The Best $2000 High-End Content Creation PC Build – December 2024
Calling All Serious Content Creators!
If you’re looking to put together the ultimate video editing PC at a mainstream price, this is the guide for you! Rather than try to tweak gaming-focused builds to make them a better match for heavy Photoshop, Premiere Pro, and similar application use, just build one that’s designed for content creation from the start! Sure, you could game on this system, but the components have been chosen specifically to maximize application performance and minimize noise, which is what we think professional video editors will value the most.
This Month’s Build, Featuring Intel and Nvidia!
For December 2024, the High-End Content Creation PC Build features AMD’s new Zen 5-based Ryzen 9 9900X, a 12-core, 24-thread behemoth that offers tremendous content creation chops, plus impressive efficiency. It doesn’t hurt that AMD has seriously dropped the price just months since release, making it an absolute bargain. It’s paired with the powerful Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Super 12GB, which provides incredible acceleration in apps like Davinci Resolve, Premiere Pro, and Photoshop. It’s also massively-efficient, which is great for keeping noise in check, while also allowing for the use of up to 4 monitors.
Backing up the CPU and GPU is 64GB of ultra-high-speed DDR5-6000 RAM and a top-end 2TB PCIe Gen 4 solid-state drive, which offers extraordinary I/O throughput. To put the finishing touches on this build, we suggest you equip it with an efficient fully-modular 750W power supply and cool it with an awesome tower cooler from SilverStone. Finally it’s housed in the trend-setting Fractal Design North, which will look great in any professional studio or work space. This will give you a silent-running, workstation-class system.
Parting Thoughts
If you’re looking to complete your system, you’ll find our recommendations on the perfect peripherals for a content creation PC later on this page. We use Amazon affiliate links for our readers in the US, which will auto-convert for our readers in the UK, Canada, and parts of the EU, with regional substitutions made automatically based on availability. Your use of these links to purchase the products we recommend will help support continued development of this site.
Required Components
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CPU –AMD Ryzen 9 9900X
$383The Guru’s TipAMD has done it again with Zen 5, improving performance in all respects over the previous generation. The 12-core, 24-thread Ryzen 9 9900X is up to 15% faster than its predecessor, while offering even better efficiency.While Intel previously held the lead in content creation, the 9900X catches up to Intel CPUs in the same price range, while using far less power.
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Motherboard –Gigabyte B650 AORUS Elite AX
$210The Guru’s TipThis B650 board from Gigabyte allows you to tap into the potential of AMD’s cutting-edge AM5 platform at a great price. You get a potent 14+2+1 Phase power solution with 70A Power Stage, a PCIe Gen 4 video card slot, three M.2 slots (one being Gen 5, the others Gen 4), plus built-in WiFi 6E.Note that because the 9900X is new, you may need to perform a firmware update to this board prior to booting the CPU up. Luckily this is made easy by the Q-Flash feature, which allows you to load the firmware onto a USB drive on another computer and then install it on your motherboard without needing to boot up.
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Video Card –Zotac GeForce RTX 4070 Super Twin Edge 12GB
$600The Guru’s TipThe RTX 4070 Super offers amazing performance and amazing efficiency, making it the perfect GPU for any high-end gaming rig! This model’s dual-slot, dual-fan cooler will keep temperatures in check and noise levels down, without filling up your system.While marketed primarily for gaming, the RTX 4070 Super is an exceptional content creation GPU, far exceeding the performance of any AMD GPU, while providing a solid 12GB of VRAM and impressive efficiency. It also supports up to four UHD monitors simultaneously!
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Memory –G.Skill 2x32GB Flare X5 DDR5-6000 CL30 EXPO
$190The Guru’s TipTo get the most out of AMD’s latest CPUs, you want fast RAM, and DDR5-6000 is the sweetspot not only in terms of price, but in terms of making the most of the AM5 platform. It allows for the highest overall performance thanks to running in 1:1 sync with the memory controller. And this 64GB Flare X5 kit from G.Skill is specially designed for AM5, thanks to the extraordinary 30-40-40-96 AMD EXPO timings. It offers tremendous capacity and speed in a single package!This DDR5 kit is a great match for the CPU and motherboard - remember, DDR4 is not compatible!
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Solid-State Drive –WD_Black SN850X 2TB NVMe
$150The Guru’s TipWD took its vaunted SN850 and endowed with even greater speed, creating the 850X. Powered by amazingly-fast NAND flash, and offering transfer speeds up to 7,300MB/s, it’s the one you want!The speed of this drive will be put to good use in a serious content creation machine. If you'd like to split out your OS and swap drive for even better throughput, just pick up two 1TB drives... or better yet, two of these 2TB drives!
