Hi,
Jumped the gun back in March and finally built my first PC (always had laptops). PC part picker page: https://au.pcpartpicker.com/b/RhD2FT
My build:
CPU: 3700X ($438 from Wireless1)
GPU: Gigabyte RTX2070 Super Gaming OC ($759 from Umart)
Mobo: MSI B450M Mortar Titanium ($179 from CA)
RAM: Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro 2X16GB DDR4-3200 ($229 from CA)
Storage 1: Crucial P1 1TB NVME SSD ($178 from CA)
Storage 2: Samsung 860 QVO 1TB SSD ($147 from CA)
PSU: Corsair RM650 80+ Gold Modular ($149 from CA)
Case: Fractal Design Meshify C Mini ($80 2nd hand, was spotless)
Monitor: MSI MAG341CQ 3440x1440 34in curved ($640 from FTC)
Accessories:
* Corsair ML140 2x140mm ($45 from Scorptec)
* NA-SYC1 (fan splitter) ($20 from Scorptec)
* Cooler Master Universal LED strip x2 ($30 from Scorptec)
TOTAL: Almost $2,900 including the monitor
On paper, some laptops are getting closer to desktop performance, like the 4900HS. Likewise, the newer laptop GPUs seem to have tightened the gap between their desktop counterparts. However, their biggest weakness IMO is thermal throttling, which is very manufacturer (of the laptop) dependent and rarely reach their potential.
Been primarily using this machine for games and work (software engineer), and the occasional personal projects and learning.
You may need to get the Mortar Max as the non Max doesn't support Ryzen 3rd gen OOTB, unless they updated it now?