The Best $3500 Ultimate Gaming PC Build – June 2022

By Ari Altman | Published May 19, 2022 | Updated May 19, 2022

Jump Into Ultra-High-End Gaming Today!

If you’re looking for the ultimate $3,500 Gaming PC Build, truly the best of the best, then this is the build for you! Sure, you could spend more, but in most games you won’t see better performance than what this PC Build can provide. It’s a showcase of the very best tech available in PC gaming today. And while the $3,500 Gaming PC Build isn’t exactly a bargain, it’s custom-tailored to deliver flat-out extreme gaming performance!

This Month’s Build, Powered by Intel and AMD!

For June 2022, the Ultimate $3,500 Gaming PC Build gets upgrades across the board! It starts with Intel’s awe-inspiring Core i9-12900KS 16-core, 24-thread CPU, the fastest CPU on the planet, bar none! It will have a worthy GPU to feed in the form of AMD’s new Radeon RX 6950 XT 16GB, which put Nvidia to shame by beating the RTX 3090 for a whole lot less money.

Of course, the rest of the system is up to the task of keeping this system fed with data, thanks to 32GB of insanely-fast DDR5-6000 RAM, along with an ultra-responsive 2TB PCIe Gen 4 solid-state drive. Completing the $3,500 Gaming PC Build is the high-performance Cooler Master H500P Mesh ARGB chassis, a powerful 360mm liquid cooler, and an awesome 1000W Gold-rated power supply!

Parting Thoughts

Note that we list a number of “Optional Components” at the end of this guide that highlight the accessories we think best match a system of this caliber, including our favorite keyboard, mouse, and monitor picks. To browse even more options, check out our Monitor Buyer’s Guide, Peripherals Buyer’s Guide and Speaker/ Headset Buyer’s Guide, which provide our picks for the best accessories at every pricepoint.

Throughout this guide, we provide direct links to Amazon or Newegg, and our Amazon links will auto-convert for readers in the UK, Canada, and parts of the EU, with automatic substitutions being made where necessary. To help support the continued development of this guide, please use the links we provide if you purchase products we recommend.

The Pre-Built Option

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The Ultra-High-End Gaming PC –
ABS Legend 12900KF/RTX 3080 Ti @Newegg
$3400
Start gaming at maximum framerates today with this pre-built system from Newegg’s ABS gaming division. It features a liquid-cooled Intel Core i9-12900KF 16-core, 24-thread CPU, the overpowering GeForce RTX 3080 Ti 12GB video card, 32GB of DDR4-5200 RAM, and a 2TB NVMe solid-state drive. It’s built up in Corsair’s awesome 5000X case and equipped with a Corsair 280mm liquid cooler and Corsair RM850x power supply. Finally, it comes pre-loaded with Windows 11 Pro!
The Guru’s Tip
This system is spec'd almost identically to our DIY build below, so if you don't want to build your own, it's a seriously-legit choice!

The DIY Build

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$ The Guru’s Tip
Click to Buy

CPU –
Intel Core i9-12900KS
$750
Intel already claimed the top spot among gaming CPUs with the 12900K, based on the 12th-Gen “Alder Lake” architecture. But that clearly wasn’t good enough, because now it’s gone and outdone itself with the special “KS” model, which increases speed by nearly 10% thanks to a much more advanced boost algorithm. With its 8 multi-threaded performance cores plus 8 efficiency cores, it’s also a beast for content creation or multi-tasking!
The Guru’s Tip
This extreme CPU can put out tons of heat, which is why we recommend a massive liquid cooler later in this guide.
Click to Buy

Motherboard –
MSI MPG Z690 Edge WiFi DDR5
$310
MSI’s Z690 Edge features a potent 16-phase VRM with 75A power stages, four M.2 slots (all being Gen 4), a PCIe Gen 5 video card slot, eight USB ports (including a Type-C port), and integrated WiFi 6E plus 2.5Gbs LAN. This version of the Edge uses DDR5 RAM to provide the absolute best performance for the latest Intel CPUs.
The Guru’s Tip
Some Socket 1700 motherboards have compatibility issues with high-end coolers, but we've confirmed that this one will work with our chosen cooler.
Click to Buy

Video Card –
PowerColor Radeon RX 6950 XT Red Devil
$1100
Step into gaming today with a video card that puts Nvidia ultra-high-end GPUs to shame, the RX 6950 XT Red Devil from PowerColor. This card can take on any game and put up amazing framerates! Plus, the custom triple-slot, triple-fan cooler looks great and works even better! It offers performance equal to the GeForce RTX 3090 for about 2/3 the price!
The Guru’s Tip
While we had been recommending the 3080 Ti until recently, the 6950 XT is faster and hundreds of dollars less, freeing room in the budget for an even faster CPU, and thus even more speed!!!
Click to Buy

Memory –
G.SKILL 2x16GB Trident Z5 RGB DDR5-6000
$350
For the ultimate in speed, you must go with DDR5 RAM, but not just any DDR5 RAM, because you need high-frequency DDR5 to blow past DDR4 RAM performance. And that’s what you get with G.Skill’s Trident Z5 kit, running at DDR4-6000 with timings of 36-36-36-96 at 1.35V. This is the real deal when it comes to DDR5 performance!
The Guru’s Tip
We've gone with DDR5 RAM and a matching motherboard to ensure that nothing holds back this build's performance!
Click to Buy

