Best gaming computer $500 or less?

Solution
a $500 Canadian computer will be different than a $500 US computer.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD Athlon II X4 750K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($86.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Motherboard: MSI FM2-A75MA-E35 Micro ATX FM2 Motherboard ($59.71 @ DirectCanada)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($64.00 @ Vuugo)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($64.79 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 650 Ti Boost 1GB Video Card ($149.99 @ NCIX)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 370 ATX Mid Tower Case ($44.86 @ DirectCanada)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($43.99 @ NCIX)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($15.79 @ DirectCanada)
Total: $530.11
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-29 20:25 EDT-0400)

This is a great option. $30 over budget, but all quality parts,
 
Solution

kulmnar

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Dec 15, 2011
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I created this list by shopping at http://www.ncix.com
NCIX ships in Canada, I have ordered parts from them when I built my entire system.

CPU: Intel Core i3 3240 Dual Core Hyperthreading Processor LGA1155 3.4GHZ Ivy Bridge 3MB Retail Box $127.99

Motherboard: ASUS P8H61-M LE/CSM R2.0 H61 DDR3 LGA1155 mATX PCI-E16 PCI-E1 PCI SATA3.0 VGA DVI GBLAN Motherboard $68.99

Memory: Crucial CT2KIT51264BA1339 8GB 2X4GB DDR3-1333 CL9 Dual Channel Memory Kit $80.41

DVD Burner: ASUS DRW-24F1ST 24X SATA DVD Writer Black $17.99

Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7770 OC 1050MHZ 1GB 4.5GHZ GDDR5 DVI HDMI 2XMINIDP PCI-E Video Card $119.99

Power Supply: Antec Neo Eco 520C 520W Power Supply ATX 12V Active PFC 80PLUS 120mm Fan $64.99

Case: Bitfenix Merc Beta Steel Black ATX Mid Tower Case 3X5.25 7X3.25 1X2.5 *No PS* Top USB2.0 Audio $34.99

HDD: Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB 3.5IN 16MB Cache SATA3 Internal Hard Disk Drive HDD $49.99

TOTAL = $565.34
 


The motherboard won't work without a bios update that you need a sandy bridge CPU in order to do.
The RAM should be 1600mhz.
The prices are in US so this will be $600+ when in Canadian.
The gtx650ti BOOST is much better than an hd 7770.
 

kulmnar

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A- The motherboard WILL work without a BIOS update, see http://www.asus.com/us/Motherboards/P8H61M_LECSM_R20/#support_CPU

B - 1333MHZ to 1600MHZ is negligeable, maybe 1 fps difference?

C - The prices are NOT in US$, they are in CDN$. I have ordered from NCIX myself, the prices are in Canadian dollars if you connect to the NCIX Canadian site (you go there automatically if you are in Canada).

D - You have a point for the 650 Ti Boost, in that case keep the 650 TI boost and replace the PSU with the XFX, the best of both worlds.
 

Jadian Van

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Sep 29, 2013
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So should I go for the ones tiny voices recommended, or the ones you have?
 

Jadian Van

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Sep 29, 2013
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Alright, thanks for your help! :D But as for the case, do I stick with the one in the video?
 

kulmnar

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Here's the ncix.com updated list based on Tiny's feedback, this pushes the price to almost $600 but you get a better CPU. Note that I will not recommend parts from Vendors that I have not shopped from, while the RAM that Tiny recommends is only $64, it is sold by Vuugo and I have never shopped there so I cannot recommend them.

CPU: Intel Core i3 3240 Dual Core Hyperthreading Processor LGA1155 3.4GHZ Ivy Bridge 3MB Retail Box $127.99

Motherboard: ASUS P8H61-M LE/CSM R2.0 H61 DDR3 LGA1155 mATX PCI-E16 PCI-E1 PCI SATA3.0 VGA DVI GBLAN Motherboard $68.99

Memory: Crucial CT2KIT51264BA1339 8GB 2X4GB DDR3-1333 CL9 Dual Channel Memory Kit $80.41

DVD Burner: ASUS DRW-24F1ST 24X SATA DVD Writer Black $17.99

Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 650 Ti Boost 1GB GDDR5 192BIT DUAL-LINK DVI-I DVI-D HDMI DP SLI Ready Graphics Card $159.99

Power Supply: XFX 550W PRO550W Core Edition Single Rail ATX 12V 44A 24PIN ATX Power Supply 80PLUS Bronze $58.99

Case: Bitfenix Merc Beta Steel Black ATX Mid Tower Case 3X5.25 7X3.25 1X2.5 *No PS* Top USB2.0 Audio $34.99

HDD: Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB 3.5IN 16MB Cache SATA3 Internal Hard Disk Drive HDD $49.99

TOTAL = $599.34
 


Still has a motherboard with no sata6
Still has 1333 RAM.

My build is cheaper and better. Not trying to be rude or anything of the sort, just trying to get OP the best build for the money.

I have an i3 and it is good, but in games coded to use 4 cores, you FEEL how much it holds the system back. The 750k is an AMAZING value for money.
 

Jadian Van

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Sep 29, 2013
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Would this case work? ANd also what should I do for a cooling system?

Case: http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129187