perform at its maximum potential for longer. This is not so much of a major concern for entry level or mid-range systems as they will not produce a lot of heat to begin with, but when you are building a top of the range PC with a high-end CPU and GPU, you will want to select a case with a reasonable airflow.

How do you know which ones have good airflow? Look for mesh front panels, large vents, and a reasonable supply of fans!

CPU Cooler

Just like the chassis selection process outlined above, a CPU Cooler plays a very important role in any high-end PC. Transferring heat away from the CPU as effectively as possible will let your CPU run at higher clock speeds for longer which can deliver a measurable performance impact. For lower end CPUs this is not much of a concern but if you are going with a higher end CPU (i7/i9 from Intel or R7/R9 from AMD) we recommend a larger CPU cooler. Larger CPU coolers also have the added benefit of being (in general) quieter than their smaller counterparts as they do not have to work as hard to keep temperatures under control. While liquid coolers offer great performance, air tower coolers have the added benefit of having no moving parts aside from the easily replaceable fan and as a result, are extremely reliable. Liquid coolers rely on a pump system and while the models we use are very high quality, they will eventually fail after several years of use and will require replacing.
For a bit more info and explaining, please see our liquid cooling vs air cooling page.

Fans

Extra fans are something that can be both an aesthetic and/or performance option. Bear in mind that your chassis will already come with fans, your CPU cooler will too, and graphics card will have 1-3 additional fans also. In most cases, additional fans are not necessary but if you like the look, the added cooling performance can be a bonus on top of the aesthetic value.

The finishing touches

With the key selections out of the way, we are on the home stretch; the rest of the options are easy.

Networking (Ethernet, WiFi, Bluetooth)

All PCs come with Ethernet (cabled/LAN) network abilities built in to the motherboard, but if you need a wireless/WiFi connection you will need to ensure that either the motherboard caters to it, or that you select an appropriate Networking adapter. If you will be relying on the wireless network as your primary connection, we would recommend WiFi 5 or higher for desirable results.

Audio

All motherboards will also include very good integrated audio solutions that are more than adequate and negate the need for a dedicated sound card, although you can install one yourself once you receive the system if you have advanced & particular needs.

Operating System

Operating System is your choice of Windows: consider if you need Pro over what Home offers (Win11 Pro vs. Home). Hint: Most do not need Pro!

One important note is that Pro is currently needed to take advantage of more than 128GB of RAM. You can of course easily upgrade from Home to Pro, although it's a more costly route than opting for Pro from the get go.

Capture Cards

Lastly, dedicated Capture Cards are offered in gaming PC builds, designed for those who want to stream or record their gameplay to services like Twitch and YouTube. These cards are not required to do so, but with a dedicated solution you will have a lot of added functionality and a lot less impact to game performance as you record or stream.

Express Assembly

These options are for if you really need your new PC in a hurry and the associated costs go towards paying our staff overtime to get the job done on time without sacrificing our quality assurance efforts.

Bleeding Edge Upgrade Program

Our Bleeding Edge Upgrade Program offers customers the option to upgrade certain hardware in the future and get trade-in credit on the old hardware being replaced. While not for everyone, it is a great option for customers who want to stay on the cutting edge of new PC hardware without needing to buy a new PC every time a new generation of hardware is released!

* Intentionally only available in Gaming PCs.

Warranty

Evatech custom PCs all come with a RTB (return to base) warranty that covers all the components of the PC for the full length of the manufacturers' component warranties. This RTB warranty covers all components for a minimum of 2 years. The CPU, motherboard, graphics cards, SATA SSDs and Bronze or lower rated PSUs for 3 years. RAM, Pro-Spec, NVMe SSDs, and Gold rated or higher power supplies for 5 years.

Optional Premium Warranty options also exist for customers who would like to safeguard their PC against out-of-pocket costs in the event of a hardware failure within the selected warranty period, or cover the cost of return shipping to and from our service centre in the event you need to return a PC for warranty repairs. If you purchase a shorter premium warranty period and it expires, you will still be covered by the RTB warranty which all Evatech PCs receive by default.

Essentially, no matter what option you select here, if anything goes wrong with your Evatech PC hardware in the next 5 years you should be contacting us as it might be a cost-free solution!

Saving the configuration

Once your final selections are made simply hit the Save & Continue button and you will be issued a unique PCID number for your configuration and a summary page that outlines all your selections. From here you can make further adjustments by clicking the Customise button (don't worry, your original config stays under the initial PCID!) or you can work towards placing an order by clicking Add to Cart.

Happy with your build but want to place the order a little later? No problem! The PCID number shown on the summary is unique to your configuration, saved indefinitely in our system and can be used to load this configuration at any time by simply entering it in to the PCID input box on our home page and clicking the Load button.

Peripherals (if required) and checkout

Now that you have your dream custom PC all sorted out, it is time to make sure you have the accompanying parts to match! After adding the PC to your cart, you can browse our wide range of peripherals using the navigation menu at the top of our website. There are plenty of mice, keyboards, monitors, and headsets to choose from, and selecting one can be quite subjective.

Everyone has different preferences so there is not always a one size fits all recommendation we can make for you. If you would like some help selecting the best peripherals for your new gaming PC just shoot us a message via our Contact Us page! We are always happy to help. All we need to know is your budget, any preferences you might have for specific sizes, features or functions and the PCID number of the configuration you are going to pair with it.

Once you have selected everything you need and added them all to your cart, the checkout process is easy! Just visit the cart page by clicking the cart icon at the top of the page and confirm your cart contents. If you are happy with the order, simply click Checkout and follow the on-screen prompts. If you have not already, you will be prompted to register an account before completing checkout. You can log in this account at any time to check your order status or order history details. The details we ask for upon registration and during checkout is only ever used to service your orders and provide customer support.
We never share this information with third parties and make sure it is always securely stored.

While Click & Collect is definitely an option for our local customers, we also offer nationwide delivery.
Our courier delivery options are all fully insured and require a signature upon delivery. For this reason, we cannot deliver to PO boxes or parcel lockers. Deliveries occur during the courier's business hours and if no one is available to sign for the parcel upon delivery, a calling card will be left so you can arrange a free re-delivery at your earliest convenience or pickup from the depot (your choice). Please note that our courier services are restricted to road networks and never carried by air. This is due to a special arrangement with our courier partners to ensure all our custom PCs are handled as carefully as possible and hand sorted at every depot to avoid any possible damage in transit. Delivery times once dispatched will vary based on your distance from your local depot and the depot's distance from our Melbourne HQ from where all our custom PCs are dispatched.

Select your choice of our payment methods, leave a friendly order note/comment if you like, and then finalise the order!

There it is! Everything you need to know to order a brand new personalised custom PC. If you have any questions, as always feel free to contact us any time. So what are you waiting for? Click to get started customising your next Gaming, Home/Office or Pro-Workstation PC today.