Solid-State Drive –
WD_Black SN850 2TB NVMe
$240
The fastest M.2 drive on the planet…. many drives compete for that title, but the mighty SN850 is right at the top. Powered by amazingly-fast NAND flash, and maxing out the PCIe Gen 4 bus, it’s the one you want!
The Guru’s Tip
A Gen 4 drive is a bit of a splurge in a gaming PC, but it's always nice to know you have the best!
Click to Buy

Case –
Cooler Master MasterCase H500P Mesh White ARGB
$200

Our favorite high-performance gaming case has now been updated to with awesome ARGB lighting, making it better than ever! The H500P Mesh White is the star of high-end cases. It features a tempered glass side panel, dual 200mm front fans behind a big mesh intake, and a 140mm rear fan. It will keep your components nicely chilled thanks to a constant wall of air.

The Guru’s Tip
Note that this case comes in either grey or white, available from the same product page.
Click to Buy

Power Supply –
Corsair RM1000x Gold (2021)
$170
Corsair revolutionized the PSU industry with its wide range of award-winning models, offering tremendous output, efficiency, and quality. Boasting a 10-year warranty and a zero-fan mode, this PSU will keep you running silently for a long, long time!
The Guru’s Tip
This power supply is compatible with the sleek and stylish sleeved cables we list in our optional products section. Definitely check them out!
Click to Buy

CPU Cooler –
Corsair iCUE H150i Elite LCD CPU Cooler
$290
Corsair’s H150i Elite LCD offers more performance and features than any other 360mm cooler. Its big radiator is equipped with triple ML120 RGB Elite fans, which offer a great balance of performance and noise, and its pump has an awesome built-in LCD display, allowing you to monitor just about anything in your PC using the Corsair iCUE software.
The Guru’s Tip
This 360mm model will fit easily in the top of the case we recommend.
Click to Buy

Operating System –
Windows 11 Home USB
$139
Windows 11 take everything people loved about Windows 10, and then takes 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!
The Guru’s Tip
This is absolutely the OS you want on your system to take full advantage of the Intel 12th-Gen CPU!

Optional Products

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Cable –
Corsair Individually Sleeved PSU Cables Pro Kit – White
$113
These sleek individually-sleeved cables provide the ultimate custom look for your PC! While we love white, they are available in a wide variety of colors, all on the same product page.
The Guru’s Tip
Remember, these are only compatible with Corsair power supplies, like the one we spec for this build.
Click to Buy

The Typist's Gaming Keyboard –
Logitech G915 Wireless Mechanical Gaming Keyboard (Clicky)
$230

Best. Keyboard. Ever. And the only wireless mechanical keyboard with full RGB lighting on the market. This thing is a dream come true, so sleek, so responsive. Honestly, it’s in a class of its own.

The Guru’s Tip
This is the keyboard we've used since it was released in late 2019, and we've never even considered using another!
Click to Buy

The Ultimate Wireless Gaming Mouse –
Logitech G502 Lightspeed Wireless
$120
Logitech designed the G502 Lightspeed Wireless to be the ultimate technological tour de force in the gaming mouse industry. Featuring a mesmerizing 25K Hero sensor, tunable weights, RGB lighting, and the best wireless connectivity, it is impossible to beat. And you can even upgrade it to ultra-elite status with the optional PowerPlay charging mat, which allows you to use it forever without stopping to charge thanks to the exclusive wireless charging capability!
The Guru’s Tip
This is the mouse we've used since the day it was launched, and we love it!
Click to Buy

The Deluxe PC Headset –
Corsair Virtuoso Wireless Headset
$180

Combining ultra-high-end performance with incredible comfort, this wireless headset from Corsair is the ideal all-day companion for listening to the latest market news. This headset also has an audiophile-grade microphone, perfect for teleconferencing. Free free to check out our full review right here!

The Guru’s Tip
Another feature we really like is the ultra-high quality mic. You'll be heard loud and clear on this headset, as it's a completely different league than any other headset on the market.
Click to Buy

The 32" 4K 144Hz Gamer's Dream Monitor –
Gigabyte M32U
$760
It took seemingly forever for the elusive 32″ 4K 144Hz panels that gamers had dreamed of for years to finally hit the market, and surprisingly Gigabyte was first out of the gate with one widely available at retail. Known for its high-end video cards and motherboards, Gigabyte has quickly made a name for itself in the gaming monitor market, and the M32U simply astounds with its features. Get a load of these specs: a 31.5″ 3840 x 2160 4K IPS panel, 144Hz refresh rate, 1ms (GTG) response time, FreeSync, 10-bit color, 90% DCI-P3 and 123% sRGB color space, and VESA DisplayHDR 400. It even has a built-in KVM switch, allowing you to use it on multiple systems with the push of a button!
The Guru’s Tip
This monitor will allow you to truly take advantage of all the power your new PC can deliver!