What can get me a low end gaming pc for $350?

DarkDubzs-1337570 · Jun 29, 2013

Basically what the title says, can anybody recommend a list of parts for a gaming pc for $350 that can rune modern games like Battlefield 3, Black Ops 2, GTA 4, etc. and some future titles at around medium settings at like 720p? I find people say they have a gaming pc for $350, but then it ends up being like $500. So, please, if you can, keep the total price as close to $350. Recommend a $100 monitor too? Sorry, but im desperate now, i need a pc soon and i have a low budget.

slomo4sho · Jun 29, 2013

Recycling any parts?

DarkDubzs-1337570 · Jun 29, 2013

slomo4sho :

no, everything will have to be bought

Madn3ss795 · Jun 29, 2013

You need an OS also, I guess?

acktionhank · Jun 29, 2013

Hey can you see this link?

I've tried to make it public but it doesn't seem to be working.

https://secure.newegg.com/WishList/MySavedWishDetail.aspx?ID=30818948

The thing i really scimped on was a Refurbished 250GB HDD for $20.... But it's a good hard-drive.

You said desperate.

slomo4sho · Jun 29, 2013

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD Athlon II X4 750K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-F2A55M-DS2 Micro ATX FM2 Motherboard ($49.98 @ Outlet PC)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix 2GB (1 x 2GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($18.36 @ NCIX US)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix 2GB (1 x 2GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($18.36 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Hitachi 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.00 @ Newegg)
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7770 1GB Video Card ($79.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: NZXT Source 210 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Acer G215HVBbd 60Hz 21.5" Monitor ($89.99 @ Microcenter)
Total: $434.65

DarkDubzs-1337570 · Jun 29, 2013

Madn3ss795 :

yeah, windows 8. i know its $100 for the full version which i would need. I would prefer that the OS is also included in the price, but that's not realistic so i guess i can settle to add the OS after the $350

dhruvdd · Jun 29, 2013

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1bq1B

This is without an OS.Windows 8 64 bit will cost you $88.

SeismicAltop · Jun 29, 2013

I would recommend going for one of the AMD APUs.

acktionhank · Jun 29, 2013

slomo4sho :

This guy has it down... Mine was very similar to his.

The only thing i had different was a

TOPOWER TP-1687BS-400 Black / Silver SECC 0.8mm MicroATX Desktop Computer Case 400W SFX Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811237028

HGST CinemaStar 7K500 HCS725025VLAT80 250GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache PATA 133 3.5" Internal Hard Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822145871

Those are really if cost is of the utmost importance.... The additional $15 dollars on his build for the decent case and a decent 430w PSU is worth it in every way.

PS.... Don't go with a Dual-Core Pentium they will struggle a lot in a highly threaded game like BF4.

slomo4sho · Jun 29, 2013

Alternative monitor:

Monitor: Acer G236HLBbd 60Hz 23.0" Monitor ($109.99 @ Newegg)

acktionhank · Jun 29, 2013

SeismicAltop :

But getting a 7770GHZ for $79.99 really makes an APU seem like less of a bargain... The 7750's usually aren't even in that price range.

Madn3ss795 · Jun 29, 2013

This build would do then, good for future CPU/VGA upgrade, too. Using all the current deals available to keep it under 450$ :

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($84.98 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-78LMT-USB3 Micro ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($54.99 @ Microcenter)
Memory: Kingston Blu 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($25.00 @ Best Buy)
Storage: Hitachi 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.00 @ Newegg)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon HD 7770 GHz Edition 1GB Video Card ($84.98 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Source 210 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS95 DVD/CD Writer ($15.98 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: HP LV2011 60Hz 20.0" Monitor ($79.99 @ Microcenter)
Total: $443.90
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-06-29 01:57 EDT-0400)

DarkDubzs-1337570 · Jun 29, 2013

acktionhank :

slomo4sho :

This guy has it down... Mine was very similar to his.

The only thing i had different was a

TOPOWER TP-1687BS-400 Black / Silver SECC 0.8mm MicroATX Desktop Computer Case 400W SFX Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811237028

HGST CinemaStar 7K500 HCS725025VLAT80 250GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache PATA 133 3.5" Internal Hard Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822145871

Those are really if cost is of the utmost importance.... The additional $15 dollars on his build for the decent case and a decent 430w PSU is worth it in every way.

PS.... Don't go with a Dual-Core Pentium they will struggle a lot in a highly threaded game like BF4.

is the 4gb of ram enough? i was thinking of getting 8gb, but if 4gb is good enough, then its ok.

Madn3ss795 · Jun 29, 2013

4gb is more than enough for any budget system.

slomo4sho · Jun 29, 2013

Madn3ss795 :

Since you decided to modify on my recommendations, the FM2 board I recommended is is a better choice over the dated 780 chipset and dual channel ram is recommend over a single stick. In addition, the 750K is a somewhat underclocked 5800K without the the intergrated GPU.

Madn3ss795 · Jun 29, 2013

I don't even care about your recommendations, I just built one that can push out the best gaming performance for the money. Yes, the chipset is outdated, but the board is clearly not, and it's even better than the A55 you picked due to usb3.0 ports and a vrm heatsink for OC-ing. Plus if DarkDubzs want to upgrade his CPU later ( and of course he will ), he'll have to sell both the 750k and the board ( since 750k is already the last boss of FM2 socket ), while with the AM3+ board, the road to upgrade CPU is very open. Any AM3+ CPU, meaning the whole list of FX CPUs, can work on this board normally. And even when you want to compare gaming performance between the 2 systems, Toms clearly stated that the 965BE is better than the 750k, and the 7770GHZ edition is better than the normal 7770.

Last but not least, the RAM selection. Since an APU is not being used in your build, performance in daily tasks of a dual channel 1866mhz kit compared to a single bar shouldn't be bigger than 20%, and it's not something that anyone can realize unless they're running heavy rendering programs.. Is it worth trading 10% CPU performance, 10% GPU performance and the ability to upgrade CPU later on for that extra 20% in RAM speed? And keep in mind that faster speed doesn't mean higher ram capacity.

slomo4sho · Jun 29, 2013

Madn3ss795 :

Since you can't even tell that they the exact same card...

Madn3ss795 · Jun 30, 2013

Yes, but still better, right? Especially if you don't OC. Same thing applies for GTX680 vs GTX770. No one tell that they're different cards. And any other custom cooling design is better than XFX', after all.

Nokturnl1 · Jun 30, 2013

$350 PC - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6FD1b-tYkk&

slomo4sho · Jun 30, 2013

Madn3ss795 :

/sigh
They are the EXACT SAME CARD. We are not talking about the 7970 vs 7970GHz Edition here. The stock 7770 is 1GHz so the 7770 or 7770 GHz edition names are interchangeable.

In fact, The card that I recommended is called the 7770 on NCIX and 7770 GHz Edition on Newegg. It is the same card with two different labels.

ac130 · Jun 30, 2013

Nokturnl1 :

Just about 2 recommend that LOL

Madn3ss795 · Jun 30, 2013

Yea, but still a XFX card and doesn't packed with any games..

What can get me a low end gaming pc for $350?

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