$10k-$15k PC build for digital art, 3D, and gaming?

bluesurfer66 said:What proof is there that prices will go up compared to what's currently on the market?

The Inno3D GeForce RTX 3060 Twin X2 OC was listed at $1667 on Best Buy just four days ago, but now it's out of stock and the price has climbed. That's just one example!

Alexander Moore67 said:The Inno3D GeForce RTX 3060 Twin X2 OC was sitting at Best Buy just four days ago for $1667 now it's gone and the price has actually shot up—that's just one example of what's happening!

Here’s the reality of how this works: as the newer cards hit the shelves (like the 3060 Ti, 3070, 3080, or 3090), the older ones like the 3060 SHOULD be getting cheaper. But that isn't what we're seeing. Instead, they just stop restocking them. So you end up looking for a 3060 at $833, only to find out it's "out of stock." It's the exact same thing that happened with the 2060 (the 6GB version, which is perfectly fine for most non-gaming tasks), but you can't find it anywhere because they "can't get any more in." It feels like a coordinated effort to force us into paying higher prices.

granitecrane2 said:they just stop stocking them.

I doubt there’s a single retailer out there without orders in for all the current gen cards. It's way simpler than that—it's the suppliers who aren't shipping.

wiredotter14 said:I highly doubt there’s a single retailer out there without orders in for all the current-gen cards. It's actually much simpler than that—suppliers just aren't delivering them.

It basically boils down to this: they're being squeezed. They either stop manufacturing the older models entirely or just keep them sitting in a warehouse. Honestly, there is zero technological reason why they wouldn't produce something like an RTX 2060 anymore. There are tons of people who don't play games at 4k, and for them, that card would be perfect. It's great for video editing, too. But you simply can't find it for sale.
To be fair, I managed to snag an RTX 3060 at a decent price, even though I don't strictly need the 12 GB of VRAM. I'm not some 4k gamer, and I couldn't care less about pushing cyberpunk at 4k (truthfully, I don't really care about resolution; even 1080p looks perfectly fine to me). Take the 3060 Ti, for example—it's more powerful, yet it only has 8 GB. How does that work? It costs exactly $333 more and has more processing units, but LESS memory. So much for the idea that 12 GB is "essential."

bluesurfer66 said:What's the actual proof that prices will go up compared to what we're seeing on the market right now?

And what's the proof that they won't? Is there any guarantee? The proof is right in the link I shared for that card from $1667—it didn't just dip toward $400, it shot up to $750 by the very next day. Maybe next time it’ll drop to $250 and people will still sit on their hands waiting because nobody could prove the price was about to spike again..

So, I'm currently on the hunt for a new workstation dedicated to video editing—nothing too crazy like 4k workflows, just standard stuff, mostly focusing on the Adobe suite—with a budget somewhere around $1,000.

I actually just had someone reach out with a pretty decent offer, so I was hoping to get some outside perspectives on it... what do you guys think?

Intel Core I5 10400 2.90GHz
Intel B460 , 2x8GB DDR4 2666MHz
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 6GB GDDR6
M.2 SSD 500GB , HDD 1TB,
NO ODD,10/100/1000 Mbit,
Midi Tower 500W.

The total for this setup comes out to about $800.

analogviper87 said:I'm looking to pick up a PC for video editing (nothing 4k, just standard stuff), mostly using Adobe software, with a budget of roughly $1,000.

I just got a pretty decent offer, so I wanted to see what you guys think about this setup...

Intel Core I5 10400 2.90GHz
Intel B460 , 2x8GB DDR4 2666MHz
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 6GB GDDR6
M.2 SSD 500GB , HDD 1TB,
NO ODD,10/100/1000 Mbit,
Midi Tower 500W.

This quote is about $800.

It's solid. I especially appreciate that you're willing to settle for the "underpowered" 2060. Honestly, I would have pulled the trigger on that too if I had known where to find it. Instead, I ended up grabbing a 3060—specifically that less popular, chunky ASUS Phoenix model—which has been a total win for me (not going to get into why).
The only thing that gives me pause is whether that 500W power supply will actually cut it. I might be wrong, though. Since the 2060 draws less power and you opted for an Intel i5, it might be okay.
Also, in my opinion, a 1 TB HDD is way too small for video work. I went with a 12 TB drive myself, so I’d suggest aiming for at least 3 TB. They're super cheap these days. My advice? Grab this now, then just add more storage later.

granitecrane2 said:Not bad. I actually appreciate that you're willing to settle for a "weak" 2060. Honestly, if I had known where to look, I probably would have pulled the trigger on one myself. Instead, I ended up grabbing a 3060—specifically that weirdly shaped, compact ASUS Phoenix—which has been an absolute win for me (not really going to get into why).
My only hesitation is whether that 500W power supply will actually cut it. I might be totally off base there, though. Still, the 2060 draws less power, and since you decided to go with an Intel i5 anyway, it might just work.
Also, I suspect a 1 TB HDD is going to feel incredibly cramped for video work. I went with a massive 12 TB drive, but I’d suggest aiming for at least 3 TB. They're pretty cheap these days. But hey, grab what you need now and just add more later.

Well, they say Intel and Adobe play a bit nicer together than the alternatives, so I figured I'd just stick with them... yeah, I'll go with the 3 TB HDD, upgrade to a Seasonic 650 w power supply, and definitely opt for the 3060 instead. 😉