Newly built PC – Very poor performance even in running desktop

Optimizing Performance in a Newly Assembled PC: Troubleshooting Suggestions and Recommendations

Introduction

Building a new PC can be an exciting experience, but it can also come with unexpected challenges. Recently, a user shared their experience of encountering subpar performance even during basic tasks such as running the desktop environment. This article aims to explore potential reasons for such issues, analyze the hardware and software setup, and provide actionable steps to improve overall system responsiveness and stability.

System Overview

The configuration includes the following components:

Motherboard: ASUS TUF Gaming B650MP-W
Graphics Card: AMD Radeon RX 9070XT
Processor: AMD Ryzen 7500F (APU/CPU)
Cooling Solution: AQUAELITE V2 360 AIO liquid cooler
Memory: ASGARD 16×2 6000MHz DDR4 modules, clocked with EXPO II (advertised at 4800MHz)
Storage: Kingston NV2 1TB NVMe SSD (read/write speeds approximately 3500/2100 MB/s)
Power Supply: Cooler Master V750W
BIOS Version: 3.279
Operating System: Windows (updated with latest patches: KB5063878, KB5059093, KB5054273, KB5050575)

Initial Observations

Boot time is approximately one minute from logo appearance to user login, with additional delay before desktop loads.
Idle temperatures are well within acceptable ranges (~40°C) across CPU, motherboard, and GPU.
The system is experiencing sluggish performance during everyday use, even at the desktop level.

Potential Causes and Troubleshooting Steps

BIOS Configuration and Firmware

Ensure that the BIOS is configured optimally:

Confirm that the memory is correctly set to its advertised speed (6000MHz) with proper XMP/EXPO profiles enabled.
Reset BIOS settings to default and then manually adjust for optimal performance.
Update the BIOS to the latest version, if available, to benefit from bug fixes and improvements.
Windows System Optimization
Check for background processes consuming high CPU or disk usage via Task Manager.
Run Windows Performance Troubleshooter.
Disable unnecessary startup programs.
Confirm that Windows is fully updated and that no pending updates could be affecting performance.
Storage and Disk Management
Verify that the NVMe SSD is functioning correctly with tools like CrystalDiskInfo.
Ensure the drive is formatted properly and not suffering from corruption