If you have ever tried to upgrade your gaming setup and ended up lost in a sea of specs and marketing speak, you are not alone. The PC Gamer hardware team has been testing PC parts and peripherals for decades, and they have pulled together their best of the best in one giant set of buying guides.
Out of nearly 300 products reviewed this year, only a tiny group scored over 90 percent. Those elite few are what power their recommendations. You get real world testing, no nonsense scoring and only hardware they would actually use themselves.
Build your core battle station
Let us start with the foundation of any gaming setup. This is the core hardware that defines how your games look, feel and perform.
The heart of your rig is the graphics card. For most people who want top performance at high resolutions, the AMD Radeon RX 9070 is the standout pick. If you are focused on value per frame the AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 16 GB brings great performance without draining your wallet. On the higher end the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 sits at the top for people chasing maxed out ray tracing and very high refresh rates.
Your CPU keeps everything else running smoothly. For pure gaming the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D is the current star, with its large cache helping deliver great frame rates in modern titles. There are smart options at every level too, from the affordable Ryzen 5 7600X to the monster Ryzen 9 9950X3D for heavy multitasking and high end builds.
Motherboards are where things can get confusing, but PC Gamer breaks it down by platform. For new AMD builds using Ryzen 7000 or 9000 chips, the MSI MAG X870 Tomahawk WiFi is a well balanced AM5 choice. On Intel’s latest LGA1851 socket, the Asus ROG Maximus Z890 Hero targets enthusiasts who want strong power delivery and features. There are budget B650 and B760 boards as well, so you do not have to overspend to get into a modern platform.
Memory and storage round out your speed upgrades. For DDR5 systems G.Skill’s Trident Z5 RGB at 32 GB DDR5 7200 is the overall performance pick, while Teamgroup’s T Force Vulcan DDR5 5200 keeps costs lower. If you are still on DDR4 there are tuned kits from Team and G.Skill that keep older builds feeling snappy.
For SSDs the WD Black SN7100 is the go to gaming drive, with fast load times and plenty of bandwidth for huge modern installs. If you want to try the latest PCIe 5.0 tech, the WD Black SN8100 is there, and there are larger 4 TB and 8 TB options like the TeamGroup MP44 and WD Black SN850X for people who never uninstall anything.
Cooling and airflow make a huge difference to noise and performance. For air cooling the Noctua NH D15 G2 is still the king of traditional towers. If you prefer an all in one liquid cooler the Arctic Liquid Freezer III A RGB delivers powerful and quiet performance. Pair them with quality fans like the Noctua NF A12x25 G2 or the cheaper Arctic P12 PWM PST and your components will stay cool under sustained loads.
All of this needs a home and the case you pick affects thermals, noise and looks. PC Gamer’s current favorite is the Havn HS 420, which balances airflow and design. Builders on a budget can look at the Phanteks G400A, while small form factor fans get a stylish option in the Fractal Design Terra. If you are brand new to building, the Be Quiet Shadow Base 800 FX earns a shout as a very beginner friendly chassis.
Monitors, audio and input: where the magic hits your senses
Once the core rig is sorted, your display and peripherals actually decide how your games feel to use day to day.
For monitors the MSI MPG 321URX is the overall champion, delivering a 4K OLED experience with rich colors and near instant response times. There are also recommendations for 1440p, 1080p, ultrawide and budget displays, plus a separate list just for OLED gaming monitors if you want deep blacks and high contrast at different sizes.
Your chair matters more than you think if you are sitting for long sessions. The Secretlab Titan Evo leads the gaming chair list thanks to its comfort and adjustability. Budget hunters can look at the Corsair TC100 Relaxed, while those chasing absolute luxury might eye the Herman Miller Embody, which merges office ergonomics with gaming style.
On the audio side, PC Gamer breaks things out into headsets and speakers. The Razer BlackShark V3 is their top overall gaming headset, giving clear positional audio and a good mic without a massive price tag. There are wired audiophile grade options like the Beyerdynamic MMX 330 Pro, wireless heavy hitters such as the Audeze Maxwell and even specific picks for streamers who want broadcast quality voice capture. If you prefer desktop sound, the Mackie CR3.5BT paired with the CR8SBT subwoofer offers a powerful speaker setup that also works well for music and content creation.
Streaming or remote work is easier with a solid mic and webcam. The Shure MV6 USB Gaming Microphone is the overall winner for voice capture since it combines strong sound quality with simple USB setup. For webcams the Elgato Facecam MK2 takes the top spot with sharp image quality and streamer friendly software, while the classic Logitech C920 still covers budget needs nicely.
Keyboards and mice are about feel and preference but testing helps cut through hype. The Asus ROG Strix Scope II 96 Wireless is the current overall gaming keyboard pick, with a compact layout that keeps your numpad and offers strong wireless performance. Mouse wise the Razer DeathAdder V4 Pro stands out as the best wireless option with a comfortable shape and very low latency, while the Logitech G502 X continues the G502 legacy on the wired side.
Laptops, mini PCs and play anywhere gadgets
If you are not into full desktop towers, the team has also tested prebuilt systems, laptops and handhelds.
The HP Omen 35L is the recommended prebuilt gaming PC for most people, offering a clean configuration and good parts. At the high end the Corsair Vengeance A7500 is tuned for major performance, and there is even a shout out to the Minisforum AtomMan G7 PT when you want an ultra small but powerful mini PC.
Gaming laptops get their own list with the Razer Blade 16 leading as the premium all rounder. It balances performance, build quality and screen quality in a portable form factor. Lenovo’s LOQ 15 Gen 10 caters to budget focused laptop gamers, while the Lenovo Legion Pro 7i Gen 10 and Alienware 18 Area 51 cover high performance and large screen needs.
The handheld space continues to grow and PC Gamer calls the Lenovo Legion Go S SteamOS their best overall handheld gaming PC. If price is your main concern the original Steam Deck is still the champion budget pick. For people who want Windows and Xbox integration in a handheld form factor there is the Asus ROG Xbox Ally X.
Finally, your network can be a hidden bottleneck, especially in online games. The TP Link Archer GE800 is the top gaming router with features tuned to reduce latency and keep your ping stable. There are also mesh and Wi Fi 6E options from TP Link and Asus if you need to cover a whole house or apartment with fast, low lag wireless.
All together this collection of guides works like a shortcut through years of testing and mistakes. Whether you are building your very first gaming PC or fine tuning a high end battlestation, you can safely cherry pick from these recommendations and know that every part has already survived serious hands on testing.
Original article and image: https://www.pcgamer.com/hardware/this-is-all-the-best-pc-gaming-gear-we-recommend-in-one-techie-tier-list/
