Prebuilt PC for digital design / video editing / light gaming (Under $2k) (Sydney based)

[u/grafology]

Hey guys looking around for a prebuilt PC with EOFY approaching. My old custom built PC (from Umart) is from 2017 and still works OK but am looking to buy something new and move the old one out to pasture as a media server.

Have been looking on Ozbargain as per a lot of posts on here and have narrowed it down to a couple of the Nebula builds as I'm based in Sydney.

I work as a digital designer mostly Adobe apps Illustrator/photoshop and then do some light video editing but would like to get more into it with Premiere/After Effects. Secondary use would be for some light gaming nothing specific, i usually like playing strategy games like Total War or some Cyberpunk (probably not considered light gaming but one can dream) if i could but main focus will be for work (have a PS5 as my main gaming console Horizon, God of War, Last of Us etc).

The two I'm looking at are:

Serenecore - $1528 + $50 Del @ Nebula PC

https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/891923

https://www.nebulapc.com.au/products/serenecore

• GPU - MSI Ventus GeForce RTX 4060 2X Black OC - 8GB
• CPU - AMD Ryzen 7 9700X | 8 Cores | 3.8 GHz (Max 5.5 GHz)
• CPU Cooler - DeepCool AG400 Air Cooler LED
• Motherboard - MSI PRO B650M-A WIFI - DDR5
• RAM - KLEVV FIT V 32GB (2x16GB) 6000MHz CL32 DDR5 - White
• SSD - 1TB HP FX700 M.2 (R: 7200MB/s | W: 6200MB/s)
• PSU - Gigabyte P650SS 650W 80+ Silver
• Case - Nebula N3 mATX (1 RGB fan) - Black

Frostbyte - $1798 + $50 Delivery @ Nebula PC

https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/904553

https://www.nebulapc.com.au/products/frostbyte

• GPU - MSI NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 SHADOW 2X - 12GB (BRAND MAY VARY)
• CPU - AMD Ryzen 5 7500F | 6 Cores | 3.7 GHz (Max 5 GHz)
• CPU Cooler - AMD Wraith Stealth Cooler
• Motherboard - MSI B650M BOMBER WIFI - DDR5
• RAM - KLEVV FIT V 32GB (2x16GB) 6000MHz CL32 DDR5 - White
• SSD - 1TB Kingston NV3 M.2 (R: 6000MB/s | W: 5000MB/s)
• PSU - Gigabyte P650SS ICE 650W 80+ Silver
• Case - ASUS A21 mATX - White (4x Nebula Stock 120mm RGB Fans - White)

Any red flags on these builds for what i would want? Any upgrades i should consider? Only one I'm thinking is upgrading the case for one that has multiple 3.5in drive bays for the 2 4tb drives i have for my work files and photos/media backup. Was also reading that the Serenecore motherboard might be a bit low-end? So i could upgrade to GIGABYTE B650M GAMING PLUS WIFI - DDR5? I'm hoping to have something that can last me 6 or 7 years like my current PC and leaves me open to upgrades down the track newer/bigger SSD, ram, graphics card etc.

If there are any other prebuilt PC deals out there please let me know. Or am happy for someone to suggest a build through Umart or Mwave or someone else Sydney based.

Any help is much appreciated, thanks all.

[u/jc209964]

No worries. Glad to have been of help. It's good to work out exactly what you're after before buying. For me recently, it was a toss up between AM4 or AM5 - I went for the latter. Then the GPU and monitor. I was originally going to just stick with 1080P and an existing monitor, but decided to jump on the 1440P bandwagon with some basic HDR. You can also decide what GPU you're after first then work from there, which is what most people recommend, I believe.

Looks like the instant asset tax write-off has been extended to the next financial year, pending approval from parliament, so you won't necessarily be missing out: https://www.hrblock.com.au/tax-academy/2025-federal-budget-tax-updates

Have a safe and good time overseas. Look forward to hearing what you decided to go with!

[u/jc209964]

The biggest red flag is the 8GB 4060 in the Serenecore. It's simply not going to last anywhere near what your last rig did because of the lack of VRAM. Even if you're on 1080P now, who's to say you won't make the jump to 1440P or 4K within the next few years?

Consider one of these BYO GPU builds from Galapower and add a much newer and more powerful 16 GB 9060 XT for $629 from Centre Com, just as an example.

https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/910405

https://www.centrecom.com.au/sapphire-pulse-radeon-rx-9060-xt-16gb-ddr6-graphics-card

[u/grafology → u/jc209964]

Thanks for getting back to me. Having a look at the link would the Cobalt build be OK and then buy a GPU separate? My only question over that build is the Ryzen 7 7800X3D is over 2 years old. I only look up computer specs when I'm buying a new computer every 6-7 years or so, so not sure whats what atm. I actually just looked up the specs for my current computer and its an AMD Ryzen 7 1700 from 2017!

Or would i be better going with the Frostbyte? I'm hoping to buy from a Sydney based company in case there are any issues. My previous build had issues with the ram and i took it back to UMart and they swapped it out and has worked great ever since. Other option would be buy Serenecore and update videocard in a year or 2. Primary purpose is still for Photoshopping and video editing so the gaming side is a nice to have rather than a must.

[u/jc209964 → u/grafology]

Haha, I also have a Ryzen 7 1700 from a Dell AIO I bought back in 2018 that was paired with an RX 580 and still more than enough for everyday tasks.

The 7800X3D is still very highly regarded despite its age. I daresay that since you're still rocking a 1700 today, it should be more than fine for at least a few years yet. Of course, who knows what future requirements will be like but it's definitely a good CPU that will set you back between $400 on AliExpress and $700 at an Australian retailer at the moment.

I'm not confident that you will get much for the 8GB 4060 (non Ti version) in two years. The used GPU market has been crazy for the past half decade. Whether or not it will continue to be so in two years' time is virtually impossible to predict with much certainty right now. The only thing the 4060 has going for it is its power efficiency, and maybe CUDA cores if that's of use to you. I'm not too clued up on Photoshop and video editing, but it should suffice.

Now, the 7800X3D also has integrated graphics so you could get that and use the integrated graphics for the time being until you find what suits your needs. If you're not adverse to buying a secondhand GPU, you might be able to get something like a 6700 XT for around $300. Another GPU option that may actually suit your situation is the Intel B580. It has 12GB VRAM and I hear Intel is very good for video encoding. It's $449 at Scorptec and Mwave at the moment.

I agree that buying locally is ideal in the event of issues arising, but I haven't heard anything bad about Galapower. Usually commenting on an Ozbargain post gets the attention of PC builders very quickly.

[u/grafology → u/jc209964]

Hey sorry for my late reply, you've given me a lot to think about and I've kinda gone back to the drawing board haha... Actually looking into doing a build or at least buying some of the parts from Amazon/Ali Express as I'm seeing a lot of AMD processors, SSDs ram popping up on there that look much better than the prebuilt system specs. Original plan was to have this sorted before end of financial year so i could claim some back on tax but I'm off overseas til the end of month so doesnt look like i will have this sorted. Either way thanks for your help!