Gaming Pc Build Debate

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gravytrain

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So me and my friend have been debating which of our builds is better for our new pc friend to buy. Edit: He wants to definitely stay under ~$850
This is mine http://pcpartpicker.com/p/27OWj it's an $850 r9 290 3570k micro atx build, the RAM is just placeholder for the 8gb standard, 650w fully modular PSU. He says it's too unbalanced and the 290 is too good for the other parts.
Here's his http://pcpartpicker.com/p/27SJo 280x 6300 build. He says this is a better idea.
It will be for 1080p gaming in 2014 and beyond. What do you guys think?
Edit: fixed links.
Edit 2: sorry I'm on my phone and had the links wrong.
Edit 3: On desktop now, links totally valid, I had a bunch of links saved on my phone. It's perfect now. Sorry for the confusion.
 
Solution
lp231
^
Similar to the config, I've done, only a bit more expensive.
Any reason why it needs to have a R9-290? All cards mentioned here GTX 770 R9-280x are powerful too.
No one can predict how these cards will run with games that's coming out in the next 2 years. If a video card can't run a future game at ultra with 60+ FPS, then turn the game down a notch. IMO, I never understand that some needs to play every game at ultra quality. Is there some major difference between ultra and other qualities? Also when you're playing a FPS like BF4 and constantly moving, do you even have time to check out the fine details of the game?
Here is a BF4 image quality comparison, can anyone spot any major differences between each quality settings...
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R

realchaos

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Well those are the same builds....
Here's what I would recommend:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4430 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($184.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock H87 Performance ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($52.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 290 4GB Video Card ($399.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($25.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $877.92
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-24 18:44 EST-0500)

Better quality case, psu, and motherboard.
Newer haswell chip.

I would wait for the R9-290 to come out with aftermarket coolers.
 
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FastGunna

FastGunna

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Neither are particularly good, heres my suggestion.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3350P 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor ($176.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Asus P8H77-M LE Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 290 4GB Video Card ($399.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($25.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $841.91
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-24 18:51 EST-0500)

Edit: Does your friend need a monitor?
 
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gravytrain

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The ram was just thrown in as placeholder since 8gb is the standard
 
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FastGunna

FastGunna

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If he needs a monitor go for this.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3350P 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor ($176.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Asus P8H77-M LE Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon R9 280X 3GB Video Card ($299.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($25.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Asus VS247H-P 23.6" Monitor ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $871.90
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-24 18:58 EST-0500)

280x is great for 1080p, 290 is kinda unnecessary but I can see the appeal.
 
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D

Dblkk

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Yours is a little unbalanced but is fine, your mobo needs an upgrade though, and id find a k series unlocked chip and overclock. Should be able to find for almost same price $10-20 more and will really make a difference, especially years to come.

His, motherboard again. His chip is unlocked and you should definitely get a motherboard that allows overclocking, has software for it, and more than a 4 pin power plug.

Overall yours would be better but his is also $100 cheaper as he added a monitor. If he added that $100 towards mobo upgrade and gpu to fx 8320-8350 he would have the better.
 
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lp231

lp231

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Your build vs your friends build
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/27PiF
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/27SJo
CPU: no points given here, one is a Intel and the other is a AMD
M/B: Your friend: ATX 4 ram slots for future ram upgrades and system upgrade with the extra available PCIe slots.
Your's only has 2 slots so going with a 8Gb kit then there is no more upgrade path. Going with a single 8GB can lets you upgrade to 16GB, but that means
it's only running in single channel. Any only 1x PCIe x1 so adding any more further PCIe cards is severely limited.
RAM: Tie , both are the same
GPU: Yours, R9-290 is faster than R9-280x and has 4GB of vram ram compare to R9-280x which as 3Gb of vram
HDD: Tie, both of you choose the same exact HDD
Case: None Both of these cases lack front USB 3.0
PSU: Tie, you and your friend again have decided to use the same PSU
And the winner for who has the best build is....
None because both builds lack a DVD drive. No DVD drive = no Windows.

update: OP has again change his links. Both his and his friend have Intel CPUs and both have a R9-290 as their GPU
Your build: It's unbalanced, a unlock CPU with a low end H61 board. Not only that, the CPU has no future upgrade path. Socket 1155 and
Ivy Bridge is the end of the line for this platform. It would not be smart to spend your hard work money and buy something with no future upgrade path.
Your friends: it's also unbalanced, he went with a the highest i5 non K CPU and thought because it's locked, he can just also pick a low-end H81 board to go alone with it.
It seems both build wanted a high-end graphic card, with a system price that's as low as possible, which resulted in picking the cheapest parts.
If there is a winner here, it would be yours as least this updated config has a DVD drive to install Windows. If both has a DVD drive, then it would be
your friends because his motherboard can run Intel next CPU


Here is what I came up with
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: MSI Z87-G45 Gaming ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($69.70 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 290 4GB Video Card ($406.13 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair Carbide Series 300R Windowed ATX Mid Tower Case ($62.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair Professional 750W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - OEM (64-bit) ($97.98 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: LG 23EA53V-P 23.0" Monitor ($149.99 @ NCIX US)
Keyboard: Logitech G105 Wired Gaming Keyboard ($47.87 @ B&H)
Mouse: Logitech G500s Laser Gaming Mouse Wired Laser Mouse ($56.99 @ B&H)
Total: $1557.57
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-24 19:51 EST-0500)
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/27Xmg
 
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realchaos

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Look at my build above. It is more balanced:

-It uses the newer socket LGA 1150. Socket LGA 1155 is dead now since Ivy Bridge is being discontinued.
-It has a much better quality case, psu, and motherboard.

