Dedicated Streaming PC Build 2023 (for PC and Console)

A budget dedicated streaming PC build for streaming on Twitch, YouTube, Mixer & more is just enough for you to get your feet wet, without spending an exorbitant amount of money. This build is great for producing 1080p streams at 30 or 60 FPS. However, you’ll also be able to play most modern games on it without any issues if you so wish.

To add to that, while this is a great dedicated PC build for PC streamers, it is also the perfect dedicated streaming PC for console. This relatively cheap streaming PC build can be used to live stream gameplay from consoles such as the PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. It can also be used to record gameplay and edit videos.

$400-500 Streaming Computer Set-Up

Build Components

CPU:	AMD Ryzen 3 3200G Processor
MOBO:	ASUS B450M-A Prime
Memory (RAM):	Patriot VIPER 4 Series(2 X 4GB) 3000MHz DDR4
SSD:	CORSAIR MP300 120GB NVMe M.2
HDD:	Western Digital Blue 2TB
Case:	Cooler Master MasterBox Q300L
PSU:	Thermaltake Smart 500W

Build Features

• 720p and 1080p streaming
• Dedicated live streaming and video editing PC
• Great for streaming Apex Legends, Fortnite, PUBG, Overwatch, and more
• Decent storage for your videos
• Customizable and great upgrade path

Build Overview:

CPU: AMD Ryzen 3 3200G

Starting things off with the CPU, we would recommend the AMD Ryzen 3 3200G. It is a quad-core CPU with a maximum boost frequency of 4 GHz and a base of 3.6 GHz. The cores are unlocked, so you could even try to overclock it, but we wouldn’t recommend it for this dedicated streaming build unless absolutely necessary.

It uses the AM4 socket, which AMD claims will be supported for a good while, and the system memory specification is 2933 MHz. Included is AMD’s Wraith Stealth cooler, which saves you money as you don’t need to buy an additional cooling solution. The Ryzen 3 3200G should provide very good performance when streaming.

Motherboard: ASUS B450M-A Prime

To hold all of your components together, we recommend the ASUS B450M-A Prime motherboard. Its AM4 socket is compatible with the Ryzen CPU, and it’s a B-series chipset. You may think you’ll get more with an X-series chipset, but aside from overclocking capabilities and maybe a few more connectors, you won’t be getting much.

The B450M-A has a few nice bonuses as well – an NVMe m.2 slot for a speedy SSD, USB3.1 Gen2, as well as Gigabit LAN. The Safe Slot Core makes sure a heavy GPU won’t damage the motherboard, and the Aura Sync RGB header lets you add a touch of color to your build.

RAM: Patriot VIPER 4 Series 3000MHz 8GB Dual Channel DDR4

We recommend 2 sticks of 4GB each as they perform better than a single 8GB stick of RAM. Therefore, the Patriot’s VIPER 4 running at 3000 MHz is great for this build. The timings are 16-18-18-36, and the XMP (extreme memory profile) even allows for slight overclocking.

The heat shield doesn’t only look good but also keeps the chips somewhat cooler if you do opt to overclock. All things considered, it’s an excellent dual-channel kit to take advantage of two of the motherboard’s slots. You still have two free, though, so you could get another set down the line. You can learn more about how much RAM you need for streaming.

SSD: CORSAIR FORCE Series MP300 120GB NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD

This CORSAIR MP300 120GB SSD is a cheap yet very fast NVMe M.2. Even though there is an HDD below, this SSD is important for this build because it allows Windows 10 to run much faster and smoother. It also allows your streaming and video editing applications/software to load much faster as well.

HDD: Western Digital Blue 2TB

All of these components wouldn’t be able to do much if you don’t have anything to store your streaming videos. You could go for Western Digital’s Blue 2TB hard drive. It’s not the fastest drive out there, but it should last a good while and 2TB can accommodate quite a lot of large video files. As an added bonus, you also get the Acronis True Image cloning software which may come in handy for backups.

Case: Cooler Master MasterBox Q300L mATX Tower

You’ll need somewhere to house all of these components. It’s not all about the looks here – you’ll want a case that can accommodate your motherboard and GPU, and give you ample room for cooling and cable management. Cooler Master’s MasterBox Q300L is our recommendation – it’s compact, looks great, and has a lot of cooling configuration options as well. The glass side panel will allow you to show off your build as well. This an excellent budget case that works really well and won’t take up much space which is ideal for a dedicated streaming PC.

PSU: Thermaltake Smart 500W 80+ White Certified PSU

The Thermaltake Smart 500W 80+ White Certified Power Supply is our recommendation. It has an 80 PLUS White certification, which guarantees 80% efficiency, or higher, under typical loads.

The compact design and 40a support on a single +12V rail is also great. The PSU is a component you shouldn’t be skimping on – if it dies it may damage other components as well, and Thermaltake is one of the most reputable manufacturers out there.

Capture Card: Elgato Game Capture HD60 Pro

For the capture card, we recommend the Elgato Game Capture HD60 Pro as it is extremely solid. This is the perfect capture card for Xbox, PlayStation, or Nintendo Switch console streamers. The Elgato HD60 Pro will allow you to produce 1080p 60fps quality streams at a bitrate up to 60Mbps. It is also perfect for recording gameplay.

Operating System: Windows 10

That’s almost all there is in terms of hardware, but you’ll also want an OS. Our recommendation is Microsoft’s Windows 10 – it’s the best operating system for gaming nowadays. Even though Microsoft added DirectX 12 support to Windows 7, you’ll still need Windows 10 in order to be able to use all the features it comes with. It’s also very stable and simple to use, and all the games and streaming software work great with it.

How to get windows 10 for cheap:

Step 1: Install Windows 10 on a USB Drive

Step 2: Install Windows 10 From That USB Drive

WiFi: Get a Cable connection or WiFi adapter

Now, there’s one last hardware piece we should mention, and that’s a Wi-Fi adapter. The common consensus is that for gaming and streaming, you’ll want a cable connection for stability and low latency. However, there are a lot of decent Wi-Fi adapters out there. If you can afford to spend a bit more money, we would absolutely recommend that you get one. It gives you quite a bit of versatility in terms of placement as you don’t have to run cables from your router to your PC, and you aren’t missing out on anything.

Final Take

To wrap things up, a $400 budget dedicated streaming PC build for Twitch streamers can actually give you pretty good performance. With this build, you should be able to stream your games at 1080p 60FPS be it on another PC or Console.

The four cores of the AMD CPU should provide ample performance when encoding, decoding, and transcoding. Moreover, the motherboard has four memory slots, and the AM4 socket should be supported for at least another generation.

This build is also great for video editing and has a good upgrade path if you decide you need more performance in the future. It’s an excellent dedicated streaming PC build! Also, check out this Guide to Twitch Streaming on tomsguide.com to learn more about live streaming.