Need advice for building a Gaming PC (All comments are welcome)

[pelonnn]

Hi guys, I'm new here. I would like to receive some advice about building a new PC (for gaming). It will be my first time building one, so any comments are welcome. I have a budget of 750 Us dlls, so I'm not looking for a very high-end PC. Just want a build that would let me play games like League of legends, Fifa 2013, and COD at medium settings. I don't plan on overclocking, so i'll keep the default speed. I'll be buying all the parts online, and I've looked in Amazon, TigerDirect and BestBuy.

Now, I don't need advice for every part, just some , which are:

- Case
- Motherboard (Gigabyte and Asus are my options) and CPU (I would like an intel but I'm open to suggestions):
I saw this deal in tigerdirect, is it reasonable? http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...aign=WEBBP1740
- Video card
- Power Supply

The $750 budget is for those 5 parts.The reason for me asking advice for those 5 parts is because I plan on reusing some parts of my old computer:

- 120GB Samsung SSD
- 3 x 2GB DDR2 800MHz Adata Ram
- HP wireless mouse and keyboard
- 19 inches HP Display with 1440x900 res

Thanks in advance.

 

[Termie]

Welcome to the forums, pelonnn!

The 4670K and UD5H are good, but there's no way you can build an entire gaming system with those parts for under $750. That's why it makes sense to ask for help with a complete system. Perhaps you should answer the questions in the sticky here: http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=80121

 

[pelonnn]

Welcome to the forums, pelonnn!

The 4670K and UD5H are good, but there's no way you can build an entire gaming system with those parts for under $750. That's why it makes sense to ask for help with a complete system. Perhaps you should answer the questions in the sticky here: http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=80121

Hi thanks for your reply, I will Update my post to fit that thread.

 

[Termie]

OK, let's see what we can do:

- Case: Corsair 400R is currently $60AR at Newegg. That's an incredible deal.
- Motherboard: I prefer either Asus or ASRock, as Gigabyte has had a lot of trouble coming up with good UEFIs, and I have read more about DOA boards with them. I suggest the ASRock Z87 Pro4 for your budget, at $125.
- CPU: 4670K at $230 is a possibility, but honestly too much for your budget.
- Video card: HD7950 for around $200, if you can find one in stock.
- Power Supply: Any midrange 500W PSU will do. The Corsair CX500 is a good budget pick. It's around $50.
- Reuse 120GB Samsung SSD ($0)
- RAM: your DDR2 won't work in any new systems - either leave it in your old system or sell it. You'll want 8GB of DDR3-1600, which will cost about $65.

That's $730, just under budget, but you have no hard drive for game storage, and 120GB won't last long. I suggest you consider dropping down to a 4570 and H87 board and picking up a 1TB hard drive. You lose overclocking, but at least you'll be able to store your games.

 

[monkeydelmagico]

Normally I would nod and think Termie's suggestions are excellent. Today, not so much. League of legends, Fifa 2013, and COD at medium settings are not very demanding games. Combined with a 1440x900 resolution and you could probably have a great experience with a 7850 for around $140.-

I mean no disrespect but you sound like a light gamer. I'm going to build you a system that caters to this. Also, you have not indicated a need for an operating system. That will also cost $$$$.

FX 6300 bundle with mobo $153.- ($143 after rebate)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboD...=Combo.1420811

8gb ram $$65.-

Cooler Master N200 case $50.- ($30 after rebate)
http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-...er+master+case

CORSAIR Builder Series CX430 power supply: $40.- ($20.- AR)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139026

Sapphire 2gb 7850 $160.- (145 AR)
http://www.amazon.com/Sapphire-Radeo...&keywords=7850

THATS $468.- before rebates


If you need windows i recommend 7 for $95.- Amazon

That leaves you PLENTY of $$$ for a new screen (highly recommend)
Asus 23" for $150.- (130 AR)
http://www.amazon.com/Asus-VS238H-P-...eywords=screen

Step up to 1080 res gaming. I don't think you will be disappointed.



ALL items above for under $713 before rebates, around $630.- after.

You also seem to be using an old system to donate parts. Does it have a hard drive? Normally I would not say to use an older drive but if you have your OS on the SSD then using an older HD as backup or game location is ok.

Otherwise, a 1 TB drive is around $65.- putting you $15.- over budget BEFORE rebates

 

[pelonnn]

Hi Termie, thanks again. I have a question about the CPU.

- CPU: 4670K at $230 is a possibility, but honestly too much for your budget.

Is there a lower end option in the i5 family, or do I have to go to i3 processors? Because I went to intel's page, and almost every i5 is above $200.

 

[pelonnn]

I mean no disrespect but you sound like a light gamer.

Hmm... No offence taken lol. Indeed, I'm a light gamer. One question thought, would the sapphire 7850 be able to run a game like crysis 3 on medium and/or high setting?

The "FX 6100 bundle with mobo and 4gb ram" sound pretty good to me, but i've never had a computer with AMD CPU before, whould you recommend it over an 4th gen intel i processor?

 

[monkeydelmagico]

I found a better deal on an FX 6300 with mobo (see above)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboD...=Combo.1420811

This review should answer both questions about 7850 and the FX series. Very respectable performance especially for the $$$$

http://www.techspot.com/review/642-crysis-3-performance/page6.html

 

[Termie]

Hi Termie, thanks again. I have a question about the CPU.