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Case –Fractal Design North White @Newegg
$153The Guru’s TipThe North is a true watershed product for the professional case market. Designed for designers, with a nod to mid-century themes thanks to the wood slat front grille, this PC case will look great anywhere, and is perhaps the harbinger of the next big trend as RGB lighting’s potential has been tapped out! This case also offers plenty of space and quiet operation, thanks to the two included 140mm front fans. All in all, you’re getting an amazing enclosure for a seriously-pro PC!This case was originally designed as a gaming case, but its professional looks and ultra-quiet operation make it perfect for a content creation PC.
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Power Supply –SilverStone DA750R Gold
$95The Guru’s TipA power supply is about so much more than just a wattage rating, and with the DA750R, you get a modern platform to last you many builds. Of course it has an impressive 750W of capacity, but it also offers Gold efficiency certification, a fully-modular design, and an ultra-silent 120mm FDB fan. But perhaps most important, and what really sets this unit apart, is the Gen5 12V2x6 PCIe connector, meeting the Intel ATX 3.0 specification standard. It means no adapters are required when paired with the latest power-hungry GPUs from Nvidia!This PSU will provide plenty of power for this system, which under full CPU/GPU rendering load will draw under 400W. And the white color scheme, including cables, will look great in this build
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CPU Cooler –SilverStone Hydrogon D140 ARGB
$64The Guru’s TipSilverStone has been around a long time, and in fact was one of the first manufacturers to offer a 140mm-class air cooler (the Heligon HE01 way back in 2012), but only recently did SilverStone return to the big air market to take on the top contenders. It does so with the well-priced D140, which undercuts most other 140mm-class coolers by $30-$50. It uses a combination of a 120mm fan in front to provide clearance over the RAM slots, plus a huge 140mm fan in the middle to push as much air through as possible. And despite the thick dual-tower heatsink and big fan in the middle, it stands just 160mm high, meaning it can fit in nearly any case. It even comes with ARGB lighting for some flair, but you can easily leave the lights unplugged if you want to run the cooler in stealth mode.This high-powered cooler will keep the powerful AMD processor under control, while looking absolutely first-rate in this system!
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Operating System –Windows 11 Home (USB) @Newegg
$139The Guru’s TipWindows 11 built on everything people loved about Windows 10, and then took it to 11! It adds significant under-the-hood changes to make it faster and more secure, and of course, the interface is sleek too! Note that we’re linking to Newegg, because Amazon long ago stopped selling this physical USB version of Windows, which is the most convenient one to use.Win11 is definitely what you want on a new PC!
Optional Products
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Sound Card –Creative Sound Blaster AE-7
$175 The Guru’s TipStepping up to a dedicated sound card is a good choice if you do a lot of audio work.
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The 32-inch Professional 4K Monitor –ViewSonic VP3256-4K
$500 The Guru’s TipAny content creator will want a big 4K monitor to work with, and this one is that and a whole lot more!
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The Ultimate Business Keyboard –Logitech MX Keys S Wireless Illuminated Keyboard
$110 The Guru’s TipLogitech really leapfrogged the competition when it released this keyboard, and no one is close to catching up!
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The Deluxe Wireless Mouse –Logitech MX Master 3S
$100 The Guru’s TipPerhaps the coolest feature of this mouse from a content creator's perspective is the Flow cross-computer control, which allows you to work seamlessly on three computers without the need for a KVM switch.
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The Deluxe PC Headset –SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7 Wireless
$150 The Guru’s TipWhile designed first for gaming, this headset is of such a quality that any content creator can be proud to use it!
Total Cost: $1984
Required Components
- CPU – AMD Ryzen 9 9900X ($383)
- Motherboard – Gigabyte B650 AORUS Elite AX ($210)
- Video Card – Zotac GeForce RTX 4070 Super Twin Edge 12GB ($600)
- Memory – G.Skill 2x32GB Flare X5 DDR5-6000 CL30 EXPO ($190)
- Solid-State Drive – WD_Black SN850X 2TB NVMe ($150)
- Case – Fractal Design North White @Newegg ($153)
- Power Supply – SilverStone DA750R Gold ($95)
- CPU Cooler – SilverStone Hydrogon D140 ARGB ($64)
- Operating System – Windows 11 Home (USB) @Newegg ($139)
Optional Products
- Sound Card – Creative Sound Blaster AE-7 ($175)
- The 32-inch Professional 4K Monitor – ViewSonic VP3256-4K ($500)
- The Ultimate Business Keyboard – Logitech MX Keys S Wireless Illuminated Keyboard ($110)
- The Deluxe Wireless Mouse – Logitech MX Master 3S ($100)
- The Deluxe PC Headset – SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7 Wireless ($150)
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