Best Gaming PC Build for 1440p 144 Hz ($1,500|₹1 Lac): Jan 2020

For eSports gamers, high frame rates (north of 100 FPS) are more important than the pixel-rich goodness of QHD and UHD. Unlike at 4K, it’s quite possible to strike a good balance between quality and performance at 1440p. There are dozens of QHD screens on the market with refresh rates as high as 165 Hz. Most of these monitors also come with adaptive refresh rates, i.e: G-Sync and FreeSync, making them perfect for gamers.

In this post, we will be putting together the best possible configuration for a 1440p gaming PC capable of shelling out as much as 150 FPS across most shooters.

Unlike a resolution-centric build, here the CPU is as important as the GPU. And unlike a GPU bottleneck, you can’t deal with a CPU bottleneck by reducing the graphics settings. That’ll just further aggravate the issue. Let’s have a look:

Best CPU for 1440p 144Hz Gaming: AMD Ryzen 5 3600X

Price: $240|Rs. 18,999

Since we’re aiming for 144 Hz, it’s better to opt for the AMD Ryzen 5 3600X. You get a higher base clock than the 3600 and a moderately higher boost clock, along with some overclocking headroom. The 3600X manages to beat the Core i5-9600K in gaming while destroying even the Core i7-9700K in multi-threaded tasks (rendering, streaming, video editing)

Best Graphics Card for 1440p 144Hz Gaming: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Super

Price: $750|Rs. 59,899

You can get away with an NVIDIA RTX 2070 Super as well but for the best experience, we suggest the RTX 2080 Super. With some overclocking, you can achieve near RTX 2080 Ti like performance, making both 4K 60 FPS as well as 1440p 150 FPS possible.

Motherboard: ASRock X570 PHANTOM GAMING 4

Price: $150|Rs. 13,350

The ASRock X570 Phantom is a solid X570 board. You get all the new features of the new chipset: PCIe 4.0, 4000MHz RAM support, 8 x SATAIII ports, and dual M.2 slots. It also comes with a powerful 10 Phase VRM (5+1 using doublers but impressive, nonetheless), Elna Audio support and addressable RGB headers.

Memory: G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 16GB 3200MHz CL16

Price: $70|Rs. 6,699

1800MHz is the optimal frequency for AMD’s Ryzen 3000 CPUs. This 3200MHz kit gets you quite close for a nominal price. With some mild overclocking, you should be able to get to at least 3400MHz. That’s good enough.

Storage: WD 1TB Blue SATA III M.2 2280

Price: $110|Rs. 11,700

An SSD, even an M.2 SATA drive is much faster than the best HDDs and all that hybrid SSHD crap. Unless you’re a chronic media hoarder, A 1TB drive should be fine for the time being. You can argue opting for an NVMe M.2 drive, but then there’s also the option of choosing a super-fast PCIe 4.0 based drive. I’ll leave that to your discretion.

Power Supply: Thermaltake Smart Pro RGB 750W

Price: $85|Rs. 8,199

Getting a modular PSU under the $100 mark, especially one that’s Bronze rated is hard enough as it is. Luckily, thanks to the holiday-sale, these days it’s not. Thermaltake’s SmartPro RGB makes up for the lack of motherboard LEDs. Granted, it’s not the very best on the market, but it’s Bonze rated and comes with a limited 7-year warranty.

Case: NZXT H510 Elite|CORSAIR Crystal 570X RGB Tempered Glass

For sub-continent readers, click here.

Price: Check the Link Above

Considering that you’re spending this much on a PC, I expect you’ll be looking for a premium case. My personal favorites include the NZXT H510 Elite and the Corsair Crystal 570X. If you want something low profile, then have a look at Phanteks’ Eclipse lineup.

The choice of the case falls down to personal preference. You can go all-RGB or a simple box without any fancy lighting. We decided to strike the middle ground with the NZXT H500. If you want something fancier, look for the H500i or the H500 Elite (if you’re willing to pay a pretty penny).

High-End Monitor Suggestion: AORUS AD27QD (HDR400)

Price: $500|Rs. 54,280

Budget Monitor Suggestion: SAMSUNG C27JG56 27

Price: $280

Summary: Best Budget PC Build for 1440p 144Hz Gaming