Building a Gaming computer on a budget on iBuypower. Need an opinion.

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Kharpool

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May 16, 2013
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10,510
I am shopping at iBuypower and don't know much about making a good pc for my budget of about 1000 dollars. Here is what I have, is it an ok build for playing gams such as Skyrim and Diablo 3?

1 x Case ( NZXT Phantom 410 Gaming Case - Black )
1 x Case Lighting ( Cold Cathode Neon Light - Blue )
0 x iBUYPOWER Labs - Noise Reduction ( None )
0 x iBUYPOWER Labs - Internal Expansion ( None )
1 x Processor ( Intel® Core™ i5-3570 Processor (4x 3.40GHz/6MB L3 Cache) )
0 x iBUYPOWER PowerDrive ( None )
1 x Processor Cooling ( Liquid CPU Cooling System [Intel] - ARC Dual Silent High Performance Fan Upgrade (Push-Pull Airflow) )
1 x Memory ( 8 GB [4 GB X2] DDR3-1600 Memory Module - Corsair or Major Brand )
1 x Video Card ( AMD Radeon HD 7870 - 2GB - Single Card )
1 x Video Card Brand ( Major Brand Powered by AMD or NVIDIA )
1 x Free Stuff ( [FREE Game Download] - Tomb Raider + Bioshock Infinite + Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon - Free with purchase of any AMD Radeon HD 7800 Series Graphics Card )
1 x Motherboard ( Gigabyte GA-Z77-HD3 -- 4x USB 3.0 )
0 x Intel Smart Response Technology ( None )
1 x Power Supply ( 500 Watt - Standard )
1 x Primary Hard Drive ( 1 TB HARD DRIVE -- 32M Cache, 7200 RPM, 6.0Gb/s - Single Drive )
0 x Data Hard Drive ( None )
1 x Optical Drive ( 24X Dual Format/Double Layer DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW Drive - Black )
0 x 2nd Optical Drive ( None )
1 x Flash Media Reader / Writer ( 12-In-1 Internal Flash Media Card Reader/Writer - Black )
0 x Meter Display ( None )
1 x Sound Card ( 3D Premium Surround Sound Onboard )
1 x Network Card ( Intel Pro 10/100/1000 Network Card )

Total cost 1,202.
 
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J

Jack Revenant

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Apr 16, 2013
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It's not a bad build (though there are some inefficiencies), but buying from iBuyPower is unwise. It's far more efficient to build your computer yourself, and even paying a locally-based computer store or custom assembler would save you money and allow you more options in terms of components.

Edit: Here's an example of what you could build for yourself (or pay someone a bit to build for you) for less than your current build's cost:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($209.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($134.98 @ Outlet PC)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($67.19 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card ($433.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: NZXT Phantom 410 (Black/Orange) ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 620W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($65.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.94 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $1182.02
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-05-16 23:49 EDT-0400)

Edit: We can also take the price down, as needed. With minimal downgrades, that build could hit $1k.
 
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K

Kharpool

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May 16, 2013
3
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10,510
Ooo, thanks. I will have to try and find someone who can build it. The only reason I picked buying online is because I have no idea how to build one nor do I know anyone that can do it. It is much more bang for your buck, that's for sure. The other plus is the warranty that comes from buying online. Still, I'm a bit torn as to what to do. Do you know of anyone good in Mesa AZ that can build a PC for me??


 
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Jack Revenant

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Apr 16, 2013
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Generally, parts come with pretty decent warranties (the motherboard on that being the one major exception. In spite of making good products, ASRock seems allergic to reasonable warranties), so I wouldn't worry overly much there.

The bang-to-buck ratio of online-ordered builds is pretty abysmal. Sites like iBuyPower prey on people who don't know a good part from an average part. I highly advocate anything other than ordering a custom build online. I have also had good experiences with custom builders in the past.

I'm up in the Pacific Northwest, so you're a bit far away. You'd want to look around the local computer repair shops and see if any of them advertise custom builds or computer assembly. There are also sometimes folks who set themselves up as computer designers/assemblers. A glance over the local yellow pages should give you a few places to look into.
 
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K

Kharpool

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May 16, 2013
3
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10,510




Ok, I'll do that. Thank you so very much for your help.
 
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Jack Revenant

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Apr 16, 2013
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My pleasure.

Good luck and happy gaming!
 
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