Is there a lower end option in the i5 family, or do I have to go to i3 processors? Because I went to intel's page, and almost every i5 is above $200.

You can go with the i5-4570, which is $200, saving you about $30, plus an additional $30-40 saved switching from a Z87 to an H87 motherboard.

By the way, the HD7850 can definitely play Crysis 3 on high settings at 1080p. I did it with an HD7850. Not maximum settings, but it still looked great. That being said, the HD7870 and HD7950 are better investments, in my opinion.

 

[pelonnn]

Thanks for the article monkeydelmagico, it was very informative.

Termie, thanks for your reply, I'll consider investing in the 7950 you suggested.

 

[Torn Mind]

Consider this: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1Cqr3

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1Cqr3
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1Cqr3/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1Cqr3/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-4570 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock B85M-HDS Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($70.97 @ Newegg)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($67.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($203.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 400R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 500W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $707.89
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-11 01:30 EDT-0400)


Or you can get this XFX PSU instead: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/xfx-power-supply-p1650xxxb9

You have room to move up to a different motherboard, of course, and you can make changes based on your preferences, within reason.

lol, my 1337th post.

 

[mfenn]

Consider this: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1Cqr3

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1Cqr3
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1Cqr3/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1Cqr3/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-4570 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock B85M-HDS Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($70.97 @ Newegg)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($67.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($203.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 400R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 500W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $707.89
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-11 01:30 EDT-0400)


Or you can get this XFX PSU instead: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/xfx-power-supply-p1650xxxb9

You have room to move up to a different motherboard, of course, and you can make changes based on your preferences, within reason.

lol, my 1337th post.

Very nice, worthy of a l33t post. I agree that bumping the mobo down to the B85 in order to keep the GPU and fit in an HDD is the way to go.

The big outstanding question in my mind is whether or not this budget needs to include the OS or not.

 

[monkeydelmagico]

A 7950 on a 19 inch 1440x900 means he won't have to turn down the eye candy for sure.

 

[pelonnn]

The big outstanding question in my mind is whether or not this budget needs to include the OS or not.

No, it doesn't need to include OS. I already have a W7 Home Premium from a couple of years ago. Not sure if W8 is worth buying though, since I haven't tried it yet.

 

[mfenn]

No, it doesn't need to include OS. I already have a W7 Home Premium from a couple of years ago. Not sure if W8 is worth buying though, since I haven't tried it yet.

In that case, Torn's build is solid.

 

[pelonnn]

Hey guys, based in your suggestions, I came up with this build, it is just under my $750 budget before rebates. Tell me what you think of this build.

CPU: Intel Core i5-4430 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor $189.99
Motherboard: MSI B85-G41 PC Mate ATX LGA1150 Motherboard $79.99
Memory: 2 x Patriot Viper 3 4GB DDR3-1600 Memory $89.98
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive $64.98
GPU: PowerColor Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card $159.99
Wireless Network Adapter: Encore ENEWI-1XN45 802.11b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter $13.99
Case: Corsair 400R ATX Mid Tower Case $79.99
Power Supply: Corsair CX 430W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply $49.99
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer $19.99
Total = $748.89

 

[Jaydip]

I would personally get a CX500 for peace of mind otherwise looks good.

 

[mfenn]

Hey guys, based in your suggestions, I came up with this build, it is just under my $750 budget before rebates. Tell me what you think of this build.

CPU: Intel Core i5-4430 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor $189.99
Motherboard: MSI B85-G41 PC Mate ATX LGA1150 Motherboard $79.99
Memory: 2 x Patriot Viper 3 4GB DDR3-1600 Memory $89.98
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive $64.98
GPU: PowerColor Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card $159.99
Wireless Network Adapter: Encore ENEWI-1XN45 802.11b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter $13.99
Case: Corsair 400R ATX Mid Tower Case $79.99
Power Supply: Corsair CX 430W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply $49.99
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer $19.99
Total = $748.89

There's a few issues with this build:
- RAM: $90 is too much to spend for 8GB of RAM. Check out this Team kit for $53.
- GPU: $160 is too much to spend on a 7850 when a 7950 3GB is $180 and much faster
- PSU: With the upgrade to a 7950, you'll also need a beefier PSU like the XFX 550W for $60 AR.

 

[Termie]

I agree on the recommendations, but the 7950 is definitely nowhere near twice as fast as a 7850. Closer to 33% at stock clocks.

 

[Torn Mind]

He is looking at before rebate prices. I think he knows the rebates are there. The Patriot Viper 3 has $20 MIR for each unit bought, brining the final price to $50 AR. But the Team Vulcan RAM mfenn suggested is more convienient since there are no rebates to worry about.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboD...=Combo.1428757
The 400R has a combo with this Sapphire 100355L, giving the OP another $10 off if he still wants a 7850.


This Seagate 1TB drive has a $10 off promo. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148840

 

[mfenn]

I agree on the recommendations, but the 7950 is definitely nowhere near twice as fast as a 7850. Closer to 33% at stock clocks.

Yeah, you're right. I guess this new-found power must already be going to me head.

 

[Torn Mind]

Yeah, you're right. I guess this new-found power must already be going to me head.

More like the extra stress from having to stay up late is frazzling you.