If you need a monitor, go for this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor ($147.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($94.99 @ NCIX US)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($52.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon R9 280X 3GB Video Card ($299.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($25.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Asus VS247H-P 23.6" Monitor ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $875.90
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-24 19:57 EST-0500)

-Switched from Intel to AMD.
-Opted for a R9-280X over a 290.
-Add a cpu cooler in the future to overclock.

If you want a R9-290, then you should wait for the aftermarket versions of it. The reference cooler is loud and runs very hot.
 
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gravytrain

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So you think downgrading from the 290 is a better idea? What if I went with an 8350 build with a different mobo?
 
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lp231

lp231

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Your build:
Use end of the line CPU and motherboard. Lack future CPU upgrade path. Has a unlock CPU with a low-end chipset motherboard. Change the CPU and motherboard to a Z87 then it would be a nice decent build.

Your friend's:
It's a different platform so can't really do a direct comparison between the two, to say which is better because it's like comparing apples to oranges. His CPU is 6 cores, and might utilize it when future program arrives.
Not sure why a monitor was thrown in there? If it's just to show that his build is at a lower price and also has a monitor which means it's better. Then a monitor will not automatically a computer "better", when it comes to a balance build.

 
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realchaos

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Well if you need a monitor, then you should definitely downgrade to a R9-280X. If you don't need a monitor, you can keep the R9-290.
There is no point in getting a FX-8350 because the FX-8320 is the same except clocked 500mhz lower. If you add a cpu cooler, you can overclock it to perform the same as a 8350.
 
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gravytrain

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The monitor doesn't need to fit into the ~$850 budget. What would you put together for roughly $850 (no monitor)?
Something else I came up with, 8320 and different mobo http://pcpartpicker.com/p/27ZBq
 
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realchaos

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-You're still using a lower quality case and psu.
-That motherboard is really low quality.

I would suggest this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4430 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($184.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock H87 Performance ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($52.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 290 4GB Video Card ($399.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $901.92
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-24 21:01 EST-0500)

But if you can't afford that extra $50, drop to a R9-280X.
 
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Swordkd

Swordkd

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PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor ($147.98 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($94.99 @ NCIX US)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 770 2GB Video Card ($329.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: PC Power & Cooling Silencer MK III 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($57.99 @ Microcenter)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $846.89
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-24 21:12 EST-0500)
 
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lp231

lp231

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PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4430 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($184.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI Z87-G41 PC Mate ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 290 4GB Video Card ($399.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Cougar Solution (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 600B 600W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $858.92
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-24 21:18 EST-0500)
 
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gravytrain

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$900 might be pushing it, so you think adjusting parts and grabbing the 280x is a better idea than budgeting on the parts and sticking to the 290? What do you think of lp's $858 build below yours?
 
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gravytrain

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This looks really solid to me.
 
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gravytrain

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Interesting build, not sure if I agree with a 770 build at 850, but definitely possible though.
 
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realchaos

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I think lp squeezed the R9-290 into the 850 budget. It's definitely a nice build to be able to fit a 290 into the budget, but in order to do so he had to cut down on other parts. For example, the case is meant for lower budget builds. It's totally out of place. EVGA psus are decent quality, but I would still go with a higher quality psu at this budget.

Fitting a R9-290 in this budget will mean that other parts will be not as great. A R9-280X or GTX 770 can already max out any game at 1080p right now, so I don't really see why you want to cramp a r9-290 in.
 
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gravytrain

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Just to be sure it can run bf4 64p multiplayer servers on ultra, and games soon to come. I think the 770 gets by but will soon be unable to run games on ultra at 60 fps. I run a 7970 and it dips pretty low on bf4 multiplayer. If a 290 can reasonably fit into an $850 budget I'm definitely interested, I just don't want to make the mistake on buying parts that are totally crap.
 
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Swordkd

Swordkd

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I just don't see a 400 dollar Gpu fitting comfortably into an 850 dollar build. Way too much allocated to the the video card, even though that's the single most important part in the system.

This is about as lean as it gets.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3350P 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor ($176.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H77M Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 290 4GB Video Card ($399.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: NZXT Source 210 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($36.01 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $868.93
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-24 23:26 EST-0500)
 
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